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C1.
Salam.
Pronouncing the Shahadah does not make us a Submitter (Muslim in
Arabic) or a
Believer (Mu'min in Arabic).
The
submission to the Will of God makes us Submitter. Our journey should
start
with
the submission to the Will of God. It is a state of mind choosing
between the two: God or Satan, good or evil, correct Shahadah or
corrupt shahadah, worshiping God Alone or worshiping many gods,
seeking the righteous path or seeking the unrighteous path, adopting
the correct path or adopting the crooked path, performing a true jihad
or killing innocent people, etc. , etc.
In
verse 3:67, the religion of Submission (Islam in Arabic) is as old as
Abraham who was Muslim (Quran 2:128, 2:131, 2:133). God specifically
tells us that Abraham was neither Jewish nor Christian, but a
monotheist Muslim. God even tells us that Jesus and the Disciples
were Muslims (Quran
5:111), Solomon was Muslim (Quran 27:44) and all the prophets who were
given the
Torah
were Muslims (Quran 5:44) According to the Quran, Islam is not a new
religion and Muhammad was one of the follower of Abraham's religion,
which is Islam (Quran 16:123). According to the Quran, a Jews,
Christian, Muslim or any one can be Muslim if he/she is righteous
based on the Quranic definition.
[3:85] Anyone who accepts other than Islam his religion, it will not
be accepted from him, and in the Hereafter, he will be with the
losers.
[2:62]
Surely, those who believe, those who are Jewish, the Christians, and
the converts; anyone who (1) believes in GOD, and (2) believes in the
Last Day, and (3) leads a righteous life, will receive their
recompense from their Lord. They have nothing to fear, nor will they
grieve.
All Believers
are Submitters but not all Submitters are Believers. We begin our
journey with the submission to the will of God. We need to
gradually develop our souls by observing righteous works and
forsaking unrighteous works. Through this process, we gradually become
a Believer from a Submitter. A Submitter and a Believer both get
salvation, however a Believer gets higher rank because of their
healthier soul.
[49:14] The Arabs said, "We are Mu'mens (believers)." Say, "You have
not believed; what you should say is, `We are Muslims (submitters),'
until belief is established in your hearts." If you obey GOD and His
messenger, He will not put any of your works to waste. GOD is
Forgiver, Most Merciful.
Thank you and may God guide me,
Muhammed Irtaza
[33:62] God's
Sunnah is unchangeable
[39:23] The Quran is the best Hadith
http://www.islamawakened.com/Quran/
C2.
On Fri,
4/15/11, Iftekhar Hai <>
wrote:
Questions are asked in
University
of San Francisco class of Multi-Culturalism:
What
does the Quran say about other religions?
Answer:
If
we understand the TRUE or CORRECT definition of word ISLAM lot of
religions can be explained or understood.
Hence let us see where has the Quran defined Islam. I have found that
in Surah 42:13
Islam
The Quran is very clear in explaining the definition of the word
Islam. What
does it mean and what does it stand for. The uniqueness of this word
is - that it is not named after any person (in this case our
Prophet). It means total surrender or submission to Allah (God).
Islam
was the religion even before our Prophet Mohammed was born (pbuh) as
is evidenced in The Quran in reference to 42:13.
"The same
religion (Islam or submission and surrender) has He established for
you (referring to Mohammed (p) that which He enjoined on Noah. That
which We have send as inspiration to you (Mohammed pbuh) and that
which We enjoined on Abraham, Moses and Jesus (and all Prophets are
implied) : That you should stay steadfast in religion and make no
divisions therein. (this means work for the unity of humankind because
the commonality in all religions is submission and surrender to ONE
CREATOR) As for those who worship other than God they are on (hard)
wrong way to call from. God chooses and guides those whom He wills
towards Him.
Commentary: According to this if a Christian, a Jew or any believer
in One Supreme Being says “we surrender or submit to God.” They are
falling within the definition of the word Islam. The art of surrender
or submission is called Islam. This art of submission/surrender was
shown to all the Prophets and their people as evidenced in The Quran
10:47,
14:4 &
16:36.
Islam is very inclusive and broad in its definition. Muslims believe
in Allah and take Mohammed (pbuh) as their messenger, just as
Christians and Jews believe in the same God and take Jesus and Moses
as their respective messengers. However Muslims believe in all the
prophets from Jewish and Christian scriptures. One must refrain from
judging other believers the depth of surrendering or submission of
other believers. God is THE ONLY JUDGE.
Surah
3:85, “If anyone desires a religion other than Islam, never will it be
accepted of him.” Here the definition of Islam must be taken in its
global context of surrendering and submission to One and Only One God.
Believer:
Anyone who says, “We believe in One God” is a Believer. Let God be
the ultimate judge. Humans will never have perfect knowledge to judge
others.
Muslim:
A Muslim is a person who says, “There is no God but One God (Allah)
and Mohammed (pbuh) is a messenger of God.
--
Iftekhar A. Hai
UMA Interfaith
Alliance
www.umaia.net |