We have a genuine concern to see you on the straight path (yes, there is only one), and strive to save you from paths that might lead to the hell fire, just like I mentioned in an earlier post. If you had to go to school and knew there was a raging fire along the way, your parents would say to you, the authorities would say to you, please avoid x route, take y route. If you take x route, you are likely to be harmed.
Similarly, when parents bring up their children, and strive to instil in them morals and manners so they can grow up to be good and decent human beings, do they let the toddler or child investigate bad manners and try them out and come to it's own conclusion as to which is best? No.
I understand that when people are struggling to find God, that many people will and have investigated other religions before coming to Islam. Islam does not tell us to accept it on blind faith, but to think, ponder, consider, reflect. For some, that may include looking at other faiths to see which is true. Know, though, that there is only one truth. There is no pick 'n mix approach that can be taken, eg lets take the best bits from every faith and remain on that and God knows my intentions to see His will so it should be ok.
Allah clearly states in the Qur'an, that whoever brings a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him, and in the hereafter, he will be of the losers. Yet, despite urging people that Islam is the truth and the only way, you've been given freedom to make your own choice. Sure, a person may say, I follow Islam because I am surrendering to the will of God best I can. But what are the definitions of Muslim, in Quran and hadeeth? Well, to become a Muslim, a person cannot declare that there is only one God. That does not make you a Muslim. To enter into the state of being and the way of life known as Islam, you have to believe and declare, that Muhammad :saws:, is the messenger and slave of Allah. Many will be familiar with the famous hadeeth of Jibreel, which was designed to teach Muslims their religion. The Prophet :saws: said in it, that Islam is that you worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him and you establish obligatory prayer and you pay the obligatory poor-rate (Zakat) and you observe the fast of Ramadan. "
Part of a longer hadeeth
Sahih al-Bukhari 50
Sahih Muslim 8e
Belief in the Prophet being automatically assumed as he :saws: is the one telling you all this. So here, it is not only both parts of the shahaadah, but also performing certain actions that demonstrate to God your faith.
No scholar of any note that I am aware of has presumed to say whether those who label themselves as Christian or Jewish are surely going into the Fire. I would suspect that this should be extended to other groups, too. Because within each label-group, you can find people who genuinely appear to be striving to please God to the best of their knowledge and ability. And I say to myself: perhaps they have a better connection and effort than myself? Because I really don't know. Only God Knows.
Allah has also made certain things Crystal clear in the Qur'an. There is no confusion as to the only acceptable way now. Why should we go for the bare minimum (or that may even fall short of that), and what is dubious, likely dangerous, leaving the straight way that has been laid out clear? Otherwise, our praying many times a day guide us to the straight path, is pointless, if any path might be straight. It doesn't say guide us the straight paths, but the straight path. Just one. If we think that those who say Jesus :as: is God could have a better connection with God, which is what the above implies, then we should know that the connection is not the basis or the foundation on which everything else is built - it is the core belief, the faith, the aqeedah that matters. Everything else is built on that. Many devout polytheists have a strong connection to the supreme God, and the intermediaries and other Gods they associate with Him, but what does Allah say about them in the Qur'an?
Furthermore, regarding the straight path, the path of those whom Allah favored, the path we pray for at least 17 times a day, it is the path of the following:
Those were the ones upon whom Allah bestowed favour from among the prophets of the descendants of Adam and of those We carried [in the ship] with Noah, and of the descendants of Abraham and Israel, and of those whom We guided and chose. When the verses of the Most Merciful were recited to them, they fell in prostration and weeping. (19:58)
The path of Abraham (peace be upon him):
[He was] grateful for His favors. Allah chose him and guided him to a straight path. (16:121)
The path of Moses and Aaron (peace be upon them):
And We guided them both on the straight path. (37:118)
The path Jesus (peace be upon him) called to:
"
Indeed, Allah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. That is the straight path." (3:51 , 19:36 and 43:64)
and the guidance given to, and path of, the following:
And We gave to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - all [of them] We guided. And Noah, We guided before; and among his descendants, David and Solomon and Job and Joseph and Moses and Aaron. Thus do We reward the doers of good.
And Zachariah and John and Jesus and Elias - and all were of the righteous.
And Ishmael and Elisha and Jonah and Lot - and all [of them] We preferred over the worlds.
And [some] among their fathers and their descendants and their brothers - and We chose them and We guided them to a straight path.
That is the guidance of Allah by which He guides whomever He wills of His servants. But if they had associated others with Allah , then worthless for them would be whatever they were doing
Those are the ones to whom We gave the Scripture and authority and prophethood. But if the disbelievers deny it, then We have entrusted it to a people who are not therein disbelievers.
Those are the ones whom Allah has guided, so from their guidance take an example. Say, "I ask of you for this message no payment. It is not but a reminder for the worlds."(6:84-90)
The last word in the passage is significant, that it is a reminder
for all the worlds,
from, if we look at Surah al-Faatihah,
the Lord of all the worlds.
The path we are seeking, is not just a path specific to Muhammad :saws:, because that was not a different path from the others. The path has always been the same, but the other prophets teachings got distorted/corrupted/forgotten. Islam is the culmination of the same Ultimate Universal Truth that all the Prophets, peace be upon them, preached; the same message they all brought, from the same God. Islam is not a new or different religion, but what has always been since the time of Adam (peace be upon him), the only one unchanged, thus the only straight path.
We seek to join all the Prophets mentioned, and their righteous ancestors, descendants and brethren in the guidance given to them. This large company of believers, whom we seek to join in Surah al-Faatihah, is reinforced at the end of the salaat: "Peace be to us and the righteous servants of Allah".
Strivingfordeen, you mention the previous prophets a lot, so please ponder on what you've just read.
We make this dua or request to Allah, referring to ourselves in the plural, even for a Muslim reciting it on his own, showing that he sees himself as part of a brotherhood of believers, and his dua is not just for him, but for all who seek such a way, namely, the straight path.
smile) So, Striving, if you feel that you need to look around and understand your relationship with God in a more profound way... well, this is your journey. And it sounds rather promising to me, actually.
We hope and pray that he consciously sees Islam as the truth and comes back to the right path.
smile) I have read (and I continue to read) texts from many label-groups. And I talk with many different people. (smile) And the more I learn, the more I feel closer to God. (smile) Because, you see, God Sent His Messengers and Prophets all through time to all peoples. Which is why you can find echoes of His Will in all cultures. (smile) And this, to me, is a very spiritually invigorating and beautiful thing.
This maybe, but echos are echos. Let us now follow what is loud and clear, here and now. At the time of each respective previous Prophet, there was only one right way, which the prophet of the time taught. Allah tells us:
And when Jesus :as: brought clear proofs, he said, "I have come to you with wisdom and to make clear to you some of that over which you differ, so fear Allah and obey me.(43:63)
He called to that straight path that we pray to be steadfast on:
The Messiah has said, "O Children of Israel, worship Allah , my Lord and your Lord." (5:72, part)
Allah had to be worshipped alone, and Isa alayhissalaam had to be obeyed.
What did Nuh :as: say to his people:
'Worship Allah , fear Him and obey me." (71:3)
You say you are interested in the previous prophets. They all preached the same message. believe in and worship Allah alone without any associate in His Divinity, and obey the Prophet. To follow the previous prophets, you've got to obey the last one, because his preserved message is a confirmation, continuation and culmination, of the previous original scriptures.
Doesn't sound too hard, does it?
So go for it, Striving... look around. Let go of your sure assumptions and dig into the matter: What is God's Will? How can I know it? What should I do? How can I best accomplish it?
And where is that found? In the Qur'an. The sunnah. In Islam.
smile) And I pray you may find what you are looking for.
That depends on what someone is looking for, as what they are looking for might inadvertently not actually be the best thing for them. Let us pray he finds and comes back into the fold of Islam, back onto the straight path, ameen.
