Only days ago I read where a large number of food producers in America were now sending products to the market, manufactured under Halal-certified standards. Standards that are mandated under Sharia law.
If Islam were to exist in this country like every other religious or unusual practice, and those who chose to follow Islam’s way did so because they wanted to, then go right ahead, but that is not what is happening. This nation, founded on principles of freedom is rapidly losing that freedom through overhwelming governmental and religious terrorism.
An example:
Secret U.S. Memo Made Legal Case to Kill a Citizen
By CHARLIE SAVAGE
Published: October 8, 2011
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration’s secret legal memorandum that opened the door to the killing of Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-born radical Muslim cleric hiding in Yemen, found that it would be lawful only if it were not feasible to take him alive, according to people who have read the document.
The memo, written last year, followed months of extensive interagency deliberations and offers a glimpse into the legal debate that led to one of the most significant decisions made by President Obama — to move ahead with the killing of an American citizen without a trial.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/09/world/middleeast/secret-us-memo-made-legal-case-to-kill-a-citizen.html

Another example may well be the introduction of permissible foods into every market place. Are we there yet? No, but Costco has added Halal-certified foods into the mainstream, right next to a “regular” chicken. My father saw this piece of news, and with feathers ruffled pointed it out to me. I informed him that this is nothing terribly new. See below; taken from Islam, an informational page in Wikipedia

The leading North American halal food producer and distributor in the United States is the Midamar Corporation. Midamar is the first company in the USA to slaughter halal beef in USDA inspected plants.{Midamar Milestones} This company has been in operation since 1974, and it is based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the home of the oldest mosque in the Americas still standing. The children of Muslims who settled in Iowa around 1900 discerned a need to start producing halal beef and chicken catering to the tastes of American Muslims.
Since 1991, mainstream manufacturers of soups, grains, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, prepared foods, and other products, as well as hotels, restaurants, airlines, hospitals, and other service providers have pursued the halal market. These companies purchase halal-certified products. Halal certification tells Muslims that their ingredients and production methods have been tested and declared permissible by a certification body. It also allows companies to export products to most Middle Eastern countries and South East Asian Countries. The oldest and most well-known halal certifier in the United States is called the “Islamic Services of America”. Something that companies which intend to export halal products must keep in mind, when choosing a certifier, is whether or not the certifier is recognized by foreign governmental bodies.[10]
In 1986, the “Islamic Meat & Poultry Company” was founded in Stockton, California. Islamic Meat & Poultry is a halal-only, U.S. Department of Agriculture-inspected, hand-slaughtering and meat-processing facility. This company follows the principles of slaughtering and meat-processing according to the Islamic Shariah.[citation needed]
In 1993, Mr. Ahsan Mohyuddin founded the “Halal Meat & Food Corporation” in Bladenboro, North Carolina.[citation needed]
Also in Europe, several organizations have been created over the past 20 years in order to certify the halal products. A survey recently published by a French association of Muslim Consumers (ASIDCOM) shows that the market of halal products has been developed in a chaotic way. The certification organizations do not have a common definition of “halal” nor agreed upon control procedures and traceability. The controls implemented by individual agencies are all very different: it can go from an annual audit of the slaughterhouse to checking each production with permanent controls in place and on-going independent.[11]

But wait a minute, I am a believer in Jesus Christ, therefore a Christian. Attempting to live my life as peacably as I can, here in the land of the free, so why should this affect me?

For one, maybe it is because we are losing our freedoms. Our government is throwing constitutional freedoms right out the window, and Islam, with its Sharia law, is hell bent on taking over the world. Will they? That is yet to be seen.

Consider how this effects the Christian community, and its scriptural standpoint.

1 Corinthians 8:1-13 NIV (1) Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that “We all possess knowledge.” But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. (2) Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. (3) But whoever loves God is known by God. (4) So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that “An idol is nothing at all in the world” and that “There is no God but one.” (5) For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), (6) yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. (7) But not everyone possesses this knowledge. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat sacrificial food they think of it as having been sacrificed to a god, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled. (8) But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do. (9) Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak. (10) For if someone with a weak conscience sees you, with all your knowledge, eating in an idol’s temple, won’t that person be emboldened to eat what is sacrificed to idols? (11) So this weak brother or sister, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. (12) When you sin against them in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. (13) Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall.

Let’s attempt to examine this, one bite (humor) at a time.
Verse 4:
So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that “An idol is nothing at all in the world” and that “There is no God but one.”
“Food sacrificed to idols”
We understand that Halal (Arabic: حلال‎ ḥalāl, “lawful”) is a term designating any object or an action which is permissible to use or engage in, according to Islamic law. The term is used to designate food seen as permissible according to Islamic law (Sharia, الشريعة الإسلامية). (Wikipedia)

Part of what makes it permissible to the Muslim is the manner in which it is slaughtered.
According to the laws of Ḏabīḥah halal, certain prerequisites must be met before an animal is slaughtered: (Wikipedia)
The act of taking an animal’s life is called a “sacrifice”. A statement of practice from the ENA meat packing company. How Halal meat is prepared. From ENA meat packers.
The animal must not be a forbidden substance as per the Quran.[1]
The head of an animal that is slaughtered using halal methods is aligned with the Qiblah (or Kaaba). Dhabiha: method of slaughter Turning of the head towards the Qiblah
The slaughter itself must be done by a sane (mentally competent) adult Muslim, Jew, or Christian as they are considered “People of the Book” (Arabic: Ahl al-Kitāb‎); this is a point of consensus amongst Muslim scholars. They differed however concerning whether Sabians and Zoroastrians are also included under People of the Book as stated in Surah Al-Maa’idah, Ayat 5. Modern authors have proposed that Christians aren’t included in this dispensation, due to the Paulian doctrine of the Trinity. This proposal does not hold much weight however, as the trinity and ascription of a son is mentioned several times disparagingly in the Quran, yet the verse 4:5 was one of the last to be revealed.
All Muslim scholars hold that mentioning God Almighty (Allah Akbar) name at the time of slaughter is a must, they differed as to whether or not forgetting to do so or leaving it off intentionally at the time of slaughter rendered the sacrifice void and thus the meat forbidden for consumption. They also agree that if other than God’s name is mentioned then this would be forbidden, due to the verse “Eat not of that (meat) on which Allah’s Name has not been pronounced.” [Al-Anaam 6:121]
Thus an animal slaughtered by a Christian who did not mention anything at the time of slaughter would be permissible to some, while other scholars would hold it impermissible. (Wikipedia)
Dhabīḥah (Arabic: ذَبِيْحَة‎ ḏabīḥah IPA: [ðæˈbiːħɐ], or Zabiha) is, in Islamic law, the prescribed method of ritual slaughter. The precise details of the slaughtering method arise from Islamic tradition educated by the prophet Muhammad, rather than direct Quranic mandate. It is used to comply with the conditions stated in the Qur’an:

The Kaaba (Arabic: الكعبة‎ al-Kaʿbah IPA: [ʔælˈkæʕbɐ], English: The Cube)[1] is a cuboid-shaped building in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and is the most sacred site in Islam.[2] The Qur’an states that the Kaaba was constructed by Abraham and his son Ishmael, after Ishmael had settled in Arabia.[3] The building has a mosque built around it, the Masjid al-Haram. All Muslims around the world face the Kaaba during prayers, no matter where they are. One of the Five Pillars of Islam requires every Muslim to perform the Hajj pilgrimage at least once in his or her lifetime if they are able to do so. Multiple parts of the Hajj require pilgrims to walk seven times around the Kaaba in a counter-clockwise direction (as viewed from above). This circumambulation, the Tawaf, is also performed by pilgrims during the Umrah (lesser pilgrimage).[2] However, the most dramatic times are during the Hajj, when, officially, about 6 million pilgrims gather to circle the building on the same day.[4][5]
In terms of verse 4: “about eating food sacrificed to idols:”
God gave distinct directions about NOT eating foods sacrificed to idols, but that was under the law.

Paul also spoke about it, because, while the Idol does nothing for the recipient of that food, eating it does bring about a consciousness of the act, the symbolism, and their god. God, being a jealous God, is not the least bit interested in sharing you with something associated with another god; we call that Idolatry.

Paul spoke about our liberty, but he also spoke about the hazards of using that liberty as a license. So, if I have the freedom to not worry about where some meat came from and what it was dedicated to, and my lack of concern causes someone who is weaker to fall away from God because they cannot now justify a good reason to serve the living God, just because they saw me eating something questionable, absurd as that seems. I also have the directive to not exercise my liberties in front of you.

So the question then is: If I eat your Halal-certified food, I am then partaking in your worship, your symbolism, and your false god?
I might be, especially if I am aware of it, and I can certainly see how some weaker Christians might stumble over this. Until just a few days before the writing of this I was not even aware of such certifications on food.
Is the method of slaughter a bad thing? No more than any other, except that they declare the name of Allah over it, and specifically point this animal toward the Ka’aba, in image, an idol, and that was forbidden under the law. If I am not under the law, then why would the Ka’aba be a problem to me? Because God did not say “you shall have no other God’s before me” just to practice speaking. To the modern day Christian that could imply the Television if it takes his place. And there is always the possibility of you stumbling, because they seem to honor god for providing and they honor the animal for giving it’s life that they may live.

Verse 4: “There is no God, but one”
In some ways I have already touched upon this. God is a jealous God, and if you read the scriptures then you saw how angry he got at people carving up a stick and worshipping it, as if it brought them life. God berates these things that have no arms to provide for you, and no lips to speak to you, and yet you waste your time falling over yourself before them.
An example of how preposterous idol worship can be comes to mind. Remember when the Philistines captured the ark? No, then read this.
1 Samuel 5:1-5 NIV After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. (2) Then they carried the ark into Dagon’s temple and set it beside Dagon. (3) When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the LORD! They took Dagon and put him back in his place. (4) But the following morning when they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the LORD! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on the threshold; only his body remained. (5) That is why to this day neither the priests of Dagon nor any others who enter Dagon’s temple at Ashdod step on the threshold.

Verse (5) For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), (6) yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. (7) But not everyone possesses this knowledge.

We really want to believe that we live in a sanitary world, where nothing interrupts our peace, and yet we surrounded with a world occupied with its own mindset. Focused upon their own gods they do not care how their goals impact you. Am I being narrowed minded, no more so than God, but God does give us the freedom of choice. We are free to follow after him or not. There are of course repercussions for that bad decision; an endless life of hell with agony.
One of things we have to settle in our minds is the fact that God is real, and that there is a promised return for following him. How can you know this? God has proven himself to be true. He has done what he said, and done it publicly. Jesus, his Son, and God himself, did exactly what he said. The Jews even attested to this when they could argue any better than to say the works that Jesus did were of the devil. Jesus, did things that, even to them, only God could do.
Isn’t it odd that over 500 years after the death of Jesus, Mohammed comes along with his message in opposition to the cross and Christianity.

What we are dealing with is God’s plan for the end, and we need to be focused upon that. What I see people reacting to, with anger, is people and government. How do you justify your actions when our directive is to PRAY. Yes, God gave us brains and mouths, so with them we speak out against a government that chooses to throw away due process for an American citizen.

If we are going to react with such emotion then let’s get people educated, react at the ballot box, and get some people in government that have a backbone and are willing to keep this nation free and out of debt.
Sadly, I think that is impossible now; you prevent a landside before it happens, not during.

I cannot tell you how many times I have heard someone ask, “why doesn’t the bible speak of the United States in end times events?” Maybe it is because we become an Islamic nation, ruled by Sharia law, where Christians are killed, and this country becomes the base of warfare against the Jews.

It was recently in the news that the Ohio prison system, in response to Muslim prisoners, has implemented Halal foods exclusively for them. You should be aware that the prison systems are the biggest recruiters of converts to Islam here in the United States.

Do you not realize that, scripturally speaking, something is holding back the evil in the world from completely dominating, and Islam is only a part of that team, a major part yes, but still a part. That force, spoken of in second in 2Thessalonians, is a handful, so to speak, of praying people, who are passionately standing against demonic forces that are going to have their way for a relatively short time. Do not think that Islam’s short, violent reign will not be the norm, for Jesus himself tells us that no man would survive their reign if God did not shorten time.