The Peace but a Sword

Islam...Is it a religion of peace?...Are Muslims an easy ally in the fight against global secularization and the culture of death?...Are their beliefs really so different than our own?

Some Christians view Islam as a sister religion, a branch of the same Abrahamic tree—lacking the fullness of revelation but nonetheless a religion of peace. Others are more critical of Islamic teachings but still see Muslims as valuable partners in the global fight against secularization and the Culture of Death.

In Not Peace but a Sword, Robert Spencer argues they’re both wrong—and warns Christians against the danger of thinking that Islam is an easy ally.

Many Christian groups, including the Catholic Church, do recognize whatever is good and true in Islam, and their leaders rightly pursue peaceful accord and common ground with all religions. Spencer argues, however, that real peace can come only from truth. Where there is falsehood in Islamic doctrine, morals, and practice, papering over the truth actually hurts the cause of peace.

And so Spencer, the New York Times best-selling author of more than a dozen books dealing with Islam and the West, shines the light of truth on areas where Christians and Muslims don’t just quibble over small details but fundamentally disagree, including:

The character of God, Jesus, and divine revelation

The nature of truth and the source of moral law

Religious freedom and other basic human rights

Life issues, marriage, and sexual morality

The rights and dignity of women

He demonstrates how these differences are not academic but real-world. They are critical and drive Muslim behavior toward Christians and others. If we fail to open our eyes to these differences, we do so at our peril.

He demonstrates how these differences are not academic but real-world. They are critical and drive Muslim behavior toward Christians and others. If we fail to open our eyes to these differences, we do so at our peril.

Review

Robert Spencer is a careful observer of Islam and a courageous voice on behalf of Christians. In Not Peace But a Sword he shows us how to take Islam seriously without falling into alarmism, hatred, or bigotry, and provides a needed corrective to media disinformation. --Scott Hahn --Fr. Scanlan Chair of Biblical Theology --Franciscan University of Steubenville

A great many Catholics know only a Disney-fied version of Islam, and still cling to the dangerous illusion that Muslims and Christians share much in common. But as Robert Spencer ably demonstrates, beneath the surface similarities lies a deep and possibly unbridgeable gulf. This is must reading not only for Catholics but for all Christians. --William Kilpatrick -- author of Christianity, Islam, and Atheism: The Struggle for the Soul of the West

Robert Spencer carefully examines the challenge posed to Christianity by an increasingly militant Islam. His case is calm, lucid, accurate, and uncompromising in its presentation of the facts of history. He provides an honest and unflinching account of the roots of Christian/Muslim tensions, a robust defense of Jesus Christ and Christianity in response to Muslim claims, and a sobering wake-up call to all Christians. --Patrick Madrid ---author of Envoy for Christ: 25 Years as a Catholic Apologist and host of the Right Here, Right Now radio show

About the Author

Robert Spencer is the director of Jihad Watch , a program of the David Horowitz Freedom Center, and the author of twelve books, including two New York Times bestsellers, The Truth about Muhammad and The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades). Spencer, a Melkite Greek Catholic, has led seminars on Islam and jihad for the United States Central Command, United States Army Command and General Staff College, the U.S. Army s Asymmetric Warfare Group, the FBI, the Joint Terrorism Task Force, and the U.S. intelligence community.