Hmmm, so the story is over, well it was quite sad the way it ended, especially about your mum, but i became more sad, cos as i read through your last narration, i saw someone who had to struggle all alone, in a foreign land, in an environment not quite suitable to develope an ideal Islamic spirituality.

From my small pikin mind, i think the struggle had been there all along, you just needed a good reason to decide what you wanted, you wanted answers to so many questions, the books you read never answered them the way you wanted. I can almost wager that if you were in naija, things might not have turned out this way...but Allah knows best

I'm glad you still believe in God, peharps there is still hope afterall, if Allah wills.
Would believing in God alone suffice? That's what bothers me.

I think there are more questions begging for answers in deism, qustions such as, what is; the purpose of life, the purpose of God, good and evil, sufferings and pain we experience and why we go through them, the purpose of life and death, success and failure means in this world, truth and falsehood, the law of nature...and so on and so forth.

I wish i could answer all your questions, all the things that wanted to make you go insane, give you a sign, show you a miracle, but i can't, all i can tell you is that, God loves you and didn't create you for no reason, everything created in this world, known to man(and studied adequately) has a reason, has a function it performes, has its role it plays, and it plays it without complaint, without questioning why, without having a second thought, cos that is the way it has been created.

We on the other hand are different creatures, we reason, we contemplate, we ask questions, we have come to know, and we seek to know more(although, some knowledge are simply beyond us), we make choices, and we have come to understand that there are good and bad choices, this however, is as a result of the consequencies that might have resulted from such choices.

Naijababe(aunty le je si mi o), i still feel the muslimah is still in you, i wish you would reminisce those days in naija, practicing the deen, worshiping the almighty with all your heart, seeking his pleasure and nothing else.

I hope you would pick up the Qur'an and read again, the message is meant for you(everyone), the stories, the people of the past, at least history has recorded relics from their civilizations so we know they did exist, the good news, the warnings...the answers to your questions are therein.

I earnestly pray Allah brings you back, He is the one who softens the heart, reshapes the heart and the one who strenghtens the heart on the path of Islam.

.

maclatunji:

@Naijababe. In the beginning of your story, you set a background and look at the bolded about your husband. Your story of leaving Islam does not refer to your husband at all. How com you set his character as a background to a story he did not feature in? At least, we have a little insight into how the other people might have influenced your personality and current beliefs, not so for your husband.

This is just the first question in a group of questions I have for you.

True talk, i had wanted to ask which religion he practise.

maclatunji:

@Naijababe. In the beginning of your story, you set a background and look at the bolded about your husband. Your story of leaving Islam does not refer to your husband at all. How com you set his character as a background to a story he did not feature in? At least, we have a little insight into how the other people might have influenced your personality and current beliefs, not so for your husband.

This is just the first question in a group of questions I have for you.

sino:
True talk, i had wanted to ask which religion he practise.

In other words you want to be certain I did not leave Islam because of him, right?

Well, luckily for both of us (that is naijaman and i) he is xtian by name only and I met him 7 months after I became a christian.

Mac, I was hoping that by stating why he is one of my role models you will get an idea of my psyche and probably be able to do a bit of behavioural analysis on me. I didn't succeed then on that note then .

I am also guessing you will ask what happened to Lexy? I prefer to not go into the details, suffice to say he added to my anguish albeit unknowingly. I chose not say anything about that part because he does not deserve to have his shi.t laid bare on a public forum without his knowledge.

maclatunji:

@Naijababe. In the beginning of your story, you set a background and look at the bolded about your husband. Your story of leaving Islam does not refer to your husband at all. How com you set his character as a background to a story he did not feature in? At least, we have a little insight into how the other people might have influenced your personality and current beliefs, not so for your husband.

This is just the first question in a group of questions I have for you.

Hmmm... I have a hunch that the answer to that is this:

her hubby is a very wonderful person who may not also be into religion that much. So naijababe looks at her husband and sees a quiet reserved gentleman who is of very good character and an excellent husband and father (a bit in the mould of or better than her own father and grandfather) and yet he doesnt 'carry religion on his head' or may not even 'send' religion at all. Then she sees some other 'so-called' devout muslims and xtians with horrible characters and she's like why are people deceiving themselves!......etc etc

The above is just my hypothesis o!

Naijababe, your mum's accident was a trial, and that shouldn't be unexpected as a muslim. Your faith was (still is) being tested, as the faiths of those who were very dear to Allah were tested...to see if they would stand firm! To see if they would reflect on Allah's grace and favours in the past and remain steadfast. To see if you will rely on Allah to make things better. To see if you will truly acknowledge that Allah is the greatest and he does what He wants, to whoever He wants and whenever He wants.

Alhumdulilah that you acknowledge the existence of God. But you also must remember that the reason for the Qur'an and the Prophet Mohammed is to serve as a GUIDANCE to mankind who I believe you must still acknowedge Allah created.

You have kids. You gave birth to them even though quite frankly, you more or less served as just a passage, a route for them to come into the world. I say a passage because you were not the one sustaining them in the womb, infact you didnt put them there. Allah simply blessed the effort you and Oga made in private and also allowed the passage 9 months later to go through successfully (note that several people all around the world -from time immemorial till the world ends, no matter how well science n tech n healthcare develops- have not been and will not be that lucky).

Why did i enter reproduction matter? it is simply to point out that despite the fact that you didnt in the real sense (or any sense for that matter) create your kids, you are raising them (again Allah is the one who watches over us all), you still expect some certain standards from them. You expect them to do certain things and stay away from certain things, right or wrong. If you had the time, you would have written your own Book of Guidance for them on how to live their lives which you'll strongly advise/expect (or almost force.lol) them to follow and if they ask why, you'll probably mention 2 things among others:

a) That you carried them in your womb for 9 months, took care of them, catered for their needs, changed their dirty nappies, protected them e.t.c.

and

b) That they should follow the commandments in the book because it is best for them even when the commandments/advice may seem weird or difficult.

And that's just you, a human being.

Allah has done, and is still doing soooooo much more for us, soooo much more. We cannot just keep living our lives (which we owe to Him) the way we like. There must be order for sanity to prevail. We must follow a code...especially when that code is to our benefit. the cod is the Qur'an. His prescribed and accepted way of life for us is ISLAM, the 5 pillars of which i'm sure you are familiar with. Each day we wake up, leave our homes, return and go to bed is indeed a serious gift. here on nairaland, everyday we read stories, good and bad, that should make us appreciate Allah more. Bad things also happen to good people just as good things happen to bad people. The being who arranges all of that asked us to always pray to Him for bad things npt to happen to us. He also said we should have faith in Him and he also said he will test this faith.

He has also said that among those who disobey Him (many of them in fact), He will bless them abundantly on earth, give them all the things they want without asking, generally make them live the good life MAYBE they will reflect upon all that and turn toewards him in repentance and obey His commandments. But he also promised them that if they fail to do these simple things (summarised in d 5 pillars), that a terrible and grevious punishment awaits them. But that those who obey His commandments will have everlasting enjoyment in the hereafter. I hope you don't doubt the hereafter. its not possible that we'll just come to this ready made life and leave just like that without reporting back to the Creator afterwards na.

Naijababe, you are still undergoing a trial and Allah is hoping you'll appreciate His favours over you and pass. Please come back to the fold of Islam. Its NOT ENOUGH to just believe in God's existence & power and be a good person. Allah deserves more. He demands more. We cannot obey 100percent and its absolutely pointless to try to be perfect(in my opinion) but we should keep striving to do more.However, some BASIC FUNDAMENTAL things must be in place and those are enshrined in d 5 pillars of islam. IMAN, SALAT, ZAKAT, SAUM and HAJJ.

A lot of muslims today do not personify islam but Islam remains what it is. Its not so complex. Do YOUR OWN according to what Allah has mentioned in the PERFECT Book, the Qur'an and wht you've read in AUTHENTIC hadeeth. Islam is peace, islam is beautiful, Islam is the way. Come back.


Tbaba, Mac, Jarus, Betatathings, everybody else, abeg make una drop una own lines o make me sef and all of us learn more. Allah guides whom He wills. he had guided Naijababe before and i believe he will do it again whether we say anything or not. May Allah continue to make us steadfast on the path and continuosly guide us towards becoming better muslims.

& to some people I wouldnt like to mention, please let us dwell less on criticism and more on bringing Sister Ganiyah OMOGENAIJA back to Islam.


Another long epistle , apologies (if required) .
Apologies also for the typos...tho proofreading will try to correct all or most.

naijababe:



In other words you want to be certain I did not leave Islam because of him, right?

Well, luckily for both of us (that is naijaman and i) he is xtian by name only and I met him 7 months after I became a christian.

Mac, I was hoping that by stating why he is one of my role models you will get an idea of my psyche and probably be able to do a bit of behavioural analysis on me. I didn't succeed then on that note then .

I am also guessing you will ask what happened to Lexy? I prefer to not go into the details, suffice to say he added to anguish albeit unknowingly. I chose not say anything about that part because he does not deserve to have his shi.t laid bare on a public forum without his knowledge.

Absolutely NOT surprised.lol

tbaba1234: This link talks about ibn ishaq, the position of scholars and the fabricated stories:

http://www.answering-christian-claims.com/The-Problems-With-Ibn-Ishaq.html

Ibn Ishaq work was the tipping point, suffice to say after reading it, I just found more reasons to leave than stay. Before Sept 11, Islam was not in the news much except for the Palestinian conflict. This meant a lot of people (at least here in the UK) were fairly ignorant of Ibn Ishaq's work. After Sept 11 when Islam began to receive a lot of bashing from the media and Joe Bloggs began to think violence was all there was to Islam as Ibn Ishaq work was used as a reference, 'schloars' began to criticise it saying he was a Shia with some going as far as saying he was a Jewish apologist. I don't even think the person that recommended it to me in 1997 would recommend it to anyone today.

I have not read Tabari's work but I have read here and there that there isn't much difference from Tabari's. Does that mean Tabari is also suspect?

Find out!, why do you had to go Freudian on me ?

I have always been able to separate the faith from the adherents. I do not have a problem with muslims, even bad ones. I have a problem with the faith and can't seem to get over it.

naijababe:



In other words you want to be certain I did not leave Islam because of him, right?

Well, luckily for both of us (that is naijaman and i) he is xtian by name only and I met him 7 months after I became a christian.

Mac, I was hoping that by stating why he is one of my role models you will get an idea of my psyche and probably be able to do a bit of behavioural analysis on me. I didn't succeed then on that note then .

I am also guessing you will ask what happened to Lexy? I prefer to not go into the details, suffice to say he added to my anguish albeit unknowingly. I chose not say anything about that part because he does not deserve to have his shi.t laid bare on a public forum without his knowledge.

Nah, you already stated the reason you left Islam, i wanted to understand his role in your present belief, how instrumental was he towards your bold step into deism, is he also a deist? did he help in anyway to make you a deist?

I think i'll agree with Findout though, you stated he is one of your role model, so he has a great deal of influence on you.

This would now make me ask what do you think his opinion/reaction would be if and when you revert to Islam?

I was almost tempted to ask about lexy, eyah, poor Lexy

sino:

Nah, you already stated the reason you left Islam, i wanted to understand his role in your present belief, how instrumental was he towards your bold step into deism, is he also a deist? did he help in anyway to make you a deist?

I think i'll agree with Findout though, you stated he is one of your role model, so he has a great deal of influence on you.

This would now make me ask what do you think his opinion/reaction would be if and when you revert to Islam?

I was almost tempted to ask about lexy, eyah, poor Lexy

. Poor lexy indeed.

I am a self confessed deist, naijaman likes to call himself a logical Christian ( i don't know what that means o). The idea of 'reverting' is yet to cross my mind and is not something we've talked. I honestly don't know what his reaction would be.

naijababe:

Ibn Ishaq work was the tipping point, suffice to say after reading it, I just found more reasons to leave than stay. Before Sept 11, Islam was not in the news much except for the Palestinian conflict. This meant a lot of people (at least here in the UK) were fairly ignorant of Ibn Ishaq's work. After Sept 11 when Islam began to receive a lot of bashing from the media and Joe Bloggs began to think violence was all there was to Islam as Ibn Ishaq work was used as a reference, 'schloars' began to criticise it saying he was a Shia with some going as far as saying he was a Jewish apologist. I don't even think the person that recommended it to me in 1997 would recommend it to anyone today.

I have not read Tabari's work but I have read here and there that there isn't much difference from Tabari's. Does that mean Tabari is also suspect?

^ Ibn Ishaq work serves a purpose, It is one of the earliest works... But the truth is that he just collected all the stories he could get, whether the person was a muslim lover or not, shia or sunni, was not a criteria. We don't even know who told many of these stories. That is what makes it unreliable.

I would recommend Ibn Ishaq to a person who already knows this background and realizes that not everything in there is true or a person who can distinguish. It is not a read for every muslim. Tabari is also a similar product. You have to look at each story individually.

Now, with a mechanism of authentication we can actually say who told this story, who did he hear it from, Did he meet this person he claimed to hear it from, was he known as a reliable person?, Is there a weakness in the chain of narration. The work done in authenticating hadiths was amazing/needed.

Before 9/11, i read moshay's who is this Allah?, I observed that most of the references were ibn Ishaq, I always wondered why?? I wasn't even as knowledgeable as you were when i read it. But it did raise doubts so i was determined to figure it out, what was the truth? Scholars have been criticizing ibn ishaq for a long time, Imam malik went as far as calling him (ibn Ishaq) a liar.

After i learnt enough and rebuilt my faith, moshay's book was set on fire. I never want to feel that way again. Maybe, i should have kept it though, it would make good comic relief today.

Frankly, with that level she reached in Islam, I knew it would be easier to be a deist than a Christian. No offence.

Not too surprised at the end.

My search continues. Never seen anybody that understands Islam to that level(on that route) and ends up being a Christian.

naijababe:

. Poor lexy indeed.

I am a self confessed deist, naijaman likes to call himself a logical Christian ( i don't know what that means o). The idea of 'reverting' is yet to cross my mind and is not something we've talked. I honestly don't know what his reaction would be.

When last did you go church?

Jarus:

When last did you go church?

I mostly go to church as one would go to a social event. The last time was in Dec 2012.

@ tbaba, G.O Moshay's who is this allah is just pure nonsense. I read that in 1991 and even then was able to quickly disregard it kind of the same way I feel about Salman Rushdie's work. If a fatwa was not issued on his head, that book would have been consigned historically to oblivion. The only book that I have read that is as badly written is Hitler's Mein Kampf.

When last did you go church?

naijababe:



In other words you want to be certain I did not leave Islam because of him, right?

Well, luckily for both of us (that is naijaman and i) he is xtian by name only and I met him 7 months after I became a christian.

Mac, I was hoping that by stating why he is one of my role models you will get an idea of my psyche and probably be able to do a bit of behavioural analysis on me. I didn't succeed then on that note then .

I am also guessing you will ask what happened to Lexy? I prefer to not go into the details, suffice to say he added to my anguish albeit unknowingly. I chose not say anything about that part because he does not deserve to have his shi.t laid bare on a public forum without his knowledge.

On the contrary, I am not so interested in Lexy. You see I have this motto: 'don't assume when you can ask'. I asked because you made it seem as if your husband played a key role in your story.

I am so tired right now and still have a task tonight but let me ask another question:

1. What is your perception of God and what do you think he expects from you as his creation?

tbaba1234:

Don't blame me, the reason seemed too weak. Maybe the grief had the better of her though. I do not think, there is much more to the story like you suggested.

Doubts were building as she read the book and the incident with her mother made her snap.

I like this kid!

If you're younger than Naijababe, I can call you kid. Don't worry.

P.S. No offense.

naijababe: Find out!, why do you had to go Freudian on me ?

I have always been able to separate the faith from the adherents. I do not have a problem with muslims, even bad ones. I have a problem with the faith and can't seem to get over it.

Lol. I didn't exactly go freudian per se but lets just say "There's nothing new under the sun"

Now, having just newly been introduced to the word (not the concept tho) of Deism, i decided to actually get a definition. Here's what i found:

de·ism (dzm, d-)
n.
The belief, based solely on reason, in a God who created the universe and then abandoned it, assuming no control over life, exerting no influence on natural phenomena, and giving no supernatural revelation.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/deism

The definition itself is a huge contradiction o!


1) Has God abandoned the universe? Obviously not.

2) Does god have control over life? Obviously yes.

3) Does God exert influence on natural phenomena? Obviously yes.

I used the word 'obviously' because I believe that REASONING + belief in God + real world experiences around and about us should be enuf to answer these questions correctly as i did.

Now to Question 4,

4)Did God give any supernatural revelation? Reason here is also sufficient to say yes. infact i guess the question 9if any) should be that WHAT is(are) the supernatural revelations, not a matter of IF.

It's neither plausible nor realistic that a Being will go to such lenghts as to create{manufacture, invent} the Universe (as the deist accepts), create people to inhabit that universe, monitor and control and protect EACH person, and still not send down a revelation {user manual} for the people he creates and devotes his attention to follow and understand if they are to successfully live in the temporary home he created them on (earth) and more importantly, how they can be successful in the hereafter.

What is that supernatural revelation that encompasses ALL others before it and is the USER MANUAL? Beyond all doubts, it is the Al-Qur'an. *thats another topic entirely sha...which I know you'll be familiar with but may need to refresh your memory on*

Kai, sheikhs have entered lecture mode and her delivering hot sermons O.

I just want to ask Naijababe questions at the moment.

maclatunji:

On the contrary, I am not so interested in Lexy. You see I have this motto: 'don't assume when you can ask'. I asked because you made it seem as if your husband played a key role in your story.

I am so tired right now and still have a task tonight but let me ask another question:

1. What is your perception of God and what do you think he expects from you as his creation?

You asking me questions that require a rather long post as answer knowing how much I hate to type, why na ?

I will get back to you later. Too tired for long posts

Findout! This is a better definition of deism:

Deism is the recognition of a universal creative force greater than that demonstrated by mankind, supported by personal observation of laws and designs in nature and the universe, perpetuated and validated by the innate ability of human reason coupled with the rejection of claims made by individuals and organized religions of having received special divine revelation.

maclatunji: Kai, sheikhs have entered lecture mode and her delivering hot sermons O.

I just want to ask Naijababe questions at the moment.

*scrolls up to view previous comments & realises Mac is reffering to a group of people that may include me!*

Sheikh ke? For where? Don't think it o.lol. You'll observe that my posts are not so heavily laden with Quranic verses and hadeeth quotes and all...coz I can't say i know many offhand/verbatim.

I'm just a very very regular guy still striving o, I'm far from being an excellent muslim in some areas but InshaAllah, some key aspects, I do not and InshaAllah will never treat with levity. I need not look farther than my own family - from my parents' lives before they finally had kids to my mum's battles especially in recent years- to see examples of how Allah can afflict a person with trials, and the rewards of remaining steadfast and refusing to abandon Islam for anything else.

Its those things that fuelled my serious interest in cases like naijababe's and the reason for my epistles in this matter *tho i confess i unconsiously write 'epistles' on any topic i'm interested in sha*

naijababe: Findout! This is a better definition of deism:

Deism is the recognition of a universal creative force greater than that demonstrated by mankind, supported by personal observation of laws and designs in nature and the universe, perpetuated and validated by the innate ability of human reason coupled with the rejection of claims made by individuals and organized religions of having received special divine revelation.

Basically, making God whatever you want him to be... Making assumptions about God..

People, eat what is good and lawful from the earth, and do not follow Satan’s footsteps, for he is your sworn enemy. He always commands you to do what is evil and indecent, and to say things about God that you do not really know (Surah 2:168-169)

naijababe: Findout! This is a better definition of deism:

Deism is the recognition of a universal creative force greater than that demonstrated by mankind, supported by personal observation of laws and designs in nature and the universe, perpetuated and validated by the innate ability of human reason coupled with the rejection of claims made by individuals and organized religions of having received special divine revelation.

Lol. Islam is more than this. the Qur'an is more than this. And well, I think you know it.

"Innate ability of human reason". Lol

“How little you reflect” (A’raf 7:3)

“Do they not contemplate the Qur’an? Had it been from any other than God, they would surely have found in it much inconsistency” (Nisa 4:82)

“And in the alteration of night and day, and in the provision (rain) God sends down from the sky and reviving thereby the earth after its death, and His turning about of the winds there are clear signs for a people who are able to reason” (Jathiya 45:5)

We set out in detail the signs for people who will reason and understand” (Rum 30:28).

Nuff said. The Qur'an is complete. Alhamdulilah

*appreciation to google for helping me hunt out these verses *

I usually say that several muslims and xtians do not live up to/obey the dictates of their religion.lol. I can well extend a similiar theory to Deism. Naijababe, I know its not possible o, but if EVERY Deist EFFECTIVELY adopts the REASONING approach towards this life and God's existence, and they come across the Qur'an, I expect to see them rushing into the fold of Islam.

Come back

tbaba1234:

Basically, making God whatever you want him to be... Making assumptions about God..

People, eat what is good and lawful from the earth, and do not follow Satan’s footsteps, for he is your sworn enemy. He always commands you to do what is evil and indecent, and to say things about God that you do not really know (Surah 2:168-169)

. I don't think people make bad assumptions about God though.

naijababe:


. I don't think people make bad assumptions about God though.

Actually the concept of deism does make bad and terrible assumptions about God as it effectively denies the existence of God's user manual for what he created; and also posits that God has abandoned the universe and people whose affairs he actually tends to daily without sleep nor slumber

naijababe:

. Poor lexy indeed.

I am a self confessed deist, naijaman likes to call himself a logical Christian ( i don't know what that means o). The idea of 'reverting' is yet to cross my mind and is not something we've talked. I honestly don't know what his reaction would be.

Fair enough. It was solely your choice, and it would be solely yours too when you decide to become a muslim again.

At this juncture, i''ll like to be more curious,

What strikes you most about deism? Is there anything special?

You said the faith(Islam) was the problem and you couldn't get over it, so i ask, what succor did you get in deism that you were lacking while a muslim?

naijababe:


. I don't think people make bad assumptions about God though.

Who defines bad? Without God, there is no basis for objective morality.

The Meccans made tawaf round the Kaabah naked to 'get close' to God. Some people make far worse assumptions.

Now, i do not think coming back to Islam would be an easy choice, a lot of things must have happened in your life within the period. But i know the signs of Allah are subtle, that is why a forex thread became a conversion story thread. I do not think this happened coincidentally.

@ sino, going back to my previous posts, you will find that I often always said to my brethren in the faith that neither the fear of hell or allure of heaven kept me in my faith. I am a strong believer in doing something simply because it is the right thing to do, forget the reward and or punishment part. This is what I teach my kids all the time.

I used to always say to people that any one of our acts of ibadah neither adds nor diminishes Allah's immense glory. This was why I enjoyed all acts of Ibadah believing that it benefits me in this life than any promise of the hereafter. And, more often than not the rewards appears not to be all that and the punishment often outweighs the crime.

Find Out!:


Hmmm... I have a hunch that the answer to that is this:

her hubby is a very wonderful person who may not also be into religion that much. So naijababe looks at her husband and sees a quiet reserved gentleman who is of very good character and an excellent husband and father (a bit in the mould of or better than her own father and grandfather) and yet he doesnt 'carry religion on his head' or may not even 'send' religion at all. Then she sees some other 'so-called' devout muslims and xtians with horrible characters and she's like why are people deceiving themselves!......etc etc

The above is just my hypothesis o!

Naijababe, your mum's accident was a trial, and that shouldn't be unexpected as a muslim. Your faith was (still is) being tested, as the faiths of those who were very dear to Allah were tested...to see if they would stand firm! To see if they would reflect on Allah's grace and favours in the past and remain steadfast. To see if you will rely on Allah to make things better. To see if you will truly acknowledge that Allah is the greatest and he does what He wants, to whoever He wants and whenever He wants.

Alhumdulilah that you acknowledge the existence of God. But you also must remember that the reason for the Qur'an and the Prophet Mohammed is to serve as a GUIDANCE to mankind who I believe you must still acknowedge Allah created.

You have kids. You gave birth to them even though quite frankly, you more or less served as just a passage, a route for them to come into the world. I say a passage because you were not the one sustaining them in the womb, infact you didnt put them there. Allah simply blessed the effort you and Oga made in private and also allowed the passage 9 months later to go through successfully (note that several people all around the world -from time immemorial till the world ends, no matter how well science n tech n healthcare develops- have not been and will not be that lucky).

Why did i enter reproduction matter? it is simply to point out that despite the fact that you didnt in the real sense (or any sense for that matter) create your kids, you are raising them (again Allah is the one who watches over us all), you still expect some certain standards from them. You expect them to do certain things and stay away from certain things, right or wrong. If you had the time, you would have written your own Book of Guidance for them on how to live their lives which you'll strongly advise/expect (or almost force.lol) them to follow and if they ask why, you'll probably mention 2 things among others:

a) That you carried them in your womb for 9 months, took care of them, catered for their needs, changed their dirty nappies, protected them e.t.c.

and

b) That they should follow the commandments in the book because it is best for them even when the commandments/advice may seem weird or difficult.

And that's just you, a human being.

Allah has done, and is still doing soooooo much more for us, soooo much more. We cannot just keep living our lives (which we owe to Him) the way we like. There must be order for sanity to prevail. We must follow a code...especially when that code is to our benefit. the cod is the Qur'an. His prescribed and accepted way of life for us is ISLAM, the 5 pillars of which i'm sure you are familiar with. Each day we wake up, leave our homes, return and go to bed is indeed a serious gift. here on nairaland, everyday we read stories, good and bad, that should make us appreciate Allah more. Bad things also happen to good people just as good things happen to bad people. The being who arranges all of that asked us to always pray to Him for bad things npt to happen to us. He also said we should have faith in Him and he also said he will test this faith.

He has also said that among those who disobey Him (many of them in fact), He will bless them abundantly on earth, give them all the things they want without asking, generally make them live the good life MAYBE they will reflect upon all that and turn toewards him in repentance and obey His commandments. But he also promised them that if they fail to do these simple things (summarised in d 5 pillars), that a terrible and grevious punishment awaits them. But that those who obey His commandments will have everlasting enjoyment in the hereafter. I hope you don't doubt the hereafter. its not possible that we'll just come to this ready made life and leave just like that without reporting back to the Creator afterwards na.

Naijababe, you are still undergoing a trial and Allah is hoping you'll appreciate His favours over you and pass. Please come back to the fold of Islam. Its NOT ENOUGH to just believe in God's existence & power and be a good person. Allah deserves more. He demands more. We cannot obey 100percent and its absolutely pointless to try to be perfect(in my opinion) but we should keep striving to do more.However, some BASIC FUNDAMENTAL things must be in place and those are enshrined in d 5 pillars of islam. IMAN, SALAT, ZAKAT, SAUM and HAJJ.

A lot of muslims today do not personify islam but Islam remains what it is. Its not so complex. Do YOUR OWN according to what Allah has mentioned in the PERFECT Book, the Qur'an and wht you've read in AUTHENTIC hadeeth. Islam is peace, islam is beautiful, Islam is the way. Come back.


Tbaba, Mac, Jarus, Betatathings, everybody else, abeg make una drop una own lines o make me sef and all of us learn more. Allah guides whom He wills. he had guided Naijababe before and i believe he will do it again whether we say anything or not. May Allah continue to make us steadfast on the path and continuosly guide us towards becoming better muslims.

& to some people I wouldnt like to mention, please let us dwell less on criticism and more on bringing Sister Ganiyah OMOGENAIJA back to Islam.


Another long epistle , apologies (if required) .
Apologies also for the typos...tho proofreading will try to correct all or most.

This is a great post. Do not apologise for the length of your thoughts. You have passion and you want to communicate it.

tbaba1234:

Who defines bad? Without God, there is no basis for objective morality.

The Meccans made tawaf round the Kaabah naked to 'get close' to God. Some people make far worse assumptions.

Now, i do not think coming back to Islam would be an easy choice, a lot of things must have happened in your life within the period. But i know the signs of Allah are subtle, that is why a forex thread became a conversion story thread. I do not think this happened coincidentally.

au contraire on the bolded, morality based on God or religion is quite subjective.

naijababe:

au contraire on the bolded, morality based on God or religion is quite subjective.

I beg to differ, They are clear rights and wrong and there are things that are not so clear. The only other alternate is social pressure or evolution... None of which is objective.

If society has a consensus that killing 6 million jews is objective, then that is what happens. If the black man is a monkey is socially acceptable that it is correct. In the 60s, homosexuality was treated as a mental sickness in the US now you can't even win an election in some places without backing it.


No other radar of morality is objective.