format_quote Originally Posted by
andgar
Assalamu alaikum
I'm the process of converting (I'm agnostic raised Catholic), I started reading articles and watching videos on Islam before reading the Qu'ran. I just started reading the Qu'ran a few nights ago, when it hit me....
As a convert, that means my family and friends are non Muslims. According to the Qu'ran they are 'non believers' or infidels. So if I convert, this would mean that I'd believe they would go to hell for being non believers:
Am I misinterpreting something?
Does the Qu'ran address this?
Question for any converts....... do you feel that your family and friends will go to hell?
Please somebody help me, I hope that I'm misreading something.
Thank you
Asalaamu Alaikam,
First, it should be understood that this word "infidel" is not actually used in the Quran. Infidel is a European term that was used in the Crusades for all people who were "not Christian."
The Quran uses several terms to describe non-Muslims. The Christians and Jews are "Ahle Kitab," which means "People of the Book." The "book" being the Torah and the Injeel (Gospel). They are never referred to as infidels. This is a common misconception that even many, many Muslims hold.
Polytheists (those believing in more than one God, like Hindus, for example), are referred to as "mushrikeen," which means "those who practices "shirk." Shirk is the partnering anything else with God (which is what polytheists do). The singular form is "mushrik" It should be noted that Christians and Jews DO NOT do this, nor does the Quran ever refer to them by this term. Judaism teaches the concept of ONE GOD, as does Christianity. The difference is that Christianity has a "triune God," but it is still only ONE GOD, just three facets (look at a diamond for example. It has many facets, but you still understand it to only be one diamond.)
Then there are the Hypocrites, or "munafiqeen" in the Quran. The hypocrites are those who, while among Muslims, will claim that they, too are Muslim, yet as soon as they get away from the Muslims, they will say, "I am not Muslim, I was only kidding." The singular form is "munafiq"
Non-believers are referred to as "kafir" (singular) or "kuffar" (plural form). These are the people who say that God does not exist. Most of the condemnation in the Quran is directed at the kuffar, for their total rejection of God. The Quran never refers to Christians and Jews as being kuffar. They are not, because they DO believe in God.
There is an error in the thinking of many Muslims that the terms "kafir" and "kuffar" refer to any non-Muslim. This is ignoring the fact that there are multiple terms for non-Muslims, depending on what they believe in.
I am a revert, but I do not feel comfortable discussing what I feel will "happen" to my non-Muslim relatives. I am conflicted on this, and after finding out that there are differing views among scholars in regards to just exactly who the Quran says will be punished for not believing, I am coming to new conclusions and feelings on the matter. I have been Muslim now for 7 years, and this new information has just been made available to me. As a result, I do not feel that I have adequate knowledge to comment on it.
I will advise you that you do what you feel in your heart. It looks as though Allah is guiding you to Islam, and you should not fight this. You also should not despair for your non-Muslim friends and family. You have the opportunity to teach them about Islam. Perhaps upon hearing about the true nature of Islam, they will accept it as their own religion, inshAllah (God willing).
Only Allah knows what will happen to anyone, and we should never claim to know for certain. When it comes to interpreting the Quran, I would like to point out that the Quran only clearly tells us that two people are going to Hell for sure. Those two people were the Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him) uncle, Abu Lahab, and his wife. This was because of his behavior, and how he tried to block people from receiving the message of Islam. For all other people living or dead, we regular people have NO idea who will be in Heaven or Hell. This is for Allah alone to know.