Even I cringe when I read such outrageous claims to superiority. It must be pointed out because I would not want anyone to think that I do not see the conflict there. How can someone claim that they are right and deny others their right to be right? Isn't that a double standard?
Well no. Not if a person really is right and know that they are right. And only a person who knows they are right can do such an outrageous thing...with a straight face. The reason for this is because it is the case that I am not right....it is Allah that is right and who does not mislead or lie.
http://www.islamawazi.net/books/engilish-turkish-book/mubexxirat-islamiye.pdf
I've found an article at the American Thinker and really, it is like so many other Christian articles in which Christians feel that their DECLARATION of RIGHT is either threatened or being usurped. If you read it however, you will note that it is Christianity that is being threatened, not Allah. It is the concept of Christ as Supreme Leader that is being threatened, not Allah. You don't even find the word Allah/God mentioned except as an afterthought. Clearly, this is a team that is segregated from Allah/God and cannot see the forest because of the trees:
"Since Muhammad lays down a serious challenge to Christ and Christianity, we Christians must answer him. What would Christ say? As it turns out, he has given us a clear teaching on how to evaluate a prophet who comes after him in history, especially if the later prophet asserts his superiority over Christ: call it fruit inspection. In the context of the Sermon on the Mount, Christ spoke to the multitudes, few of whom or none of whom were theologians, but simple agrarians. In Matt. 7:15—20, Christ uses unambiguous language about discerning the truthfulness of prophets":
7:15 Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you shall know them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you shall know them.
It helps one to know that one of the guiding principles at American Thinker is:
"There is no limit to the topics appearing on American Thinker. National security in all its dimensions, strategic, economic, diplomatic, and military is emphasized. The right to exist and the survival of the State of Israel are of great importance to us. Business, science, technology, medicine, management, and economics in their practical and ethical dimensions are also emphasized, as is the state of American culture."
Allah and his Apostles apparently aren't their concern so why on earth do they publish articles about such things is beyond me.
The Quran responds to this accordingly:[9.31] They have taken their doctors of law and their monks for lords besides Allah, and (also) the Messiah son of Marium and they were enjoined that they should serve one God only, there is no god but He; far from His glory be what they set up (with Him).[9.32] They desire to put out the light of Allah with their mouths, and Allah will not consent save to perfect His light, though the unbelievers are averse.[9.33] He it is Who sent His Apostle with guidance and the religion of truth, that He might cause it to prevail over all religions, though the polytheists may be averse. -The Glorious Quran, The Immunity
In order to understand, to have a "peek" at the philosophical miracle of Islam, a person has to rid themselves of two primary biases. The first bias is Disbelief in Allah/God. If a person cannot get rid of that bias, it is doubtful that they can see anything at all. This article isn't for those types of people. This is for believers i.e. Jews, Christians, and others who believe in One Allah/God. Belief in two or more Gods...including belief in Jesus as God....will interfere and most likely obliterate your vision into the Quran and Allah's communications.
The second bias one has to consider is the bias against Mohammed, SA. It is unlikely a person can accept him as the last messenger until they see further evidence of that but at the very least, in order to begin to understand the Quran and Islam, a person has to accept that Mohamed is at least, a very important prophet leader. Afterall, he still leads nearly a fifth of the world's people(a number which is steadily increasing, not decreasing)....can't say that about Alexander the Great can you...or Napolean or Ghengis Khan. Just maintain a neutral status in regards to his position.
This is exactly the meaning/function of the Shehada..which..if uttered with INTENT makes a person a muslim. If it however is only being used to reconcile differences of opinion or to open up a pathway towards understanding....it will allow a person to read the Quran and begin to learn. It doesn't "make" a person a muslim necessarily...of course not. It makes a person into an agnostic (of Islam) who can then begin to question the Quran logically, systematically and go on a self guided tour. When it is recited with intent...it has to be followed by a variety of practices normally associated with Islam i.e. praying just like we do, fasting during Ramadan, Haj, Zakat (Charity). Still...those are "just" rituals that signify a person believes in something...they don't reflect what a person actually believes and perhaps more importantly, have no relationship with what a person KNOWS about Islam. There are many muslims in the world who pray in Arabic and have literally no idea what they are saying. It is just an action. It is required and all muslims know that...not all muslims do it. Anyone who does it however will receive a certain reward for it. A person then who recites Shehada "There is no god but God, and Muhammad is his prophet" gets credit for that regardless of their intent or lack of same. The reward depends on the intention. Full intent and pure, openmindedness...will be rewarded accordingly. Impure intent based on "finding what one likes" and "rejecting what one dislikes" will be answered accordingly. If a person enters into that agreement only wanting to understand...they'll understand. This last case of course causes fear for some people..the fear of "conversion". The Quran coupled with good people who have pure intentions...well. It is, as Allah suggests, irrisistable and hence...there are many people in the world today who would rather good people don't get together with good information.
If a person can do that (maintain a smidgeon of neutrality/agnosticism even), then a person can in fact achieve success if their intentions towards Allah/God are good enough. How else can you explain a muslim like me? The majority of my years as a muslim (I accepted over twenty five years ago) were spent as an agnostic muslim...many muslims are exactly that but you'd hardly know that from the press they receive. I can't tell you how many muslims I have met that don't pray, haven't read the Quran, assume equality and agree to sit in the back seat with their "ignorant" brethren (Christians, Jews, other Monotheistic types who deny Mohamed any respect whatsoever), reject the idea of Judgement Day, etc. etc. etc. They are agnostic muslims. They are still questioning their own religion, which is okay. Not to mention the fundamentalists who insist they are right (Sunni agnostics) and who are willing to ethnically cleanse those who are actually right and following the right policies and procedures (Shia). Man....what an incredible spectrum of muslims there are but most people think we come only in one color, model and make.
It used to be that I was living in a mindset that was created by being raised a "Sunday" Catholic (most people are Sunday Catholics nowdays), raised in the cultural milieu of the sixties and seventies (drugs, sex and rock and roll), raised by parents who knew almost nothing of Islam (highly normal back then and when my father met my husband he smiled, shook his right hand and told him that he knew his left hand was for wiping his arse). I did alot of things that now make me cringe. Thing is, they SHOULD HAVE MADE ME CRINGE THEN. My culture and education had more influence on me prior to reaching spiritual maturity and eventually I reached a plateau called "certainty" which is different from mere faith.
Oh well. All people of faith request forgiveness for things they do that are in error but...how do they know what is in error and what is not when in fact, their society (and church) tells them how to think and act? Sure, we all know certain things are off limits...like murder and rape and theft. But honestly, how about adultery, fornication and intoxication? How about consumption of pork? How about posing for nude pictures or looking at them? Sheesh....we have Girls Gone Wild on TV at six in the morning at AZ...right about when the youngins are up and about while their parents are sleeping in...if they are still married. How about spying? Is there a commandment in Christianity that guides a person in that realm? How about suspicion?
The biggest crime however...the only UNFORGIVABLE crime against Allah...because many things that we believe to be crimes may in fact have some justification and all of them are forgiveable....is failure to worship one Allah/God. Just one. Not three. Not even TWO. It is the basis of original sin. It is the only sin in reality and all other misbehaviors stem in one way or the other from it. Any Bible will tell you as much, as will any Torah. The Shehada addresses that by stating that a person holds that Allah doesn't have partners. In a nutshell, the idea that the Creator would either need or entertain the need for "help" is ludicrous to muslims and ought to be ludicrious to anyone who actually believes that the world was created, the universe created, and all the things in and outside of it were created by one Omnipotent Creator. It is an obvious or rather it ought to be an obvious FACT about God/Allah.
When a person insists however (as does the author of the article at American Thinker who holds a PhD and teaches introductory philosophy and world religion at a college in southern California) that they are right about something and hopes to advise others...what if they are wrong? Is that a punishable act? On the other hand, what if a person merely states the case and it is correct (no coercion except for human intellectual logic)? Is it rewardable? Maybe....but only if they are "nice" about it and do it logically and that is what Islam is all about...the logic of the case presented to all people in their own time frame and cultural setting, in terms they can understand.
But is bad advice punishable? You tell me. If a person advises another person to worship two Gods...and that is exactly what Jesus is to most Christians including Mr. Arlandson even though I am certain he would disagree......do you think they deserve reward or punishment? Should they also suffer the penalty that would necessarily belong to anyone who follows their advice? Are they responsible for creating polytheism in others?
The Quran answers an unequivocable YES. Knowledgeable people (includes popes, priests, bishops, imams, gurus, Kings/Queens in countries acknowledging a "state religion" (Morocco, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom), and at the very bottom of the list...it includes people like me and Mr. Arlandson who know or at least think they know enough about the issue to talk about it and give advice. All of those roles have a responsibility to advise people well.
Don't give advice if you can't pay the price.
Jesus never said he was Allah. In fact, in the hadith (stories) about Jesus called the New Testament, Jesus forbade people from bowing to him. He never said he was the last messenger and prophet either....Mohamed did. How on earth that translates and how that sounds to those who cannot fathom that Mohamed was the last messenger and prophet, last apostle sent to mankind (because of course, Christians believe Jesus is not only the most important prophet but have even assigned him to be the human son of Allah and equal to Allah, capable of "forgiving" and capable of "judgement", his partner at the right hand side of Allah).....to if it can't be Jesus then it can't be anyone else because wha? Oh...right. False prophets. Without naming names of course, Christians rely on this premise to defend Jesus right to be the last one when in fact Jesus knew otherwise and informed his followers that there would be another following
him....otherwise....DUH...there would be no need for advice on how to know a false prophet from a real one. What those people SHOULD be surprised to know is that Jesus will also be JUDGED. How then..can they ask Jesus for forgiveness? God/Allah is judge, jury and executioner and "has no partners" in that endeavor. So. It is very logical granted a person has an orientation towards truth and really wants to know the truth. The problem with Christianic thinking is they believe (oftentimes) that muslims have substituted Mohamed into the spot formerly occupied by Jesus FOR them in their errant organizational process. In Mr. Arlandson's article, he literally states this out loud by asking, "Is Mohamed/Islam and Improvement on Christianity?" Mr. Arlandson ought to be told, perfection cannot be improved upon. His need to substantiate that case illuminates his errant philosophical viewpoint. Alas...we don't worship Mohamed and know for a fact that he is not Allah's partner, he is totally incapable of granting forgiveness and was "just" a human being albeit a very special one in a long line of very special men who were all descendents via the patriarchal DNA passed down from Adam through Noah, through Abraham and his son Ismael, right on up to the last living man in the direct line of prophets and their descendents who is known to muslims as The Mahdi. It is a family tree and the use of family tree is mentioned in Mr. Arlandson's Biblical quotes...right there in front of us yet he would hope people read it otherwise. Jesus on the other hand...was a very special man. He didn't have a father than linked him with the patriarchal lineage of all the other prophets. He is to be compared to Adam who is the only other prophet created without the addition of male sperm. But that doesn't make him a "son" of Allah. It merely makes him a challenge to our thinking...a challenge that has proved to be useful in more ways than one in determining who is on the right track.
Now. Hopefully this peak is helpful to those who think it is mighty audacious of me to make such a profound claim....I am right, we are right because Allah knows what he is doing and our instructions come directly from the source or as close as a person can get to "directly" i.e. the prophet's actual verbatim account of what the angel Gibril (on a directive from Allah) told him to recite. The Bible isn't such a thing, the Torah isn't such a thing and the Upanishads aren't such a thing...and to credit those books and philosophers who wrote them down....those books never CLAIMED SUCH A THING. They are all second, third, fourth, twentieth...you name it...generation information. Those books didn't claim what the people who read them and cite them claim.
People claim such things. Just like I am claiming right here. There is a huge difference however in a knowledgable person claiming such a thing and a person claiming such a thing out of ignorance. Big, big difference.
Why me? Well...it has intrigued me....yeah...why me? I wasn't a particularly good person....and I'm still not a particularly good person on a spectrum of AMAZINGLY OUTRAGEOUSLY GREAT people (like the Ahl Bayt's twelve members) to OUTRAGEOUSLY IGNORANT BUT CHARITABLE AND TOLERANT to the other end of EVIL. Why me then? Well...my husband postulates that maybe I needed it more than some other folks. I postulate that my intentions were always there...they just got all messed up because of my society and the inability of my parents to know about Islam in "that day and age". So Allah took pity on me...and boy did Allah take pity on me. Showed me some really incredible things and allowed me to be one of a tiny minority of people in the world today...and we are an incredibly small collective.....who actually have the ability to dive for pearls in the Quran. And yes....I do get that opportunity...not everyday...but it happens every so often. The last pearl I found in the deep sea of Quran is information about the Last Supper as it pertains to the Last Messenger and his Last Act. It was a doozy...afterall...I'd read the fifth Sura COUNTLESS times. At least five or six times but I'd never been able to put the entire point together until one day I just got it...went back to it and there it was. Not hidden but disguised by my own ignorance for a period of time. I can hardly imagine what GOOD SHIA MUSLIMS know...I'm just an average one or even below average.
Why not me? And by now....some souls will ask their owners...WHY NOT YOU?
Yes. Why not?
