What does Islam stand for?
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Category: Religion - Islam
Forum Name: Islam for non-Muslims
Forum Description: Non-Muslims can ask questions about Islam, discussion for the purpose of learning.
URL: https://www.islamicity.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=15328
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Topic: What does Islam stand for?
Posted By: Andrea
Subject: What does Islam stand for?
Date Posted: 27 August 2009 at 1:50pm
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Dear Friends, As a Catholic I believe it is my duty to uphold and defend the dignity of my fellow Muslim brothers and sisters. I hate to see any racial/religious attacks against Islam and it angers me to see ignorant people talk ill about Islam. So I come to you and ask for your help. If I were to say Islam is a religion of peace.... what else can I say? What is Islam about? What does it stand for? What would you say if you saw an ignorant attack on your beautiful faith? Regards, Andrea |
Replies:
Posted By: honeto
Date Posted: 28 August 2009 at 4:39pm
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Andrea,
thanks for your kind words. In Islam we are told to return kindness with more kindness. There are some who are arogant and attack those who differ with them. It just shows that they were never taught kindness or they forget to practice because I believe all religious beliefs teach kindness, its just some don't practice it.
Islam stands for justice, in my opinion justice is the final goal. On the day of accountability justice will bring peace to those who were wronged and did not surrender to injustice.
That brings us to what is expected of us, how we can practice justice.
Islam in genral stand for doing justice with two most important aspects of our lives:
1) you and your relationship with your maker. That is your coming to the realization of the fact that God is your Creator, the All Knowing, the Merciful. And that you are one of His Creations. Through faculties provided by Him, and aided by His revealed word you carefully align your relationship with your maker as accurately as possible without denial of truth or willful disobidience.
2) You and your relationship with the Created, that is all and everyone other than God. Islam teaches us to be in balance with all that is created according to God's revealed word.
And since Islam teaches us that we will be accountable to how we deal with those two relatioships, a true believer puts his best effort and intention into it. Islam also teaches us that both of these relationships has to fulfilled in order to achieve sucess, Salvation.
This is my brief reply to your question, I hope its helpful.
Best wishes,
Hasan ------------- The friends of God will certainly have nothing to fear, nor will they be grieved. Al Quran 10:62 |
Posted By: peacemaker
Date Posted: 31 August 2009 at 10:24am
Hello Andrea, Islam is the message of peace and submission to Allah, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe. The Muslims believe in Allah, and His Messengers, including the last Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him). Here is a relevant link that you may refer to: http://www.islamicity.com/education/understandingislamandmuslims/ - http://www.islamicity.com/education/understandingislamandmuslims/ When you click the link and a new page opens, you see that another link appears on the bottom right corner. Likewise, you find the link on subsequent pages. When an ignorant attacks Islam, the best thing is to explain to him or her as to what Islam stands for. Here is a verse: Qur�an 41: 34 http://www.islamicity.com/mosque/QURAN/41.htm - http://www.islamicity.com/mosque/QURAN/41.htm The gravity of the attack and circumstances would also determine the best response. Generally speaking, the Muslims are encouraged in all situations to strive to establish justice and peace. ------------- Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny? Qur'an 55:13 |
Andrea wrote:Posted By: Akhe Abdullah
Date Posted: 31 August 2009 at 11:49am
| Salams,Andrea.Bismillah:Islam is an Arabic word which means peace,submission and obedience.It also means acceptance and commitment to abide by the teachings and guidance of God.One of the beautiful names of God is As-Salam(The Peace).Islam also means to be at peace with God and His creatures.Being at peace with God implies complete submission to His will,Who is the source of all goodness.Being at peace with His creatures implies living in peace within one's self,with other people and with the enviroment.In this complete submission to God (Allah)we fear none but Him and associate none with Him.Islam promotes the brotherhood of man,toleration of one another,sympathy for the unfortunate and cooperation for general human happiness.And what ever the case maybe good or bad war or peace it's always (Al Hamduillah)All Praise is do to Allah! |
Posted By: salahuddeen2009
Date Posted: 01 September 2009 at 5:01pm
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salam brother
I found each one of the brothers here adding a wonderful point to the complete answer for your question,so i'l avoid repetitions
I have an addition,maybe my grammer will not be that good,bcz iam an arab,but i think my ideas will be clear:
1)when a muslim fights(jehad),this should be with the aim to establish PEACE,not for SELF-BENEFITS &should be with complete RESPECT to the the strict WAR-laws&conditions defined by GOD in the Holy Qur'an & Sunnah
2)all religeons have their own WAR-LAWS,the Bible itself has chapters explaining this topic(whether we agree with it or not)
3)when some muslims BREAK the war-Laws defined by Islamic Scriptures,then its not the fault of islam as a religeon,but it's the fault of those specific Muslims who broke the laws of God(whether due to their ignorance,selfeshness,bad cultural backgrounds...etc)
waiting for your comments
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Posted By: Searcher2009
Date Posted: 10 November 2009 at 6:48am
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Andrea, As a former Catholic, now Methodist, I understand your quandary. I came here to ask questions, receive information from the point of view of a Muslim and make my own decision about what is real and not real in this crazy world. I share your question and would like to add a comment, or rather a question to this discussion. When you asked what Islam stands for, I thought that was a great question. What I do not understand is how different the interpretation of Islam is in different parts of the world. Here in the US, Islam appears to be about following the word, not making a political statement. Elsewhere, it seems to be the tool by which some try to justify their actions, no matter how harsh or different from what an American Muslim thinks. I am having a hard time putting this into words, so let me use an analogy. A catholic in the US or in Italy believes and lives pretty much the same faith. In Islam, the interpretation of Islam varies by country or region. Why is this? In my opinion, the actions of a few reflect on the religion of many. |
Posted By: Hayfa
Date Posted: 11 November 2009 at 10:40am
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Hello Searcher, Have you ever been to another country where Islam is the "main" religion? I ask because many, many things are deeper then the 'news' reports. The vast majority of Muslims believe the same thing. And I was raised Catholic and there are certainly differences in the Church. And there are quite many differences among the sects of Christianity. The basic beliefs of Islam are quite universal. Having traveled and lived outside of the US I believe this is true. Some Muslims ARE more educated then others. Some are illiterate. So depth of knowledge may be limited. Some are not raised within the fold of Islam just like many people born into "Christianity" do not accept all part of the religion. In fact my travels were instrumental in becoming a Muslim. Knowledge and depth of knowledge will vary from family to family. Same as Christianity. And it is known that the Church has tenants than many Americans do not accept or agree with. And the "priests" and ministers in Christianity have to make everything sound nice. Goodness they don't talk about the possibility of hell. Must be nice. If you ever can travel you would learn much. Don't assume that what you read is accurate. I have read reports and language that is very incorrect. Take care Hayfa ------------- When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy. Rumi |
Posted By: Searcher2009
Date Posted: 16 November 2009 at 11:58am
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Hayfa, Thanks for your response, I can certainly relate your explanation to my experience in the United States, we have some groups that believe by handling snakes, one can become closer to God. They also claim to be Christians and have taken one verse from the bible and perverted it in this unusual way. Point taken on my first question! If I may, I would like to ask another, maybe you can help me understand. I have been reading several comparisons of Islam to Christianity. I selected multiple sources to be sure no one point of view dominated my thoughts. To me, the disturbing difference between the two is on the subject of killing another person. As a Christian, I believe to kill someone is wrong, end of discussion, but today i read several passages from the Holy Quran that speak of a different point of view, let me give you one example. "...kill the disbelievers wherever we find them" (Koran 2:191); "fight and slay the Pagans, seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem" (Koran 9:5); "murder them and treat them harshly" (Koran 9:123). If one takes this literally, it gives a believer a license, or approval to kill anyone who does not share their religion. I would think that the passage actually talks about a total non-believer, not someone from another religion, but isn�t this an example of how some rationalize the death of others of different faiths. This is a question, not an accusation. Like the handler of snakes, is this someone twisting the words to justify their actions? |
Posted By: wisdomseeker
Date Posted: 18 November 2009 at 4:58am
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Hello Searcher,
Firstly I would like to congratulate you for your efforts in understanding religions, islam and christianity comparitively. But I would like to add here that to understand a religion better, you need to read it through its own sources, to understand christianity for example, you cannot ask a budhist to explain you about the bible, for Islam too, you need to read from the muslim sources, books written by the muslims and even translations of the quran by a muslim, because though it is just a translation, still those who want to divert searching minds like you from the truth,...they, in their translations, choose such words that apply the least in the context. But you can always, after reading things through islamic sources, go back to non-islamic ones to see and analyze for yourself if they were doing justice to islam and muslims. Coming to your question about killing and the verses you posted, let us do one by one: 1)The verse you quoted, 2:191 is this: 2:191 And slay them wherever you may come upon them, and drive them away from wherever they drove you away - for oppression is even worse than killing. And fight not against them near the Inviolable House of Worship unless they fight against you there first; but if they fight against you, slay them: such shall be the recompense of those who deny the truth. To read only this verse and form a conclusion would be unfair, the verse preceding needs to be brought into the picture as well, it is: 2:190 And Fight in God's cause against those who wage war against you, but do not commit aggression-for, verily, God does not love aggressors. Here Allah is speaking to fight against a people "who wage war against you", this applies only at a time when the war is in progression, or in cases when you are confronted by people who had previously oppressed you, for Allah very clearly states that oppression is worse than killing. 2)The second verse that you quote must again be read along with the two preceding verses, which are: 9:3 And a proclamation from God and His Apostle [is herewith made] unto all mankind on this day of the Greatest Pilgrimage: "God disavows all who ascribe divinity to aught beside Him, and [so does] His Apostle. Hence, if you repent, it shall be for your own good; and if you turn away, then know that you can never elude God!" And unto those who are bent on denying the truth give thou [O Prophet] the tiding of grievous chastisement. 9:4 But excepted shall be -from among those who ascribe divinity to aught beside God - [people] with whom you [O believers] have made a covenant and who thereafter have in no wise failed to fulfil their obligations towards you, and neither have aided anyone against you: observe, then, your covenant with them until the end of the term agreed with them. Verily, God loves those who are conscious of Him. 9:5 And so, when the sacred months are over, slay those who ascribe divinity to aught beside God wherever you may come upon them, and take them captive, and besiege them, and lie in wait for them at every conceivable place ! Yet if they repent, and take to prayer, and render the purifying dues, let them go their way: for, behold, God is much forgiving, a dispenser of grace. You can very well see here that Allah is speaking about a people who have broken their treaty, note the words "But excepted shall be", here it shows that if they stick to the treaty they had made with the muslims, leave them, otherwise if they cheated you, back-stabbed you, then fight them. 3)As for your third verse, I would say, read a reliable muslim's translation of the Quran, just the choice of words effects the meaning and interpretation as well. The said verse is this: 9:123 O you who have attained to faith! Fight against those deniers of the truth who are near you, and let them find you adamant ; and know that .God is with those who are conscious of Him. We need to observe the usage of the words, "near you", this means physically near, those who have come "near",(from a far off land or from the same land) with an intention to harm or kill.It is against them, that is Allah is sanctioning killing, naturally if someone has come with an intention to kill, you would not offer yourself to get killed, you would do something to defend yourself, right? And moreover the words,"let them find you adamant","let them find you firm","let them find firmness in you", are wrongly translated as "treat them harshly". What is meant here is that, in ethical terms, let them find you firm, that is uncompromising ethically. Other verses speaking of allowable situations of war are, 60:8-9, in addition to the above ones. Islam allows one to fight in one's self defence, which I do not think any logical person will object to. Hope you find my answer helpful, but do keep in mind never read a solitary verse, read it in context, and follow a reliable muslim translation for this. May Allah guide us all to the right path, surely Allah guides those whom He wills. |
Posted By: Akhe Abdullah
Date Posted: 19 November 2009 at 10:02am
Salams Wisdomseeker
 My Allah reward you for your efforts.
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Posted By: wisdomseeker
Date Posted: 20 November 2009 at 2:51am
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Assalamu alaikum brother abdullah,
Ameen and jazakallahu khair for your dua, and may allah guide us to the right path and surely allah guides whom He wills. |
Posted By: Yusuf Arief
Date Posted: 02 December 2009 at 8:16pm
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this is a very informative thread for both none Muslim and Muslim alike.
As a convert to Islam, my understanding of what Islam stands for is that it stands for peace and enlightenment and above all acceptance. I find that many people, both inside and outside Islam misunderstand the concept of Jehad, and this word is used all to often to throw Islam into a bad light. To my understanding, the only Jehad that should be taking place today is the personal fight within ones self, by this i mean that we all struggle to find reason and understanding with our respective beliefs, and we fight daily within ourselves to find the right path so that when we die, we find love and admittance to heaven from our God, for us this would be Allah. All to often today, the press have basically hounded Islam and used the word Jehad as a banner to promote bad feeling towards Islam. one thing is for sure, and its a fact that needs stating very clearly, Islam is not about terrorism, and as far as my simple understanding goes, no religion actually promotes such a thing. According to Islam, we are supposed to teach, and show others the beauty of living the Islamic way, we are to lead by example, and this is very much the same for the three religions that follow the one God who we call Allah. The problem we all face today is not from our religious beliefs, but it is from fellow mankind, so many times I hear in the news about religious backed terrorism, but this is actually not the case, according to our beliefs as Muslim's, we are taught that Allah gave instruction to mankind progressively through history, first to the Jewish faith, and then to the Nazrani, who later became Christians, and then finally to the Muslims, we all share the same prophets, there is indeed very little difference between us, and as such we all have a bad side that we wish we did not have, so what i would like to wish for and to pray for is that people do not give weight to this modern day concept of religious backed terrorism, Life is a gift from God, Allah breathed life into us all regardless of what race or religion we are, and as such life of another person is not for a truly religious person to take, regardless of their wrong doings to us, Terrorists are bad people, pure and simple, they are without God or religion and we all need to stop buying into this frenzy created by an industry that thrives on mis-information and the promotion of hatred. Im sorry if my post upsets some people, it is not intended to do so, but the sooner we stop accrediting these bad people to one religion or another, the better. Peace be upon you all, and even better, enlightenment and understanding. |
Posted By: IssaEl999
Date Posted: 19 March 2011 at 12:31pm
Some Muslims will say , It is the Submission to the will of their God , Allah . However , The word Islaam is taken from the 5th name of their God , Allah , As Salaam meaning The Peace , '' Taken from The Ashuric / Syriac Arabic root word '' Salama , Meaning '' To Have , To Be Peaceful ''; Which Euro-Arab and Muslims greeting '' As Salaamu 'Alaykum , '' Meaning '' Peace Be Upon You , Come from , The word Salaam was derived from The Aramic / Hebrew word Shalom , Meaning '' Peace . ''
The word Muslim is derived from The Ashuric / Syriac Arabic word Salama meaning '' One Who Is Of Peace , The Noble's Koran confirms it when it calls Jesus the word of God - Kalim Allah ) ( The Noble's Koran Chapters 3 ; 45 , 4 ; 171 ) and the Spirit or the Soul of God - Al Ruwh Allah ) ( Koran 2 ; 87 , 2 ; 253 , 5 ; 110 , 4 ; 171 , 21 ; 91 ) , It has a whole chapter , the Nineteeth Chapter , dedicated to the Blessed Mother Miriam , Maryam , Mary called Maryam . It speaks about the '' immaculate conception '' and how Yashu'a , Isa , Jesus was blessed in this world and in the one to come ( The Noble's Koran 3 ; 46 ) . When you strip away all of the customs , traditions and tenets of Islam , you will be left standing there with Christianity . But the name Christian must go . So Islam is the true religion of peace of Jesus . This book that Muhammad received from the Angelic Being Gabriel the Holy Spirit Comforter was called Al Qur'aan ( The Noble's Koran ) . The word Qur'aan means to literally '' Read ' and in The Noble's Koran Chapter 96 . the Angelic Being Gabriel asked Muhammad to do just that '' Read ' Yet the Muslims claim that Muhammad could not read . The Noble's Koran Chapter 96 ( with Arabic inserts ) Read < iq-raa > in the name < bis -mee > of your Lord < rab -be - ka > who < al - la d -he > created < kha - la -qa > , '' Read in the name of your Lord who created ... ------------- El's Holy Qur'aan , States In Chapter 17 ; 81 , '' And Say ; Truth Has ( Now ) Arrived , And Falsehood Perished ; For Falsehood Is ( By Its Nature ) Bound To Perish (81 ) . |