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In the name of Allah, the most Merciful, the most Mercy-Giving
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             Islamic Information and Products (tm)
      Tuesday Feburary 21, 2006, Muharram 22, 1427 AH
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Assalamu Alaikum:

This week brought the sad and disturbing news of the burning of churches
and more deaths in Turkey and Nigeria in connection to the ongoing
controversy about offensive cartoons about the Prophet Muhammad first
published in a Danish newspaper. Peace and blessings be upon the Prophet.

Love of the Prophet must not result in a few people once again
destroying their future by killing and burning churches. These people by
their actions need to seek God's and their victims' forgiveness,   offer
them compensation and reaffirm their faith if they truly want to atone
for their misdeeds.

Love of the Prophet must always reflect how merciful and forgiving he
was. While we condemn these cartoons, we applaud peaceful protests that
Muslims have engaged in well before the media caught on to the story.
However, we must dissociate ourselves from those who burn churches and
attack innocent people who have nothing to do with causing the offense.
The second sad news of the week was more evidence of the double standard
applied in dealing with Islamophobia and anti-Semitism. A court in Vienna,
Austria handed down a three-year jail term for David Irving,   a British
historian who denies that the Holocaust ever happened. Irving admitted to
the criminal charge of denying that the Nazis sent millions of Jews to
the gas chambers.

Irving was arrested in Austria last November, when he was scheduled to
give a lecture to students. He was taken into custody based on a warrant
issued in 1989 under Austrian laws that make Holocaust denial a crime.
Irving had given speeches in Vienna and another Austrian town,   Leoben,
that year. While it is fitting that Irving was punished for this crime,
it is surprising that the same countries that punish those who commit
anti-Semitism cannot understand why Muslims are offended by the Danish
cartoons. The fact that it becomes an issue of a "free speech" when Muslims
are involved, and an odious offense when other religious groups are
concerned smacks clearly of Islamophobia.   As the cartoon controversy
continues,   many Muslims around the world have wisely used    this
opportunity to educate others about the Prophet Muhammad,   peace and
blessings be upon him.

But it is not only non-Muslims who can learn about the Prophet of Islam.
Muslims themselves must learn how the Prophet dealt with those who didn't
just insult him, as those who drew and published these cartoons did,   but
tried to murder him, harm his family, torture his followers and destroy
Islam.

This week at SoundVision.com, we invite all, Muslims and non-Muslims,   to
learn more about the Prophet. In particular,   please read our article
about how he dealt with his enemies before and after Islam became
victorious. It is eye-opening reading,   especially for those who were
rightly hurt and offended, but reacted the wrong way to the offense.

Please also see our page on the Prophet and read more about his life and
contributions to humanity.

Peace
Abdul Malik Mujahid