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Saturday, October 11, 2008

US textbooks treat Islam as the true religion

A couple of weeks ago, a book came out that detailed many cases of bias in US textbooks, which included such problematic passages as "“Christianity was started by a young Palestinian named Jesus?” (The World, Scott Foresman/Pearson). " A number of other troubling claims are made, although the brief description of the book doesn't give specific examples.

I just noticed that the report included a mind-blowing table that compares how Judaism, Christianity and Islam are described. In the examples below, the origins of Judaism and Christianity are consistently described as "claims" and "stories" but the claims of Islam are described factually:

Comparison of Language Used for Beliefs of the Three Major Religions in Selected Textbooks

Textbook

Judaism

Christianity

Islam

The World (Pearson/Scott Foresman)



Caption to a picture of a seder plate: "Foods on the seder plate are symbolic of an ancient Hebrew story."


"The pilgrimage, or hajj (haj), to Mecca is an essential part of Islam, the religion revealed to Muhammad . . . .

World History: Continuity and Change (Holt)



Glossary entry: “Ten Commandments: Moral laws Moses claimed to have received from the Hebrew God Yahweh on Mount Sinai.”


Glossary entry: “Qur’an Holy Book of Islam containing revelations received by Muhammad from God.”

World Civilizations: The Global Experience (Pearson)




Glossary entry: “Jesus of Nazareth” reads in part, “prophet and teacher among the Jews; believed by Christians to be the Messiah . . . .”

Glossary entry: "Muhammad Prophet of Islam . . .; received revelations from Allah in 610 C.E. and thereafter . . . .”

Modern World History: Patterns of Interaction.(McDougal Littell)




According to the New Testament, Jesus of Nazareth was born around 6 to 4 B.C.”

According to Jesus’ followers, he rose from the dead. . . .”

Muhammad’s teachings, which are the revealed word of God . . . , are found in the holy book called the Qur’an.”

World Cultures and Geography - Eastern Hemisphere (McDougal Littell)

Judaism is a story of exile.”


Christians believe that Jesus was the promised Messiah.”

"The Qur'an is the collection of God's revelations to Muhammad"



This isn't scholarship, this is indoctrination.