Is there such a thing as a "Moderate/Modern/Liberal" Muslim?

I agree, there are so many different types of muslims, within the same family n friends group you will see someone interpret the islam one way and somebody else will interpret it another way. However I still think we are all brothers and sisters.. If they are going totally against islam all we can do is make dua for them. Allah made Islam so easy yet people just complicate it..

I am Modern/Liberal Muslim. There was an article on CNN that said Liberals and Athiests have a higher IQ than the Conservative/Religious.

I also believe a Modern/Liberal Muslim follows the Quran and hadith but also believes in the change of time and technology. As we move forward, things in life always change and Modern/Liberal Muslims adapt to the change. In another words some of the context in the Quran and Hadith may be outdated for the use of practice today.

An example of a Modern Muslim city would be Dubai, UAE.
An example of a Traditional muslim city would be any city without much growth because they are stuck with the rules of the past.

I do not want to be stuck in the past, I rather have the world grow and change into a better place for us and for the next generation.
I believe that is our purpose of life. To create a better future for the next generation and the next generation will do the same and it keeps on growing and evolving. This is how we learn new things.

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/02/26....intelligence/

format_quote Originally Posted by SMA89

I am Modern/Liberal Muslim. There was an article on CNN that said Liberals and Athiests have a higher IQ than the Conservative/Religious.

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/02/26....intelligence/

Bailey also said that these preferences may stem from a desire to show superiority or elitism, which also has to do with IQ. In fact, aligning oneself with "unconventional" philosophies such as liberalism or atheism may be "ways to communicate to everyone that you're pretty smart," he said.

So if everyone was liberal/athiest they would no doubt align themselves with religion. Being different for the sake of being different doesn't make them sound very smart now does it
It didn't give a detailed explanation of the IQ tests used either. IQ tests as a whole are questionable.

If the person interprets Islam himself/herself and goes against accepted beliefs in every respect apart from the belief of one God and Muhammed (pbuh) as the final messenger, are they still considered our Muslim brothers/sisters?

Either your a good Muslim who follows the tenets of Islam, or a bad Muslim who is a Muslim by name/birth only or somewhere in between. There's no such thing as a "Moderate/Modern/Liberal" Muslim, all excuses to call yourself Muslim while following your own nafs.

Reflect on this...

“What's a 'moderate Muslim'? - Someone that doesn't mind the invasion and occupation of Muslim countries and the slaughter of countless people there? We will see the end of 'extremist' Muslims when we see the end of 'extremist' leaders in the West. It's not rocket science although it is in a lot of people's interests to pretend that it is.” -Marie Xeno

What is Moderate Islam?
“A ‘moderate Islam’ is Islam that shall remain rooted in the fundamentals of Islamic authenticity and the eternal values of Islam’s universal worldview, not the short term demands of US oil companies, conglomerates and think tanks. Central to this is the struggle for universal justice and equality, which is at the heart of the Islamic message”. - Dr. Farish Noor

the same study, which was conducted mostly in the U.S (christians) vs. liberal atheists, also found this:

For men, on the other hand, sexual exclusivity goes against the grain evolutionarily.

isn't it amazing, what Islam stated that millenniums ago 'modern science' discovers today..

studies that focus on a general group tend to not reflect the world at large.. nonetheless we appreciate two aspects of it.
1- learning is compulsory on every Muslim
2- Men aren't monogamous by dictation of their biology..

ahhh.. I wonder how many more studies of this kind will go on to prove the obvious..

btw. an IQ isn't something you mobilize yourself into-- you either are or you aren't.. certain religions can certainly restrict learning.
It would be interesting if Islam went against atheism in this type study .. I have no doubt to the outcome!

format_quote Originally Posted by aadil77

You're not really making yourself a part of the ummah, thats why you feel no brotherhood with other fellow muslims, in terms of faith we are better than non muslims as we do not disobey Allah by either not believing in him or associating partners with Him.

Do you think christians and jews include you in their brotherhood? No they'd never, so know where you belong.

When does Allah tell us to hate his creation? you'd better be careful make statements like that

Read carefully before you say something. I said nothing about Allah hating his own creations.

And in the west, we really dont label people with religions actually. I get along with everyone. What religion you are doesnt really matter here, Its your personality/character/values you have and etc. I have many friends; white, black, yellow, brown and yet to this day I dont even know what religion they are from because it really doesnt matter OR make a difference. They are all good people.

format_quote Originally Posted by SMA89

Read carefully before you say something. I said nothing about Allah hating his own creations.

And in the west, we really dont label people with religions actually. I get along with everyone. What religion you are doesnt really matter here, Its your personality/character/values you have and etc. I have many friends; white, black, yellow, brown and yet to this day I dont even know what religion they are from because it really doesnt matter OR make a difference. They are all good people.

lol I am from the great 'west' as well, I'm talking about religious people or people who stick to their own kind.

Look I have muslim and non-muslim friends who are 'white, black, yellow, brown', at the end of the day I follow the example of our prophet and I'll mostly stick with my brothers, I can trust them when I need them, I can go pray with them when its time for prayer, I can talk to them about islam, lol I can go eat halal food with them when we're out etc etc. This is my preference, you don't see any difference between muslims and non muslims whereas me and my muslim mates do.

format_quote Originally Posted by SMA89

What religion you are doesnt really matter here, Its your personality/character/values you have and etc.

Why do you think that religion is of no significance, when it is the difference between eternal happiness and eternal punishment in the Hereafter?

Allaah (swt) says in the Qur'an (interpretation of the meaning):

Not equal are the dwellers of the Fire and the dwellers of the Paradise. It is the dwellers of Paradise that will be successful. [Al-Hashr: 20]

Nobody is saying that non-Muslims are not humans and that we cannot get along with them, rather they should be treated with justice. However, a believer is better than a disbeliever in the Sight of Allaah (swt) and a clear distinction is made between the two in Islam. In the Qur'an, Allaah (swt) has confirmed brotherhood between the believers and from this description it can be understood that the non-believers cannot be considered our brethren in the same way.

And in the west, we really dont label people with religions actually.

Is your authority the West, or is it Allaah (swt)'s Revelation?

format_quote Originally Posted by SMA89

I believe everything in the Quran is true. I never said it was fake? lol
but I have the right to choose dont I? Every human being has free will dont they? so therefore every Muslim also has free will right?
and do you consider yourself to be a perfect muslim on this planet?

then maybe you want to explain this post when I told you that to disbelieve in the existance of magic and jinns is kufar and I quoted you baqrah verse 102.

format_quote Originally Posted by SMA89

If there are so many events around the world with all these black magic, I'm sure the news would put it up. The ratings the news casts will get will be really high. Even if its true or not, the news will put it up if its an interesting find. brotherubaid, I am not calling you uneducated. I have been to Dubai, and I love that place because it is one of the most modern cities in the Middle East. There are a lot of smart people there also but it depends WHO you talk to. These muslims might consider these stories to be a fact just by listening to fake stories. People are more Gullible in the East, especially the uneducated ones. Go and see her for urself, While you are at it, why dont you take her to a doctor? Why is she sitting at home and crying about it when she can get help from the people around her. Why doesnt she tell the news to be aware? Get the truth out so others wont be in her position. I mean thats how we learn dont we?

You guys are giving me reference from a book which means nothing. People can write many books, but am I going to blindly follow it without knowing that they are 100% a fact? Its basically like telling me to believe everything on the internet that a random person writes. I am not a conservative that follows rules that a book has told us to do. I am a modern muslim. I follow the things I believe are right in the Quran. I drink at social gatherings. Wine has been proved to be good for the heart and if prophet Mohammed was alive today he also would approve drinking wine. I do not drink irresponsibly, I make sure I know where my limits are. The verse in the Quran are more directed for the people that abuse the habit.

I dont fear Jinns. As a kid, when I use to live in the east. Everyone had different stories that contradict to your description of a Jinn is. Now that I am old enough, I am smart enough to know that those stories were fake. I have experienced your so called Jinn Attacks and I went to the mosque and the Imam told me it was a Jinn. Few days later I got scared and told my dad. He took me to a doctor and the doctor told me it was sleeping paralysis, which is normal for some human beings. So for muslims, this is called Jinn Attacks; for christians, this is called alien attacks; for educated Doctors; it is called sleeping paralysis. Who should I believe?, I chose the Doctor because it makes the most sense and also he was the most educated with FACTS.

seems to me like you deny certain verses of the book that disagree with your intellect. This mentality is wrong. We don't pick and choose the bits of the Qur'an we want to follow, the reply of the believers is "we hear and obey" not "we hear but we'll ignore you and follow this bit instead"

do you know the Qur'an actually speaks out about the abode of such people who take part of the book and reject the bits that they don't agree with?

it says those people who believe in parts of it, but discard other parts they're abode shall be the hell fire.

just wondering do you believe in this verse? that if you believe in parts of the Qur'an and reject other parts your abode will be hell fire?

do you believe the Qur'an to be divinely inspired from God? cos I believe that's where the problem lies, so do you believe the Qur'an to be from God, all of it 100%?

format_quote Originally Posted by SMA89

Not every muslim is Good. There was a perfect example in a bollywood movie I saw recently and I recommend you watch it aswell. Its called "My name is Khan". There was a part when the muslim mother of the autistic boy drew 2 pictures of stick figures, One was holding a gun and one was holding a lollipop. The mother asked the boy "Which one is muslim and which one is Hindu" and the boy replied "They both look the same to me". This really hit me because I realized it doesnt matter what religion you are from but if you are good or not. The mother basically classified the whole world into 2 groups. One is good and the other is Bad. I also see the world the same way. It also showed an example of an extreme muslim in the mosque to show that there are good and bad muslims. Just watch the movie lol I cant really explain it well. I watched it last month. It is a really good movie.

I don't watch bollywood movies, I can't stand them just like most I can't stand the south asian culture.

Sharukh Khan is not a muslim or respresentative of muslims, so don't get influenced by him.

I can understand what you're saying about good/bad people but its not that simple, yes you might see some muslims who may seem worse than non-muslims in terms of behaviour and deeds, some non muslims may seem like much better people than some muslims, but at the end of the day if those 'bad' muslims have some iman inside them they will be favoured over the good non muslims by Allah. Do you know that the good deeds of non-muslims are not accepted by Allah because of their kufr?

format_quote Originally Posted by KittenLover

then maybe you want to explain this post when I told you that to disbelieve in the existance of magic and jinns is kufar and I quoted you baqrah verse 102.





seems to me like you deny certain verses of the book that disagree with your intellect. This mentality is wrong. We don't pick and choose the bits of the Qur'an we want to follow, the reply of the believers is "we hear and obey" not "we hear but we'll ignore you and follow this bit instead"

do you know the Qur'an actually speaks out about the abode of such people who take part of the book and reject the bits that they don't agree with?

it says those people who believe in parts of it, but discard other parts they're abode shall be the hell fire.

just wondering do you believe in this verse? that if you believe in parts of the Qur'an and reject other parts your abode will be hell fire?

do you believe the Qur'an to be divinely inspired from God? cos I believe that's where the problem lies, so do you believe the Qur'an to be from God, all of it 100%?

I will let Allah decide if he wants to take me to hell or heaven. I am not doing anything wrong to people. I am doing more good in this world than you are probably.
Yes I believe the Quran is a message from Allah. Prophet Mohammed was one of the greatest leaders in the world. Maybe Allah should send another prophet or bring back Prophet Mohammed to keep us updated tho.