questions for Muslims about Islam from Christians (not debates or opinions)

how often should religious/practicing/devout/sincere (not sure what the correct word is for this) muslims go to mosque?

at least 5 times a day (for 5 obligatory prayers) . This goes for men, as for women it's optional wether they pray in congregation or alone. But men should pray in congregation.

what goes on inside the mosque?

nowdays, nothing except books, some chairs (for old or sick people that can't pray), some things that hang on the wall that say "la illahe ilallah" or something like that.

is there any kind of ceremony or ritual?

we do the prayer . as an example:
http://www.howdoipray.com/howdoipray/Fillim/prayer.asp

is the imam the leader and speaker?

yes there is an imam, but imam is same as us, except that he should have more knowledge than us, so that he leads the prayer or gives the speech on fridays.

do muslims go on pilgrimages to try and convert jews and christians? is that not a form of charity?

muslims go on pilgrimage not to convert jews or christians, bc there is no jew and christian there, but they go to finish the duty which is explained as the 5th pillar of Islam.

according to islam is every human being God's child and deserves the opportunity to information that will lead to their eternal salavation/peace?

We don't say we are God's child, I think this is an expression used by jews in old times, but in Islam we are simply a creation of Allah, a slave etc. and everyone is obligated to read, to learn. bc the knowledge is the core, the more you know about Islam and understand it, the greater your iman (not imam) is, the more you love/fear Allah and the more you work to do good deeds so you enter Jannah by the mercy of Allah swt.

format_quote Originally Posted by cooloonka

hello all. i have thought of a new question for the muslims. not so much for the christians. simple answers are best here.

Hey.

i was raised in the catholic church and catholic school. i have been to many other catholic churches accross the country and they all have exactly the same beliefs, read from the same scripture every week, same rules, ideas etc.

Kool.

how often should religious/practicing/devout/sincere (not sure what the correct word is for this) muslims go to mosque?

It is 5x daily, however the obligation is once every Friday for the Friday Prayers. Known as the Jummah Prayer.

The evidence for that is:

O ye who believe! When the call is proclaimed to prayer on Friday (the Day of Assembly), hasten earnestly to the Remembrance of Allah, and leave off business (and traffic): That is best for you if ye but knew!

[Qur'an Jumuah (The Congregation/Friday) 62: 9]

what goes on inside the mosque?

The masjid/mosque is the central place of prayers, learning, and place of activity for the muslims.

is there any kind of ceremony or ritual?

Yeah, the prayers are one of the pillars of Islaam since it keeps one in continuous remembrance of God throughout ones daily life etc.

is the imam the leader and speaker?

Yeh, he also leads the prayers.

all catholic priests believe the same things and preach the one set of beliefs to the church (i.e. abortion is wrong, no sec before marriage, stealing is a forgivable sin but one must confess to be forgiven,etc...) do all imams believe the same things about islam? (i have seen so many contradictions in what i read from imam's web sites about rules of islam etc.)

To hide ones sins and repent to God directly is a really important matter in Islaam. The proof is that the Messenger of God, Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:

“All my Community will be excused except those who are blatant. And it is from blatancy for one to perform an act at night and to wake up and tell something that they did such-and-such, while Allah had concealed it for them. They slept under the cover of Allah, and they rended Allah’s covering from themselves in the morning.”

[Authentically recorded in Bukhari and Muslim]

d oyou think the radicalism presented by some individuals has scared most into asking questions about islam so they just keep believing what they are told?

God's final Messenger, Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:

“This religion is easy. No one becomes harsh and strict in the religion without it overwhelming him. So fulfill your duties as best you can and rejoice. Rely upon the efforts of the morning and the evening and a little at night and you will reach your goal.” [Sahîh al-Bukharî]


No-one can be radical if they follow the Prophetic way, and whenever we do anything in regard to religion - we depend on evidences from Qur'an (the speech of God) or the Sunnah [Prophetic way.] If we stick to this - we won't become radicalised or go astray.

christians believe christianity is the right way to live, aspring to be like jesus is the only way to peace and happiness and love and heaven so in being that they believe it is so good they are obligated to spread the word to everyone. called spreading the "good news" about hope and salvation to anyone and everyone on earth. this is how missions are formed for that sole purpose. i understand that every religion believes that they are the correct one. so does islam present itself in a way that promotes spreading the "good news about islam" and how it is a great and peaceful faith and how to get to heaven for non believers?

We believe that we should follow the way of all the Prophets of God since they are the best example to mankind. We don't accept all aspects of the bible since we don't know of its authenticity, however we do believe that some aspects are still true. The Qur'an is the final revelation of God to mankind and it hasn't been altered by anyone, the copy written by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)'s companions still exists today and is preserved in the museum of Turkey.

Here's some images if you want to check it out:
http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Qur...s/topkapi.html


The Qur'an is the Criterion to distinguish the truth from falsehood, wrong from right. And it is for all of mankind.


Anyway, i writ a little bit about Islaam and maybe you could get abit more of an understanding:

Let's start off with the fact that the majority of the world believes in a God, or 'Higher being.' The difference between islaam and all other faiths is that instead of just recognising that there is a God, we believe that the Creator created us with the purpose of submitting to Him, worshipping Him alone sincerely without any associates.


These associates can be stone idols, it can be humans (or human legislations) it can be a person's desires etc.



Islaam call's to the worship of God, known as Allaah in arabic. If you're confused about why God is Allaah in arabic, realise that people from spain call God - Dios, the french call God - Dieu etc. Therefore we call God, Allaah in arabic.


Allaah has sent messengers to convey the same message of calling to the worship of God since the beginning of time, since Adam (peace be upon him) the first person to ever live. All the messengers came to call to Allaah's worship, and this is the purpose of our creation - to worship Allaah, without no associates, so no idols, no humans, no law which opposes the law which Allaah has revealed to His messengers.


We as muslims believe that Noah, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad (peace be upon them all) were prophets. There have been a total of 124,000 prophets that have come to mankind to call to the worship of Allaah Alone. However, the majority of mankind has fallen astray, because they do believe in a Creator, but they reject the fact that He should be worshipped alone.


Any deeds we do, we do them sincerely to gain Allaah's Mercy, and if we gain it - we will enter the eternal paradise which all the prophets have called to also. However, if someone rejects the worship of the One God - without any associates, they will be punished in the hellfire. This is the only sin which God does not forgive, why should He, if the person is saying that a stone is God? Or a human is God etc.



We all will die and be raised back on the day of recompense, when Allaah/God will judge between us on all that we did. No-one will be judged unfairly because Allaah is the Most Just. Allaah can bring the dead back to life, the same way He brings the dead land back to life by sending down rain.



If you feel that God is being unfair to His servants by punishing those that associate partners with Him, then the justice for this will also be balanced out. Allaah will ask those who associated partners with Him to ask the one's they worshipped for reward. So if someone worshipped a stone idol, they will ask that for recompense on the day of judgement (obviously the stone won't be able to do anything.) If someone worships a human, even if the human is pious, the person will have to get their reward from this human [but obviously everything is dependant on the Creator.] The one's who worshipped God Alone, sincerely without no associates - they will be rewarded by Allaah, the Exhalted with an eternal paradise where they can have all that they desire, and more.



If anyone feels that it is unjust, then they have to stop being unjust to their own Creator. If Allaah created man so he should worship Him, then why worship the stone idol, or why worship a human when you can turn towards your Creator?

do muslims go on pilgrimages to try and convert jews and christians? is that not a form of charity?

The pilgrimage performed in Makkah is the way of Prophet Abraham, who submitted himself to the One and Only God.

We should call christians and jews to Islaam since that is the religion which is only acceptable in the sight of God. However, we cannot force anyone to become muslim since everyone has a freedom of choice.

The evidence for that is in the Qur'an:

Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things. [Qur'an 2:256]

according to islam is every human being God's child and deserves the opportunity to information that will lead to their eternal salavation/peace?

We don't believe God has children since He doesn't have any spouse, since having a spouse would mean that one has an associate. There is none like God:

Say: He is Allah, the One and Only;
Allah, the Eternal, Absolute;
He begetteth not, nor is He begotten;
And there is none like unto Him.

[Qur'an - Ikhlaas/Sincerety 112]

We are all servants of God and He loves us, yet those who turn away from God and turn away from Him when the clear proofs come to them, He doesn't love that.


If you disbelieve, then verily, Allâh is not in need of you, He likes not disbelief for His slaves. And if you are grateful (by being believers), He is pleased therewith for you. No bearer of burdens shall bear the burden of another. Then to your Lord is your return, so He will inform you what you used to do. Verily, He is the All-Knower of that which is in (men's) breasts (hearts).

[Qur'an 39:7]

there. thats everything (that i can think of for now) that i ever wanted to clarify.

Kool, if you ever have any more questions - please don't hesitate to ask.



Regards.

thanks all for the answers. some i am satsfied with and others i think the question was misunderstood. so i will try to clarify. sooo.

i said "all catholic priests believe the same things and preach the one set of beliefs to the church (i.e. abortion is wrong, no sec before marriage, stealing is a forgivable sin but one must confess to be forgiven,etc...) do all imams believe the same things about islam? (i have seen so many contradictions in what i read from imam's web sites about rules of islam etc.)"

my confusion is where i read things like muslims should not listen to music, and then i see a contradiction that says that is fine. i read that muslims should not say 'God bless you' to a non-muslim when he sneezes and i wonder why should that person not be blessed by God?

is this really a religion of peace if you do not wish blessings upon all humans?

one catholic priest can not approve abortion or he will lose his title and be excommunicated from the church. so how can the imams have such differing opinions on other matters? (abortion is merely one example)

how can the illiterate and uneducated know the truth if they are fed contradictions?

i wrote "d oyou think the radicalism presented by some individuals has scared most into asking questions about islam so they just keep believing what they are told?" i was thinking of stories i heard and read that said children are not allowed to question elders about islam, they can not ask why or else be beaten or punished. i have also read about muslims reading the bible and being murdered. is that not a holy book? a great history book in the very least? is this common?


i wrote " i understand that every religion believes that they are the correct one. so does islam present itself in a way that promotes spreading the "good news about islam" and how it is a great and peaceful faith and how to get to heaven for non believers?"

say for instance you went to brazil and found a young orphan boy and took him in. would you consider it your duty to teach him about islam?

i wrote "do muslims go on pilgrimages to try and convert jews and christians? is that not a form of charity?"

i guess pilgrimage was the right word here but for muslims it has a more widely known connotation. soooo what i mean is something....hrm....ok so christians believe that if you tell a jew or a muslim or buhddist about christianity you are giving them a gift of charity. the greatest gift of all:the truth, the light, salvation etc. i am aware that charity is a big part of islam cooincding with peace and good will. so do you consider teaching non believers about islam to be a form of charity?

and lastly as a christian i am used to saying God's child however we do not believe Go d had a spouse. we are human beings created by God in our likeness as a child is to his father. not literally children of God in the human sense.

and

format_quote Originally Posted by cooloonka

thanks all for the answers. some i am satsfied with and others i think the question was misunderstood. so i will try to clarify. sooo.

Sure, its ok.

i said "all catholic priests believe the same things and preach the one set of beliefs to the church (i.e. abortion is wrong, no sec before marriage, stealing is a forgivable sin but one must confess to be forgiven,etc...) do all imams believe the same things about islam? (i have seen so many contradictions in what i read from imam's web sites about rules of islam etc.)"

We stated that it's not permissible to mention our sins to no-one, rather we should hide it and repent to God with the intention of not doing it again.

my confusion is where i read things like muslims should not listen to music, and then i see a contradiction that says that is fine. i read that muslims should not say 'God bless you' to a non-muslim when he sneezes and i wonder why should that person not be blessed by God?

The issue of music isn't really controversial since we depend upon evidences like stated earlier right? And the evidence for the prohibition of music is in this Prophetic saying:

The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:

“Among my ummah [nation] there will certainly be people who permit zinaa, silk, alcohol and musical instruments…” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari ta’leeqan, no. 5590; narrated as mawsool by al-Tabaraani and al-Bayhaqi. See al-Silsilah al-Saheehah by al-Albaani, 91).


That saying is recorded in Sahih Al-Bukhari, and that book is authentic without a doubt since the sayings of the Messenger of God are recorded and authenticated, and that book is well known for its authenticity of chain of narrators etc.

is this really a religion of peace if you do not wish blessings upon all humans?

If you sneeze and a non-Muslim says something to you from his tradition, you may say to him what you would say to a Muslim i.e., "May Allah guide you and rectify your affairs" In regard to non muslims, you can:

• Visiting them when they are ill.
• Witness their funerals
• Respond to their invitation
• Come to the aid of the oppressed

one catholic priest can not approve abortion or he will lose his title and be excommunicated from the church. so how can the imams have such differing opinions on other matters? (abortion is merely one example)
how can the illiterate and uneducated know the truth if they are fed contradictions?

They have to be given proof from Qur'an or the Prophetic Narrations, and that should be sufficient.

i wrote "d oyou think the radicalism presented by some individuals has scared most into asking questions about islam so they just keep believing what they are told?" i was thinking of stories i heard and read that said children are not allowed to question elders about islam, they can not ask why or else be beaten or punished.

I've stated many many times, we need evidence and even if a child asks - they have the right to that knowledge. This religion depends upon evidences and not blind following, infact blind following can lead a person astray - so we need evidences and should depend on them.

i have also read about muslims reading the bible and being murdered. is that not a holy book? a great history book in the very least? is this common?

The bible in reality isn't a history book since there is no authenticity to it, infact even the christians cant agree on a common copy since many copies have been edited so much. The protestants and the catholics can't agree on a true copy either, and Jesus son of Mary spoke Aramaic, yet the earliest copy found is only in greek. So in reality it isn't really an authentic history book.

In regard to people killing muslims who read the bible, who's to say what they're doing is right? They'll have to bring evidence for their claim that what they are doing is right. If they don't - then what their doing is wrong.

i wrote " i understand that every religion believes that they are the correct one. so does islam present itself in a way that promotes spreading the "good news about islam" and how it is a great and peaceful faith and how to get to heaven for non believers?"

say for instance you went to brazil and found a young orphan boy and took him in. would you consider it your duty to teach him about islam?

Yes it would, since he is an innocent boy who should learn about the purpose of his life.

i wrote "do muslims go on pilgrimages to try and convert jews and christians? is that not a form of charity?"

i guess pilgrimage was the right word here but for muslims it has a more widely known connotation. soooo what i mean is something....hrm....ok so christians believe that if you tell a jew or a muslim or buhddist about christianity you are giving them a gift of charity. the greatest gift of all:the truth, the light, salvation etc. i am aware that charity is a big part of islam cooincding with peace and good will. so do you consider teaching non believers about islam to be a form of charity?

Yes.

and lastly as a christian i am used to saying God's child however we do not believe Go d had a spouse. we are human beings created by God in our likeness as a child is to his father. not literally children of God in the human sense.

We believe that we are servants of God since we are His creation, and what you explained is the same concept. Children implies that it is ones offspring, and we know that God has no spouse, hence no children since He is way above that. There is none like Him, and He is the Hearer and Knower.



Regards.

I think an area that you probably are not aware of is we have no ordained clergy. Each Muslim is responsible for his/her own actions. we follow no human and have not religious hierarchy. We do listen to people that have shown either through academic achievement or apparent wisdom, that they have more understanding than we do. but, that is on an individual basis. I can not use it as a cop out if I hear an Imam say it is ok to eat pork and I go eat a BLT. I am responsible for what I do and it is my responsibility to question every person who claims to be a scholar.

i do know that there is no ordained clergy in islam. imams are just scholars who dedicated enormous amounts of time to studying. chrisitian ministers and priests are ordained which is much like a diploma. it shows that they ahve successfully studied a set curiculum and thus they have the knowledge and privelage to share the information accurately to all. theres more to it but basically not just anyone can be ordained a priest tomorrow.

i know that the world is made up of educated and uneducated people of all religions. so illiterate christians can go to church every sunday and listen and learn about the faith htrough sermons and song and hear the bible being read to them etc . you say at mosque all you do is pray.

well then how does an illiterate muslim woman learn accurately about islam?

what if she relies on her illiterate father for information? how does he know how to interprite the quran if he himself can not read it?

format_quote Originally Posted by cooloonka

well then how does an illiterate muslim woman learn accurately about islam?

She can go to a woman Islamic scholar, since we have many knowledgable and respected female scholars today, and in our rich Islamic history; including the wife of God's Messenger Aa'isha (may God be pleased with her.)

what if she relies on her illiterate father for information? how does he know how to interprite the quran if he himself can not read it?

She should go to someone who's knowledgable in Qur'an, we dont go to an engineer to prescribe our medicine for us, so we should similarly go to the person required to teach us Qur'an, Ahadith and the Islamic sciences etc.



Regards.

A person does not rely on another to teach them. It is our responsibility to seek out the knowledge and learn. (see my answer above

this makes no sense. a person most definately relies on another to teach them. thats what being human is all about. thats the whole purpose of childhood. we can not always be seekers of knowledge. we must also be ignorant open recievers.

i feel as if i am getting very vague answers.

an example i can think of is a suicide bomber. suicide bombers believe they are doing good for islam by their actions (killing inocent children, people in general). according to islam this is not true at all. however someone taught them that information as truth. yes i can understand that one person can read the quran and the bible and interpret them totally incorrectly as with anything literal. but there are masses of men women and children believing that the suicide bombers are in heaven and are martyrs. there are children raised to believe this and chant hate taught in schools. so the information is taught. the children are not seekers. they are ignorant until someone teaches them. and those children grow up to be adults. quite possibly a vioelent adult who claims his evil is in the name of Allah. when in fact Allah demands peace.

so with such an extreme contradiction who is to blame?

why do muslims who know the quran not then stand up for it when it is being misinterpreted?

how is it that islam can be so different in different countries, neighborhoods, families?

is there not one message, one truth?

i once read a story about an illiterate muslim in a rural area spewing words of hate and t eaching his daughter to chant death to america. the man was interviewed and asked why he was teaching his daughter this. and he said because Allah says americans are all evil. and the interviewer asked how did he know. and he said because the village elder said so. the interviewer asked the village elder why and he said because he saw it on televison. here the elder was trusted to be the most knowledgable.

is this a good argument for ordained clergy in islam?

In the Qur'an itself it is stated that we will divide into 73 divisions but only one will find Jannah. there is only one truth. the truth is the Qur'an and the way to live the Qur'an is explained in the Ahadith.

very intersting. i was not aware of this.

If a person is trying to become a Dentist, it is there own fault if they enroll in a plumbing school.

ahh yes but if a person is trying to be a dentist and they enroll in a dental school claiming to be legitimate but then professor is really a plumber who has pulled a few teeth lying about being a dentist. then it is the plumber's fault for the deception.


so i'd imagine theres no room for civil law suits in islam

well yippee i think i am fully satisfied. i learned some new stuff. thats always nice. kind of like eating a good meal.

so to sum up everything in this topic i think i'm getting the message that in order to understand islam i merely must read the quran and it will present itself the way it should be interprited.

yes? no?