Difference between revisions of "Talk:Obama's Religion"

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(TOC and header dispute: Our liberal and conservative entries are fine: no TOC that obscures the content on the first page.)
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:''Please read the related [[Debate:Is Obama a Muslim?]], [[Debate: What is sufficient proof that Obama is a Muslim?]] and [[Mystery:Why Do Some Oppose the Likelihood that Obama Is Muslim?]].''
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Is it not necessary to delete this talkpage? <font color="lime">'''R7'''</font> ~ <small>[[User talk:R7|<font color="limegreen">''Talk''</font>]]</small> 16:06, 4 August 2011 (EDT)
 
Is it not necessary to delete this talkpage? <font color="lime">'''R7'''</font> ~ <small>[[User talk:R7|<font color="limegreen">''Talk''</font>]]</small> 16:06, 4 August 2011 (EDT)
 
:Why do you say that? [[User:Jcw|Jcw]] 16:13, 4 August 2011 (EDT)
 
:Why do you say that? [[User:Jcw|Jcw]] 16:13, 4 August 2011 (EDT)
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Why was the image restored when even to my ancient eyes it aint him – his father? --[[User:Rleonardw|Rleonardw]] ([[User talk:Rleonardw|talk]]) 13:42, 30 January 2017 (EST)
 
Why was the image restored when even to my ancient eyes it aint him – his father? --[[User:Rleonardw|Rleonardw]] ([[User talk:Rleonardw|talk]]) 13:42, 30 January 2017 (EST)
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==Christianity Today quote==
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For 99.9% of people, we take them at their word when they tell us their religious affiliation.  Most people are willing to take President Obama at is word as well.  I suspect that many people hear a rumor that President Obama was a Muslim, or thought that he had a funny-sounding name and assumed that he was a Muslim. So, when asked in a poll, they said that Obama was a Muslim.  (Some other people also said it to troll the polling organization.)
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The most important fact in this article is the magazine quote.  It explains why Obama considers himself a Christian and why other people are saying that he is Muslim.  I believe it should be moved back from the footnote to the main article.  I also have not seen much on this issue since Obama left the White House.  I agree with everything that President Trump said about the Obama birth certificate matter -- Obama's 2008 primary opponents started it, and Donald J Trump put it to rest in the fall of 2016.  That should apply equally to the "Obama is a Muslim" rumor as well. Our energy is better spent documenting Obama surveillance policy. [[User:JDano|JDano]] ([[User talk:JDano|talk]]) 18:24, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
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:This article was created then the "is Obama a Muslim" debates were actively occurring. This article does not have much activity right now, other than edit warring. We are focusing most of our time now on issues such as Obama's surveillance (look at RobS's edits). I don't buy the arguments that Obama is secretly a practicing Muslim (I also don't believe he is a practicing or orthodox Christian either, and I do think he has strong pro-Islam sympathies). However, I think the article is good now, as the intro (the first line I added) does not take a stance or make any judgment, and both sides to this issue are discussed. --[[User:1990&#39;sguy|1990&#39;sguy]] ([[User talk:1990&#39;sguy|talk]]) 18:48, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
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::IMO, a public consensus that Obama has some sort Islamic sympathies, if not being a closet Muslim, versus being a cosmetic Christian, is stronger today than what people were willing to admit to pollster while he was in office. And for obvious reasons, harassment and fear of reprisal from the Obama machine. [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 19:35, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
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:::I will repeat what I stated above:
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:::<blockquote>Given that Obama has left public office, does this article serve any purpose? Even if it convinces readers, would they really care? Is anyone coming to read this article to learn or are they just being sent by critics to it to get a misimpression of Conservapedia? JDano (talk) 13:28, 3 February 2017 (EST)</blockquote>
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:::The article currently "take[s] a stance and make[s]" a pro-Muslim judgement. [[User:JDano|JDano]] ([[User talk:JDano|talk]]) 22:34, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
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::::So, are you proposing deletion, retitling, or what? It's got nearly 400,000 hits. [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 23:04, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
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:::::If we are going to present both sides, how do we include these in a Conservapedia article? [http://www.counterpunch.org/2017/02/22/yes-real-donald-trump-is-a-muslim/] and [http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/18/politics/trump-obama-muslim-birther/index.html] and [http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2017/05/21/trump-slammed-hypocrite-bowing-saudi-king-smith-nr.cnn]?  This silly ugliness works both ways. [[User:JDano|JDano]] ([[User talk:JDano|talk]]) 23:10, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
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::::::Obama is as Christian as his former pastor, G-d damn the United States Rev. [[Jeremiah Wright]]. Most Christians I know don't curse the name of God, Christian scripture makes it clear about that. Is the article relevant today? Unfortunately Obama decided not to leave the limelight, only the office he held. He stays in the news and so should his past. --Jpatt 23:18, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
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:::::::@JDano, I don't see where this is a big problem. Your first link is a parody page, and even Obama took the oath on two Bible's. The second doesn't,t amount to anything, based on "suggesting". Big deal. People are suggesting a multi-billionaire is a KGB stooge, which is more outlandish than suggesting Obama is/was a Muslim. In Obama's cause it was plausible; in Trump's case it just shows how ridiculous and naive people can be. Your third link is no biggee, either. I had qualms when Ronald Reagan bowed his head to the Queen and accepted Knighthood. That had symbolic meaning. But the Saudi King isn't the Caliph, and he's breaking Islamic law just being the same room with a filthy infidel, let alone touching or honoring him in some way. In Trump's case, there's a ''quid pro quo'': Trump accepting an honor in appreciation for everything America has done for an ally. In Obama's case, there​ is no way to walk back the subservience Obama committed America to, leading from behind, and the slaughter of Yemen and Syria is what Obama & and King Abdullah have to show for it.
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:::::::Trump's an Episcopalian; and his life shows the effect Norman Vincent Peale had on him. [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 00:01, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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In furtherance of the comments immediately above, no self-serving assertion by a politician should be accepted at face value.  When the evidence is overwhelming that he's lying, then it's an important issue for the public, for historians, and for anyone who might consider his credibility.  I suppose it is the latter issue that causes some to protest too much when anyone questions Obama's Religion.  Any conscientious historian would engage in the same inquiry we do here.--[[User:Aschlafly|Andy Schlafly]] ([[User talk:Aschlafly|talk]]) 00:16, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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:I agree. Obama's life from the earliest we've got to know him is one big long deception. There is nothing special, unique, or shocking to this. Millions live their lives like this daily. He's not even a leader. In a sense, I feel sorry for him. He's been used as little more than pawn by Democratic donors and globalists. He probably only got the job ''because'' his middle name was Hussein, to push the multi-cuktural agenda. [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 01:05, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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== Overall critique of the article ==
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We have to separate our opinions about Obama in general from our opinions about Conservapedia's goals.  Every website has a finite reservoir of credibility.  It may be that due to hard work and exhaustive research, CP has a better-than-the-pack coverage of Wikipedia bias or CIA surveillance.  We should showcase our best work.  However, Donald Trump (before he became politically active), decided to investigate the birth certificate and religion claims '''that were started by Obama's 2008 primary opponents.'''  He spent more money on the investigation than CP ever had.  Then-candidate Trump announced that his investigation put the birth certificate and Muslim issues to rest.[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/09/16/trump-clinton-trade-barbs-over-obama-birther-movement.html]  CP's response to that was to leave the [[Obama's religion]] article unchanged.  This article could examine how the rumors got started, how Trump and others investigated and dismissed the claims, how Obama addressed the claims and put them to rest, and how polling data shows that the pubic can be influenced by fake news.  Instead, it is written as if it advocates the proposition followed by a rebuttal of the strawman assertions made in the first half of the article.  Critics then send readers here to show that CP's editor corps are internally conflicted and mislead by fake news. So, we spend our limited credibility on a poorly-written article that has been passed by events.  In Trump's word, "Now we all want to get back to make American strong and great again." [[User:JDano|JDano]] ([[User talk:JDano|talk]]) 05:23, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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:::There. I tried to make it more neutral without ripping up the body of the text. I don't know how much more it may need. What do you think? [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 09:23, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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::::"Limited credibility" means you don't understand what we are all about. --Jpatt 09:38, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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:::::Every website has a finite amount of credibility, and first impressions are lasting.  If people come to this article in 2017 as one of their first exposures to Conservapedia, we will not get them back. [[User:JDano|JDano]] ([[User talk:JDano|talk]]) 05:56, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
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If you want to instantly give the article more credibility, then put my material atop the article which gives the evidence that Obama is not a Muslim. I say this because Obama is extremely unlikely to be a Muslim. The odds of Trump being a liberal "Manchurian candidate" are higher than the pork eating, beer swilling, homosexuality loving, feminism loving Obama being a Muslim.
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I can understand people's distrust and antipathy towards Obama. And when people are overly emotional about a topic, it can impair their judgment. But at some point, you have "let go of your investigation" that Obama could be a Muslim and your claims that Obama is probably a Muslim.
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[[Confirmation bias]] often occurs when you set out to prove a position from the start rather than go where the evidence leads. The first portion of this article is a textbook example of the danger of allowing confirmation bias to negatively affect an articles quality. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] ([[User talk:Conservative|talk]]) 10:11, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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:As JDano expresses, we should take a nuetral stance. Many of the claims on both sides really stretch credulity. What does attending a funeral have to do with Christianity? Read you Bible back-and-forth, upside down, Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Esperanto, Polish, Yiddish, whatever. You will not find one single word, let alone phrase or verse that remotely suggests a believers standing in Christ has anything to do with honoring the dead. Yet this item appears in both the pro and con sections. In the pro section, it's number 1 on the list. In the con section, it's boldened. ,This page teaches us nothing about Christianity, let alone Islam. [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 10:49, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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::RobS, previously I merely fired off my starboard evidential cannons that Obama may be an adherent of [[liberal Christianity]]. Today, I fired off the port evidential cannons indicating he may be a closet atheist or closet agnostic. Today, the steamship "SS Obama is a Muslim according to Conservapedia" was scuttled. :) [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] ([[User talk:Conservative|talk]])
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:::IMO, he's a secular gay Muslim, which borders on agnosticism/atheism. I believe he is hostile to Christians, and prejudiced or disposed to favoring Islamic culture (which is predominantly a secular culture) he identifies with, moreso than American culture or Islam. What he knows of Christianity, undoubtably he learned in adulthood, and not voluntarily. It was the result of his relationship with his domestic partner. The central significance of the Christian Church in African-American communities is totally alien to his upbringing and attitudes, and remains so.  [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 12:50, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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This entry stirs strong emotions.  Some might resist the notion that one's religious beliefs are not really what says they are.  It's an unsettling insight, but it's plainly true.  If one claimed to be the greatest fill-in-the-blank, few would believe him.  If a politician makes a self-serving claim to believe in fill-in-the-blank, one should be equally skeptical.
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As to Obama's refusal to attend Christian funerals of prominent political figures like a Supreme Court Justice and a former First Lady, it does suggest he disfavors attending Christian funerals.  That is a key data point explained by Islamic doctrine.  An atheist would not have such reluctance.--[[User:Aschlafly|Andy Schlafly]] ([[User talk:Aschlafly|talk]]) 21:32, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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:Jackie Kennedy's funeral was probably the last First Lady any sitting President attended. They don't  regularly do so nor are they expected. It's a bit of stretch to read anything into it. Orthodox Jews have the commandment, "Ye shall come at no unclean thing." Gathering around a corpse is hardly Christian; it's a tradition in some Christian cultures, but this is hardly the sort of thing we should deem "Christian behavior" or in anyway attached to the Christian faith. [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 21:43, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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::Attending funerals of high-ranking public officials are part of the job duties of other high-ranking public officials.  The funeral for the unexpected death of perhaps the most prominent Supreme Court Justice in a generation should have been attended by Obama, even if you're right about Nancy Reagan.  Obama didn't attend.  When he spoke at Georgetown, they covered a Christian symbol on the wall for him also.--[[User:Aschlafly|Andy Schlafly]] ([[User talk:Aschlafly|talk]]) 23:51, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
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The basic question is whether we take a position advocating one side or the other.  I believe that every person's relationship with God is very complicated.  I also believe that most of the debate about Obama's religion was politically motivated.  It will be very hard to do justice to either in a short concise article.  The basic structure of the article, which was proposed as a compromise above is sound: a short lead paragraph and then two major sections: one giving the claims for the Muslim rumor and the other refuting those rumors.  Moving the table of content toward the bottom of the page shows bias for one position vs the other.  Many thanks to all for their hard work on this. [[User:JDano|JDano]] ([[User talk:JDano|talk]]) 05:51, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
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:We have many entries more complicated than this one, such as [[quantum mechanics]].  Encyclopedias exist to address complicated questions.
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:I think this entry hits a chord in part because some feel that one's religion is what one says it is, period.  But nothing is what one says it is.  There is an underlying reality that is often different from self-serving claims.  [[God]] is not going to accept self-serving statements as being automatically true, and neither should we.--[[User:Aschlafly|Andy Schlafly]] ([[User talk:Aschlafly|talk]]) 11:39, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
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::I agree with the premise Obama is a Muslim. But some of the "evidence" here is pretty lame. Sometimes less is more. [[User:RobSmith|RobS]]<sup>[[User talk:RobSmith|''Deep Six the Deep State!'']]</sup> 11:42, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
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:::If most people are willing to take anyone at his word about his religion, then we should start the article by highlighting what Obama says about his religious views.  I personally don't care if Obama is a Muslim or not, and I will not evaluate his Presidency based on his religion. Nor will I attack Kennedy for being Catholic, Romney for being Mormon, or Joe Lieberman for being Jewish.  The religious tests of the 1950s no longer apply.  The current article is costing Conservapedia credibility.
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:::What is our intended audience for this page, home-schooled high school students?  This page as currently written would never convince a high school student that Obama is a Muslim.  Why is Conservapedia beating this drum after "Donald J Trump put an end to it."? [[User:JDano|JDano]] ([[User talk:JDano|talk]]) 22:17, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
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== TOC and header dispute ==
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There is a dispute, as seen in the page history, on whether to add a "TOC" below the section detailing the evidence in favor of Obama being a Muslim and with a header above that section (like what I did [http://www.conservapedia.com/index.php?title=Obama%27s_Religion&diff=1347195&oldid=1347190 here]). I strongly support doing this because it makes the article more evenhanded, rather than making it seem like we're arguing that Obama is a Muslim (we should state facts and let the readers come to a conclusion through them). Also, the articles [[Liberal]] and [[Conservative]] do the same thing. This will not reduce the visibility of the "in favor" section. --[[User:1990&#39;sguy|1990&#39;sguy]] ([[User talk:1990&#39;sguy|talk]]) 16:14, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
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:This kind of stuff is done on [[Wikipedia]], with a big TOC that tends to obscure the best insights of the entry.  I'll check our [[liberal]] and [[conservative]] entries to see if the first page is covered with a TOC.  If so, I'll remove it there also.  When people click on an entry, they want content quickly, not an overlay that requires them to dig further.--[[User:Aschlafly|Andy Schlafly]] ([[User talk:Aschlafly|talk]]) 01:25, 28 May 2017 (EDT)
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::Our [[liberal]] and [[conservative]] entries are fine:  no TOC that obscures the content on the first page.--[[User:Aschlafly|Andy Schlafly]] ([[User talk:Aschlafly|talk]]) 01:26, 28 May 2017 (EDT)

Revision as of 05:26, May 28, 2017

Please read the related Debate:Is Obama a Muslim?, Debate: What is sufficient proof that Obama is a Muslim? and Mystery:Why Do Some Oppose the Likelihood that Obama Is Muslim?.

Is it not necessary to delete this talkpage? R7 ~ Talk 16:06, 4 August 2011 (EDT)

Why do you say that? Jcw 16:13, 4 August 2011 (EDT)
Sorry for the late reaction, but this is an empty talkpage. Normally these things, without content, so far as I saw, are being deleted, or am I wrong? R7 15:44, 8 August 2011 (EDT)

Obama is United Church of Christ

Hello, I think this should be updated to show that Pres. Obama was a baptised member of the United Church of Christ, attended Trinity UCC, and continues to attend Episcopalian and UCC churches.http://www.ucc.org/barack-obama-candidate

Question

Hey guys! I'm sure this has been discussed before but I can't seem to find the discussion... maybe someone here could point me in the right direction? This article shows pretty conclusively that Obama is a Muslim, I'm not arguing that but... why does it matter? Isn't he entitled to his freedom of religion just like the rest of us? I mean, I disagree totally with his policies bordering on socialistic but this is something I've never understood. (Unless of course he claims to be christian, that would be different). Thanks! Gregory S. Kroeger 13:43, 11 August 2011 (EDT)Greg

Hello all! Now I am not trying to disagree with this article but I just found a great Q&A from a trustworthy conservitive Christian website that seems to actually paint Obama as a Christian. What are your thoughts on the article? (The link is below)

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2008/januaryweb-only/104-32.0.html?start=2

Fewer than 1% muslims leave the faith applies globally, not in the usa

Fewer than 1% muslims leave the Muslims faith applies globally, not in the usa. In the USA people switch religions more frequently than in many places. Plus, what matters is the evidence for Obama in particular and the historical context of the evidence. For example, not many people rise from the dead in history, but the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is very good. I do not know enough about Obama's history to know if he was ever a Muslim. If he was a Muslim, I would like to know at what age. It does seem odd that he attended Wright's church and had his daughter baptised if he was a Muslim. Plus, Obama eats pork and drinks alcohol. Conservative 15:29, 11 August 2011 (EDT)

Also, this sentence is too broad: "Obama's background, education, and outlook are Muslim." It clearly ignores his black liberation theology church attendance, his atheist mother, Columbia and Harvard education and his secular progressive like stances on social issues (homosexuality, etc.). Obama fits a heretical liberal Christianity outlook far more than a Muslim outlook. Historical evidence is weighed in context and not through cherry picking. Conservative 15:42, 11 August 2011 (EDT)

This article is more harmful than good for this project

The text clearly says that Barak may be the first Islamic president, there follows a list of mostly straw grasping and "synthesis" of assetions based on certain evidence. I am no fan of Obama, but the ecmaples is SO flawed I'm beginning to think it was started by a troll as a parody to debase the authority of this encyclopedia. I have only taken the comments below but the whole article, being based on the premise that Obam is Islamic, is on very unstable ground, in fact much of it seems an errand in silliness, but let's disucss it:

  • Obama declared in prepared remarks, "The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans. Many other Americans have Muslims in their families or have lived in a Muslim-majority country - I know, because I am one of them
Synthesis: shows that he has a positive opinion of the input of muslims, and proves that he has either or both lived in muslim countries and had muslims in his family. Does not provide evidence of being Islamic
  • Obama's wife Michelle does not accompany him to Muslim nations because Sharia law would apply to her there; on a presidential trip she was with him until France, but then returned home.
Synthesis again – many men visiting muslim countries would be less than likely to want their wives there to be subject to their customs. If anything it maybe evidence counter to the point
  • Obama's background, education, and outlook are Muslim, and fewer than 1% of Muslims convert to Christianity
So? 1% do (if we assume the statistic is correct to start with in a western country which I doubt)
  • During the third and fourth grades, Obama learned about Islam for two hours each week in religion class, according to the LATimes.
I learned about it for three years as part of general Social and Religious Studies in High School. I am a Christian and not a muslim. If I had muslims in my family, I would perhaps be even more curious from an accademic point of view.
  • Obama's middle name (Hussein) references Husayn,
Hussein is an Arabic name. Changing a name on conversion is common in Islam but less common in christisanity so nothing can be inferred , especially as his father had that name so he is likely to retain it for family reasons
This one always amuses me. My father's family was from Germany, and my great-grandfather shared first names with Hitler. My father was named after his grandfather, and is about as far from a Nazi as can be. --SharonW 09:25, 12 September 2011 (EDT)
Indeed - my aunt was born a Christian, then married my Jewish uncle and converted. But she didn't change her name from Christina. And that's hardly a Jewish name. Of course, now she's divorced from my uncle and I don't know if she went back to Christianity or not, but she's still named Christina. And there's also a convert in my synagogue named "Christian". That's about as un-Jewish a name as you can get right there. For that matter, my grandmother made a big deal about how I had the same name as a former Pope, although given that she named one of her sons Mark, I'm guessing that's just because she was mad my parents didn't name me after her late husband. Gregkochuconn 08:27, 21 February 2012 (EST)
Out of context – past tense
  • He has said that "Islam can be compatible with the modern world."
Empathy and a positive opinion do not make you part of the club.
  • Obama said the Muslim call to prayer is "one of the prettiest sounds on Earth at sunset," and recited "with a first-class Arabic accent" the opening lines: Allah is Supreme! ... I witness that there is no god but Allah ...."
See above
  • Obama stated that the autobiography of Malcolm X, a Nation of Islam leader who became a Muslim, inspired him in his youth
I was inspired and still am by Gandhi – he was not a Christian, I am.
  • Obama uses the Muslim Pakistani pronunciation for "Pakistan" rather than the common American one. Obama repeatedly pronounced "Pakistan" as "Pokiston" in the first presidential debate.
Dimplomatic lingusitc trait from someone with experience of a culture?
  • Obama was thoroughly exposed to Christianity as an adult in Chicago prior to attending law school, yet no one at law school saw him display any interest in converting.
Like lots of young people, it is often hard to get them interested.
  • Obama has chosen the Secret Service code name "Renegade". "Renegade" conventionally describes someone who goes against normal conventions of behavior, but its first usage was to describe someone who has turned from their religion. It is a word derived from the Spanish renegado, which originally meant "Christian turned Muslim."<
Golly it gets even more tenuous. Do we really always think of the derivations of words when we use them?

DavidMilton 14:08, 8 September 2011 (EDT)

Ok, then I will edit the article without deviating from its title. DavidMilton 09:13, 12 September 2011 (EDT)
In light of yesterday's terrorist act in Quebec, Canada, I find the approach adopted in this article distasteful in the extreme. I suggest that it would be a useful lesson to substitute the word Jew (or Catholic) for Muslim in this article. Words do indeed kill. There seem to be some sensible comments above.Rleonardw (talk) 18:03, 30 January 2017 (EST)
There's a huge difference - Christianity and Judaism are religions, but Islam is not - in fact, it is a cult-like, terroristic political ideology akin to Nazism and Communism. Mohammed knew exactly what he was doing when he put Islam into practice and his followers continue to do so to this day. Anyone who says that Islam is a "religion of peace" (knowing that it is neither peaceful nor a "religion") or that those who commit terrorist acts in the name of Islam "do not follow Islam" are lying (AKA taqiyya), plain and simple. Northwest (talk) 21:34, 30 January 2017 (EST)
While I do agree that Christianity and Judaism are most certainly different from Islam, and that Islam deserves nothing less than destruction and is ultimately similar in practice to Nazism and Communism, I'm not sure I agree that Islam's not a religion. It believes in God and the supernatural, it believes in supernatural abilities, and it believes in an afterlife, that sounds like a religion to me. In fact, it certainly qualifies more than atheism does. Pokeria1 (talk) 11:36, 3 February 2017 (EST)
I agree with Pokeria1. It may well qualify as a cult, but it is a religion. All they do is for a purpose--to please their "god" so they can be rewarded after death with 72 virgins. They use (and basically invented) terrorism, but that's a tool to the end of obeying the mandate to "...slay [infidels] wherever ye find them..." so that Allah is worships worldwide, by all living people. It's a horrifying perversion of religion, but it still is just that. --David B (TALK) 12:23, 3 February 2017 (EST)

The problem is there are terrible leaps of logic in this article:

Some Muslims are radical terrorists who should not be trusted.
Some evidence suggests that Obama may be Muslim.
Therefore some evidence suggests that Obama is a radical terrorist who should not be trusted.

The problem is that the argument is as strong or stronger in the opposite direction:

Some Christians are serious, responsible people who should be trusted.
A lot of evidence suggests that Obama is a Christian.
Therefore a lot of evidence suggests that Obama is a serious, responsible person who should be trusted.

Given that Obama has left public office, does this article serve any purpose? Even if it convinces readers, would they really care? Is anyone coming to read this article to learn or are they just being sent by critics to it to get a misimpression of Conservapedia? JDano (talk) 13:28, 3 February 2017 (EST)

"Prepared remarks"

Obama referenced Jesus as "a" Son of God in a speech given at a formal event. He reads his remarks from teleprompters at such events. This should be distinguished from an interview, where words are chosen less carefully.--Andy Schlafly 20:06, 7 April 2012 (EDT)

No Muslim would ever refer to Jesus as "a" son or "the" son of God. The Quran explicitly declares that Allah has no son (17:111). This very doctrine makes Christianity and Islam mutually exclusive religions, serving two very different dieties.

Blatant Slander

Conservapedia is going downhill. Virtually every piece of evidence on this page is either taken out of context or entirely irrelevant. Obama read a book written from a Muslim point of view. How does that prove he's a Muslim. Does reading the book of Exodus make me Jewish because it's from Moses's point of view?

Obama's been doing a poor job, but you can point that out pretty easily without having to resort to a smear campaign. Don't sink to the liberal level. You guys are better than that--Bdor24 20:34, 19 April 2012 (EDT)

Trimmed examples

I removed the following examples from the article because, even if they are true, they serve as little to no evidence that Obama is Muslim:

  • In prepared remarks in April 2012, Obama referred to Jesus as "a" Son of God rather than as "the" Son of God: "And for me, and I’m sure for some of you, it’s also a chance to remember the tremendous sacrifice that led up to that day, and all that Christ endured—not just as a Son of God, but as a human being."[1]
  • Obama's wife Michelle does not accompany him to Muslim nations because Sharia law would apply to her there; on a presidential trip she was with him until France, but then returned home.

Later on, I will be going through the lengthy list of arguments to trim and refine the page to the best arguments that can be made about this. GregG 23:53, 25 April 2012 (EDT)

Both are persuasive examples. Deletions of factual information are disfavored. Readers can decide whether something is persuasive.--Andy Schlafly 23:58, 25 April 2012 (EDT)
I respectfully disagree. I will discuss each example in turn.
  • The first example has many more plausible explanations than that Obama is Muslim. My interpretation of the quote is that Obama is contrasting the role of Jesus as Son of God and as a fully human being. He appears to be expounding the truth that Christ suffered great pain and ultimately death as a human being so that our sins may be forgiven (Isaiah 53:5, 1 Peter 2:21-25). Even if Obama meant to say "the" or nothing at all instead of "a", and even if the speech came in prepared remarks (which, incidentally, even if prepared, we don't know whether they are verbatim or merely an outline), anyone can have a slip of the tongue (ask Neil Armstrong!). But even if Obama meant to say a Son of God to expressly imply that God has more than one Son, this still would not demonstrate that he is a Muslim, because (as I understand it) Muslims believe that God has no incarnate son. Thus, this example cannot possibly demonstrate that Obama is Muslim. If it does provide any evidence at all contradicting his assertions that he is Christian, it still does nothing to support the alternative hypothesis that he is Muslim.
  • The second example can be attributed to cultural norms in Muslim countries. Where sharia law is practiced, women are marginalized. Thus, any man, Muslim, Christian, Jew, whoever, would take special considerations before bringing his wife to a country hostile to women. Under the same logic of this argument, my refusal to take friends into sketchy parts of the city where gangs reign would indicate that I am a gangster. Again, this argument is of little probative value.
The issue I have is that when you have several weak examples, they make the rest of the examples look less strong in comparison. I know that, as a lawyer, you want to not only cover all the potential arguments of a case but also focus on your strongest arguments. I would respectfully suggest the same approach here, and I am willing to help with this. GregG 00:18, 26 April 2012 (EDT)

Same-sex marriage

Do many Muslims support same-sex marriage? AcomaMagic 15:31, 18 August 2012 (EDT)

Better to seek permission

I'd like to go through this page and either rephrase or entirely remove a few of the more "sensationalist" accusations, to make this a more balanced look at the likely religion of the current-and-soon-to-be-former President. I think that many of the examples are valid, but at the same time multiple others are not. I have read the Quran, the Torah, and the Book of Mormon but I am not a Muslim, Jew, or Mormon myself; in the same vein, President Obama isn't necessarily a Muslim for taking inspiration from a Muslim-slanted work or an Islamic activist.

I'd appreciate it if someone could get back to me on this as soon as possible. :)

Regards, JGrant 14:27, 3 October 2012 (EDT)

I second that. To be honest most of this article just comes across as hysterical xenophobia. Cmurphynz 00:29, 7 October 2012 (EDT)

An idea.

A while ago a vandal replaced the text of this entry with 'Christian'. The change was reverted but I think that that might actually be the best approach to fixing the page. I just looked through the page, and it seems that almost everyone who has posted here has serious problems with the content. This includes senior members of the website (there was one bit written by conservative for instance). What I think should be done to actually make this article conform slightly to reality as the rest of the world sees it is to add at the beginning the proof that he is in fact Christian, and then state that there is still some controversy and present some of the less tenuous claims currently here so that the argument doesn't look too ridiculous. Any objections?Cmurphynz

None at all. In fact, I decided to review some of the claims, and not only were some of them heavily doubtful, some were outright untrue, and I found many sources to disprove or at least clarify some of the doubts, and I plan to check out the rest of the rest of the sources and see if I can't do the same. PatrickMarion 11:59, 3 January 2013 (EST)PatrickMarion
I just checked and seems the user I responded to was banned for lying, which is unfortunate, but the suggestion seems sensible enough. PatrickMarion 12:01, 3 January 2013 (EST)PatrickMarion
I think that the page in its current form detracts from the overall credibility of the website. Wschact 14:39, 3 January 2013 (EST)
I thought so as well. I already rewrote the introduction and added some references for some claims that needed them and added section about how some claims have rooms for doubt. In fact, I found out at least one or two of the claims were outright conspiracy nonsense/parody virtually every news post and blog I came across without a noticeable political/religious slant one way or the other outright rejected them. Still looking through the references for some of the claims, and many of them come from some obviously biased sources with anti-Obama agendas. I'm no fan of the guy as a President, but some of what I've read was such disgusting mudslinging and demonization, even from some purported conservatives, I felt like throwing up. Any help would be appreciated in helping clean up this page.
PatrickMarion 14:51, 3 January 2013 (EST)PatrickMarion
I'm currently cleaning up most of the allegations in this article, removing the slander and lies, and wow, there were a lot. First, one allegation was that the Defense Missile Agency logo was changed to a Islamic Star Crescent design by Obama, when it was actually designed three years prior to his taking office. The first source was a conspiracy nut ranting on a blog, and the second, more factual source refuted the first. Second, an article by FOX News (a publication I refuse to trust under any circumstance) took a line out of context to paint Obama as a Muslim, whn his next line makes it obvious they were quotemining. I even bolded the line they omitted in the revised version.This source is an obvious anti-Muslim shill blog, not a reputable news service, and its claims about Obama were obviously quote mined, the claim about taqiyya (an Islamic tradition allowing one to hide their Islamic identity if they are in danger) is unprovable, as the only one who would be in the greatest danger would be those facing criminal justice if they tried attacking him physically if he were Muslim, and the fact he he hasn't admitted to be a Muslim is not evidence he's lying, as absence of evidence is not evidence. One of the claims cited two articles from World News Daily, neither of which existed, and what I read on their site concerning Obama is such obvious extremist anti-liberal spin doctoring it's either a liberal parody of conservatives or just a horribly mean spirited hate rag I would give as little credence as I do Fox News. One was a youtube video of quotes stitched together by an obvious anti-Muslim bigot who hated Obama, and whose blog was a hideously racist and outright wrong "comparison of Nazism and Islam". One allegation was an obvious slip of the tongue in an interview turned into a lowbrow conspiracy by one source the corroborating one promptly exposed as a clear accident. A few of the cited references led to non existent pages and had no corroborating sources.
These is still a lot more to clean up, but as someone who believes in not bearing false witness, I had to remove quite a bit of it so far against a man I may not like as President, but who doesn't and will never deserve to be demonized by agenda wielding demagogues either.
PatrickMarion 16:01, 3 January 2013 (EST)PatrickMarion
Improvements to the entry are welcome, but what I saw in a quick review was numerous removals of information. This website lets the reader decide what to think; we don't try to decide for the reader.--Andy Schlafly 16:09, 3 January 2013 (EST)
Fair enough, Mr. Schlafly, I can understand that, but while I may have gone a little overboard trying to present evidence why some of the claims were doubtful, I politely ask you read the same sources I did for yourself and decided if some and their claims needs to remain. I may not like the President as a politician, and I do feel many of his public morals don't match up with his faith, but some of those sources were just biased, some were outright lies, and even Obama doesn't deserved to be lied about, or even taken out of context to appear as something he's not, especially not on a website that claims to be educational.
PatrickMarion 16:21, 3 January 2013 (EST)PatrickMarion
Pick your best three examples from the entry and let's discuss their accuracy.--Andy Schlafly 16:38, 3 January 2013 (EST)
Sure. My first example is the item about Obama's middle name (i.e - Obama's middle name (Hussein)). I checked the first two sources and they seemed to match up, but the third source seemed extremely, at best, casually related. Sure, the article subject is about a former Muslim who chose a Christian name upon conversion as part of that conversion, but that is not required by anyone with Muslim name under Muslim tradtion unless their name is sacrilegious to Islam, and according to this Muslim source, that is not required in Obama's case, as his name is in no way disrespectful to the Islamic faith, so even if he were Muslim, he would not be required to change his name for religious reasons.
Second, we have the youtube link cited in the item about Obama performing what looked like a stand up comedy routine mocking the Torah and the Bible. The youtube link is an obviously stitched together series of clips put together an obvious bigot who links back to a blog comparing the Qu'ran (or Koran) to Nazism, and as someone who has read both Mein Kampf and the Qu'ran out of scholarly interest, his interpretations are the most hateful thing I've ever read comparing the two, and they aren't even correct, and citing something by an obvious bigot is a bad thing for an educational website to do, especially a conservative one.
Finally, the introduction of this very article were written with apparent political ignorance concerning the oath of office (on top of asserting Obama was a Muslim before the reader had a chance to decide for themselves based on the rest of the article). For example:
Barack Hussein Obama is the first Muslim president of the United States, as illustrated by his many actions and comments both before and after taking the official (private) oath of office without using a Bible. - that is not even correct about the oath of office. Swearing on a Bible is not required, and for the first ceremony, Obama wanted to use the Lincoln Bible, but due to how the first ceremony was botched, there was a second ceremony. I could find no evidence of a Bible being used, but that is irrelevant to to the oath.
PatrickMarion 17:11, 3 January 2013 (EST)PatrickMarion
Mr Schlafly, what you are saying, in effect, is that anybody can put anything up here, true or false, and we'll just let "the reader decide what to think." Is that correct? Isn't it the responsibility of the contributors and editors here to do that vetting of information rather than to put that onus on the reader? BryanF 17:30, 3 January 2013 (EST)
There are two other bullets that are problematic. 1) "On the campaign trail, Obama was reading "The Post-American World" by Fareed Zakaria,[20] which is written by a Muslim author.[21]" -- Many non-Muslims read that book. There is nothing to suggest that reading that book would motivate someone to believe in Islam, or that reading that particular book would be a characteristic of being Muslim.
2) "Obama required that a religiously affiliated college take the extraordinary action of concealing with wood the monogram "IHS", which represents the name of Jesus, during a speech by Obama there" -- The only source is a dead link. I don't have any reason to believe that President Obama was personally involved in the stage design of the event. If this really happened, it would have drawn more media coverage. In any case, it is not connected to being a Muslim. Thanks, Wschact 17:38, 3 January 2013 (EST)
I'll start with the 3rd example by Patrick, and respond to Bryan and Wschact also:
Patrick wrote, "I could find no evidence of a Bible being used, but that is irrelevant to [sic] to the oath." In fact, the Bible wasn't used, as confirmed by a photographer at the event (the picture didn't show a Bible either). That lack of use of a Bible may be legally irrelevant to that oath, but the article is not about the oath. The article is about Obama's religion, and his decision not to use a Bible for his real oath obviously IS highly relevant to his religion.
In response to Bryan, this site is not Wikipedia, where censorship, downplaying, or dilution of information disliked for political reasons is routine. We have simple rules (Conservapedia Commandments), and widespread deletions of information is disfavored here.
Wschact said, "Many non-Muslims read that book." Perhaps so, just as many atheists have read the Bible. But a photograph of someone carrying a Bible is evidence suggesting that the person is a Christian. It doesn't prove it standing alone, but when combined with other, more compelling evidence, it is relevant.--Andy Schlafly 18:29, 3 January 2013 (EST)
The Bible is central to Christian beliefs. Zakaria is not a practicing Muslim; he is someone with Muslim ancestors who graduated from Yale. His book is not central to Muslim beliefs, it is just a discussion of US foreign policy and was on both the non-fiction hardcover and non-fiction paperback best seller lists. You can accuse readers of this book of being "policy wonks" but not "Muslims." Wschact 10:05, 4 January 2013 (EST)

I didn't mean to suggest that information be censored in any way. But removing things that are false or questionable or unsupported seems justified. BryanF 18:42, 3 January 2013 (EST)

But what's false in the entry? Much of what has been removed from the entry is plainly true.--Andy Schlafly 20:34, 3 January 2013 (EST)
If it is true, it should be supported by credible sources. And even so, it should be fact, not opinion. BryanF 21:50, 3 January 2013 (EST)

Quotation is irrelevant

I removed the quotation "Obama declared in prepared remarks, 'The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans. Many other Americans have Muslims in their families or have lived in a Muslim-majority country - I know, because I am one of them.'" not because it is not sourced, but because it is simply irrelevant. Because it is undisputed that Obama lived in Indonesia, which is a Muslim-majority country, the statement is true regardless of Obama's religion. Therefore, it cannot possibly demonstrate that Obama is Muslim. GregG 20:30, 3 January 2013 (EST)

The wording is odd, and suggests that Obama is a Muslim but felt he could not say so publicly (yet). When combined with other compelling evidence, it is relevant. It would be admissible under basic rules of evidence.--Andy Schlafly 20:32, 3 January 2013 (EST)
Frankly, I see no compelling evidence on the entire page. Perhaps, in a similar way as what you suggested above, you could identify your three strongest arguments that Obama is a Muslim, so that those could be discussed. Thanks, GregG 20:41, 3 January 2013 (EST)
I don't believe Mr Schlafly has a single strong argument that Obama is Muslim, let alone three. Unless I'm very much mistaken, he's working on the old "throw enough mud" approach. --JohanZ 20:52, 3 January 2013 (EST)
I personally think that the quotation should be in the article as it is a good piece of evidence and does suggest the fact he is a muslim. Dvergne 21:08, 3 January 2013 (EST)
It is evidence that Obama either has a muslim in the family, or has lived in a muslim majority country, both of which we know to be true. It is not evidence of anything else. --DamianJohn 21:11, 3 January 2013 (EST)
And, perhaps, your forefathers, Dvergne, were Albigensian so we can say that Australia has been enriched by people from Languedoc. Names don't matter. According to my name I'm Welsh. According to my parents' wedding certificate, I am Sri Lankan. According to my great-great-grandfather's records I am Catholic. According to my great-grandmother's records I am American Episcopalian. According to my grandfather's records I am Presbyterian. I was baptised a Methodist. Most of us are mongrels, D., I have read the Book of the Mormons, and the Quran and the novels of V.S. Naipaul. I listen to Tchaikovsky and, every Anzac Day, make a point of playing Britten's "War Requiem". Do my listening habits make me gay, Dvergne? (Oh, and what was your opinion of Nassar Hussain?) AlanE 21:58, 3 January 2013 (EST)
People of the Islamic faith have made a great contribution to a number of countries including Australia, with much of central Australia being serviced by the afghan camel caravaners, who where muslim. I find your assertion that I am anti-muslim quite offensive as I know and quite a few people of the Islamic faith, some of which are quite good friends. Dvergne 22:07, 3 January 2013 (EST)

The point of the paragraph is "The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans" (which is true) - with Obama then providing himself as an example. Obama does have a Muslim in his family - himself. It's implausible that he was referring to anyone other than himself. The part about having lived in a Muslim country once doesn't have relevance to the basic point being made.

Why do some people object so much to recognizing Obama's religion? He's not running for reelection again, so there is little political motive to rejecting it. The U.S. Constitution prohibits a religious test. Give credit where credit is due: America has a Muslim president. The insistence on denying the likelihood of this is itself worth criticizing.--Andy Schlafly 21:59, 3 January 2013 (EST)

Yes Andy...why do some people need to make so much of a point of his religion?
And D. (I do hate having to talk to people without names, I find it disrespectful) I am concerned if you are under the impression I find you anti-Muslim. That was not my intention. AlanE 22:36, 3 January 2013 (EST)
Alan, it's not a big deal. I have spent relatively little time discussing or editing these entries about Obama's religion. But there is no denying that the personal religious beliefs of a president is a significant fact: historically, politically, and economically. Would Obama really defend Israel? Does Obama have a private spiritual guide from whom he takes advice? Now that Obama does not have another election, will he govern in a way more consistent with his personal beliefs, and what are those personal beliefs?--Andy Schlafly 22:46, 3 January 2013 (EST)
Thank you for your reply Andy...obviously, as an Australian, I cannot know the nuances of the American political situation other than what I read in the Murdoch press on a daily basis and, perhaps, I should not comment. BUT. Even as one who is firmly pro-American (apart from certain aspects of popular culture) I do find that the Right's ceaseless attack on Obama on matters other than aspects of his Presidency to be unfortunate. Like concentrating on Brahms' atheism or Horatio Nelson's adultery with Lady Hamilton. AlanE 23:28, 3 January 2013 (EST)
Your point is well-taken. But at this point I don't see why the observation that Obama is a Muslim would be considered so negative. He's not campaigning any more for an election. Understanding his personal beliefs -- about which he's said little -- is not a criticism of him.--Andy Schlafly 23:34, 3 January 2013 (EST)
As we say here: I'll wear that. :) 23:48, 3 January 2013 (EST)

As to why the accuracy of this article matters, I will offer two hypotheticals. Suppose in 2020, a Muslim runs for the Presidency. Some people will argue that electing a Muslim might not be wise, other people will respond that a precedent was already set with Obama's two elections. They will go to the Internet Archive (www.archive.org) and retrieve this article as evidence for a "fact" that over 90% of Americans do not believe. Second, suppose that some long-time volunteer (including the home-school students that you recruited) put their CP work on their resume. This article will cast a pall on all of the good work that has been done in this project. The problem with this article is that it draws a false conclusion using a series of non-facts that are presented in a highly misleading manner. The article also implies that President Obama is untruthful about his religious beliefs. Thanks, Wschact 08:35, 4 January 2013 (EST)

"Obama exempted American Muslims from the mandates of Obamacare"

This newly added point should be removed. Obama did not exempt American Muslims from the mandates of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. See [2] and [3]. --Randall7 10:28, 5 January 2013 (EST)

Oh, I just noticed that GregG and Jpatt have had some back-and-forth about this. GregG's re-wording seems much more factually accurate. It could even be mentioned that apparently some people think this provision was designed to favor Muslims. I wonder how much Obama was actually involved in creating this provision, though. --Randall7 10:46, 5 January 2013 (EST)
I have removed GregG's changes because it was watered down to discuss talk about Amish. This is a page discussing Obama's religion and Amish tax-exempt status neither is the topic nor the provision Muslims will be able to opt-out on.--Jpatt 11:42, 5 January 2013 (EST)
The law as written is vague but enough can be gleaned from it, such tax and insurance mandates. Muslim most certainly "Can" and very likely will take advantage of the loophole and opt-out for religious conscience. We already know that Christians cannot opt-out for religious conscience. My sources say "Presumably, they [Muslims] will be exempt from the requirement to purchase insurance under the religious exemption," and "Muslims may claim a religious exemption that is denied Christians and Jews." --Jpatt 11:46, 5 January 2013 (EST)
"We already know that Christians cannot opt-out for religious conscience." Amish and Mennonites are Christian and they would certainly be eligible to opt out. It appears that your source is making baseless speculation. I find my sources and WND (in a rare example of a stopped clock being right) far more reliable and believable. Of course, the moment of truth will come next year, and we can see whether any Muslims have actually been granted exemptions from the individual mandate. GregG 13:10, 5 January 2013 (EST)
I agree that Muslims can take advantage of this provision. But it is not just for Muslims, and it does not discriminate against Christians or Jews. As GregG mentioned, the PJ Media source's claim is highly dubious, and in fact, many who qualify for the exemption are Mennonites and other Christian fellowships.
Overall the point in the article appears to be false as it is written. The Religious Conscience Exemption (the "loophole") applies only to the individual mandate, not the whole of Obamacare. And it is misleading to just mention American Muslims when they are not singled out in the law. Christians and Jews are not discriminated against. The requirement for the Religious Conscience Exemption, which applies to all religions equally, is that the religious sect or division must certified under section 1402(g)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code for Social Security and Medicare payroll tax exemption. --Randall7 13:20, 5 January 2013 (EST)
I am going to leave it for now. I must say that you have successfully diluted the meaning and have bent over backwards to try explain away the truth. That truth is that Muslims have a religious conscience opt-out due to insurance and Christian and Jews do not. You keep bringing up Amish but they are exempt because of taxes. No other Christians are exempted. Essentially, you took everything I said about the fact checkers and you disregarded it by finding other sources that agree with your position. Congratulations.--Jpatt 14:54, 5 January 2013 (EST)

The Five Pillars of Islam

In Islam, to be considered a Muslim, there are five core principles,(Pillars) that must be followed. Certain minority groups do not follow all of them, but even then hold at least 3 or 4. These are:

1. The Shahada, the oath that you must take in some group/public setting to confirm your allegiance to the Muslim faith. (We don't have anything confirming or dis-confirming this about Obama, so it can be skipped.)

2. Salat: The 5 daily prayers that Muslims must do while facing toward the Kaaba in Mecca. (They must also wash themselves before praying.) Seeing as we know quite a bit about Obama's daily schedule, and that he has never been caught on a prayer mat facing east, we can deduce he does not Pray. (Although it's worth noting that many western Muslims do not adhere to this principle.)

3. Zakat: All Muslims must give at least 2.5% of their income to charity or other good causes. We have access to a lot of Obama's tax returns and can see that he and Mrs.Obama give an average of less than 1% of their income to charity.

4. Sawm: The fasting that Muslims undertake during their holy month of Ramadan. (Between dawn and dusk). In 2010, Ramadan began on August 11th. On August 17th a photographer photographed this photo of the president ordering lunch. Which he preceded to eat in front of hundreds of people. [4]

5. Hajj: The Muslim pilgrimage to their holiest city of Mecca. All Able Muslims must take this journey at least once in their life. Mr. and Mrs. Obama are certainly able (Physically and financially) to undergo that voyage. They have not yet made this trip, although there is still time, but it's unlikely he ever will for this reason: The Saudi government will not let you into Mecca if you are not a Muslim, and Barack Obama is not a Muslim.

Conclusion: So it's possible that Obama has said the Shahda at some private moment we are not aware of, he completely fails to follow any other pillars of the Islamic faith. So we don't even need to get into the fact that he drinks beer or eats pork hot-dogs. This presents us two possibilities: Either Obama is not a Muslim, or he is an extremely terrible one. Please note, dear friends, that there is nothing wrong with being a Muslim, Obama just isn't one. He's also not Jewish, not a minor, and not the starting left fielder for the New York Yankees.

Before I get flooded with responses, (Or the post deleted and I am outright banned), I would like to see what Andrew Schlafly, Esq. has to say about my post here. Thank you! (I am new to this site, so forgive me if I make an error in posting this).

-Alek

Should this page be deleted?

The citations showing Obama to be a Muslim are all bald-faced lies, half-truths, or are elements that are completely irrelevant to the point. Obama's Christian faith has been demonstrated countless times. MackD 01:02, 20 January 2013 (EST)

Obama has not proven any kind of Christian faith, he merely engages in Taqiyya. Regardless he has already accidentally admitted to being a muslim. - Markman 01:06, 21 February 2013 (EST)
Taqiyya does not apply to Sunni Muslims, which is the religious heritage of Obama's father and thus, Obama. And the "my Muslim faith" quote was shown to be taken out of context. MackD 01:09, 20 January 2013 (EST)
How we know if he hasn't converted to become a Shia ? This page needs to be kept as it is pretty clear that there is considerable doubt and evidence that his faith is something other than christian Dvergne 01:12, 21 February 2013 (EST)
With no evidence to support the notion of conversion to Shia, or any evidence that he was a Muslim at any point in his life, and all available evidence pointing towards Obama being a Christian, there is no ground for reasonable doubt in this matter. MackD 01:16, 20 January 2013 (EST)
I'm sorry but there is compelling evidence that he clearly is of faith other than christian. If you deny this then I'm afraid you lose all credibility. Dvergne 01:19, 21 February 2013 (EST)
1) I wouldn't be surprised if Obama decided to adopt Shia Islam as a way to get back at his abandoning father. 2) I know for a fact that Taqiyya is not only practiced by Shias. The Druze (a religion that split from Islam) practice it too. Furthermore, according to wikipedia (though one needs to be very careful with that website) Sunnis have been known in their past to conceal their faith as well. - Markman 01:24, 21 February 2013 (EST)
I have yet to see any compelling evidence on the matter. If you would kindly provide me with any that you know of, I will evaluate it with an open mind. After all, I joined this site in hopes of stimulating and intelligent conversation, not to get blocked seemingly because someone disagrees with something I have said. MackD 01:42, 20 January 2013 (EST)
You got blocked for being a troll. Anyway, there's plenty of good evidence in this article (including the My Muslim faith quote, and I don't see exactly how you can claim it was taken out of context), if you want to dispute anything then go ahead. - Markman 01:50, 21 February 2013 (EST)
If seeking to have an intelligent conversation is trolling, then I guess I'm guilty of trolling. The article, as previously established, contains almost nothing but lies, half-truths, and a deliberate attempt at defaming a man over something that should not be viewed as defamatory int he first place. The "my Muslim faith" was indeed taken out of context. If you would watch the entire interview, then you would understand that. Until then, you have lost all credibility to claim that you speak the truth. MackD 01:57 20 January 2013 (EST)
This discussion is going pearshaped. We have MackD editing after he's supposed to have been banned. We have an edit of Dvergne disappearing without trace. (Nothing lost there except for yet another use of the word "christian") What's going on? AlanE 02:12, 21 February 2013 (EST)
@MackD: I've seen it already several times and just for you I've seen it in now once more, I don't see anything taken out of context. If you're going to say that this article "contains almost nothing but lies, half-truths" than you best bring some concrete examples rather than just throw accusations around. In regards to your claims that being a muslim is "something that should not be viewed as defamatory int he first place" than I guess you're OK with people following the creed of an avowed pedophile and a murderer. I guess you won't have any problems with a Satan worshiping president or with a president who follows "positive Christianity" (the pseudo Christianity promoted by the Nazi party). - Markman 02:18, 21 February 2013 (EST)

Andy has how protected the page. However, the recent edits both help and hurt the page. I think that downplaying the point about Israel and Chuck Hagel is sound editorial judgment. However, removing the quotations from the Obama campaign emails probably detracts from the value of the page. To me, the page would benefit from presenting both sides -- Obama has said that he is a Christian and that people who are questioning that are politically-motivated. Then follow up with any arguments against that. I find this whole debate a bit distasteful. Most Christian congregations are welcoming to everyone -- including someone whose father was an atheist. In 1960 people attacked John Kennedy with the claim that he would be "too faithful" a Catholic to the point of allowing the Pope to influence his decisions as President. In 2008 and 2012, people attacked Obama with the claim that he was not sufficiently "Christian." All three times, the voters rejected these arguments. I hope that this type of politics gets relegated to the dustbin of history. Thanks, Wschact 08:25, 12 February 2014 (EST)

It really is poor encyclopedic form to include unconfirmed sources, rumours, or hearsay about a person's religious faith. Official records, provided by the United Church of Christ itself, show that Obama was a baptised member of the liberal mainline Protestant denomination. http://www.ucc.org/barack-obama-candidate

Religion of Barack Obama

Please move the content from this page to here.--JoeyJ 07:52, 5 September 2014 (EDT)

The two articles take different approaches to this question, and I don't see how they could be harmonized without loss of the integrity of either viewpoint. Thanks, Wschact 08:18, 5 September 2014 (EDT)
Wasn't Obama largely raised by his white American mother? --Rleonardw (talk) 15:12, 30 January 2017 (EST)
"He has said that "Islam can be compatible with the modern world". But isn't this the view of any true Christian? has some editor confused a few psychopaths with Muslims; that is apostates who claim to be Muslims. --Rleonardw (talk) 15:20, 30 January 2017 (EST)

I removed Northwest's section header because

I removed Northwest's header because there is not certainty that Obama is a Muslim. Please see the section entitled Counterexamples to Obama being a Muslim. In fact, it is not even close to being certainty. He is probably not a Muslim, but merely a liberal who has antipathy towards conservative Christianity and Israel which is very common among liberals. It is also very common for liberals to criticize criticisms of Islam and cry "Islamophobia".

Norwest, please do not add another subtitle to this article. Conservative (talk) 08:03, 22 June 2016 (EDT)

Obama's annual celebration of Seder

Why would a Muslim celebrate a Seder meal every year during his Presidency? Passover Seder - One Last Time for Obama White House Tradition

The only sensible conclusion that one can draw from this is that this President is just plain ambivalent when it comes to religion in general, but is enamored with ritual. He is certainly not pro-Israel, nor is he Jewish, but he obviously enjoys the ceremony.

If I used the same loose associations you came up with in this article to assert that Obama is a Muslim, then this (ridiculously) would prove that the President is a Jew!

Good point, but multifaith meals are not extraordinary. A quick search easily discovers examples, like this one:
The Islamic Society of Mid Manhattan hosted a multifaith Passover celebration with Temple Emanu-El and the NYC Muslim-Jewish Solidarity Committee, blending the food and traditions of the age-old holiday with some modern twists.
People commonly attend weddings by friends of different religions also.--Andy Schlafly (talk) 16:15, 20 July 2016 (EDT)
I am amazed all that is listed yet he is still given the benefit of the doubt. No other president has this much concerning Islam in their history. No other president has sided against Christianity than this presidency. It's quite clear Islam is a major part of his life despite the accusation that he is or isn't. --Jpatt 16:32, 20 July 2016 (EDT)

Image of Obama

Why was the image restored when even to my ancient eyes it aint him – his father? --Rleonardw (talk) 13:42, 30 January 2017 (EST)

Christianity Today quote

For 99.9% of people, we take them at their word when they tell us their religious affiliation. Most people are willing to take President Obama at is word as well. I suspect that many people hear a rumor that President Obama was a Muslim, or thought that he had a funny-sounding name and assumed that he was a Muslim. So, when asked in a poll, they said that Obama was a Muslim. (Some other people also said it to troll the polling organization.)

The most important fact in this article is the magazine quote. It explains why Obama considers himself a Christian and why other people are saying that he is Muslim. I believe it should be moved back from the footnote to the main article. I also have not seen much on this issue since Obama left the White House. I agree with everything that President Trump said about the Obama birth certificate matter -- Obama's 2008 primary opponents started it, and Donald J Trump put it to rest in the fall of 2016. That should apply equally to the "Obama is a Muslim" rumor as well. Our energy is better spent documenting Obama surveillance policy. JDano (talk) 18:24, 25 May 2017 (EDT)

This article was created then the "is Obama a Muslim" debates were actively occurring. This article does not have much activity right now, other than edit warring. We are focusing most of our time now on issues such as Obama's surveillance (look at RobS's edits). I don't buy the arguments that Obama is secretly a practicing Muslim (I also don't believe he is a practicing or orthodox Christian either, and I do think he has strong pro-Islam sympathies). However, I think the article is good now, as the intro (the first line I added) does not take a stance or make any judgment, and both sides to this issue are discussed. --1990'sguy (talk) 18:48, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
IMO, a public consensus that Obama has some sort Islamic sympathies, if not being a closet Muslim, versus being a cosmetic Christian, is stronger today than what people were willing to admit to pollster while he was in office. And for obvious reasons, harassment and fear of reprisal from the Obama machine. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 19:35, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
I will repeat what I stated above:
Given that Obama has left public office, does this article serve any purpose? Even if it convinces readers, would they really care? Is anyone coming to read this article to learn or are they just being sent by critics to it to get a misimpression of Conservapedia? JDano (talk) 13:28, 3 February 2017 (EST)
The article currently "take[s] a stance and make[s]" a pro-Muslim judgement. JDano (talk) 22:34, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
So, are you proposing deletion, retitling, or what? It's got nearly 400,000 hits. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 23:04, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
If we are going to present both sides, how do we include these in a Conservapedia article? [5] and [6] and [7]? This silly ugliness works both ways. JDano (talk) 23:10, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
Obama is as Christian as his former pastor, G-d damn the United States Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Most Christians I know don't curse the name of God, Christian scripture makes it clear about that. Is the article relevant today? Unfortunately Obama decided not to leave the limelight, only the office he held. He stays in the news and so should his past. --Jpatt 23:18, 25 May 2017 (EDT)
@JDano, I don't see where this is a big problem. Your first link is a parody page, and even Obama took the oath on two Bible's. The second doesn't,t amount to anything, based on "suggesting". Big deal. People are suggesting a multi-billionaire is a KGB stooge, which is more outlandish than suggesting Obama is/was a Muslim. In Obama's cause it was plausible; in Trump's case it just shows how ridiculous and naive people can be. Your third link is no biggee, either. I had qualms when Ronald Reagan bowed his head to the Queen and accepted Knighthood. That had symbolic meaning. But the Saudi King isn't the Caliph, and he's breaking Islamic law just being the same room with a filthy infidel, let alone touching or honoring him in some way. In Trump's case, there's a quid pro quo: Trump accepting an honor in appreciation for everything America has done for an ally. In Obama's case, there​ is no way to walk back the subservience Obama committed America to, leading from behind, and the slaughter of Yemen and Syria is what Obama & and King Abdullah have to show for it.
Trump's an Episcopalian; and his life shows the effect Norman Vincent Peale had on him. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 00:01, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

In furtherance of the comments immediately above, no self-serving assertion by a politician should be accepted at face value. When the evidence is overwhelming that he's lying, then it's an important issue for the public, for historians, and for anyone who might consider his credibility. I suppose it is the latter issue that causes some to protest too much when anyone questions Obama's Religion. Any conscientious historian would engage in the same inquiry we do here.--Andy Schlafly (talk) 00:16, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

I agree. Obama's life from the earliest we've got to know him is one big long deception. There is nothing special, unique, or shocking to this. Millions live their lives like this daily. He's not even a leader. In a sense, I feel sorry for him. He's been used as little more than pawn by Democratic donors and globalists. He probably only got the job because his middle name was Hussein, to push the multi-cuktural agenda. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 01:05, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

Overall critique of the article

We have to separate our opinions about Obama in general from our opinions about Conservapedia's goals. Every website has a finite reservoir of credibility. It may be that due to hard work and exhaustive research, CP has a better-than-the-pack coverage of Wikipedia bias or CIA surveillance. We should showcase our best work. However, Donald Trump (before he became politically active), decided to investigate the birth certificate and religion claims that were started by Obama's 2008 primary opponents. He spent more money on the investigation than CP ever had. Then-candidate Trump announced that his investigation put the birth certificate and Muslim issues to rest.[8] CP's response to that was to leave the Obama's religion article unchanged. This article could examine how the rumors got started, how Trump and others investigated and dismissed the claims, how Obama addressed the claims and put them to rest, and how polling data shows that the pubic can be influenced by fake news. Instead, it is written as if it advocates the proposition followed by a rebuttal of the strawman assertions made in the first half of the article. Critics then send readers here to show that CP's editor corps are internally conflicted and mislead by fake news. So, we spend our limited credibility on a poorly-written article that has been passed by events. In Trump's word, "Now we all want to get back to make American strong and great again." JDano (talk) 05:23, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

There. I tried to make it more neutral without ripping up the body of the text. I don't know how much more it may need. What do you think? RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 09:23, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
"Limited credibility" means you don't understand what we are all about. --Jpatt 09:38, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
Every website has a finite amount of credibility, and first impressions are lasting. If people come to this article in 2017 as one of their first exposures to Conservapedia, we will not get them back. JDano (talk) 05:56, 27 May 2017 (EDT)

If you want to instantly give the article more credibility, then put my material atop the article which gives the evidence that Obama is not a Muslim. I say this because Obama is extremely unlikely to be a Muslim. The odds of Trump being a liberal "Manchurian candidate" are higher than the pork eating, beer swilling, homosexuality loving, feminism loving Obama being a Muslim.

I can understand people's distrust and antipathy towards Obama. And when people are overly emotional about a topic, it can impair their judgment. But at some point, you have "let go of your investigation" that Obama could be a Muslim and your claims that Obama is probably a Muslim.

Confirmation bias often occurs when you set out to prove a position from the start rather than go where the evidence leads. The first portion of this article is a textbook example of the danger of allowing confirmation bias to negatively affect an articles quality. Conservative (talk) 10:11, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

As JDano expresses, we should take a nuetral stance. Many of the claims on both sides really stretch credulity. What does attending a funeral have to do with Christianity? Read you Bible back-and-forth, upside down, Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Esperanto, Polish, Yiddish, whatever. You will not find one single word, let alone phrase or verse that remotely suggests a believers standing in Christ has anything to do with honoring the dead. Yet this item appears in both the pro and con sections. In the pro section, it's number 1 on the list. In the con section, it's boldened. ,This page teaches us nothing about Christianity, let alone Islam. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 10:49, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
RobS, previously I merely fired off my starboard evidential cannons that Obama may be an adherent of liberal Christianity. Today, I fired off the port evidential cannons indicating he may be a closet atheist or closet agnostic. Today, the steamship "SS Obama is a Muslim according to Conservapedia" was scuttled. :) Conservative (talk)
IMO, he's a secular gay Muslim, which borders on agnosticism/atheism. I believe he is hostile to Christians, and prejudiced or disposed to favoring Islamic culture (which is predominantly a secular culture) he identifies with, moreso than American culture or Islam. What he knows of Christianity, undoubtably he learned in adulthood, and not voluntarily. It was the result of his relationship with his domestic partner. The central significance of the Christian Church in African-American communities is totally alien to his upbringing and attitudes, and remains so. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 12:50, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

This entry stirs strong emotions. Some might resist the notion that one's religious beliefs are not really what says they are. It's an unsettling insight, but it's plainly true. If one claimed to be the greatest fill-in-the-blank, few would believe him. If a politician makes a self-serving claim to believe in fill-in-the-blank, one should be equally skeptical.

As to Obama's refusal to attend Christian funerals of prominent political figures like a Supreme Court Justice and a former First Lady, it does suggest he disfavors attending Christian funerals. That is a key data point explained by Islamic doctrine. An atheist would not have such reluctance.--Andy Schlafly (talk) 21:32, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

Jackie Kennedy's funeral was probably the last First Lady any sitting President attended. They don't regularly do so nor are they expected. It's a bit of stretch to read anything into it. Orthodox Jews have the commandment, "Ye shall come at no unclean thing." Gathering around a corpse is hardly Christian; it's a tradition in some Christian cultures, but this is hardly the sort of thing we should deem "Christian behavior" or in anyway attached to the Christian faith. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 21:43, 26 May 2017 (EDT)
Attending funerals of high-ranking public officials are part of the job duties of other high-ranking public officials. The funeral for the unexpected death of perhaps the most prominent Supreme Court Justice in a generation should have been attended by Obama, even if you're right about Nancy Reagan. Obama didn't attend. When he spoke at Georgetown, they covered a Christian symbol on the wall for him also.--Andy Schlafly (talk) 23:51, 26 May 2017 (EDT)

The basic question is whether we take a position advocating one side or the other. I believe that every person's relationship with God is very complicated. I also believe that most of the debate about Obama's religion was politically motivated. It will be very hard to do justice to either in a short concise article. The basic structure of the article, which was proposed as a compromise above is sound: a short lead paragraph and then two major sections: one giving the claims for the Muslim rumor and the other refuting those rumors. Moving the table of content toward the bottom of the page shows bias for one position vs the other. Many thanks to all for their hard work on this. JDano (talk) 05:51, 27 May 2017 (EDT)

We have many entries more complicated than this one, such as quantum mechanics. Encyclopedias exist to address complicated questions.
I think this entry hits a chord in part because some feel that one's religion is what one says it is, period. But nothing is what one says it is. There is an underlying reality that is often different from self-serving claims. God is not going to accept self-serving statements as being automatically true, and neither should we.--Andy Schlafly (talk) 11:39, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
I agree with the premise Obama is a Muslim. But some of the "evidence" here is pretty lame. Sometimes less is more. RobSDeep Six the Deep State! 11:42, 27 May 2017 (EDT)
If most people are willing to take anyone at his word about his religion, then we should start the article by highlighting what Obama says about his religious views. I personally don't care if Obama is a Muslim or not, and I will not evaluate his Presidency based on his religion. Nor will I attack Kennedy for being Catholic, Romney for being Mormon, or Joe Lieberman for being Jewish. The religious tests of the 1950s no longer apply. The current article is costing Conservapedia credibility.
What is our intended audience for this page, home-schooled high school students? This page as currently written would never convince a high school student that Obama is a Muslim. Why is Conservapedia beating this drum after "Donald J Trump put an end to it."? JDano (talk) 22:17, 27 May 2017 (EDT)

TOC and header dispute

There is a dispute, as seen in the page history, on whether to add a "TOC" below the section detailing the evidence in favor of Obama being a Muslim and with a header above that section (like what I did here). I strongly support doing this because it makes the article more evenhanded, rather than making it seem like we're arguing that Obama is a Muslim (we should state facts and let the readers come to a conclusion through them). Also, the articles Liberal and Conservative do the same thing. This will not reduce the visibility of the "in favor" section. --1990'sguy (talk) 16:14, 27 May 2017 (EDT)

This kind of stuff is done on Wikipedia, with a big TOC that tends to obscure the best insights of the entry. I'll check our liberal and conservative entries to see if the first page is covered with a TOC. If so, I'll remove it there also. When people click on an entry, they want content quickly, not an overlay that requires them to dig further.--Andy Schlafly (talk) 01:25, 28 May 2017 (EDT)
Our liberal and conservative entries are fine: no TOC that obscures the content on the first page.--Andy Schlafly (talk) 01:26, 28 May 2017 (EDT)