A few weeks back, i got a mail from a muslim brother struggling with his faith. He had read a few things from an anti-islamic site and was unsure about what to believe. Alhamdulilah, the issue was easily dealt with but there are many young muslims that have no one to ask. Doubt begins to eat them up and they may eventually even leave the faith. This discussion is for these people.

Every night after isha, i try to spend an hour studying the Quran. It is a habit, i hope to develop and keep for myself and my future family. Most muslims today have no clue what the Quran is, if they taste this book, nothing can make them leave this faith not even if boulders were placed on their chest or they were going to be thrown into a fire.

I was studying some ayat from surah Imran and i remembered the email i received. You will see why..

Starting from Ayah 99, Allah says (roughly Translated):

Say, ‘People of the Book, why do you turn the believers away from God’s path and try to make it crooked, when you yourselves [should be] witnesses to the[truth]? God is not heedless of anything you do.’ (Surah 3:99)

The bolded is a very common feature today.

Instead of people to focus on the merits of their faiths, they spend so much time and efforts trying to find faults in Islam. They have websites and blogs and youtube channels dedicated to nothing but to how 'evil' Islam is.

They spend very little time on the merits of their own faith that is supposed to be the alternative.

Allah tells us at the end of the ayah that He is not unaware at all of what they are up to.. This is important because sometimes muslims get all worked up about the number of anti-Islam sites, videos and blogs... Even on Nairaland, many are dedicated to posting the act of any random muslim anywhere in the world. Anything to make Islam look 'crooked' and bad.

Any Islamic topic that makes front page is subject to these attacks.

Allah is aware of every single post, file and video. He knows every single one of them, He has the full view. They shall face their reckoning.

In the next ayah, Allah addresses believers (roughly translated):

You who believe, some of those who were given the Scripture would turn you into disbelievers if you were to yield to them (by paying attention and obeying). (surah 3:100)

How can you disbelieve when God’s miraculous signs are being recited to you and His Messenger is living among you? Whoever would hold on to God for dear life, will be guided to the straight path. (Surah 3:101)

Allah asks the question : How can you disbelieve? What justification do you have to disbelieve when Allah ayat are recited unto you ?

Why would you pay attention to the people of the book?? What void is in this Quran that has not been filled for you that you have to pay attention to them?

The ayat of Allah been read unto you are not enough?? That should be enough for you not to be affected by any anti-Islam post, website or blog.

The second reason Allah adds: and His Messenger is living among you?

The Quran is been read unto you and the messenger is among you... How can you disbelieve??

The ayat of Allah are been recited unto us but the messenger is not with us, physically. He may not be with us physically but his words, his seerah, his instructions are still with us.

Allah preserved the authentic teachings of the prophet up till this day. The words of the prophet are supposed to have as much impact on us as they had on the people before... There is a reason why Allah ensured that those words were preserved.

This is happening all around us, young muslims who never really got an education in Islam from their family out of no fault of theirs, start listening to stuff from christian groups or start visiting websites. They start listening to stuff that mess them up. They could even leave Islam.

Allah says: How can this happen if the ayat of Allah were read unto them?

What is the case with these kids leaving Islam left and right?
1. They were never in a position where the ayat of Allah were read unto them.

2.They were never in a position where they given direct access to the beautiful teachings of this deen.

3. They were never in a position to understand the beauty of the ayat of Allah.

4. They were never truly introduced to who the messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is.

What is Allah teaching us here??

Allah is teaching us that a person who is genuinely, genuinely introduced to Islam and come to it with sincere intent then there is no justifiable intellectual reason for them to leave.. You can put them in prison, Burn them alive, put blocks on their chest etc, whatever. They are not going to leave.

Once they get a taste for what this Iman is.

There is a difference with someone who never tasted Iman to begin with, They entered with flaw and left the same way.

For one who really tastes it, it is very difficult for them to walk away.

Allah ends the ayah so beautifully: Whoever would hold on to God for dear life, will be guided to the straight path.

Whoever holds on to Allah, will be guided away from danger... the danger of disbelief.

My advice to young muslims: Learn about your deen, keep away from anti-islam sites if you are not well grounded in knowledge. Trust me, if you have a taste of the Quran and Iman, your confidence will grow in the deen and very little will faze you. Hold on to Allah for dear life.

Teach your kids about Islam in a loving, patient way. Let them truly experience the ayat of Allah and the seerah of the prophet. Remember that ours is a very logical religion, answer their questions logically and encourage them to ask. If they truly experience this deen, it would be very difficult to turn back.

Assalam Aleikum.

I was muslim by birth but when I grew up I asked myself ,why should I be a Christian and not a muslim.
Then I questioned myself why are the muslims facing the east when worshioping and the Christians can face any direction? If the spirit of God is everywhere is should be able to face any direction.I was also told that the muslims are worshipping the sun ,that is why they are facing the east.But some say it us the Kaaba.

And also descover some other things about Muhammed that I did not like.

Lets discuss on this matter more in detail because the truth is that one of the religions is a fake.

You are correct, Enilove.. One isn't the complete

I am saddened when i hear stories like yours... Yours is a prime example of why kids need to be taught the Quran. I read through your previous posts on 'Quranic contradictions' and it is just laughable to be honest.

Muslims do not worship the sun or the moon,

Do not bow down (prostrate) to the sun nor to the moon, but only bow down ( prostrate) to "Allah" Who created them, if you (really) worship Him." [Quran 41:37]

The Kaaba itself is a mosque so we can pray inside, as well. Worship is for God alone.

Facing the Kaaba is done only for the obligatory prayer. You can read in the bible that David bowed down towards the house of God

Psalm chapter 138

1. I will praise you, LORD, with all my heart; before the “gods” I will sing your praise.
2 I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your unfailing love and your faithfulness, for you have so exalted your solemn decree that it surpasses your fame.

Send me an email at tbaba1234@yahoo.com.

Let us discuss your concerns in detail.

If you are honest and want the truth, you will find it.

tbaba1234:

Starting from Ayah 99, Allah says (roughly Translated):

Say, ‘People of the Book, why do you turn the believers away from God’s path and try to make it crooked, when you yourselves [should be] witnesses to the[truth]? God is not heedless of anything you do.’ (Surah 3:99)

The bolded is a very common feature today.

Instead of people to focus on the merits of their faiths, they spend so much time and efforts trying to find faults in Islam. They have websites and blogs and youtube channels dedicated to nothing but to how 'evil' Islam is.

They spend very little time on the merits of their own faith that is supposed to be the alternative.

Allah tells us at the end of the ayah that He is not unaware at all of what they are up to.. This is important because sometimes muslims get all worked up about the number of anti-Islam sites, videos and blogs... Even on Nairaland, many are dedicated to posting the act of any random muslim anywhere in the world. Anything to make Islam look 'crooked' and bad.

Any Islamic topic that makes front page is subject to these attacks.

Allah is aware of every single post, file and video. He knows every single one of them, He has the full view. They shall face their reckoning.

The "bashing" that Islam gets from non-muslims is due to the "seed of discord" sowed thousands of years ago. There has been this obsession by early Islam on Christianity (and Judaism) even though at the time there were other religions existing (eg Buddhism and Zoroastrianism).

Islam has castigated Christianity ( eg "May Allah curse the Jews and Christians for they built the places of worship at the graves of the prophets." Bukhari, Vol. 1, #427 ) and has ridiculed the foundation of its beliefs, twisted the facts about its prophets. These are very often quoted by Muslims. This is why many view Islam with suspicion and will go to great lengths (sometimes ridiculous) to express their feelings of what Islam represents.

Also, there are several other factors that make non-Muslims view Islam with suspicion (and non-Muslims are not just Christians but Bhuddists, Jews, Hindus, atheists, free thinkers, etc):

(i)
The demand by Muslims for rights that they themselves will not give others. This is highlighted when Muslims immigrants are welcomed in predominantly Christian countries and given rights that they deny others in their own countries based on religiously repressive laws. People want to know why apostates are threatened, for example

(ii)
The appropriation of biblical prophets and figures and wrong assertions about them. This places Christian beliefs in direct conflict with Islamic thought. Given that many Islamic assertions about the "prophets" are incorrect (and proved to be incorrect by non- religious sources eg archeology), its no surprise that many are dismissive of what you hold sacred and true.


(iii)
Validation of Prophet Muhammed, other Prophets and practices using the Bible. Many Muslims will seek to turn to the Bible for validation of their revered figures or practices and in the process twist and turn passages to suit their line of reasoning. People want to know the basis. This breeds contempt. Christianity doesn't do that. Christianity is not validated by any other religious text let alone Islamic text.

(iv)
The penchant for violence in the name of God or defending God. Terro.rism in God's name has been a HUGE factor in the interest generated on Islam and its text. Many want to know how and why a cartoon in Denmark can cause the death of innocent hundreds elsewhere, Why a burnt Koran will lead to loss of lives of people who know nothing about it, or the mispronunciation of a piece of cloth .... well you know the rest. Its not one off but happens too often for comfort. People (most non-Muslims) want to know why. It leads to the examination of Koranic texts which, when juxtaposed with the quotations from terrorists,leads to an inevitable conclusion.

(v)
Many Muslims fail to understand that not all their critics are Christians and will seek to answers questions with the lame excuse "Christians did it too" or "Its also in the Bible". The inability to answer for their failings make people ridicule Islam more.

(vi)
There are many fantastic Muslims (I will bear witness to that), and I believe the silence of the majority in the face of the actions of the minority does little to silence unfair critics. The change must come from within Muslims. Quoting verses like Surah 3:99 does not address issues that are as plain as daylight.


There are so many more.

kurzman.unc.edu/islamic-statements-against-terrorism/

Muslims have spoken,yet they vow not to listen!