IB_14

Page 8

Page 9

Issue 14

We are providing this section for our new brother and sis-

ters so that they may have more information regarding the

teachings of Islam; the religion of absolute submission to the

one God; Allah.

We sincerely hope that you will benefit from it, and that it

may deepen your knowledge and increase your interest in

Islam. Although we live in the twentieth century - in proba-

bly the most secular and irreligious age in history - many of

us are still inclined to stop from time to time to think about

religion. And yet we find that there are so many different

opinions about religion. Religions seem to cling fanatically

to their own beliefs. Each in turn seems to claim that it pos-

sesses all truth, while all others are lost in hopeless error.

In an age torn by hatred, war and strife among the races,

many of us look back to religion for guidance to peace and

brotherhood and are disappointed when we find in most of

them intolerance and narrowness of spirituality.

So, we may ask, is there a religion which teaches the One-

ness of God and the oneness of mankind, and yet, at the

same time is tolerant of other points of view? This is exactly

the teaching of Islam. In fact, Islam teaches that this message

of the Oneness of God and the brotherhood of all races is

the original message which Allah sent to all prophets and

religions since the dawn of human history.

However, man has changed this original teaching of One-

ness and developed out of numerous mutually antagonistic

sects. As Allah says in the Holy Qur’an, the revelation of

Allah to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh):

“And verily this Ummah of yours is a single Ummah and

I am your Lord, and Cherisher: therefore fear Me (and no

other). But people have cut off their affair (of unity), be-

tween them into sects: each party rejoices in that which

is with itself. “ (Quran 23:52-53)

Islam still preserves this teaching of the Oneness of God and

the brotherhood of all mankind. Islam seeks to implement

this spirit among all races, and yet, at the same time, re-

mains tolerant and respectful of all other heavenly religions

and their followers who share the belief in the One and only

God. The Holy Qur’an teaches:

“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out

clear from Error: whoever rejects Tagut and believes in

Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that

never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.”

(Qur’an 2:256)

EANING OF

SLAM

It is false to call Islam Mohammedanism, as has been done

so frequently in the West. We have already pointed out that

Muslims believe that Islam is the eternal message which

Allah sent to all prophets, peace be upon them, from the

dawn of mankind, and not a new belief which began with

the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

Muslims call their religion Islam, and the Arabic word Islam

implies the attainment of peace through submission to Al-

lah. The word Muslim is an adjective derived from the noun

Islam, and implies one who has peace within himself from

his submission to Allah.

Muslims believe in the One, Eternal God, Who created the

heavens and the earth and all that exists. In Arabic, God

is called Allah. There is absolutely no difference between

Allah and the God of Abraham, Moses and Jesus, peace be

upon them all. Muslims do not believe that Prophet Mu-

hammad was the only Prophet; rather they believe that he

was the last of the Prophets of the Old and New Testaments.

The Holy Qur’an is the revealed and sacred scripture of Is-

lam, and it teaches:

“Say Ye: ‘We believe in Allah and the revelation given to

us, and to Abraham, Isma’il, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes,

and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to

(all) Prophets from their Lord: We make no difference

between one and another of them: and we submit to Al-

lah.’” (Qur’an 2:136)

OME

ASIC

ELIEFS OF

SLAM

The most fundamental concept of Islam and the backbone

of all its other principles and practices is the Oneness of God

- tawhiid. Islam is monotheism in its purest form, and the

logic of pure monotheism is the thread which runs through

the entire fabric of the Islamic way of life. Islam teaches

a fundamental difference between Allah, the Creator and

that which He has created. The sky, the moon, the stars,

the harmony and perfection of the natural world, the grace

and beauty of the human body and the excellence of the

human mind, the alternation of day and night, the change

of the seasons, and the mystery of life and death all point to

something beyond, greater than themselves. To the believer

these are all signs (ayaat) of Allah. Islam teaches that Allah is

not to be likened to anything which He has created. He is

All-Powerful, All-Knowing. He is beyond any imperfection,

and is the fulfillment of all Perfection. He is not a substance,

nor is He like any of His creatures. He is not a far away and

distant God, nor is He an unapproachable ideal. He is All-

Kind, All-Merciful, and All-Compassionate.

Islam teaches that Allah is eternal. He was not Himself be-

gotten, nor has He, in turn begotten a son or a daughter.

Islam rejects the concept of the incarnation of God, which

is found in Hinduism, Christianity, and other religions, and

believes that the concept of incarnation limits the concept

of God and destroys the believer’s conviction of God’s Ac-

tiveness and Perfection.

The Qur’an describes Allah being perfect and active:

“Allah, there is no god except He. The Living, the Ever-

lasting. Neither dozing nor sleep overtakes Him. To Him

belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. Who is

he that shall intercede with Him except by His permis-

sion? He knows what will be before their hands and what

was behind them. And they do not comprehend anything

of His knowledge except what He willed. His Seat sur-

rounds the heavens and earth. The preserving of them

does not tire Him. He is the All High, the All-Glorious. “

(Qur’an 2:255)

Islam rejects the notion that Jesus (PBUH) was the son of

God. Rather it honors and respects him as one of the great

messengers and prophets of Allah to the Children of Israel.

Islam rejects the concept of trinity and considers it a con-

tradiction of pure monotheism. It also rejects the argument

of some Christians that God made Himself incarnate in Je-

sus, peace be upon him, so that God could be known by

men, and also rejects the argument that Jesus, peace be

upon him, died on the cross for mankind’s sins. To begin

with, Islam believes that man can come to know Allah and

feel close to Him by means of proper prayer, fasting, charity,

pilgrimage, and righteous deeds. The very practice of Islam

is meant to purify the believer’s soul and to bring him/her

closer to Allah. With regard to the second argument, Islam

teaches no human being can bear the burden of another’s

responsibility.

Allah is very aware of our human weaknesses and imper-

fection. He does not condemn us because we are created

imperfect; rather He guides us to self-perfection and He for-

gives us and showers His Mercy upon us when we fail and

then ask His forgiveness sincerely.

Muslims believe in the divine origin of the Old and New

Testaments, although Muslims doubt the historical authen-

ticity of some parts of the Old and New Testaments and do

not believe them to be exact representations of what Allah

originally revealed. The Qur’an upheld this view of the text

of the Old and New Testaments hundreds of years ago, and

in recent years, this view has been upheld by textual studies

of biblical scholars. Muslims believe in the Angels of Allah,

and His Prophets, peace be upon them. They believe in the

resurrection of the dead at the end of the world; they be-

lieve in the coming of the Day of Judgement and eternal life

in Paradise or Hell.

Although Muslims believe that Allah is All-Powerful and

maintains complete control over His creation, they also be-

lieve that Allah has created man with free will and the ability

to choose and act, and that Allah is just in making man mor-

ally responsible for what man does during his/her lifetime. It

is false to say that Islam teaches its followers to resign meekly

and passively to whatever is their fate or destiny. Rather Is-

lam challenges the believer to fight against wrong and op-

pression and to strive for the establishment of righteousness

and justice.

AITH

CTION

Faith without action is a dead letter. Islam teaches us that

faith by itself is not enough until it is transformed into action.

The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said:

“Faith does not depend on raising hopes, but it is something

which is firmly established in the heart and testified to by

action. Indeed, there are people who have been deceived

by their hopes, so that they finally leave this world without

merit. They used to say, ‘We have good expectations from

Allah.’ Yet they only deceived themselves. For had they tru-

ly placed good expectations in Allah, they would have ex-

celled in good deeds.”

Each Muslim is taught that he/she is personally responsible

for his/her own actions, both in this world and in the here-

after. Islam teaches that every individual must carry the re-

sponsibility of his/her own actions and that no one can carry

that burden for them.

OSITION OF

OMEN

SLAM

Islam teaches that the woman is not inherently inferior to

man; rather man and woman are of similar nature. They

both are equal in intellectual and spiritual capacity. Further-

more, they are both equally responsible for their deeds be-

fore Allah.

It is also true that Islam regards the woman as having a pri-

mary role to play in the constitution and running of the fam-

ily. Islam places great emphasis on the role of the Muslim

woman as a wife and particularly as a mother, and Muslims

are often of the opinion that the best position for the wom-

an is in the home with her children and family. However,

the Muslim woman is not prohibited from leaving her home

to pursue education, a teaching profession, or other worth-

while and constructive goals which profit not only her but

society as well. The Qur’an establishes the spiritual equality

and mutual responsibility of man and woman in verses like

the following:

“And whoever does deeds of righteousness, whether male

or female, and is a believer, such will enter Paradise, and

they will not be wronged even a small thing like the spot

on a date- stone.” (Qur’an 4:124)

“And their Lord answered them, ‘Indeed I suffer not the

work of any worker, male or female, to be lost. You are

equal to each other.’” (Qur’an 3:195)

The relationship of the Muslim man to his wife is not that of

master to slave. Rather the entire responsibility of economic

support is placed on the shoulders of the man alone and he

cannot demand of his wife that she also become econom-

ically productive to support the family, although she is able

to do this if she desires.

The Qur’an enunciates this responsibility of men to women

in the following verse:

“Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, for

that Allah has preferred one over the other in bounty, and

because they support them from their means. So righ-

teous women are obedient, guarding in secret what Allah

has guarded.” (Qur’an 4:34)

The important point that should be made is that Islam has

great respect for the woman. It does not teach that she is

without a soul or that she is the root of all evil or that she is

inferior to man and must be kept in seclusion and subjuga-

tion. It is also worthy of mention that the Qur’an does not

teach that man fell from Paradise because of the temptation

of Eve. Rather the Qur’an directs all the responsibility to-

ward Adam himself, while adding that Allah turned to Adam

in mercy and forgave him his sin. Therefore, Adam’s sin

stops with Adam himself, and Allah, who is the Beneficent

and the Merciful, does not hold mankind responsible for the

sin of Adam.

We cannot deny that the condition of women has at times

been regrettable in the Muslim world, as well as in the rest

of the world at large. We do not wish to justify these cir-

cumstances, but only to make the point that they did not

hat

slam