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The word "Muslim" means one
who submits to the will of God, regardless of their race, nationality or
ethnic background. Being a Muslim entails willful submission and active
obedience to God, and living in accordance with His message. Some people
mistakenly believe that Islam is just a religion for Arabs, but nothing could
be further from the truth. Not only are there converts to Islam in every corner
of the world, especially in England and America, but by taking a look at the
Muslim World from Bosnia to Nigeria, and from Indonesia to Morocco, one can
clearly see that Muslims come from many various races, ethnic groups and
nationalities. It is also interesting to note that in actuality, more than
80% of all Muslims are not Arabs - there are more Muslims in Indonesia than
in the whole Arab World! So though even though it is true that most Arabs are
Muslims, the large majority of Muslims are not Arabs. However, anyone who
submits completely to God and worships Him alone is a Muslim.
Continuity of the Message:
Islam is not a new religion because "submission
to the will of God", i.e. Islam, has always been the only
acceptable religion in the sight of God. For this reason, Islam is the true "natural religion", and it is the same eternal
message revealed through the ages to all of God's prophets and messengers.
Muslims believe that all of God's prophets, which include Abraham, Noah,
Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, brought the same message of Pure Monotheism. For
this reason, the Prophet Muhammad was not the founder of a new religion, as
many people mistakenly think, but he was the Final Prophet of Islam. By
revealing His final message to Muhammad, which is an eternal and universal
message for all of mankind, God finally fulfilled the covenant that He made
with Abraham, who was one of the earliest and greatest prophets. Suffice it
to say that the way of Islam is the same as the way of the prophet Abraham,
because both the Bible and the Qur'an portray Abraham as a towering example
of someone who submitted himself completely to God and worshipped Him without
intermediaries. Once this is realized, it should be clear that Islam has the
most continuous and universal message of any religion, because all prophets
and messengers were "Muslims", i.e. those
who submitted to God's will, and they preached "Islam",
i.e. submission to the will of Almighty God.
The Oneness of God:
The foundation of the Islamic faith is belief in the Oneness of
Almighty God - the God of Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus. Islam teaches that
a pure belief in One God is intuitive in human beings and thus fulfills the
natural inclination of the soul. As such, Islam's concept of God is
straightforward, unambiguous and easy to understand. Islam teaches that the
hearts, minds and souls of human beings are fitting receptacles for clear
divine revelation, and that God's revelations to man are not clouded by
self-contradictory mysteries or irrational ideas. As such, Islam teaches that
even though God cannot be fully comprehended and grasped by our finite human
minds, He also does not expect us to accept absurd or demonstrably false
beliefs about Him. According to the teachings of Islam, Almighty God is
absolutely One and His Oneness should never be compromised by associating
partners with Him - neither in worship nor in belief. Due to this, Muslims
are required to maintain a direct relationship with
God, and therefore all intermediaries are absolutely forbidden. From the
Islamic standpoint, believing in the Oneness of God means to realize that all
prayer and worship should be exclusively for God, and that He alone deserves
such titles as "Lord" and "Savior".
Some religions, even though they believe on "One
God", do not make all of their worship and prayers for Him alone.
Also, they also give the title of "Lord" to
beings that are not All-Knowing, All-Powerful and Un-Changing - even
according to their own scriptures. Suffice it to say that according to Islam,
it is not enough that people believe that "God is
One", but they must actualize this belief by proper conduct. In
short, in the Islamic concept of God, which is completely based on Divine
Revelation, there is no ambiguity in divinity - God is God and man is man.
Since God is the only Creator and continual Sustainer of the Universe, He is
transcendent above His creation - the Creator and the creature never mix.
Islam teaches that God has a unique nature and that He is free from gender,
human weaknesses and beyond anything which human beings can imagine. The
Qur'an teaches that the signs and proofs of God's wisdom, power and existence
are evident in the world around us. As such, God calls on man to ponder over
the creation in order to build a better understanding of his Creator. Muslims
believe that God is Loving, Compassionate and Merciful, and that He is
concerned with the daily affairs of human beings. In this, Islam strikes a
unique balance between false religious and philosophical extremes. Some
religions and philosophies portray God as just an impersonal "Higher Power" who is uninterested, or unaware,
of the life of each individual human. Other religions tend to give God human
qualities and teach that He is present in His creation, by being incarnate in
someone, something - or even everything. In Islam, however, Almighty God has
clarified the truth by letting mankind know that He is "Compassionate",
"Merciful", "Loving"
and the "Answerer of Prayers". But He as
also emphasized strongly that "there is nothing like
unto Him", and that He is high above time, space and His
creation. Finally, it should be mentioned that the God that Muslims worship
is the same God that Jews and Christians worship - because there is only one
God. It is unfortunate that some people mistakenly believe that Muslims
worship a different God than Jews and Christians, and that "Allah"
is just the "god of the Arabs". This myth,
which has been propagated by the enemies of Islam, is completely false since
the word "Allah" is simply the Arabic name
for Almighty God. It is the same word for God which is used by
Arabic-speaking Jews and Christians. However, it should be clarified that
even though Muslims worship the same God as Jews and Christian, their concept
of Him differs somewhat from the beliefs of other religions - mainly because
it is based completely on Divine Revelation from God. For example, Muslims
reject the Christian belief that God is a Trinity, not only becaue the Qur'an
rejects it, but also because if this was God's true nature, He would have
clearly revealed it to Abraham, Noah, Jesus and all of the other prophets.
The Qur'an:
The Arabic world "Al-Qur'an"
literally means "the recitation". When used
in regards to Islam, the word Qur'an means God's final message to mankind
that was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. The Qu'ran, sometimes spelled Koran, is the literal the word of God - as it clearly says
time and time again. Unlike other sacred scriptures, the Qur'an has been
perfectly preserved in both its words and meaning in a living language. The
Qu'ran is a living miracle in the Arabic language; and is know to be
inimitable in its style, form and spiritual impact. God's final revelation to
mankind, the Qur'an, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad over a period of 23
years. The Qur'an, in contrast to many other religious books, was always
thought to be the Word of God by those who believed in it, i.e. it wasn't
something decreed by a religious council many years after being written.
Also, the Qu'ran was recited publicly in front of both the Muslim and
non-Muslim communities during the life of the Prophet Muhammad. The entire
Qur'an was also completely written down in lifetime of the Prophet, and
numerous companions of the Prophet memorized the entire Qur'an word-for-word
as it was revealed. So unlike other scriptures, the Qur'an was always in the
hands of the common believers, it was always thought to be God's word and,
due to wide-spread memorization, it was perfectly preserved. In regards to
the teachings of the Qur'an - it is a universal scripture, and it is
addressed to all of mankind, and not to a particular tribe or "chosen people". The message that it brings is
nothing new, but the same message of all of the prophets - submit
to Almighty God and worship Him alone. As such, God's revelation in
the Qur'an focuses on teaching human beings the importance of believing in
the Unity of God and framing their lives around the guidance which He has
sent. Additionally, the Qur'an contains the stories of the previous prophets,
such as Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus; as well as many commands and
prohibitions from God. In modern times in which so many people are caught up
in doubt, spiritual despair and "political
correctness", the Qur'anic teachings offer solutions to the
emptiness of our lives and the turmoil that is gripping the world today. In
short, the Qur'an is the book of guidance par excellence.
The Prophet Muhammad
:
Unlike the founders of many religious, the final prophet of
Islam is a real documented and historical figure. He lived in the full light
of history, and the most minute details of his life are known. Not only do
Muslims have the complete text of God's words that were revealed to Muhammad,
but they have also preserved his saying and teachings in what is called "hadith" literature. This having been said, it
should be understood that Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad was only
a man chosen by God, and that he is not divine in any way. In order to avoid
the misguided wish to deify him, the Prophet Muhammad taught Muslims to refer
to him as "God's Messenger and His Slave".
The mission of the last and final prophet of God was to simply teach that "there is nothing divine or worthy of being worshipped except
for Almighty God", as well as being a living example of God's
revelation. In simple terms, God sent the revelation to Muhammad, who in turn
taught it , preached it, lived it and put it into practice. In this way,
Muhammad was more that just a "prophet" in
the sense of many of the Biblical prophets, since he was also a statesman and
ruler. He was a man who lived a humble life in the service of God, and
established an all-encompassing religion and way of life by showing what it
means to be an ideal friend, husband, teacher, ruler, warrior and judge. For
this reason, Muslims follow him not for his own sake, but in obedience to
God, because Muhammad not only showed us how to deal with our fellow human
beings, but more importantly, he showed us how to relate to and worship God,
worship Him in the only way pleasing to Him. Like other prophets, Muhammad
faced a great deal of opposition and persecution during his mission. However,
he was always patient and just, and he treated his enemies well. The results
of his mission were very successful, and even though his mission started in
one of the most backward and remotes places on earth, within a hundred years
of the death of Muhammad, Islam had spread from Spain to China. The Prophet
Muhammad was the greatest of all of God's prophets, not because he had new
doctrines or greater miracles, but because the results of his mission have
broght more human beings into the pure and proper belief in the One True God
than any other prophet.
The Islamic Way of Life:
In the Holy Qur'an, God teaches human beings that they were
created in order to worship Him, and that the basis of all true worship is
God-consciousness. Since the teachings of Islamic encompass all aspects of
life and ethics, God-consciousness is encouraged in all human affairs. Islam
makes it clear that all human acts are acts of worship if they are done for
God alone and in accordance to His Divine Law. As such, worship in Islam is
not limited to religious rituals. The teachings of Islam act as a mercy and a
healing for the human soul, and such qualities as humility, sincerity,
patience and charity are strongly encouraged. Additionally, Islam condemns
pride and self-righteousness, since Almighty God is the only judge of human
righteousness. The Islamic view of the nature of man is also realistic and
well-balanced. Human beings are not believed to be inherently sinful, but are
seen as equally capable of both good and evil. Islam also teaches that faith
and action go hand-in-hand. God has given people free-will, and the measure
of one's faith is one's deeds and actions. However, human beings have also
been created weak and regularly fall into sin. This is the nature of the
human being as created by God in His Wisdom, and it is not inherently "corrupt" or in need of repair. This is because
the avenue of repentance of always open to all human beings, and Almighty God
loves the repentant sinner more than one who does not sin at all. The true
balance of an Islamic life is established by having a healthy fear of God as
well as a sincere belief in His infinite Mercy. A life without fear of God
leads to sin and disobedience, while believing that we have sinned so much
that God will not possibly forgive us only leads to despair. In light of
this, Islam teaches that: only the misguided despair of the
Mercy of their Lord. Additionally, the Holy Qur'an, which was revealed
to the Prophet Muhammad, contains a great deal of teachings about the life
hereafter and the Day of Judgment. Due to this, Muslims believe that all
human beings will ultimately be judged by God for their beliefs and actions
in their earthly lives. In judging human beings, Almighty God will be both
Merciful and Just, and people will only be judged for what they were capable
of. Suffice it to say that Islam teaches that life is a test, and that all
human beings will be accountable before God. A sincere belief in the life
hereafter is key to leading a well-balanced life and moral. Otherwise, life
is viewed as an end in itself, which causes human beings to become more selfish,
materialistic and immoral.
Islam for a Better Life:
Islam teaches that true happiness can only being obtained by
living a life full of God-consciousness and being satisfied with what God has
given us. Additionally, true "freedom" is
freedom from being controlled by our base human desires and being ruled by
man-made ideologies. This stands in stark contrast to the view of many people
in the modern world, who consider "freedom"
to be the ability to satisfy all of their desires without inhibition. The clear
and comprehensive guidance of Islam gives human-beings a well-defined purpose
and direction in life. In addition to being members of the human-brotherhood
of Islam, its well-balanced and practical teachings are a source of spiritual
comfort, guidance and morality. A direct and clear relationship with Almighty
God, as well as the sense of purpose and belonging that ones feels as a
Muslim, frees a person from the many worries of everyday life. In short, the
Islamic way of life is pure and wholesome. It builds self-discipline and
self-control thought regular prayer and fasting, and frees human-beings from
superstition and all sorts of racial, ethnic and national prejudices. By
accepting to live a God-conscious life, and realizing that the only thing
that distinguishes people in the sight of God is their consciousness of Him,
a person's true human dignity is realized.
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