Things in Islam I am curious about...

[Grace Seeker]

---there is a warning in Bible that ( not the exact words ) : don't call ur bro foolish or u will go to hell......does it mean that just calling someone foolish even once , a Christian can go to hell forever ?????

First thank-you for some of the clarification you and others have provided. These views are ones that seem to be very similar, but not quite identical. As a result, sometimes I think we are talking about the same thing, only later to realize that we mis-communicated. Not a problem if we are off a little bit at the top, I once saw a finished bridge miss joining in the middle by over 6 feet, but with the heat of the afternoon sun, it swell enough to come together and the engineer in charge just order them to bolt the thing together. (In case you drive the interstate over the Mississippi River at St. Louis, that's the bridge I'm talking about.) But, if we are off even a fraction in setting our foundation, the whole building may come down on top of us. So, I really appreciate you all taking the time to educate me in what you mean and think, especially on those such as Woodrow points out that are so similar they are like two sides of one coin.

And yes, Woodrow, for the Christian, good works flows out of our faith. "Faith without works," the apostle James wrote, "is dead." But good works, in and of themselves, without faith, are meaningless.

Muslim Woman, as to your question, the passage you refer to is part of a long sermon by Jesus known as the Sermon on the Mount:

But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca, ' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.(Matthew 5:22)

The focus of Jesus' sermon is ethics for living in the Kingdom of God. To understand it you really need the context of what Jesus said just before it:

21"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.

So, Jesus is adding a slight correction to the popular teachings of his day. He takes the 10 Commandments given to Moses and expounds upon them. It is not enough to not murder, we also aren't to hate.

There is another similar pasage in the same sermon where Jesus expounds upon the commandment not to commit adultery:

27"You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' 28But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

What I see Jesus doing is reminding us of principles that are behind the law, on which the law itself was based. These are the principles of ethical living that Jesus says are part of what it means to be a citizen in God's kingdom. Adultery is not an issue because people don't look at one another with lust in their hearts. Murder is not an issue because there is no hate to motivate it. But this is also why I say that murder and hate are equally sins.

Now, as to your specific question: Would a hater, a person who calls his brother a fool go to hell?
If they don't repent of that sin and seek forgiveness, they could go to hell of that. They could go there for lusting. They could go there for countless things that seem trivial to humans, but are important to God. But there always exists the opportunity to seek God's grace and forgivenss of any sin. One just has to do this before the moment of one's death. And as my Muslims brothers and sisters have done, let me also add the caveat, that it must be sincere. Mouthing magic words is not what Chrstianity is about -- though we have plenty of rituals that might make you think otherwise. What God looks for is a pure and contrite heart.

Psalm 34:18
The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

Psalm 51:17
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

Isaiah 57:15
For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Paul spoke of it as a circumcision of th heart. Possessing such an attitude, one may still make a mistake and sin, but by living with a heart that is always open to and given over to God (I think this is what you mean by submission in Islam), then one can trust that God sees that heart and receives that as an attitude of one seeking to follow God, and so even though we may stumble, our intent was to conform our life to God's will, and thus we still receive forgiveness based on the condition of our heart before God.

(Btw, though some more conservatives Christians would argue with me, this is why I hold out hope for my Muslim brothers and sisters who truly are living their lives in submission to God. I pray that God may yet to be gracious to you, because your heart belongs to him.)

 

[YusufNoor]

A`udhu Billahi mina Shaytanir Rajeem,

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

Assalamu alaykum wa'rahma-tullahi, wa'barakatahu

Peace Gene,

if you swap the Islamic term "Imaan" for you Christian term "grace" [and OK, the concepts as well], what you have written above is durn near IDENTICAL to the teachings of Islam!

But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca, ' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.(Matthew 5:22)

to be a true believer , you must want for your brother what you want for yourself

27"You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' 28But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Muslims are required NOT to look at the opposing sex for the same reason. you might find yourself in full gaze of a beautiful woman, but you are required to "lower your gaze" immediately! the longer you look, the more "sinful" it is...

Paul spoke of it as a circumcision of th heart. Possessing such an attitude, one may still make a mistake and sin, but by living with a heart that is always open to and given over to God (I think this is what you mean by submission in Islam), then one can trust that God sees that heart and receives that as an attitude of one seeking to follow God, and so even though we may stumble, our intent was to conform our life to God's will, and thus we still receive forgiveness based on the condition of our heart before God.

VERY similar! for a tiny sin, Astaghfirullah(Allah(SWT) forgive, such as the above mentioned glance lasted a second longer than it should have; to Tawbah, pray 2 Rakats in all sincerity and if possible, an act of charity before [or after], and trying to insure it doesn't happen again. we rely TOTALLY on Allah(SWT) for all things, as well as beginning all work with Bismillah{in the name of Allah(SWT) and ending them with Alhumdulillah[Praise Allah(SWT)].

we MUST "conform our life to God's will", as you put it.

And as my Muslims brothers and sisters have done, let me also add the caveat, that it must be sincere. Mouthing magic words is not what Chrstianity is about -- though we have plenty of rituals that might make you think otherwise. What God looks for is a pure and contrite heart.

exactamundo! Hypocrisy and arrogance WILL keep you out of Jannah! but, we aks Allah(SWT) for "a pure and contrite heart" and guidance as well!

while we have opposing views on what Christianity is[or supposed to be mg: ], the views of Jesus[the i'm God stuff, being an exception], i have NEVER heard the teachings of Jesus put into action as well as the Rasulullah(pbuh) did and taught!

i recommend some Seerah, that is, the life of the Prophet(pbuh) be studied. i can provide a link that Fi_Siblilillah once posted if you wish.

Peace!

 

[MustafaMc]

The last two posts by GraceSeeker and YusufNoor are nearly identical. This points to the similarity between our beliefs. Please, note that when a Christian does not emphasize reliance upon accepting Jesus (pbuh) as the "Son of God" for salvation, that there is little to disagree with. Sometimes I feel that one side is saying they have half-a-dozen apples and the other disagrees saying, "No, its only six apples." May Allah guide us all to the Truth.

 

[Grace Seeker]

The last two posts by GraceSeeker and YusufNoor are nearly identical. This points to the similarity between our beliefs. Please, note that when a Christian does not emphasize reliance upon accepting Jesus (pbuh) as the "Son of God" for salvation, that there is little to disagree with. Sometimes I feel that one side is saying they have half-a-dozen apples and the other disagrees saying, "No, its only six apples." May Allah guide us all to the Truth.

But what I have is a sextet of apples. :statisfie


Yes, I think you are right in that estimation. Of course, even with the above, I do still rely on Jesus as the source of my salvation, simply because I am imperfect -- not always pure, not always contrite. But, if I've given my heart over to Jesus, then I can trust him to fill in the gaps in my unrighteousness with his righteousness and keep me secure in God's fold. And that probably makes you wonder why given the other things on which we really can find so much agreement if we are willing to look for it. But that is for another discussion. For the moment, I love the way this one is moving.

 

[moujahid]

..I do still rely on Jesus as the source of my salvation, simply because I am imperfect -- not always pure, not always contrite. But, if I've given my heart over to Jesus, then I can trust him to fill in the gaps in my unrighteousness with his righteousness and keep me secure in God's fold. And that probably makes you wonder why given the other things on which we really can find so much agreement if we are willing to look for it. But that is for another discussion. For the moment, I love the way this one is moving.

You are no doubt imperfect. No one is perfect except God. But why is that making you go through Jesus, peace be upon him, for your salvation. You should establish a direct connection with your Creator. Jesus was a mere human being. He is not making up for your disobedience and disbelief in the Oneness of God. Jesus always asked his followers to pray to the One who created him. I understand Christians want an easy way out of the strict laws and submission to the Oneness of God, but unfortunately that is only getting you to eternal pain in hot hell fire.
Satan is pleased with you because you have no faith in the Oneness of God to begin with. We can claim a lot of things. We can claim love all we want. It all boils down to the fact that if you really loved God, you would obey Him and every second of your life would be spent in His worship.
Unlike a weekly ride to the Church on Sundays.
and please stop slandering Jesus, peace be upon him, by calling him a god or son of god.

 

[Grace Seeker]

You are no doubt imperfect. No one is perfect except God. But why is that making you go through Jesus, peace be upon him, for your salvation. You should establish a direct connection with your Creator. Jesus was a mere human being. He is not making up for your disobedience and disbelief in the Oneness of God. Jesus always asked his followers to pray to the One who created him. I understand Christians want an easy way out of the strict laws and submission to the Oneness of God, but unfortunately that is only getting you to eternal pain in hot hell fire.
Satan is pleased with you because you have no faith in the Oneness of God to begin with. We can claim a lot of things. We can claim love all we want. It all boils down to the fact that if you really loved God, you would obey Him and every second of your life would be spent in His worship.
Unlike a weekly ride to the Church on Sundays.
and please stop slandering Jesus, peace be upon him, by calling him a god or son of god.

Thank-you for your sharing your comments and concerns. I fear if I continue with this aspect of the conversation that it will be me, not others, who cause this thread to get off topic. I am happy to discuss my faith. If you have questions for me personally, you may PM with them. For those who simply want to discuss these aspects of the Christian faith in general, I suggest finding or creating an appropriate thread on that topic. For myself, at least on this thread, I intend to return to discussing those issues in Islam that I am curious about in order that I might understand it more. Please join me in that.

 

[Grace Seeker]

I understand that according to Islamic eschatology, that Jesus will come in the last days to usher in God's kingdom on earth. Is that correct? And what role, if any, does Muhammed play in the end times?

 

[- Qatada -]

I understand that according to Islamic eschatology, that Jesus will come in the last days to usher in God's kingdom on earth. Is that correct? And what role, if any, does Muhammed play in the end times?

Muhammad (peace be upon him) died in a state when he had conveyed the whole message, so he will not return to this world.

However, Jesus son of Mary was not killed, but instead he was raised upto God and he will return once again and apply the law revealed to Muhammad (peace be upon him) - since there are no more messengers who will come after him. He will slay the anti-christ and he will establish justice on the earth. He will break the cross and slay the pig, and he will call to the worship of our Creator and Sustainer, the One who lives and never dies. The same message of all the prophets.

He will get married and have children, and then he will also die a natural death. When he is on the earth, there will be total justice and everyone on the earth will be muslims [those who submit to God.]


And Allaah Almighty knows best.


Regards.

 

[FatimaAsSideqah]

Muhammad (peace be upon him) died in a state when he had conveyed the whole message, so he will not return to this world.

However, Jesus son of Mary was not killed, but instead he was raised upto God and he will return once again and apply the law revealed to Muhammad (peace be upon him) - since there are no more messengers who will come after him. He will slay the anti-christ and he will establish justice on the earth. He will break the cross and slay the pig, and he will call to the worship of our Creator and Sustainer, the One who lives and never dies. The same message of all the prophets.

He will get married and have children, and then he will also die a natural death. When he is on the earth, there will be total justice and everyone on the earth will be muslims [those who submit to God.]


And Allaah Almighty knows best.


Regards.

^Second on that..



Sister of Islam

 

[Grace Seeker]

He will slay the anti-christ...
He will break the cross and slay the pig....

These two lines caught my attention and raised some other questions:


What/who would be considered to be anti-christ according to Muslim theology?

Is the "break the cross" and "slay the pig" to be understood metaphorically? If so, to what would they refer? Or is this some literal event that will take place? If so, what would the significance of this event?

 

[Talha777]

These two lines caught my attention and raised some other questions:


What/who would be considered to be anti-christ according to Muslim theology?

Is the "break the cross" and "slay the pig" to be understood metaphorically? If so, to what would they refer? Or is this some literal event that will take place? If so, what would the significance of this event?

The anti-christ (Dajjal) will be a false prophet/messiah who will have the power to perform many miracles in order to deceive humanity. He will for example have the power to make infertile, barren land grow produce. He will have the power to resurrect dead people, and many other powers. He will have three letters KFR which mean disbelief on his forhead which only the Muslims will see. He will persecute the Muslims and take over the whole world, the Muslims will flee to Madina which is guarded by Angels to save themselves from his onslaught. People will worship the dajjal, namely the Christians, because he will claim to be Jesus Christ. The Muslims will refuse to worship him. Then the real Jesus Christ (alaihi salaam) will descend from the sky and will "break the cross" and "slay the swine". Some Muslims, like Maulana Maudoodi have interpreted these things metaphorically, meaning Christianity will become defunct when Jesus (alaihi salaam) says that he did not die on the cross or made pork permissible for his followers. Most Muslims, including myself, however, believe that Jesus (alaihi salaam) will literally ahhnihalate the entire breed of swines and smash every single cross in the world. This is because there is a hadith that Jesus (alaihi salaam) will have a special sword which can extend very far, etc. Jesus (alaihi salaam) will also pursue the Dajjal and his army and defeat them, and he will remain among us for forty years, and upon his death he will be buried next to our Holy Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alaihi wa salaam) in Madina.

 

[FatimaAsSideqah]

http://www.islam.tc/prophecies/masdaj.html

http://www.islam.tc/prophecies/jesus.html

Take to look at this link.

Sister of Islam

 

[Muslim Woman]

Salaam/peace;

..... I suggest finding or creating an appropriate thread on that topic. .......

when u have time , will u pl. visit this thread ? How-much-christians-know-about-bible>>?

I want to know why so many educated Christians don't read Bible ? Why Americans got an F on Bible ?


http://www.islamicboard.com/compara...ut-bible-what-about-muslims-2.html#post706774

I understand that according to Islamic eschatology, that Jesus will come in the last days ...... Is that correct?

yap :statisfie

u may visit these links ...Jesus (p) will return



http://www.jesuswillreturn.com

​

few lines:

God revealed that Jesus is "of high esteem in this world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near [to My presence]" (Qur'an, 3:45), and that he will be rewarded with Paradise.

For this reason, all people must welcome him in the nicest possible way when he returns



Jesus' second coming is a very great gift of God for all humanity, and it is an equally great gift to meet with this valued Prophet.....All people, especially believing Christians and Muslims, must prepare in excitement, vigor, and great exuberance for his arrival.



Those who do not do so are committing a great error, for it is a grave act of disrespect to be lazy or unconcerned about the arrival of such an important guest


No one should forget that people in the 1970s thought of the 1980s or 1990s as the distant future. However, time passed quickly and brought the new millennium. Likewise, the day of our meeting with Jesus will arrive soon, God willing

 

[MustafaMc]

What/who would be considered to be anti-christ according to Muslim theology?

Very good answers have already been provided. I was not previously aware that "KFR" would be imprinted on the forehead of the Anti-Christ (or Dajjal), but Christians have a similar belief about the number "666".

According to the Noble Quran translation with transliteration, the definition of Dajjal is "Pseudo Messiah or Antichrist. Literally a liar, quack, deceiver." Several Hadith in Bukhari provide some information. As Narrated by Anas The Prophet said, "No prophet was sent but that he warned his followers against the one-eyed liar (Ad-Dajjal). Beware! He is blind in one eye, and your Lord is not so, and there will be written between his (Ad-Dajjal's) eyes (the word) Kafir (i.e., disbeliever)." and as Narrated by Abu Huraira - Allah's Apostle said, "Shall I not tell you about the Dajjal a story of which no prophet told his nation? The Dajjall is one-eyed and will bring with him what will resemble Hell and Paradise, and what he will call Paradise will be actually Hell; so I warn you (against him) as Noah warned his nation against him."

My understanding is that Dajjal will try to misguide people to worship him instead of Allah. Interestingly, this coincides with the Christian teaching that before the end of time every knee will bow to Jesus. Romans 14:11-12 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, to me every knee shall bow, And every tongue shall confess to God. So then each one of us shall give account of himself to God. and Philemon 2:9-11 Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name; that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of [things] in heaven and [things] on earth and [things] under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. There will be great tribulation in the last days for those (Muslims) who refuse to bow before the Dajjal. Muslims worship only the One Unseen God who is different from His creation. Muslims believe that Jesus would not command people to worship him instead of the One God.

Is the "break the cross" and "slay the pig" to be understood metaphorically? If so, to what would they refer? Or is this some literal event that will take place? If so, what would the significance of this event?

My understanding is that Jesus will return to kill the Dajjal as no one else would be able to as indicated by an hadith Narrated by Ibn Umar The Prophet said to Ibn Saiyad, "I have kept for you a secret." Ibn Saiyad said, "Ad-Dukh." The Prophet said, "Keep quiet, for you cannot go beyond your limits (or you cannot exceed what has been foreordained for you)." On that, 'Umar said (to the Prophet ), "Allow me to chop off his neck!" The Prophet said, "Leave him, for if he is he (i.e., Ad-Dajjal), then you will not be able to overcome him, and if he is not, then you gain no good by killing him."

In another hadith Narrated by Abu Huraira Allah's Apostle said, "By Him in Whose Hands my soul is, son of Mary (Jesus) will shortly descend amongst you people (Muslims) as a just ruler and will break the cross and kill the pig and abolish the Jizya (a tax taken from the non-Muslims who are in the protection of the Muslim government). Then there will be abundance of money and nobody will accept charitable gifts. I believe that "break the cross" symbolically means to abolish the worship of Jesus and reliance upon his supposed dying on the cross for salvation. In USA there is a cartoon with "Calvin" kneeling before a cross as a symbol for Christians to post on their vehicles. I interpret "breaking the cross" to mean establishment of worshipping the One God. I also believe that "to kill the pig" is symbollic of establishing Islamic law and to forbid, among other things, the consumption of swine flesh.

This, of course, is from my own limited understanding. May Allah forgive me if I misspoke.

 

[ajazz]

Assalaamu aleikum!



---------------------------------------------------------------

General, responses to music are able to be observed. It has been proven that music influences humans both in good and bad ways. These effects are instant and long lasting. Music is thought to link all of the emotional, spiritual, and physical elements of the universe. Music can also be used to change a person's mood, and has been found to cause like physical responses in many people simultaneously. Music also has the ability to strengthen or weaken emotions from a particular event such as a funeral.


An Australian physician and psychiatrist, Dr. John Diamond, found a direct link between muscle strength/weakness and music. He discovered that all of the muscles in the entire body go weak when subjected to the "stopped anapestic beat" of music from hard rock musicians, including Led Zeppelin, Alice Cooper, Queen, The Doors, Janis Joplin, Bachman - Turner Overdrive, and The Band. Dr. Diamond found another effect of the anapestic beat. He called it a "switching" of the brain. Dr. Diamond said this switching occurs when the actual symmetry between both of the cerebral hemispheres is destroyed causing alarm in the body along with lessened work performance, learning and behavior problems in children, and a "general malaise in adults." In addition to harmful, irregular beats in rock music, shrill frequencies prove to also be harmful to the body. Bob Larson, a Christian minister and former rock musician, remembers that in the 70's teens would bring raw eggs to a rock concert and put them on the front of the stage. The eggs would be hard boiled by the music before the end of the concert and could be eaten. Dr. Earl W. Flosdorf and Dr. Leslie A. Chambers showed that proteins in a liquid medium were coagulated when subjected to piercing high-pitched sounds


Research took a new avenue when in 1968 a college student, Dorthy Retallack, started researching the effects of music on plants. She took her focus off of studying the beat and put in on studying the different sounds of music. Retallack tested the effects of music on plant growth by using music styles including classical, jazz, pop, rock, acid rock, East Indian, and country. She found that the plants grew well for almost every type of music except rock and acid rock. Jazz, classical, and Ravi Shankar turned out to be the most helpful to the plants. However, the plants tested with the rock music withered and died. The acid rock music also had negative effects on the plant growth.

http://www.cerebromente.org.br/n15/mente/musica.html


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Actually you don’t need all this research and studies

Just watch MTV!

What does it promotes?

Does it promote respect for elders?
Does it promote good manners and social behavior?

Go to any music concert.

What do you find?

Drug use? May be not at all concert but still.

What kind of life does these rock stars lead?

Mostly they live life of drug and other abuse. May be you don't
Agree.


What do you think happens at music parties given by some people?

But research says some not all type of music is bad.

But it’s only research and not an established fact.

And even if it has some benefits its disadvantages are far more than its advantages and all these advantages can be had by other means.

If I give you a health drink full of vitamins but put a drop of my urine in it, would you drink it?

Music is like a glass full of urine with few drops of vitamins.

On the surface listening to music may seem harmless

But different people are affected differently and on whole it has
Negative effect on the society (remember those mtv dudes?)

music takes you away from Allah
even if it is Islamic song you enjoy the music instead of remembering Allah
but when you pray (namaz) which is without music your whole concentration
is directed towards Allah.

and many lyric of Islamic songs contain kufur
and many people sing songs or nasheeds in praise of saints and prophet Mohammad (SAW).

The Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) has said: Do not over praise me as the Christians over-praised the son of Mary. I am His slave so say: 'Allah's slave and messenger' [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]

please remember Allah may forgive any sin you commit without you asking for
forgiveness but he will not forgive kufur



Some of you may rubbish what I say, wait!
Just think about it before you rubbish me.

There are hadiths that are against music, but are there hadiths that supports it; there was music in times of our prophet and there must have been many occasion where music may
Have been called for.
Is there any incidence where you can find Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)
Approved of it or just kept silence which may indicate approval?

Some say that the quran does not specifically say music is haram

But what do you say to this…



Quran: An-Nisa 80: He, who obeys the Messenger, obeys Allah. But if any turn away, we have not sent thee to watch over their (evil deeds).



If you buy an ipod you get instruction manual with it
It tells you the do’s and don’ts, the best way to handle it and not to do certain things to avoid problems.
This is done by Apple because they are the manufacturer and creator of the product and knows about it inside out.

Since Allah is the creator of the universe and everything else
He has sent the Quran and prophet Mohammad (pbuh)
So that we know the do’s and don’ts .

 

[Hemoo]

good speech brother Ajas

i have read most of it and it is really good.

 

[Hemoo]

Salaam/peace ,

----is it possible for u to start a thread on Fatwas those contradict with Hadith ?

i have started the thread named " Some Wrong fatwa’s that contradicts with the verses of Quran & Sunna "

here is the url and i am waiting for your responses .

http://www.islamicboard.com/basics-islam/40297-some-wrong-fatwa-s-contradicts-verses-quran-sunna.html

 

[Muslim Woman]

Salaam/peace;

i have started the thread named " Some Wrong fatwa’s that contradicts with the verses of Quran & Sunna "

here is the url and i am waiting for your responses .

http://www.islamicboard.com/basics-islam/40297-some-wrong-fatwa-s-contradicts-verses-quran-sunna.html

---thanks for starting it . Insha Allah , i will read .

 

[Grace Seeker]

Posting this asked by a new forumite in another thread, thinking that they might be more appropriately asked and answered here:




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.

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.

how often should religious/practicing/devout/sincere (not sure what the correct word is for this) muslims go to mosque?
what goes on inside the mosque?
is there any kind of ceremony or ritual?
is the imam the leader and speaker?
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.)
i only know about 2 sects of islam shia and sunni. are there more?
what are the main differences between the two?
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?
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? do muslims go on pilgrimages to try and convert jews and christians? is that not a form of charity?
according to islam is every human being God's child and deserves the opportunity to information that will lead to their eternal salavation/peace?


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

 

[Muslim Woman]

I seek refuge in Allah (The One God) from the Satan (devil) the cursed, the rejected

With the name of ALLAH (swt) -The Bestower Of Unlimited Mercy, The Continously Merciful


Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh (May the peace, mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you)

&&

......Originally posted by: cooloonka



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

-- 5 times daily.

what goes on inside the mosque?

mainly prayer & Quran recitation .

is there any kind of ceremony or ritual?

--ummmm , u may watch online prayer to understand the matter . Do u want me to browse for a link ? why not visit ur local mosque ?

is the imam the leader and speaker?

--Imam leads the prayer . On Friday , before prayer , Imam gives khutba ( lecture on religion in Arabic language ) & translation/ explanation.


Well , brothers can answer in details as i rarely go to mosque .It's not a must for women to go to mosque.

all catholic priests believe the same things ..... (i have seen so many contradictions in what i read from imam's web sites about rules of islam etc.)

-----about the main / most imp matters in Islam , all Imams do agree-----God is one , God has no partner .


They also agree that Jesus (p) is a blessed Prophet , Muhammed (p) is the last Prophet etc , etc.



about other issues like listening to music , women's travelling alone , instant divorce , punishment for adultery etc , sadly Imams have different opinions.

i only know about 2 sects of islam shia and sunni. are there more?

--very sadly , yes


Last Prophet (p) told that Muslims will be divided in to 72 or 73 groups/sects.
I don't know all names ......some will say that they are not Muslims
( i.e. Kadiyani ) .

what are the main differences between the two?

about Shia , Sunni differences ......thankfully they both do believe that God is only one......to get a ticket to heaven , it's the most imp matter .

They differ on .......... i guess , it's better if any learned person answers. I don't know in details.

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

---may be . Also i believe media failed to play its role positively to make people understand about other faiths.

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?

---Just because i m a born Muslim , does not mean that i've got a free ticket to heaven.


Islam teaches that God is only one ; anybody associates partner with God will go to hell forever. So , Islam shows the way to both born Muslims & non-Muslims how to get a ticket to the garden of God.

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

--- i hope , i understood ur questions clearly.


Rich & healthy Muslims must perform Hajj once in a life time. Non-Muslims are not allowed to enter the Kaaba ---the holiest mosque of Islam in Macca , Saudi Arabia.

So , there is no chance for them to convert ( revert is more appropriate word ) non-Muslims there .

But , Muslims would love to do that elsewhere ---just give us a chance , hehe



charity must not use for any evil purpose....evil in that sense that If anybody does not believe in one God , we must not offer him/her money just to say , ok i m a Muslim now. Islam is a practical religion , we must practise it in our daily lives.




If s/he really believes in Islam but out of fear to loose job hesitates to accept the truth , i guess in that case we can help him/her financially

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 are servants of God......we don't use the word father , son. God has no parent , no begotten son/daughter .


Yes , of course , Islam is for all . Arabs have no superiority over non-Arabs & the vice versa. An Arab can be non-Muslim , most Muslims are non-Arabs.

Anybody who believes & testify that God is only one & Muhammed (p) is the Last Prophet is considered as a Muslim.

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

--don't hesitate to ask more .....u r most welcome