an effort to bring peace between different faiths,beliefs and lifestyles

[muslim brother]

we need to post examples where a different religion or differing lifestyles has not been a hindrance to our humanity.

ill start,
we had a hindu guest for 2 days..she prayed how she wanted in my house
when we went to her aunties to drop her off ,we prayed salah their..

ill let allah taala be my judge

[muslim brother]

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/...-a7492751.html

Myriad Foundation Volunteers will visit vulnerable, lonely and terminally ill members of the community. The British Islamic Medical Association will be teaching basic life support and first aid skills in mosques. Manchester’s Muslim Youth Foundation will be handing out roses on the high street as gestures of peace and goodwill, in the prophetic spirit.
Multiculturalism is not a failed project.

[greenhill]

I think in Malaysia there are plenty of examples of interfaith and intercultural unity (of course there is also the opposite) often incited by politically motivated idiots.

I have read a story about a time when the prophet visited a Jewish priest in their temple and when the time arrived for prayers, the priest did offer the prophet to do his prayers there in the temple. The prophet declined and the important thing I noted was that it was NOT because it is forbidden to do so there, but because of the potential precedent it might set for the future. That muslims might follow the prophet and pray (out of convenience sake) at the nearest available house of worship...

Imagine arriving in the temple to find a bunch of muslims praying there because the prophet did it!


:peace:

[azc]

Respecting each other's faith opens the gate of dawat to nonMuslims

Hey there! Looks like you're enjoying the discussion, but you're not signed up for an account.

When you create an account, you can participate in the discussions and share your thoughts. You also get notifications, here and via email, whenever new posts are made. And you can like posts and make new friends.
Sign Up

[Al Sultan]

Well said!

[frabgas27]

Interfaith is a ridiculous idea. Thst completely throws, al wara wal bara out of the window.

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you frabgas27;

Interfaith is a ridiculous idea.

Links to a Muslim story, and a Christian story, that show the benefits of interfaith cooperation, we need to look after each other, despite our differences..

Egypt’s majority Muslim population stuck to its word last Thursday night. What had been a promise of solidarity to the weary Coptic community, was honoured, when thousands of Muslims showed up at Coptic Christmas eve mass services in churches around the country and at candle light vigils held outside.

From the well-known to the unknown, Muslims had offered their bodies as “human shields” for the evening mass, making a pledge to collectively fight the threat of Islamic militants and towards an Egypt free from sectarian strife.

“We either live together, or we die together,” was the sloganeering genius of Mohamed El-Sawy, a Muslim arts tycoon whose cultural centre distributed flyers at churches in Cairo Thursday night, and who has been credited with first floating the “human shield” idea.
https://parliamentofreligions.org/co...tic-christians

Striking photos of unity have emerged from the chaos in Egypt as Christian protesters stood together to protect Muslims as they prayed.

A group of Christians joined hands and faced out surrounding hundreds of Muslims protesters left vulnerable as they knelt in prayer.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz4TtleqfPP
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

In the spirit of praying to 'One God'

Eric

[ardianto]

:sl:

I already in interfaith relationship since I was born. Alhamdulillah, my relationship with my non-Muslims relatives and friends is always good.

Is not difficult to build good interfaith relationship. What we should do is throw away prejudice from our hearts. Do not generalize that all Christians are like this, all Hindus are like that, etc. We must realize that people from other faiths are human too who have various characters and personalities. Just because few of them hate us, doesn't mean all of them hate us.

If your heart clean from prejudice, In Shaa Allah, you will meet kind hearted people who have respect to your religion.

:)

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you ardianto;

I already in interfaith relationship since I was born.

And I am happy to call you my brother in faith. I live in hope, because over the last eleven years, I have been called, brother, uncle and granddad by a number of people on this forum. A number of people here have also given me their blessings.

May you, and those you love and care for be blessed, and may you all be a blessing to others.

Eric

[sister herb]

It´s a ridiculous idea that interfaith is ridiculous idea. We are living in the same world with those others, our sisters and brothers in humanity and in some time there might be situation that we need a helping hand from others. Or some others, regardless of religion or some sort of thing like ethnic origin, may need our help.

Build bridges between people, don´t break them. They help you too to cross the river of prejudices.

[sister herb]

For living in the peace with other people we have to learn how to build the bridges and increase our mutual understanding. Without it we can fight to the end of the world and there is no shortage of enemies.

This discussion is not about kissing different kind of body parts.

[sister herb]

We have to fight against our own bad deeds, greed and anger. We have to fight against the enemy who lives in our own minds. We have to spread the word of Islam not with the sword but with the kind words, good behavior and mutual respect and understanding.

Building the bridges between people is one way to fight. ;) Maybe one of the best ways.

[sister herb]

I can´t agree with that:

Anyone can fight against their bad deeds, every muslim does that.. that is nothing special.

This is the special. It´s called as the greater jihad, jihaad al-nafs (jihaad against the self). It´s much more than lesser jihad.

https://islamqa.info/en/10455

[ardianto]

BY THE SWORD

Assalamualaikum, brother.

By the sword I could make someone say shahada, but he would just say it with his mouth while his heart deny it. By the swords we could make thousands people say shahada. But what we would get were just fake Muslims who said shahada because afraid of our swords but deny Islam by their hearts. They would run from us whenever they get a chance.

There is no compulsion in embracing a religion. It's because no one can be compelled to embrace a religion. The only condition that make someone embrace a religion is sincerity in the heart. And no one can be sincere if under threat or under compulsion.

That's why I never think to compel anyone to embrace Islam. If someone interested to embrace Islam because the deed that I have done, In Shaa Allah, I would help him. But if a non-Muslim just want to have good relationship with me, It's okay. As long as he has respect to Islam and Muslims, I would appreciate him.

[Zeal]

I thought interfaith may be kufr

https://youtu.be/w7byQHzDQc0

[ardianto]

There is a misunderstanding about interfaith. There are people who assume that interfaith is same like mixing faith. No, no, it's not true. Interfaith is building relationship between people from different faiths in area of human-to-human relationship. Not in area of worship. I myself never involved in other religion worship activity.

Last month I attended my Christian friend funeral. But I just silent when other people singing gospel songs. I didn't want to involved in their religious activity. I just wanted to attend my Christian friend funeral to honor the good relationship we have ever had for 31 years.

[frabgas27]

Assalamualaikum, brother.

By the sword I could make someone say shahada, but he would just say it with his mouth while his heart deny it. By the swords we could make thousands people say shahada. But what we would get were just fake Muslims who said shahada because afraid of our swords but deny Islam by their hearts. They would run from us whenever they get a chance.

There is no compulsion in embracing a religion. It's because no one can be compelled to embrace a religion. The only condition that make someone embrace a religion is sincerity in the heart. And no one can be sincere if under threat or under compulsion.

That's why I never think to compel anyone to embrace Islam. If someone interested to embrace Islam because the deed that I have done, In Shaa Allah, I would help him. But if a non-Muslim just want to have good relationship with me, It's okay. As long as he has respect to Islam and Muslims, I would appreciate him.

Thats why i said, by conquering lands and ruling by shariah. Not by forcing someone. I did make that quite clear.

[Al Sultan]

These photos, are as they say, "A picture describes a thousand words"

Very beautiful indeed, we need people like them, we really do need people them!

[frabgas27]

I can´t agree with that:



This is the special. It´s called as the greater jihad, jihaad al-nafs (jihaad against the self). It´s much more than lesser jihad.

https://islamqa.info/en/10455

There is still speculation that, that narration is not sahih. Many scholars disregard that narration.

[frabgas27]

I can´t agree with that:



This is the special. It´s called as the greater jihad, jihaad al-nafs (jihaad against the self). It´s much more than lesser jihad.

https://islamqa.info/en/10455

Hadith narrated by Imam Muslim [Hadith No. 4636] from Abu Hurairah (r.a.a), who said: The Prophet (s.a.w) was asked: “O Rasulullaah! What deed could be an equivalent of Jihad Fi Sabilillaah?” He answered: “You do not have the strength to do that deed.” The narrator said: They repeated the question twice or thrice. Every time he answered: “You do not have the strength to do it.” When the question was asked for the third time, he said: “One who goes out for Jihad is like a person who keeps fasts, stands in prayer (constantly), (obeying) Allah’s (behests contained in) the Aayah (of the Qur’an), and does not exhibit any lassitude in fasting and praying until the Mujahid returns from Jihad Fi Sabilillaah.”

There is also a Hadith narrated by Bukhari [Volume 4, Hadith 44] from Abu hurairah (r.a.a) , who said: A man came to Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w) and said, “Guide me to such a deed as equals Jihad (in reward).” He replied, “I do not find such a deed.” Then he added, “Can you, while the Mujahid has gone for Jihad, enter your mosque to perform Salat without cease and observe Saum without breaking it?” The man said, “But who can do that?”.

Hadith narrated by Al-Hakim with a Sahih Sanad from Muaz bin Anas (r.a.a) who said: A woman once came to the Prophet (s.a.w) and asked: “O Rasulullaah! My husband has departed for war and usually if he prays I follow him in his Salat and I follow him in all his acts of worship. Because of that inform me of an act which can equal his until he returns.” He (s.a.w.) said to her: “Are you able to stand without sitting, perform Saum without breaking it and Dhikr until your husband returns?” She replied: “I am not strong enough, o Rasulullaah.” So he (s.a.w) said to her: “By Allah in whose hand I am, even if you were strong enough it would surely not attain one tenth of your husbands deeds.” [Narrated by Hakim in Al Mustadrak 2/73. Sahih Sanad agreed upon by Az Zahabi].

From the three Hadith above we can clearly state that Jihad Fi Sabilillaah is the highest act, and there is no other act to equal it. Is it likely that an act described as the highest act would be labeled Jihad Asghar, the small Jihad or the lesser Jihad?

There you are sister. Jihad for the sake of allah is clearly greater. Going out and fighting is greater, and the narration you stated is weak and even a forgery. All these hadiths are authenticated.

[ardianto]

http://www.peacewithrealism.org/jihad/jihad03.htm

Here is the evidence for it not being sahih, as it hasnt appeared in any of the authenticated volumes. Bukhari,dawud,muslim etc...

Just wonder, why you take reference from Jewish site?. :)

[frabgas27]

Just wonder, why you take reference from Jewish site?. :)

Is it lying? I dont see whats worse, lying about what muhammad saw or getting reference from a site that is supposedly jewish but with correct sources and reliable sources in terms of authenticated words of prophet saw.

[ardianto]

Is it lying? I dont see whats worse, lying about what muhammad saw or getting reference from a site that is supposedly jewish but with correct sources and reliable sources in terms of authenticated words of prophet saw.

Non-Muslim's site is not the right place to take reference about Islam because their view based on their own opinion that not reflect Muslim's view.

Do you know, bro?. If I want to learn about Christianity I will learn from Christian's source. If I want to learn about Buddhism I will learn from Buddhist's source. I do not learn from what other people say about them.

[frabgas27]

Non-Muslim's site is not the right place to take reference about Islam because their view based on their own opinion that not reflect Muslim's view.

Do you know, bro?. If I want to learn about Christianity I will learn from Christian's source. If I want to learn about Buddhism I will learn from Buddhist's source. I do not learn from what other people say about them.

Thats where you verify the sources, and thats what I have done. Now we were on the topic of jihad fisabillilah, and how the narration that a sister posed is not saheeh. So the case still stands that jihad fisabillilaha- going out and fighting is greatest deed. And that islam was spread by the sword and will continue to be spread by the sword.

[Scimitar]

http://www.acommonword.com/

Scimi

[sister herb]

I don´t believe you really understand what we are talking when we talk about interfaith dialogue, brother frabgas27. We are talking about tolerance, understanding of others and peaceful co-existence. You can leave your sword now to the storage cupboard and sit peacefully with us to the same (figurative) table. We just try to understand each others better and learn to respect others to make sure we can avoid useless conflicts and misunderstandings at the future.

[Scimitar]

And that islam was spread by the sword and will continue to be spread by the sword.

This myth has been propagated for far too long. It's time the record was set straight once and for all.

Professor Hodgson has explained the reasons for the popularity of Islam as follows: "Muslims made a personal appeal to people's religious consciousness. On the level of straight argument, they often put forward the populistic intelligibility of Islam. Muslims commonly ridiculed, in the name of intellectual good sense, the more mythically convoluted teachings of older traditions. This could seem attractively straightforward to people dissatisfied with taking things on faith from a learned priest whose mysteries they could not comprehend. A single Creator, to be worshipped by each person for himself, on the basis of revelation that had been given to a famous prophet whom millions already acknolwedged. This was at once intelligible and plausible."

The French professor Edouard Montet said, "The dogma of the unity of God...has always been proclaimed in the Qur'an with a grandeur, a majesty, an invariable purity and with a note of pure conviction which is hard to find surpassed outside the pale of Islam. A creed so precise, so stripped of all theological complexities and so accessible to the ordinary understanding might be expected to possess and does indeed possess a marvellous power of winning its way into the consciences of men."

To quote Sir Arnold, "The religion of the Muslim is continuously present with him and, in the daily prayer, manifests itself in a solemn and impressive ritual which cannot leave either the worshipper or the spectator unaffected." Then Sir Arnold narrated the story of an Egyptian Jew who converted to Islam at the end of the 13th century mainly because of the sight of the "Juma'a" prayer.

Ambassador Herman Ellis, in a testimony in front of the committee on Foreign Affirs of the House of Represntatives of the United States Congress on June 24th, 1985, said, "The Muslim community of the globe today is in the neighbourhood of one billion. That is an impressive figure. But what to me is equally impressive is that Islam today is the fastest growing monotheistic religion. This is something we have to take into account. Something is right about Islam. It is attracting a good many people."

I can go on and on with quotes but instead, I'd prefer to present a unique insight into the myth "Islam was spread by the sword" with the following, in sha Allah:

Syrian archaeological dig reveals myth of Islam spreading by the sword
by Mike Addelman
Source: The University of Manchester

An archaeologist working in Syria has solved the mystery of why one of Islam’s earliest fortresses dropped out of the historical record around 1,100 years ago.


Senior Lecturer Dr Emma Loosley from The University of Manchester was one of an international team of experts invited into the world-renowned Khanuqa Gap by the Syrian Department of Antiquities before its secrets – and 11,000 years of human history – may be lost to a controversial dam project.


Dr Loosley, who has been unable to return to Syria because of the current conflict, found that 1,100 years ago a fire raged through what was regarded as an impregnable fortress.


Her work has also helped show that, contrary to popular understanding, the earliest Muslim expansion across the Middle East was largely peaceful and typified by coexistence with Christians.


Like Jerusalem’s Dome of the Rock, the citadel – called Zalabiyeh – was one of the first buildings to be inhabited by Muslims as they spread across the Syrian desert.


It was constructed during the Byzantine Empire before being renovated under the Umayyad Dynasty during Islam’s first period of expansion from Mecca in the early seventh century.


The first of four Arab caliphates following the death of Muhammed, the Umayyad dynasty left Mecca to establish one of the largest empires the world had yet seen.


Zalabiyeh, its sister citadel Halabiyeh and dozens of other crucially important sites may be flooded as part of a major HEP project.


Dr Loosley’s undergraduate student Joshua Bryant, who worked with her, was able to date the citadel to c.500 AD by analysing the way its walls were constructed.


He received a University award for his dissertation which he hopes to publish in a journal – a rare feat for an undergraduate.


Dr Loosley excavated burned beams and roof tiles – alongside other finds -including a fully functioning barracks, a human tooth, copper belt buckle, plaster spinning wheel, fragments of an alabaster mirror, and painted wall plaster.


She also found some ovens still crammed with charred chicken bones and ash.


The evidence points to a fire which forced the soldiers to leave but also a peaceful takeover of the previously Byzantine controlled citadel by Umayyad soldiers.


The artefacts are in Syria awaiting further analysis by Dr Loosley once – or if – she is able to return.


She said: “There is little evidence of any violence in the years before the citadel burned down, but there is intriguingly so much more to learn.


We don’t even know if the soldiers who took over control from the Byzantines were Muslims or Christians even though they were subjects of the Umayadd caliph.


Coexistence typified those times: some even argue that one reason why so many Christians converted to Islam is because the major sources of tension and conflict were between Christian factions themselves.”


She added: “The Khanuqa Gap is a major crossing point on the River Euphrates and so has been politically, economically and socially important to human beings for 11,000 years.


It contains evidence of continuous human settlement through many civilisations including Assyrian, Roman, Arab – an astonishing area to work in and one of the most important in the world.

So our work to understand as much as we can before it disappears is hugely important and I hope to be able go back as soon as it is safe to do so.”


The work was funded by the British Academy and the Osmane Aidi foundation.


A version of Dr Loosley’s book, Christian Responses to Islam and Muslim-Christian Relations in the Modern World, edited with Anthony O’Mahony is published by Manchester University Press in January 2012.


Interesting stuff,

I found loads of stuff disproving the idea that Islam was spread by the sword, back in the days - and this was just some of it.

Scimi

[sister herb]

I Are you not reading the hadiths of wars that are to come in the future?

Here might be wars in the future but we don´t have to start them. Most of the conflicts people can avoid with talking and listening others. No need to spread hate, not here or anywhere you go.

Interfait dialogue = talking peacefully with people whose faith is not similar like your one. Let yourself to understand themselves might also teach you to understand yourself better.

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you frabgas27;

About twenty thousand children will die today as a result of grinding poverty, starvation and preventable disease. That is about seven million unnecessary deaths in a year, or about a hundred million deaths since the new millennium. These will be children from all faiths and no faith.

I doubt that a hundred million Muslims have been unjustly killed since then.

You don't need any swords to put this injustice right.

In the spirit of praying to a just and merciful God.

Eric

[frabgas27]

Greetings and peace be with you frabgas27;

About twenty thousand children will die today as a result of grinding poverty, starvation and preventable disease. That is about seven million unnecessary deaths in a year, or about a hundred million deaths since the new millennium. These will be children from all faiths and no faith.

I doubt that a hundred million Muslims have been unjustly killed since then.

You don't need any swords to put this injustice right.

In the spirit of praying to a just and merciful God.

Eric

Yemen,mali,afghanistan,syria,iraq,pakistan,somalia , palestine, burma? All these places muslims are being slaughtered, blown up to pieces. Most oppression, the muslims suffer. Does that not mean anything to you? With all the bombs raining down on muslim lands and destruction that is left behind, leads to starvation,poverty and diseases in itself. So what is your point?

[Search]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

:sl: (Peace be upon you)

Did America and the west have talks before they blew up muslim lands? Did they or did they not? And guess what we have conflicts, even with your master plan of talking clearly didnt work. And ive learnt that anyone that blows up our lands is an enemy to allah, to muhammad saw and to me. Yet you want to love them as your own? Where is your backbone? Where is your love for your ummah, for muhammad saw ummah? Where is it? So do you believe that imam madhi and Esa AS will spread hate?

Hi. Welcome to this board! I know this question is not directed at me, but I've followed some posts in this thread with interest and therefore would like to address you for the sake of Allah because I do not like the misunderstanding of specifics to be propagated in the name of Islam.

Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The entire humanity is Allah’s family, and Allah loves him most from among this family, who benefits the family most" (Mishkawt). This prophetic tradition specifically talks about entire human beings as a general recipient of benefit that Allah likes to see happen without specification of who is non-Muslim or who is Muslim. Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Do unto all men as you would wish to have done unto you; and reject for others what you would reject for yourselves” (Abu Dawud). This is a harking back to the Golden Rule as a means of encompassing all humanity as part of emphasizing how our best behavior should be reserved for others if we would reject from others their worst behaviors for ourselves.

The Qur'an (49:13) says, "O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted." The word used in this ayah (verse) is "Ya ayyuha annas" referring to human beings. Allah could have said, "Ya Muslimeen" as a reference to Muslims instead to refer to getting to know other Muslims if Allah had wanted to limit it. However, this ayah (verse) specifies us even as Muslims getting to know one another, different cultures and peoples and religions, from the human tribe. Because knowing others is the first step in being able to share ourselves and our faith.

Next, I wanted to address the topic and concept of al-wala' wa-l-bara' (loyalty and disassociation) which you mentioned is meant not to inculcate an us vs. them mentality but to have Muslims understand that loving and hating for the sake of Allah is the primary means through which we do not fall for the stratagems of shaitaan. So, we need to contextualize what it means. So, for example, wala' for non-Muslims who are not fighting are legitimate because if this was not then no Muslim would been allowed to carry out loyalty and love to his non-Muslim wife. What Allah forbids from Muslims is worldly relations to grow to the extent with non-Muslims that it comes above allegiance to Allah and His Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) leading Muslims to possibly betray Islamic principles and the ummah like the Arab revolts that led to the fall of the Ottoman Empire. King Negus was a kafir king whose goodness and trustworthiness Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) vouched and also asked some of the persecuted Companions :ra: to take shelter in his kingdom because not all Muslims are from whom we required to make bara'. And if there was a blanket prohibition on any type of association of this type, then Allah would not have said the Words in the Qur'an (5:82) "...and you will find the nearest of them in affection to the believers those who say, 'We are Christians.'" That is because among them are priests and monks and because they are not arrogant." Also, let's remember that Prophet :saw: (peace and blessings be upon him) started the interfaith dialogue when he invited disbelievers to his home including Abu Jahl with the intention of proclaiming his prophethood and the Message of Islam. Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) recited the Qur'an to disbelievers as a means of inviting interfaith dialogue which is how we even had Surah Kafiroon (Chapter Disbelievers) which is the 109th Chapter of the Qur'an Revealed. Also, Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) let's remember used to for the first thirteen years of his prophetic mission used to offer his prayers with his face towards Baytul Maqdis (Jerusalem) with the intention that the Jewish tribes' hearts would be softened to Islam and that perchance they may take heed; this is another example of trying to build interfaith relations; and as you may have a reason to know that Islam was Revealed over a period of 23 years. This means that only a little less than half of Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) was spent softening the hearts of Jewish tribes through this interfaith action.

Therefore, the modern understanding that is most notable in some radicalized elements of the Muslim community specific to al-wala' wa-l-bara' (loyalty and disassociation) is a modern deviation from Prophet's :saws: life and conduct specific to unbelievers.

The Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I have been sent to perfect the best of conduct (your behavior and character)" (Bazzaar).

Jihad in Arabic means "to strive for some objective." Thus, the common assumption, that jihad is manifestly only combat, is incorrect. In fact jihad, in its precise meaning, has several branches, among which only some are the combative forms of jihad.

For example, Ibn Rushd, in his Muqaddimaat, divides Jihad into four kinds: "Jihad by the heart; jihad by the tongue; jihad by the hand and jihad by the sword."

Also, I'd like to mention in regards to the objection you raised specific to the prophetic tradition on jihad-al-akbar. While we observe that it is a weak narration, please understand that weak prophetic traditions are not discarded in Islam as they are still considered very valuable but just not a thing on the basis of which we can declare a matter halal (permissible) or haram (forbidden). And it is for this specific reason that notably Imam Nawawi has said: "The scholars from the muhaddiths, the fuqaha and others said: 'it is permissible and recommended to act upon the weak hadith, which is not fabricated, with regard to excellent and virtuous actions, encouragements and warnings.'"

And we already know Allah has said in the Qur'an: “Those who have striven for Our sake, We guide them to Our ways” (29:96).

And in the Qur'an Allah also says, “But those will prosper who purify themselves” (87:14).

Allah has thereby made guidance and success dependent on striving within this vein. Therefore, the most perfect of people are those of them who struggle the most for Allah's sake, and the most obligatory of jihads have long been considered jihad against the ego, the jihad against desires, the jihad against the devil, and the jihad against the lower world (for which the respective Arabic words are jihad al-nafs wa jihad al-hawa wa jihad al-shaytan wa jihad al-dunya). Whoever struggles against these four, Allah will guide them to the ways of His Infinite Pleasure which leads to His Paradise.

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

[Search]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

:sl: (Peace be upon you)

Yes. ❤️

Then you, I'm assuming on account of you championing the brother's idea that you also think the life of Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) is a ridiculous life because he did interfaith dialogues? Please read post #42 and educate yourself. You are on both the wrong side of Islamic history and wrong side of Islamic theology if you do not support interfaith dialogues.

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

[BlackFlags]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

:sl: (Peace be upon you)



Then you, I'm assuming on account of you championing the brother's idea that you also think the life of Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) is a ridiculous life because he did interfaith dialogues? Please read post #42 and educate yourself. You are on both the wrong side of Islamic history and wrong side of Islamic theology if you do not support interfaith dialogues.

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

I think what the message we are trying to get across is that some Muslims bend the idea of what Islam really is to please the kuffar and sugar coat it. That is what we are against. We must speak the truth about Islam, and we must not give second thoughts to what these Non Believers think of us. Indeed Allah has chosen Islam, and we must try our best to convey it.

[frabgas27]

I think what the message we are trying to get across is that some Muslims bend the idea of what Islam really is to please the kuffar and sugar coat it. That is what we are against. We must speak the truth about Islam, and we must not give second thoughts to what these Non Believers think of us. Indeed Allah has chosen Islam, and we must try our best to convey it.

Very well said.

[talibilm]

Peace

A hadith had ordered Muslims to honor foreign emissaries (even from Kuffar lands)with gifts implying peace with All and there are incidents that Prophet :saws: co operated with Meccan Kuffar in social welfare matters and verses like these should help us in a the right direction

Allah said 60:7 '' Perhaps Allah will put, between you and those to whom you have been enemies among them, affection. And Allah is competent, and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.Allah does not forbid you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes - from being righteous toward them and acting justly toward them. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly.

But when you bye bye them better leave them with these verses which was Mentioned to Byzantine by Prophet :saws: ( which is NOTHING but also mentioned in their books too )

Noble Quran 3:64'' Say: "O People of the Book! come to common terms as between us and you: That we worship none but Allah; that we associate no partners with him; that we erect not, from among ourselves, Lords and patrons other than Allah." If then they turn back, say ye: "Bear witness that we (at least) are Muslims (bowing to Allah's Will).

[sister herb]

I think what the message we are trying to get across is that some Muslims bend the idea of what Islam really is to please the kuffar and sugar coat it. That is what we are against. We must speak the truth about Islam, and we must not give second thoughts to what these Non Believers think of us. Indeed Allah has chosen Islam, and we must try our best to convey it.

Another one who doesn´t understand what means interfaith dialogue. It is not pleasing others or sugar coating anything neither kissing some body parts (as what was mentioned before). It is already said on the title of this thread: "an effort to bring peace between different faiths,beliefs and lifestyles".

[frabgas27]

Peace

A hadith had ordered Muslims to honor foreign emissaries (even from Kuffar lands)with gifts implying peace with All and there are incidents that Prophet :saws: co operated with Meccan Kuffar in social welfare matters and verses like these should help us in a the right direction

Allah said 60:7 '' Perhaps Allah will put, between you and those to whom you have been enemies among them, affection. And Allah is competent, and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.Allah does not forbid you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes - from being righteous toward them and acting justly toward them. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly.

But when you bye bye them better leave them with these verses which was Mentioned to Byzantine by Prophet :saws: ( which is NOTHING but also mentioned in their books too )

Noble Quran 3:64'' Say: "O People of the Book! come to common terms as between us and you: That we worship none but Allah; that we associate no partners with him; that we erect not, from among ourselves, Lords and patrons other than Allah." If then they turn back, say ye: "Bear witness that we (at least) are Muslims (bowing to Allah's Will).

But we are being expelled from our lands, we are being expelled in our own lands by the same people that you want interfaith with. This deen isnt a deen of pleasing the kings. Even if we were to have a dialogue what will that achieve? Will that by any chance get rid of the suffering the ummah is enduring? While you are sitting there creaming interfaith your brothers, sisters are being murdered. And it wouldnt surprise me if you were to criticise the mujahideen with your interfaith buddies and condeming their actions and stating, "Oh no, you see these people dont represent islam in any way". How can you have the audacity to say that against the men that are fighting for this ummah, against the men that are fighting for allah and his word to be the highest. they are out there in the mountains fighting for the sake of allah why are you criticising them? Who are you really pleasing?

[Huzaifah ibn Adam]

I can´t agree with that:



This is the special. It´s called as the greater jihad, jihaad al-nafs (jihaad against the self). It´s much more than lesser jihad.

https://islamqa.info/en/10455

Did you read that link, sister?

Al-Munajjid clearly states, "This Hadeeth is not Saheeh (authentic)."

In fact, Imaam ibn Taymiyyah said that it is baseless (laa Asla Lahu).

[sister herb]

I always read all links I post.

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you frabgas27;

Yemen,mali,afghanistan,syria,iraq,pakistan,somalia , palestine, burma? All these places muslims are being slaughtered, blown up to pieces. Most oppression, the muslims suffer. Does that not mean anything to you?

I am against all war, I did not like the war between Iraq and Iran, or the war when Iraq invaded Kuwait, one Muslim country against another. I was against Britain's involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq.

With all the bombs raining down on muslim lands and destruction that is left behind, leads to starvation,poverty and diseases in itself. So what is your point?

I am against all this destruction. My point is this, you seem to be blind to the atheist child starving to death, or the Hindu, Christian or Buddhist child starving to death. These are all children created by the same God you worship.

You seem to be blind to the meaning of justice, or do you think only Muslims should be entitled to justice?

My idea of justice is to help those starving to death, to give charity, there are no guns needed to save these lives. Justice must mean the same for people of all faiths and no faith, it must mean the same for every country in the world, We are all created by the same God.

Any solution that needs a gun, will just bring more injustice, the poor suffer the most. They say in many wars, as many as nine out of ten people killed are civilians. Anyone who picks up a gun, becomes like the people they hate and fear the most. We are either a part of the solution, or a part of the problem, there is no neutral ground.

This life is temporary, there can never be real justice in this world, only God can give real justice, and only in the hereafter.

May you, and those you love and care for be blessed, and may you bring blessings to others.

Eric

[sister herb]

As I see it, the interfaith dialogue is aiming at reducing confrontation, decreasing needs to solve our problems with guns (or with swords particularly). As brother Eric H mentioned, at the same time while we are arguing and prepare to slaughter each others, tens of thousands children suffer and die for simple diseases and lack of food.

It´s the most common argument of extremists on the each side that they have butchered us and at the same time they forget how many innocents they themselves have butchered, like daesh in Iraq and Syria and everywhere as the majority of their victims have been - not those kafirs but their fellow Muslims. And at the same time children of this world, Muslims, Christians, Hindus, atheists, suffer more and more.

"the majority of their victims have been - not those kafirs but their fellow Muslims" - this is a shame. Nothing else than shame and it shows clearly that daesh and that sort of hooligan groups are far more danger to Muslims than all kafirs together.

[sister herb]

What makes this discussion a bit of unusual is that many of those bigoted opinions about Islam and how it treats non-Muslims (or kafirs or some stronger expressions) are more of less copied from the speech of the far-right extremist islamophobics. They too claim that Islam has been spreaded by sword and sword only, and the main aim of Muslims is force all people to follow their rules. They see that Islam is bloodthirsty religion what encourage it followers to harass all others. That´s why they have to warn their supporters (or possible followers) about Islam and Muslims and prepare themselves to the fight against Islam.

As one members here wrote before: he writes like he does because he must to do so. Well, that´s exactly what those far-right islamophobics say too. They too must to warn and spread their hate against others. Interesting how similar they speeches are, isn´t it? They are like the two branches of the same tree, roots pushed deep into hate, generalization and prejudices.

[Search]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

:sl: (Peace be upon you)

They are killing, fighting Assads regime and anyone else that is against syria being ruled by Shariah, by what Allah revealed. You have Assads people worshipping him, that takes someone out of the fold of Islam making them non believers. Secondly, im very sure you got this information from CNN,BBC, FOX NEWS. People that are against islam, what makes you think that they are telling the truth about IS. How can you judge without having seen both sides of the war, Have you not heard of the case that came to Dawood AS, when he had to judge but he didnt hear both sides of the case and made a wrong decision then suleiman AS corrected him. So I would like to know have you looked at both sides of the war or just one which is unsurprisingly Anti islam.

And you always say that IS are killing more muslims than the kuffar.. That tells me everything, it really does. It tells ms you know nothing about the current situation that is happening to the muslims in As Sham, let alone in other muslim countries that are constantly bombed. Where is your love for the ummah?

Fond of repeating Daesh diatribe? In the thread that was locked on IB, I've said that I've investigated from Daesh sources (publications, self-confessed members and verified members, and also read their justpasteit articles and justifications and pictures) and have concluded that they are a murderous heinous organization that purport to fight for Islam when they are fighting for shaitaan. I do not condemn Daesh based on Western media sources; I condemn Daesh based on both their own sources to which they proudly lay claim and consensus of scholars on their illegitimacy.

Daesh is the most anti-Islam organization that I've seen in the longest time because they are fond of takfeer (calling Muslim non-Muslim) including Muslim governments and specific Muslim groups and Muslim individuals who oppose them, engage in ghuluw (extremism), believe that Muslims living in the West are deviant, do not follow the fiqh of jihad, quote classical Islamic scholars out of context to justify them not following prophetic methods of warfare, blame the ummah as a whole for their failures, use shariah as an instrument of control and fear when scholarly and academically it's been long agreed that the purpose of the shariah is both mercy and justice, feel that they are the only right and sincere group of pious Muslims, attack non-Muslim non-combatants that would be protected if they would be following shariah if their claims had been true instead of just propaganda, commit the sin of riya (showing off), kill Muslims even if they self-identify as Muslims if they're not from their group, and the list goes on.

If you do not know all this information and still support them, then you're an ignorant person.

Regardless, anyone who joins them knowing the fitna that they bring in the world deserve to attain humiliation here and hereafter because when the majority of scholars and sincere persons have already advised people to not go join the fitna then they have no remaining excuse for claiming ignorance. By the way, using dubious and doubtful methods of jihad is a way of going to Hell; because that would in itself be considered part of engaging in fitna. It is for these reasons Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) warned in these ahadith (prophetic traditions) about such evil-doers:

“There will be towards the end of time a people who will say to you what neither you nor your forebears ever heard before. Beware of them lest they misguide you and bring you confusion.”

“They will pass through Islam like an arrow passes through its quarry. Wherever you meet them, kill them!”

“They are the dogs of the people of Hell.”

“They recite Qur’an and consider it in their favor but it is against them.”

“Some people will be standing and calling at the gates of hell; whoever responds to their call, their will throw him into the Fire. They will be from our own people [i.e. Arabs] and will speak our language [Arabic]. Should you live to see them, stick to the main body (jama`a) of the Muslims and their leader. (If there is no main body and no leader,) isolate yourself from all these sects, even if you have to eat from the roots of trees until death overcomes you while you are in that state.”

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

[Search]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

:sl: (Peace be upon you)

Id love to see you say the same thing against Imam madhi and Esa AS. Also how will Esa AS dominate the world with Shariah? How will he take the muslims out from humiliation into greatness like it used to be under Muhammad SAW and the rashideen Khilafahs? Let me tell you something, everyone will hate islam, everyone will, hate it. Even muslims are hiding their religion, even some muslims hate it, "holding onto religion will be like holding onto hot coals". So what does that tell you about the enemies of islam and their hate? And also is becomes very clear who the munafiqs (hypocrites) are from the muslims that are on the haqq (truth).

Sometimes, it is better to be quiet than prove that you don't know about what you're speaking. Do you even know how or when Mahdi :as: will come?

Madhi :as: will not come until specific prophecies are fulfilled.

And one of the prophecies in order for him to arrive include two Roman nations (the word for Christian majority) nations fighting one another in the most destructive war in all of history. All signs point towards America and Russia being those two nations fighting with nuclear weapons. In this warfare, most of humanity is to be destroyed with only Mecca, Medina, and Sham being safe.

Only then will Mahdi :as: emerge. He :as: will emerge in a time bringing with him divine support and therefore he will be given bayah as some pious Muslims will recognize him and forcefully give him bayah (allegiance).

In that time, there will not be Muslims and kafir like we have today.

In that time, literally, there will only be mumin (higher category of Muslim in iman) or kafir. And that's because these people in the time of Mahdi :as: will be tested as no other people will be tested and their iman will perforce have to be strong in the trials that Dajjal (Anti-Christ) and his followers bring. Isa :as: will come to kill the Dajjal (Anti-Christ) but his real purpose is to unite all believers under one banner, which is submission to Allah.

Also, you should know that the one who does fear nifaq from himself is the munafiq according to Islamic sources; and you not practicing husn-dhann (good opinion) of the sister in question shows all I need to know about your character.

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

[Search]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

:sl: (Peace be upon you)

Let me make clear that we have an ijma (consensus) of ulema (scholars) on the issue of Daesh's illegitimacy and also that they are fighting an illegitimate jihad; however, where they differed is that while most ulema (scholars) consider them Khawarij, some considered them kuffar, and some took the moderate position of considering them only deviated and thereby deviants.

So, in summary, even if you do not understand this from the Islamic standpoint, from the point of view of scholars, the ahadeeth (prophetic traditions) do indeed point to Daesh being Khawarij as they've determined based on the signs enumerated in these ahadeeth, and the primary signs from which they've gleaned that is the group making the blood of fellow Muslims halal (permissible to spill). Also, from an Islamic standpoint, laypersons are not free to dissent from a matter on which ijma has been formed.

From an Islamic standpoint, when there's conflict, it not only means that laypersons like yourself are not free to dissent from the matter but that it is entirely out of the bounds for you to transgress the limits prescribed by the scholars because Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) very clearly said, "My nation will never agree upon misguidance, and if you witness any conflict, then follow the majority of my nation" (Ibn Majah) and then also said in another hadith (prophetic tradition), "That which the Muslims consider good, Allah considers good." What all of this means for you as a layperson is that you have to follow the scholars in not taking the sides of oppressors just because they are good at sloganeering about jihad. For example, if a person gave you a bottle in which there was poison and you knew this but it was relabeled as "ambrosia," are you now supposed to drink the poison and consider the liquid instead medicine? That is unfathomable and would be beyond foolish; similarly, we as believers do not believe in slogans but we believe in judging for ourselves the reality from the information we learn and from the judgment of scholars.

And there's proof that there will not be any Muslim rule until Mahdi :as: because a hadith (prophetic tradition) says the following: “Two believers have ruled the world, and two unbelievers. The believers are Sulayman :as: and Dhul’qarnayn :as:. The unbelievers are Nemrud and Nebuchadnezzar. The fifth, the Mahdi descended from my line, will also rule the world.” If there had been the Caliphate of the magnitude you imagine under which all Muslims are supposed to unite before the time of Mahdi :as: for the purpose of being with Mahdi :as:, then Allah and His Prophet :saws: would have mentioned the matter so that we may take heed but instead we're informed that Mahdi :as: will come because "I swear that such calamities will befall this community that people will find nowhere to hide from this oppression and cruelty. At such a troubled time Almighty Allah will send a relative of mine, one of my line, thanks to whom the world will be filled with justice and security. In the same way that the world was full of oppression and cruelty (before him). All the dwellers in the skies (angels and the spirits of the prophets) and all those on Earth (believers and animals) will be pleased (with him). In the time of Hadhrat Mahdi :as:, the sky will begrudge no rain and will generously cause rain to fall." Also, we had Prophet :saws: tell us the following: "Before the Hour comes, there will be a tribulation like patches of dark night. A man will get up a believer and go to sleep an unbeliever, or will go to sleep a believer and wake up an unbeliever. The one who sits at that time will be better than one who stands and the one standing will be better than the one walking and the one walking will be better than one running. Break your bows, cut their strings and strike your swords against stones. If someone comes to kill any of you, then be like the better of the two sons of Adam" (Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah).

Finally, we do not know what type of weapons will be used during the time of Mahdi :as: except that probably nuclear holocaust will have destroyed almost all of the human tribe so that the remaining persons will witness miracles so that it will essentially be a battle between good vs. evil because in that time the kufr will be so clear from iman that it will be the difference between day and night.

So, perhaps instead of asking me to try again in a decade, you should yourself go to scholars and ask them to teach you what you do not know; because it is very obvious to me that you do not know and are a troublemaker from your own expressed opinions. However, for your own sake and benefit, I'd hope you'd make the effort to humble yourself and have scholars give you the explanations from which you'd learn because it is the matter of your aakhirah (hereafter) and no small matter if you make a misstep. Remember we know from the hadith (prophetic tradition) that "Allah's hand is over the group, and whoever dissents from them departs to hell" (Trimidhi) which has been explained by scholars that those who dissent and fracture themselves from the opinion of majority are those whom we may clearly identify as those who have taken themselves out of the jamaa' and into the arms of misguidance and shaitaanic deviation.

I can use the same thing about how you know the hadiths that you stated before is 100% for IS? Is it the same for the Taliban or Al Qaeda? If its not then your point is Batil and makes me assume as to how you know which hadith pin points at which group. How do you know for sure that, that hadith is for IS? And it also goes to show that Islam will be spread by the sword, thank you for clarifying the point ive been making the past 20 replies. Try again next year.

And also there is no evidence stating that Imam madhi will be the first one to establish the khilafah after being lost. Try again in a decade.

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

[keiv]

Now the burden of proof is upon you to show us how we are the khawarij. Fear allah with your accusations and suspicions. Atleast the khawarij had a reason according to their belief for such accusations, but you dont have a reason or evidence for such an accusation. Therefore you are worse than the khawarij. So please bring forth your evidence as to how we are the khawarij.

So proof, to you, is important when making accusations yet, ironically you support a group who unjustly accuses other Muslims of apostasy, drags them in front of a camera, kills them, then turns it into some glamorized hollywood style video all while praising to be a protector of the ummah. Got it!

[talibilm]

But we are being expelled from our lands, we are being expelled in our own lands by the same people that you want interfaith with. This deen isnt a deen of pleasing the kings. Even if we were to have a dialogue what will that achieve? Will that by any chance get rid of the suffering the ummah is enduring? While you are sitting there creaming interfaith your brothers, sisters are being murdered. And it wouldnt surprise me if you were to criticise the mujahideen with your interfaith buddies and condeming their actions and stating, "Oh no, you see these people dont represent islam in any way". How can you have the audacity to say that against the men that are fighting for this ummah, against the men that are fighting for allah and his word to be the highest. they are out there in the mountains fighting for the sake of allah why are you criticising them? Who are you really pleasing?

Yes, you are right. Read the previous verses of sura 60 and find am right too. Islam is fair . So read the context of any verse of the noble Quran first before you speak against the verses of Allah. If you still get did not get it, tell me .

But do not jump to your own conclusions and slander . I do not blame or its not to right to blame anyone who fights what Allah has commanded for and its funny to see your silly post with zeal but without deliberation..

But who its is really fighting as Allah told to fight ? am not sure except in the case of against Israel . Allah ul waalam . Even there suicide killings & killing of innocent is not Islamic.

[azc]

]Say: O People of the Scripture! Come to an agreement between us and you: that we shall worship none but Allah, and that we shall ascribe no partner unto Him, and that none of us shall take others for lords beside Allah. And if they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we are they who have surrendered )unto Him (, Aal-i-Imraan, Chapter #3, Verse #64

We are to be compatible with people of book. Even Quran commands us to invite them to be united on certain points which are mutually agreed upon between us and them.

[frabgas27]

Yes, you are right. Read the previous verses of sura 60 and find am right too. Islam is fair . If you still get did not get it, tell me .

But do not jump to your own conclusions and slander . I do not blame or its not to right to blame anyone who fights what Allah has commanded for and its funny to see your silly post with zeal but without deliberation..

But who its is really fighting as Allah told to fight ? am not sure except in the case of against Israel . Allah ul waalam .

Against any kuffar, that are oppressing the muslims. Whoever blows the muslims up is an enemy, whoever oppresses the muslims is an enemy. If you say otherwise then who are you pleasing.

[Scimitar]

Against any kuffar, that are oppressing the muslims. Whoever blows the muslims up is an enemy, whoever oppresses the muslims is an enemy. If you say otherwise then who are you pleasing.

You are my enemy - I find that pleasing.

How can such ignorants exist in Islam is beyond me but reading you is like listening to an extremist trying to justify his perverse need to see blood spilt.

You are sick, you need help.

Scimi

[Scimitar]

I am wondering how you frabgas managed to ignore my whole post while quoting it - then ranting off about something which was neither here nor there ? Instead you just ranted like an extremist trying to recruit or at the very least, incite violence ...

I bet in real life you're a kitten that is afraid of it's own shadow. Basically a coward.

Scimi

[Scimitar]

Cowards can post hard... (right frabgas) inferiority complexes are rife with those ummah forum members lol

I believe my initial post in this thread quoting you and proving you to be a buffoon was on point and you had no comeback within any context that fit.

I'm gonna call you john snow from now on, coz you know nothing.

You coward shill.

Scimi

[talibilm]

Against any kuffar, that are oppressing the muslims. Whoever blows the muslims up is an enemy, whoever oppresses the muslims is an enemy. If you say otherwise then who are you pleasing.

Yes we have to speak against anybody who killed Muslims

So Pakistan which bombed Taliban , Saudi which bombs Yemen , Isis which kills muslims who differed in the opinion & the coptic Dhimmis etc what say have you got against them ??

I pray any one innocent even if he is a kuffar we have no right to kill him since Allah created him too . Read the Noble Quran well and you will understand what do i mean . ponder on these verses

Noble Quran 22:40 '' [They are] those who have been evicted from their homes without right - only because they say, "Our Lord is Allah ." And were it not that Allah checks the people, some by means of others, there would have been demolished monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques in which the name of Allah is much mentioned. And Allah will surely support those who support Him. Indeed, Allah is Powerful and Exalted in Might. ''

Whatever we think is not Deen or virtue but only listening to Allah is the Deen and virtue (sawab) as per the Law of Allah. or making our own is biddah and all biddah's lead ust to fire (hadith) The above verse proves even those who were there in there even had some sort of Belief on Allah though they were misguided. Only Allah knows. Allahul waalam.

[sister herb]

And remember, all us reverts were before non-Muslims - kafirs. Every day some kafirs accept Islam and become our sisters and brothers. Sayings harsh words about them today may prevent them accept Islam tomorrow as they will get very bad image about Muslims.

Sometimes I think that interfaith dialogue with others is quite easy but how we Muslims could agree with anything as this thread too seems to be full of arguing between Muslims...

:facepalm:

[frabgas27]

And remember, all us reverts were before non-Muslims - kafirs. Every day some kafirs accept Islam and become our sisters and brothers. Sayings harsh words about them today may prevent them accept Islam tomorrow as they will get very bad image about Muslims.

Sometimes I think that interfaith dialogue with others is quite easy but how we Muslims could agree with anything as this thread too seems to be full of arguing between Muslims...

:facepalm:

Allah guides whom he wills, we have no power over converting someone or not. All we can do is convey the message. And that means we dont sugar coat our deen to make it seem more appealing.

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you frabgas27;

Allah guides whom he wills, we have no power over converting someone or not.

And if Allah wanted all of us to be Muslim, then we would be, we cannot fight against Allah.

All we can do is convey the message

Because there is no compulsion in religion, and if Allah is not compelling me to be a Muslim, it would seem a pointless exercise for you to wave your sword at me.

And that means we dont sugar coat our deen to make it seem more appealing.

Does that mean that you ignore all the passages that refer to mercy, forgiveness, patience, kindness and love, so you can just convey the sword waving bits to us?

Islam is a complete message, and you start with salaam, the offer of peace.

In the spirit of searching for a greatest meaning of 'One God'

Eric

[sister herb]

Allah guides whom he wills, we have no power over converting someone or not. All we can do is convey the message. And that means we dont sugar coat our deen to make it seem more appealing.

Sugar taste better than sour vinegar what you have sprinkled on top of your sword. And the message works much better if you now leave your sword to the closet. It´s useless here in this forum. We don´t hit people, we talk with them peacefully.

[ruglifeTX]

Sugar taste better than sour vinegar what you have sprinkled on top of your sword. And the message works much better if you now leave your sword to the closet. It´s useless here in this forum. We don´t hit people, we talk with them peacefully.

Even pickles have sugar to cure them in ;)

[keiv]

But we are being expelled from our lands, we are being expelled in our own lands by the same people that you want interfaith with. This deen isnt a deen of pleasing the kings. Even if we were to have a dialogue what will that achieve? Will that by any chance get rid of the suffering the ummah is enduring? While you are sitting there creaming interfaith your brothers, sisters are being murdered. And it wouldnt surprise me if you were to criticise the mujahideen with your interfaith buddies and condeming their actions and stating, "Oh no, you see these people dont represent islam in any way". How can you have the audacity to say that against the men that are fighting for this ummah, against the men that are fighting for allah and his word to be the highest. they are out there in the mountains fighting for the sake of allah why are you criticising them? Who are you really pleasing?

Allah guides whom he wills, we have no power over converting someone or not. All we can do is convey the message. And that means we dont sugar coat our deen to make it seem more appealing.

That is a lazy way to look at things. Yes, Allah has power over everything and Allah guides whom he wills, but Allah has given us the power to make our own choices in this dunya as well as making us responsible for our own actions. Did the prophet saws ever give up on his uncle and simply say Allah guides whom he wills while leaving it at that? Of course not.

The whole "us vs them" mindset is too simplistic. There is a lot of "us vs ourselves" going on. We can't even come to terms with each other in our own communities. We let things like ego, money, cultural differences, political power get in our way. The first thing people want to do is inflict damage on someone who disagrees with them or has a different opinion. Dialog seems to be a thing of the past these days..

Who are the mujahideen you are speaking of? Apparently, there are many different "mujahideen" groups out there spread across different countries and they're all willing to fight each other, for those that haven't already. They're also willing to kill other Muslims without hesitation. Why are Syrian refugees willing to painstakingly travel all the way to places like the US and the UK rather than go to their Muslim neighbors? Why are our African brothers and sisters willing to do the same? Why did the Egyptians close their borders when the Gazans were being blown up like fish in a bucket? The west can be blamed for a lot of things, and rightfully so, but why must we ignore the problems we're creating for ourselves?

[muslim brother]

http://www.muslimjewish.org.uk/index.html

Some common interests of Muslims and Jews

• The right to hold religious beliefs
• The right to manifest religious practices
• The retention of religious humane methods of animal slaughter for food in the United Kingdom
• Campaigning for faith schools
• The retention of male circumcision
• The right to have religious observances respected by public bodies and the wider community
• The provision of acceptable methods of post mortem examinations

Some of the things we have done

We engage in practical activities to increase mutual understanding which participants enjoy. These are often educational, but whatever we do needs to be enjoyable, as otherwise people won’t come! Some examples are:

• Visiting mosques and synagogues
• Holding celebrations for religious festivals like Eid and Chanukah
• Group visits to Krakow, Auschwitz, Granada and Cordoba, Marrakech, Dubrovnik, Paris, Brussels and Lisbon.
• Several of us went on a study tour of Israel and the West Bank organised by the Forum for Discussion of Israel and Palestine.
• Informal dinners, which allow time for unstructured conversation
• Talks on matters such as our respective approaches to finance, marriage and divorce, funeral arrangements etc
• Monthly faith dialogues in partnership with the Faith Network 4 Manchester
• Faith awareness sessions in schools and youth groups
• Bringing women together to celebrate International Women’s Day

[piXie]

And if Allah wanted all of us to be Muslim, then we would be, we cannot fight against Allah.

I just wanted to clarify that there is a difference between what Allah wants and what He wills. Allah does want that we accept the truth that the Prophets came with and reject the deviations which occurred to the original message. He gives us many chances n opportunities. But He has willed that everyone be given a choice. Allah didn't choose you to be a Christian or me to be a Muslim, rather it is us that have chosen our paths.

There are four scenarios;

1) Allah wills something but He doesn't like it e.g. murder
2) Allah wills something and He likes it e.g. marriage , mercy, love etc
3) Allah doesn't will something but He likes it e.g. For everyone to believe in His message.
4) Allah doesn't will it and neither does he like it e.g. For everyone to disbelief in His message

In the spirit of searching for a greatest meaning of 'One God'

Please forgive me but I do not understand what is meant by the greatest meaning of One God.

[Silas]

It always depresses me to see Muslims cataloging the injustices done to them by the west

I am lucky enough to live in an area where there is a relatively large Muslim population that is very prosperous and happy: these people are doctors and lawyers, professionals with nice homes, and they get along great with the community. Their kids attend good colleges, and they receive good medical care. By our constitution they are granted freedom of religion and freedom of speech.

There is interfaith dialogue and cooperation here towards common social and political interests. Even refugees from Syria come here.

Just as a Muslim does not want to be stereotyped as a radical and dangerous person, the American doesn't want to be stereotyped as an imperialist butcher.

I would also invite anyone to look and see what places like Germany and Sweden are doing for Muslim immigrants. These people receive generous public assistance, help with housing, etc.

But in western nations, I think we need to go beyond interfaith dialogue and try to see where we agree in terms of ideology. I suspect most Muslims would agree that

1. Private property is a right
2. Freedom of political expression should be guaranteed
3. Freedom to practice religion should be guaranteed
4. We should be free to educate our children as we see fit, in the schools of our choice, or at home
5. There should be equality under the law

Now I am not an Islamic scholar obviously, but from what I have read, I don't see any of those points as being inconsistent with Islam.

(As a side note, Communists reject all of those points 1-5)

Areas in which some discussion or disagreement might occur are

6. The right to free elections
7. The separation of church and state
8. Polygamy (I actually do not have an issue with this, but western law generally forbids it)
9. The right to create separate courts of law for specific people (Sharia for instance).

Many Muslim countries have free elections, so that isn't typically a big issue. Point #7 is one of contention. Point #9 runs up against the idea of equality under the law, and objectivity of the courts.

[muslim brother]

It always depresses me to see Muslims cataloging the injustices done to them by the west

.

that is why i wrote this

http://ahmeddewsbury.blogspot.co.uk/...knowledge.html

[muslim brother]

What makes this discussion a bit of unusual is that many of those bigoted opinions about Islam and how it treats non-Muslims (or kafirs or some stronger expressions) are more of less copied from the speech of the far-right extremist islamophobics. They too claim that Islam has been spreaded by sword and sword only, and the main aim of Muslims is force all people to follow their rules. They see that Islam is bloodthirsty religion what encourage it followers to harass all others. That´s why they have to warn their supporters (or possible followers) about Islam and Muslims and prepare themselves to the fight against Islam.

As one members here wrote before: he writes like he does because he must to do so. Well, that´s exactly what those far-right islamophobics say too. They too must to warn and spread their hate against others. Interesting how similar they speeches are, isn´t it? They are like the two branches of the same tree, roots pushed deep into hate, generalization and prejudices.

agree

its sadly as if without hate some people would have no reason to get up in the morning
each hater..muslim or non muslim needs each other in a sick way ,so they can organise marches,events and show there perverse machismo in public
quite pathetic and puppet like really.
its as if you already know what buttons to push to make the idiotic puppets jump.

raison d etre

but to be honest, i now feel some muslim orgs/activists are also getting too reactive

[muslim brother]

'We're all Muslims': How Christians, Jews, Muslims and atheists united against Donald Trump in Detroit

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...-a7708781.html

Christians, Jews and Muslims have come together for rallies. Congregants from a Latino catholic church marched to a local mosque, while Muslims came out in solidarity with people from Mexico and Central America.
“You have 120 languages in Detroit.

[Search]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

It always depresses me to see Muslims cataloging the injustices done to them by the west

First and foremost, welcome to the board; I have been observing you on the board, and I want to thank you for your posts because I liked them. :) Thank you for sharing your thoughts!

As a fellow American, I sympathize with your words. I have in the past opposed the cataloging of specific Western injustices because I find it a magnet for the extremists (few though they are) to come out of the woodwork to express negative radicalized opinions that these same individuals inevitably try to veer into the dubious direction of support for terrorist organizations or terrorist actions. Both are unacceptable, and should you see the latter occurring on this board, report the individuals by clicking on the black triangular icon below the post; I say this so that you have a heads-up.

I am lucky enough to live in an area where there is a relatively large Muslim population that is very prosperous and happy: these people are doctors and lawyers, professionals with nice homes, and they get along great with the community. Their kids attend good colleges, and they receive good medical care. By our constitution they are granted freedom of religion and freedom of speech.

There is interfaith dialogue and cooperation here towards common social and political interests. Even refugees from Syria come here.

Just as a Muslim does not want to be stereotyped as a radical and dangerous person, the American doesn't want to be stereotyped as an imperialist butcher.

Americans, you'll inevitably find on Muslim majority forums, being stereotyped - it is unfortunately a symptom of style of thinking that has been adopted by the type of theists who tend to rather have black-and-white views of the world. Having said that, we as Americans also have to be honest about the harms of specifics of bad foreign policy decisions made in the past and the imperialistic ambitions that has resulted in specific harms; acknowledging this in no way means that Americans or any non-Muslims or any human being living in the West deserves even an iota of harm of terrorists or would-be-terrorists.

I would also invite anyone to look and see what places like Germany and Sweden are doing for Muslim immigrants. These people receive generous public assistance, help with housing, etc.

But in western nations, I think we need to go beyond interfaith dialogue and try to see where we agree in terms of ideology. I suspect most Muslims would agree that

1. Private property is a right
2. Freedom of political expression should be guaranteed
3. Freedom to practice religion should be guaranteed
4. We should be free to educate our children as we see fit, in the schools of our choice, or at home
5. There should be equality under the law

I can honestly and unequivocally state that the Constitution and shariah (Islamic law) converge and agree with one another on innumerable points; and you are obviously right on Muslims agreeing with the aforesaid listed points.

Areas in which some discussion or disagreement might occur are

6. The right to free elections
7. The separation of church and state
8. Polygamy (I actually do not have an issue with this, but western law generally forbids it)
9. The right to create separate courts of law for specific people (Sharia for instance).

In Islam, the governance which decides leaders is known as shura (council) which is how pious Muslims of the past how to elect specific leaders; it is a democratic and egalitarian process, but it is not the electoral college and individual voting system to which we're used to here in the U.S. Having said that, as you know, Muslims too vote in elections in the West, and that is because shariah (Islamic law) allows for any person to vote in a Western democracy with the intention to avert harms or evil.

By the way, it is true that Islam envisions a theocratic state rather than a secular state, but shariah (Islamic law) enables and advocates for Muslims living in Western countries to respect the laws of the land.

Polygamy is not required in Islam - it is only a permissible action granted to men; one of the the wisdom of this allowance is providing protection to women, namely those who might have become widowed, poor, orphaned, divorced, or otherwise remain single so that they do not have to feel compelled to seek to financially support themselves if they're either unable or unwilling to do so; it is also one of the ways in which Islam envisions a stronger community existing so that women don't have to fend for themselves by turning to things like prostitution or working for an employer when instead they might have children which they might want to prioritize as mothers. I do emphasize that Islam forbids deception and men are encouraged to obey the law of the land. However, practically, there have been and continue to be instances of Muslim men marrying in an informal ceremony another wife while only one wife remains registered under Western law; personally, I am not generally in favor of men doing acts like this because presently Western law does not guarantee equal protection of any wife not formally recognized under the law and so in the case of a divorce the other wife will never receive any state protection in terms of being able to be the recipient of any estate or monies should the husband die intestate or should there be a divorce. And to be honest, I have heard on Muslim majority Internet boards like this about the ways in which Muslim men have abused the allowance of polygamy to deprive women of either or both their Western legal and shari (Islamic legal) rights.

I don't know how much you know about shariah (Islamic law) courts but this should in my opinion not be an issue for the reason that there are already rabbinical courts in the U.S. alongside some ecclesiastical courts in the U.S.; moreover, this does not run against the idea of equality under the law or objectivity of courts, because any such setups work only to provide an optional route for those practicing who want faith-based courts to give judgment; and any of the aforesaid do not operate as rivals to the current operating legal court system in the U.S.

Many Muslim countries have free elections, so that isn't typically a big issue. Point #7 is one of contention. Point #9 runs up against the idea of equality under the law, and objectivity of the courts.

I hope I've clarified some issues; and if you have any questions or concerns or would like further clarification, I would be happy and honored to be of any assistance.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and peace.

Sincere Regards & Best Wishes, :)

[Silas]

Search: thank you for the excellent and illuminating response. I have most certainly learned much since I have been on these forums.

I think in the US and some western nations there is a certain dogmatism when it comes to concepts such as representative democracy. Many cannot conceptualize or imagine governments that operate differently. I do, however, sympathize with the idea of representation (which is what caused the American revolution): people must feel connected to the political process, at least in some degree. But democracy has its problems, such as the ability of leaders and politicians to blame others when things go wrong, or implement bad policy with the excuse that "it is the will of the people".

As the Muslim population in the US grows, they will have a greater voice within the political system, and I think that is a good thing. The same is true for many parts of Europe, and I think the feeling of isolation or disenfranchisement will gradually vanish. I suspect that some of our foreign policies may change dramatically (at least I hope so).

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you AHMED PATEL;

Christians, Jews and Muslims have come together for rallies. Congregants from a Latino catholic church marched to a local mosque, while Muslims came out in solidarity with people from Mexico and Central America.
“You have 120 languages in Detroit.

The greatest hope for peace starts in families and communities and with prayer. Can we pray together, can we pray for each other?
Prayer can break down division, last week I attended a prayer meeting for Street Pastors, where we had Christians from many denominations. Each person took a few minutes to talk about the concerns of their own community, then everyone else in the room prayed for that person and the concerns of their community.

After the prayers, there was a great sense of bonding.

In the spirit of searching for a greatest meaning of 'One God'

Eric

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you piXie;

Please forgive me but I do not understand what is meant by the greatest meaning of One God.

How do we search for a greatest meaning of 'One God'?

Could the greatest meaning of God be, that he is the creator of all that is seen and unseen?

Could the greatest meaning be, he is the God of Islam? Or the God of mercy? Or the God of Forgiveness? Or the God of unity?

Whatever we deem to be the greatest meaning of 'One God' to be, is this then something that we should strive to become ourselves?

To me it seems that the greatest meaning of One God, is that somehow we are all connected to each other in some way. That God is a God of justice, compassion, peace, unity, love, mercy and forgiveness. So I see the oneness of God in the oneness of humanity, this is what we should be striving for ourselves.

In the spirit of praying to a just and merciful God,

Eric

[piXie]

Greetings Eric & thank you for your reply.

How do we search for a greatest meaning of 'One God'?

How do we search for the 'greatest' meaning of One God when we don't even accept the 'basic' meaning of One God n made this most important and fundamental part of the message into a whole mystery. Hear oh children of Israel , the Lord thy God is One. Qul huwa Allaahu Ahad.

[Insaanah]

if Allah wanted all of us to be Muslim, then we would be, we cannot fight against Allah.

Greetings Eric.

We have been created with free will. Free will to accept Islam, or reject it. This world is our test as to what we do in that regard. This is the whole point of our creation.

Allah created the angels without free will - they obey Him and never disobey Him. He could have created us the same, but that defeats the wisdom that underlies the creation of mankind. You've been exposed to the message of Islam many times on this forum, and it is your choice that you remain Christian.

"And say: "It is the truth from your Lord." Then whosoever will, let him believe, and whosoever will, let him disbelieve. ..." (Qur'an 18:29, part)

You can't blame God for being a Christian. There's a passage in the Quran regarding those who hold back in spending on the poor and destitute: "And when it is said to them, "Spend from that which Allah has provided for you," those who disbelieve say to those who believe, "Should we feed one whom, if Allah had willed, He would have fed? You are not but in clear error."" (36:47)

Applying your line of thinking, say to a situation where there's famine, one could say, as some are quoted as saying in that verse, "God chose that for them, why should we try to feed them when that is what God chose for them, and if we do try to feed them, we are fighting God." (God forbid). This just an example, I'm sure you wouldnt do that. Similarly, what you're saying, is God wished for me to be Christian, and your conveying Islam to me, is fighting against what God chose for me. I hope you can see the futility of this argument with that analogy.

Peace.

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you Insaanah;

I hope you are well, I don't recall seeing much of you recently.

The thread title is about finding peace between different faith groups, so this seems to accept that we are all different in some way. I love the quote, 'You will never look into the eyes of anyone who does not matter to God'. So if everyone matters to God, this should also mean that everyone should matter to me, I should have a care and concern for all people.

I see you as a wonderful Muslim sister chosen by Allah, despite our real and obvious differences, I still believe there is a path towards peace between all of us. We are all created by the same God, and the same God hears all our prayers.

In the spirit of searching for a greatest meaning of 'One God'

Eric

[Silas]

When people discuss the issue of free will, or when they question its existence, I like to point to a funny scene from a movie that illustrates exactly why we have it

A long time ago, there was a silly little movie called "Oh God", where God comes down in human form to interact with humanity. At one point, he is put into a court room and asked to identify himself. He says he is God, but the judge does not believe him. So to appease the judge, God performs a couple miracles in the court room. Still, the judge cannot bring himself to believe.

In a deterministic universe where there is no free will, it would be impossible for that judge to sit there and deny that God was before him. But we do not live in such a universe.

An atheist can say there is no God, but he cannot say that he has no free will, because it is that will that allows him to make that statement

And once he realizes that he is free, he can begin looking for Allah

There is a saying among the early Christians that "once you begin searching for Him you have found Him"

[ZeeshanParvez]

Interfaith is a ridiculous idea. Thst completely throws, al wara wal bara out of the window.

Well, said. May Allaah bless you. Good to see we have orthodox Muslims who do not fear to speak the truth regardless of the 'popular opinion' on a given medium even it means the ignorant will ridicule them.

May Allaah continue to help you to speak the truth.

[azc]

Well, said. May Allaah bless you. Good to see we have orthodox Muslims who do not fear to speak the truth regardless of the 'popular opinion' on a given medium even it means the ignorant will ridicule them.

May Allaah continue to help you to speak the truth.

They're not ignorant.

Why you forget " qul ya ahlal kitabi ta'alaw ila kalimatin sawa'im baynana wa baynakum..."

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you frabgas27;

Interfaith is a ridiculous idea. Thst completely throws, al wara wal bara out of the window.

My understanding of interfaith relations is this, if you are a Muslim, you strive to be a better Muslim, you keep your faith, and you try and get on with people of other faiths. We share One God, One World and we need to get on with each other despite all our differences.

In the spirit of searching for a greatest meaning of 'One God'

Eric

[ZeeshanParvez]

They're not ignorant.

Why you forget " qul ya ahlal kitabi ta'alaw ila kalimatin sawa'im baynana wa baynakum..."

You do not understand the Verse. No good putting up transliterations when you do not even understand what it says.

That Verse calls them towards a word which is same between them and us. That word is that they do not worship anything but Allaah.

It has nothing to do with interfaith love and peace. Please learn something first next time before you put up a transliteration you do not understand.

[sister herb]

Good to see we have orthodox Muslims who do not fear to speak the truth regardless of the 'popular opinion' on a given medium even it means the ignorant will ridicule them.

They don´t speak the truth but their own opinion. Just like we others.

[azc]

You do not understand the Verse. No good putting up transliterations when you do not even understand what it says.

That Verse calls them towards a word which is same between them and us. That word is that they do not worship anything but Allaah.

It has nothing to do with interfaith love and peace. Please learn something first next time before you put up a transliteration you do not understand.

What's interfaith in your eyes.. ?

[piXie]

:sl:

About Interfaith dialogue, do the Muslims that promote this idea understand what this actually means today, it's guidelines and the connotations it implies?

.....I'm assuming on account of you championing the brother's idea that you also think the life of Prophet :saws: (peace and blessings be upon him) is a ridiculous life because he did interfaith dialogues? Please read post #42 and educate yourself.

:salamext: dear sister

The Prophet :saws1: did Dawah. There is a difference.

[piXie]

What is interfaith?

Interfaith is inclusive and honors all people, religions and spiritual traditions.

Interfaith acknowledges the great Spiritual Teachers, Masters, Sages and Mystics including Jesus, Buddha, Krishna, Gandhi, Muhammad, Lao Tzu, and many more.

Interfaith is a way of life that allows each person to express the Divine in their own way.

Interfaith is an avenue of seeing and seeking the endless possibilities of Divine expression.

Interfaith comes from the perspective that We Are One and are all connected to each other.

http://revkellyjosingleton.com/about...is-interfaith/

The concept of interfaith is based on falsehood.

[Search]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

:sl:

About Interfaith dialogue, do the Muslims that promote this idea understand what this actually means today, it's guidelines and the connotations it implies?

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

I can't speak for everyone, sister, but I have had chances to participate in interfaith dialogue/discussion and also observe such events. The first time I participated in it, the format was simple and involved me explaining Islam. For example, we as Muslims believe in One God. And it also included answering questions like do we believe in a Holy Ghost? And the answer was of course no. The same chance was given for adherents of Jewish and Christian denominations (Catholics and various Protestants) to answer questions about what they believe or what they don't believe. I have also had chances to observe such interfaith dialogues/discussions; and it has been this same basic format, usually held at a university or school or within an event hall at some place attached to a church.

:salamext: dear sister

The Prophet :saws1: did Dawah. There is a difference.

I think some people misunderstand what interfaith dialogue is. Interfaith dialogue is not promotion of all religions being on equal footing; that is not interfaith dialogue but a promotion of some New Age ideology perhaps; that is not the purpose of interfaith dialogues nor would it be appropriate to do because interfaith dialogue does not involve making false claims.

Rather, what interfaith dialogue involves is precisely discussing what the specific religion teaches and what its adherents believe. I consider interfaith dialogues the easiest level of dawah available to Muslims in terms of access available in today's climate in which non-Muslims misunderstand Islam due to Islamophobic undercurrents waving across the globe; most people who are amenable to participating in such events are already people who are willing to try to understand what Islam teaches or what Muslims believe because they accept to be part of hearing what Muslims have to say.

For example, I have already mentioned that once I had been a participant in interfaith dialogue. However, I have also been fortunate to observe other interfaith dialogues. And again, what it involved is Muslims explaining what Muslims understand of their faith or what Islam teaches. It has, at least to the best of my knowledge, from my previous participation and also observation of other events never advocated in any way univeralism nor taught or advocated any un-Islamic matters.

I think Muslims in the West should participate in interfaith dialogues most as the average Westerner's exposure to Islam is limited to sensational headlines on television about "radical Islamic terrorism" or the Internet from anti-Muslim and anti-Islam sites and they hasn't had opportunity to either see Muslims or observe Muslims talking about their faith; I think if the Muslims in question are quality Muslims, non-Muslims can be inspired to look either deeper into Islam or have the seed planted of Islam being a beneficial spiritual vehicle to gain closeness to God or at least appreciate Muslims as human beings just like them who live ordinary lives and have ordinary concerns. I remember when I participated in the event, I was thanked by the sponsors for attending and for explaining Islam; of course, I will never know if I made a difference or inspired any person to look into Islam, but the thought that I could have is a humbling one to this day. And therefore, of course, I am an advocate for interfaith dialogues. Muslims shouldn't fear participating in such events, because these events should be taken as not even merely dawah opportunities but a chance to stand proudly and beautifully up for Islam.

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

[muslim brother]

so i had coffee last week with someone who has left islam.

his grievances were with "asian" culture
ignorant neighbours and relatives
lack of love from family and community
oppression of women
the usual stuff

ill repost this

why did they leave ........the dire need for an altruistic and pragmatic approachim sure many have heard by now about the recent itv programme about apostates/atheists however its phrased
.i only have questions,they are genuine and also for reflection for the communities which they left.
some observations and assumptions first. yes ..i could be wrong
1 :it appeared the issues and grievances were with retrogressive culture and bad parenting primarily and not religion..i could be wrong
2 :vulnerable and lonely people were looking for love and support..i could be wrong
3parents and communities in their ignorance overreacted and in fact made the situation worse..i could be wrong
4:self righteousness and lazy cultural parenting along with an ignorance of the spiritual aspect of islam may be to blame..i could be wrong
5:the inability and refusal of the muslim community ,to address its own failings and rot constantly shoved under the proverbial carpet came to the surface..i could be wrong.
the carpet itself has now rotted away,and no new carpet will be able to cover the rot we constantly try to shove under it..of course...i may be wrong
murdering people on the streets makes things worse,
calling for murder makes things worse,
shunning people and not listening to them makes things worse.
ignoring people with doubt and confusion makes things worse.
over reaction and ignoring the voice and feelings of those in deep pain and dilemmas makes things worse.
shunning and excommunicating makes things worse.
mocking and hunting and dehumanising someones daughter,son makes things worse
islam is a way of life which makes things better,it heals,it manages,it comforts.it draws people near and embraces humanity without prejudice.am i right?
AND ALLAH TAALA KNOW BEST

[Zafran]

The concept of interfaith is based on falsehood.

If you just Google interfaith dialogue - this comes up

"The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions (i.e., "faiths") and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels."

What is wrong with this??

[Samiul123]

Yeah, I believe this is a good thing and there can still be a lot of way for us to do good dialogues.

[piXie]

:bism: (In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)


:wa: (And peace be upon you)

I can't speak for everyone, sister, but I have had chances to participate in interfaith dialogue/discussion and also observe such events. The first time I participated in it, the format was simple and involved me explaining Islam. For example, we as Muslims believe in One God. And it also included answering questions like do we believe in a Holy Ghost? And the answer was of course no. The same chance was given for adherents of Jewish and Christian denominations (Catholics and various Protestants) to answer questions about what they believe or what they don't believe. I have also had chances to observe such interfaith dialogues/discussions; and it has been this same basic format, usually held at a university or school or within an event hall at some place attached to a church.


I think some people misunderstand what interfaith dialogue is. Interfaith dialogue is not promotion of all religions being on equal footing; that is not interfaith dialogue but a promotion of some New Age ideology perhaps; that is not the purpose of interfaith dialogues nor would it be appropriate to do because interfaith dialogue does not involve making false claims.

Rather, what interfaith dialogue involves is precisely discussing what the specific religion teaches and what its adherents believe. I consider interfaith dialogues the easiest level of dawah available to Muslims in terms of access available in today's climate in which non-Muslims misunderstand Islam due to Islamophobic undercurrents waving across the globe; most people who are amenable to participating in such events are already people who are willing to try to understand what Islam teaches or what Muslims believe because they accept to be part of hearing what Muslims have to say.

For example, I have already mentioned that once I had been a participant in interfaith dialogue. However, I have also been fortunate to observe other interfaith dialogues. And again, what it involved is Muslims explaining what Muslims understand of their faith or what Islam teaches. It has, at least to the best of my knowledge, from my previous participation and also observation of other events never advocated in any way univeralism nor taught or advocated any un-Islamic matters.

I think Muslims in the West should participate in interfaith dialogues most as the average Westerner's exposure to Islam is limited to sensational headlines on television about "radical Islamic terrorism" or the Internet from anti-Muslim and anti-Islam sites and they hasn't had opportunity to either see Muslims or observe Muslims talking about their faith; I think if the Muslims in question are quality Muslims, non-Muslims can be inspired to look either deeper into Islam or have the seed planted of Islam being a beneficial spiritual vehicle to gain closeness to God or at least appreciate Muslims as human beings just like them who live ordinary lives and have ordinary concerns. I remember when I participated in the event, I was thanked by the sponsors for attending and for explaining Islam; of course, I will never know if I made a difference or inspired any person to look into Islam, but the thought that I could have is a humbling one to this day. And therefore, of course, I am an advocate for interfaith dialogues. Muslims shouldn't fear participating in such events, because these events should be taken as not even merely dawah opportunities but a chance to stand proudly and beautifully up for Islam.

:wa: (And peace be upon you)

:wasalamex

:jz: for your reply sister Search. The Prophet :arabic5: explained Islamic teachings with the purpose of inviting people to Islam. If we engage in dialogue with someone with this purpose, then a more accurate term for that would be Dawah. Not interfaith dialogue. Because, the purpose and aim of interfaith dialogue, is to reach mutual understandings and common beliefs. Not dawah. The ideology behind it is that we are all One, and we should be unified, regardless of our beliefs. But Islam teaches that darkness and light are not One, and neither can truth unite with falsehood.