The Ask Rashad About Islam Thread.

[Rashad]

How do you preceive God when you talk with Him?

How do you see God and Angels when you talk to Them?

Do you have any visual image which is a symbol of God?

 

Quean 06:103

103. Vision perceives Him not, but He perceives [all] vision; and He is the Subtle, the Acquainted.

There is your answer from the Quran.

[D-Lish]

So how does progression jive with this particular religion?

Can Islam adapt to accept progress?

Edited September 14, 2010 by D-Lish

[pureinheart]

This is quite an epic thread. It really does anger me to see all the hatred toward Islam that is going on in the United States right now. Hatred only makes more hatred. To hear people say stuff like kill them all is just horible. I really think it's so stupid that they want to stop the ground zero mosque. I know they wouldn't stop a ground zero church even if some christian had been the one to cause 911 in the name of Jesus.

 

Of any religion that seeks to control the United States christianity seems to be the biggest threat.

 

Excuse me Green, please do not put Christianity in the same catagory as the Islamic Terrorists of 9 11...it is extremely insensitive, especially to those that went through it.

[pureinheart]

No, it certainly isn't. I have no control over what Abmenijanahad or the ruling imams in Iran do (no separation of religion and culture there!). All I can do is observe and discern and interpret THE REAL WORLD around me, and call it like I see it. And the way I see it, people in Christian-based countries are enjoying freedom, democracy, self-determination, and the wealth that has been generated from those fundamental principles - while Islamic-based countries are stifled, repressed, way behind the times, and poor. Why is that?

 

As another poster (Explorer?) said in an above post, if Islam is such a peaceful religion, then why are all these terrorist organizations spinning-off from it? My question is the same, but from a more economic perspective - if Islam is such an enlightened path, then why do its followers consistently repress and stifle their populations?

 

Oh, and happy 9/11.

 

-OB

never forget

 

OB, thank you for you and Explorer, I couldn't believe the first few pages...anyway am still a bit in shock due to many factors and they are all about 9 11...the insensitivity blows my mind...I better be quiet as I am really p*ssed right now.

[Rashad]

So how does progression jive with this particular religion?

Can Islam adapt to accept progress?

Progress in terms of what? science and technology?? we are not exactly progressing in ALL fields.

It is our faith that the Quran is suitable for every time and place. And I say faith because it cannot be verified, I cannot exists in every time and space and test the Quran's compatibility. Here is a though, when this verse was revealed about 1400 years ago...

Quran 36:38

38. And the sun runs [on course] toward its stopping point. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.

...people did not have the ability to verify that the sun was indeed moving and that it will eventually stop. They had faith. Now science tells us that the Sun is indeed slowing down.

 

The relativity of time.

Quran 32:05

5. He arranges [each] matter from the heaven to the earth; then it will ascend to Him in a Day, the extent of which is a thousand years of those which you count.

Also... 1400 years ago people knew nothing about time relativity, they probably did not even understand this verse. They had faith.

 

The barrier between water bodies.

Quran 55:19-21

19- He has let free the two seas meeting together.

20- Between them there is a barrier which they do not transgress.

21. So which of the favors of your Lord would you deny?

Again 1400 years ago people had no means of verifying this. In fact the prophet Mohammad PBUH had never seen a sea before and now a prominent French Oceanographer J. Cousteau says.

 

We studied the assertions by certain researchers about barriers separating seas, and noticed that the Mediterranean Sea had its own salinity and density and housed autochthonous fauna and flora. Then we examined the water of the Atlantic Ocean and discovered features entirely different from those of the Mediterranean Sea. According to our expectations, these two seas that merged in the strait of Gibraltar should present similar characteristics in terms of salinity, density and other properties. The two seas presented different features even though they were adjacent. This greatly puzzled us. An incredible barrier prevented the two seas from coming together. The same sort of a barrier had also been observed in Bab Al-Mandab in the Gulf of Aden connecting with the Red Sea.

 

Subsequent to our observations, further researchers made it clear that the seas which had different characteristics had some barriers

So yeah, I guess the Quran is eluding age so far.

[Rashad]

OB, thank you for you and Explorer, I couldn't believe the first few pages...anyway am still a bit in shock due to many factors and they are all about 9 11...the insensitivity blows my mind...I better be quiet as I am really p*ssed right now.

Posts Number 77 and 86.

http://www.loveshack.org/forums/showthread.php?t=244865&page=6

 

Post Number 131. "Addressing so called violence in the Quran"

http://www.loveshack.org/forums/showthread.php?t=244865&page=9

 

Edited: You have the right to be p*ssed, but lets keep this thread about questions and answers from the Quran. If you have any Question, I'll do my best to answer it insh'Allah.

[OpenBook]

Edited: You have the right to be p*ssed, but lets keep this thread about questions and answers from the Quran. If you have any Question, I'll do my best to answer it insh'Allah.

 

Oh - my mistake. I thought this was the "Ask Rashad About Islam" thread, not "Ask Rashad About the Quran". I did not realize there was such a distinct difference between the two. Had to go back and read the OP, in which the last sentence makes the distinction:

 

Remember Islam is what the Quran says it is, its not how Muslims behave!

 

Funny, I had always assumed that a primary purpose of religion was to guide us in the right way to conduct our lives, and to serve as an example of God's love to others. Didn't realize that isn't the case with Islam. My bad.

[Rashad]

Oh - my mistake. I thought this was the "Ask Rashad About Islam" thread, not "Ask Rashad About the Quran". I did not realize there was such a distinct difference between the two. Had to go back and read the OP, in which the last sentence makes the distinction:

 

Funny, I had always assumed that a primary purpose of religion was to guide us in the right way to conduct our lives, and to serve as an example of God's love to others. Didn't realize that isn't the case with Islam. My bad.

There is a distinction between MUSLIMS and Quran, Muslims are people... they have emotions, they make mistakes, etc.

Hence Islam is what The Holy Quran says it is not how Muslims are behaving. Islam is a perfect religion and The Holy Quran is a perfect book in my belief but Muslims are not perfect people.

 

During the day of Judgment....

Quran 25:30

30. And the Messenger has said, "O my Lord, indeed my people

have taken this Quran as [a thing] abandoned."

"My people" i.e. Muslims have abandoned the Holy Quran. That's what the Quran itself says.

And since Muslims have abandoned the Quran during this age. I made this thread to establish the distinction between the two.

[Rashad]

BTW, if anybody hates me because of what some terrorists did on 09.11.

Then they have fallen in the same trap as the terrorists. The terrorists saw that "some" Americans were evil in their opinion, they generalized then hated and attacked all Americans.

You saw that "some" Muslims did evil on 09.11. You generalized then hated and attacked (weather verbally of physically) all Muslims.

What have I as a person done??

[Simon Attwood]

BTW, if anybody hates me because of what some terrorists did on 09.11.

Then they have fallen in the same trap as the terrorists. The terrorists saw that "some" Americans were evil in their opinion, they generalized then hated and attacked all Americans.

You saw that "some" Muslims did evil on 09.11. You generalized then hated and attacked (weather verbally of physically) all Muslims.

What have I as a person done??

 

 

Rashad, what you have done is a very compassionate and genuine thing by coming here and wanting to educate people about your religion.

 

Don't let them get to you

 

There is a distinction between MUSLIMS and Quran, Muslims are people... they have emotions, they make mistakes, etc.

Hence Islam is what The Holy Quran says it is not how Muslims are behaving. Islam is a perfect religion and The Holy Quran is a perfect book in my belief but Muslims are not perfect people.

 

more or less how I see it too; it's people that are the problem, not religions. Although a non follow of any particular religion, I see the good in all religion, all religion has at it's core, the spiritual growth of the individual, and there's nothing wrong with that at all.

 

If people choose to misinterpret that core goal, then they do it for reasons that are not at the core of religion, but rather at the core of their own dark shadows, and that isn't a failing in religion, that is a failing in humans.

 

keep your chin up Rashad, you're doing good

[TaraMaiden]

Excuse me Green, please do not put Christianity in the same catagory as the Islamic Terrorists of 9 11...it is extremely insensitive, especially to those that went through it.

 

'Islamic terrorists' being the operative word. not Muslims. Even you make that distinction.

So if you look at the history of Christianity, while much of it has been praiseworthy, certain sectors need exposure as being just as warped, misguided and fanatical as those factions underpinning terrorism.

Christianity has without doubt, its fair share of fanatical fundamentalists.The current Pope being one, so let's not go there....

 

 

Funny, I had always assumed that a primary purpose of religion was to guide us in the right way to conduct our lives, and to serve as an example of God's love to others. Didn't realize that isn't the case with Islam. My bad.

 

Sarcasm may be funny at times, but it's hardly ever clever.

Unfortunately, your persistent doggedness and determination to vilify and criticise Islam/the Qu'ran simply underscore your own ignorance in action.

You really should talk less and listen more.

[OpenBook]

Islam is a perfect religion and The Holy Quran is a perfect book in my belief but Muslims are not perfect people.

 

And I'll be the first to admit, neither are Christians, nor Jews, Hindus or Norwegians for that matter. As a Christian I am all too painfully aware of how a religion can be warped and twisted into something else entirely, something evil.

 

I do respect your regard for Islam and the Quran as holy and perfect. I have no issues with that. It is the application of that religion among its followers that I just don't get.

 

My perfect Book tells me that in matters of discernment, to look for the fruit of the Spirit, and if it's not there then it's not from God. Hence I struggle to understand Muslim claims of peace vs. what they actually do (those who make headlines, anyway) "in the name of Allah."

 

But this thread is about your attempt to interpret the Quran for those who aren't Muslim (and maybe for those who are??), so I understand that you cannot answer my questions about the actual practice of Islam.

 

Peace out.

[Ariadne]

I struggle to understand Muslim claims of peace vs. what they actually do (those who make headlines, anyway) "in the name of Allah."

 

He already explained to you clearly by quoting the book (although Rashad disagrees with the methods).

 

Here starts Bin Laden letter to America:

 

--------------------------

 

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, "Permission to fight (against disbelievers) is given to those (believers) who are fought against, because they have been wronged and surely, Allah is Able to give them (believers) victory" [Quran 22:39]

 

"Those who believe, fight in the Cause of Allah, and those who disbelieve, fight in the cause of Taghut (anything worshipped other than Allah e.g. Satan). So fight you against the friends of Satan; ever feeble is indeed the plot of Satan."[Quran 4:76]

 

Some American writers have published articles under the title 'On what basis are we fighting?' These articles have generated a number of responses, some of which adhered to the truth and were based on Islamic Law, and others which have not. Here we wanted to outline the truth - as an explanation and warning - hoping for Allah's reward, seeking success and support from Him.

While seeking Allah's help, we form our reply based on two questions directed at the Americans:

 

(Q1) Why are we fighting and opposing you?

(Q2) What are we calling you to, and what do we want from you?

 

As for the first question: Why are we fighting and opposing you? The answer is very simple:

(1) Because you attacked us and continue to attack us.

...........

[johan]

Hey, Rashad. What does the Quran say about hip-hop music? Is it an abomination?

[Ariadne]

My perfect Book tells me that in matters of discernment, to look for the fruit of the Spirit, and if it's not there then it's not from God.

 

Job 4:8 "As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it."

 

Galatians 6:7-8 "Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life."

 

[Rashad]

Hey, Rashad. What does the Quran say about hip-hop music? Is it an abomination?

Hahaha... Man, I'm a fan of hip hop...

As far as I know, "music" is neither condemned nor praised in the Quran.

Poets are mention though, and I understand that that RAP is Rhythm And Poetry. Chapter 26 is called "Poets"... its verses have a nice flow to them, with complex multi-syllable rhymes at times, but of course the flow is lost in translation. SOME poets are condemned. Here is the part concerning poets.

 

Quran 26:224-227

224. And the poets – the deviators follow them;

225. Do you not see that in every valley [street] they roam

226. And that they say what they do not do? –

227. Except those [poets] who believe and do righteous deeds and remember Allah often and defend [the Muslims] after they were wronged. And those who have wronged are going to know to what [kind of] return they will be returned.

So poets (rappers) who say what they do not do are condemned an example would be Rick Ross imo, and many rappers lie.

 

Imam Ali the cousin of the prophet PBUH and person in my signature was a poet.

[pureinheart]

'Islamic terrorists' being the operative word. not Muslims. Even you make that distinction.

So if you look at the history of Christianity, while much of it has been praiseworthy, certain sectors need exposure as being just as warped, misguided and fanatical as those factions underpinning terrorism.

Christianity has without doubt, its fair share of fanatical fundamentalists.The current Pope being one, so let's not go there....

 

I love how quotes and replies get twisted in this forum, I guess the operative word s/b confusion.

 

 

 

 

Sarcasm may be funny at times, but it's hardly ever clever.

Unfortunately, your persistent doggedness and determination to vilify and criticise Islam/the Qu'ran simply underscore your own ignorance in action.

You really should talk less and listen more.

 

OB statement in reply once again was consistant, the above bold applies.

[Rashad]

I'd kindly like to request readers to follow the theme of the Thread, ask question and I'll attempt to answer them from the Quran. A few comments are welcome but lets not get out of topic.

[pureinheart]

Posts Number 77 and 86.

http://www.loveshack.org/forums/showthread.php?t=244865&page=6

 

Post Number 131. "Addressing so called violence in the Quran"

http://www.loveshack.org/forums/showthread.php?t=244865&page=9

 

Edited: You have the right to be p*ssed, but lets keep this thread about questions and answers from the Quran. If you have any Question, I'll do my best to answer it insh'Allah.

 

Quite frankly, everything I needed to know about Islam I learned on 9 11, and that is what I thought this thread was about, I did not know it was a Quran study.

 

BTW, if anybody hates me because of what some terrorists did on 09.11.

Then they have fallen in the same trap as the terrorists. The terrorists saw that "some" Americans were evil in their opinion, they generalized then hated and attacked all Americans.

You saw that "some" Muslims did evil on 09.11. You generalized then hated and attacked (weather verbally of physically) all Muslims.

What have I as a person done??

 

No where did I see it stated that there was hate towards you or anything except Christianity. That is what I addressed. I like how "you" is used...this is too weird, even for me, have fun.

[Rashad]

Quite frankly, everything I needed to know about Islam I learned on 9 11, and that is what I thought this thread was about, I did not know it was a Quran study.

 

 

 

No where did I see it stated that there was hate towards you or anything except Christianity. That is what I addressed. I like how "you" is used...this is too weird, even for me, have fun.

Lol, my bad yo... my post started with "BTW, if anybody" so that "you" refers to anybody who hates me or Muslims in general because of 9.11.

This thread here is to encourage dialogue I don't want you to feel unwelcome just because you have a negative opinion on Islam.

If you ever need to know more than what you learned on 9.11 then you can always ask.

[ukk]

Rashad, what you have done is a very compassionate and genuine thing by coming here and wanting to educate people about your religion.

 

Don't let them get to you

 

i agree completely. i think it takes a lot of guts and kindness to do this.

[Taramere]

I'd kindly like to request readers to follow the theme of the Thread, ask question and I'll attempt to answer them from the Quran. A few comments are welcome but lets not get out of topic.

 

Have you ever been in the situation where you've been shouted down, in your beliefs, by an extremist who equates being a moderate Muslim with being a "bad Muslim"? What guidance and support does the Quran offer to moderates who find themselves in that situation?

[Rashad]

The problem is that you can only give your interpretation of the Quran. For example, the verses about poets could easily be interpreted by a fundamentalist as a condemnation of all poets who do not specifically praise Allah. Also, you pick what you feel are the appropriate verses. I find the same thing happens when I ask a lay Christian to explain the New Testament. They often offer interpretations that may stray very far from the prevailing opinion of their religious tradition. Not that it's a bad thing, since the words of religious texts are general enough to encompass a wide variety of viewpoints. It's when people begin to believe that they, and they alone, know what this or that verse means in all contexts that the trouble starts.

There is actually a verse in the Quran addressing it's interpretation. And it pretty much sums up what you just said. lol, you gone like this.

 

Quran 03:07

7. It is He who has sent down to you, [O Muhammad], the Book; in it are verses [that are] precise – they are the foundation of the Book – and others unspecific. As for those in whose hearts is deviation [from truth], they will follow that of it which is unspecific, seeking discord and seeking an interpretation [suitable to them]. And no one knows its [true] interpretation except Allah. But those firm in knowledge say, "We believe in it. All [of it] is from our Lord." And no one will be reminded except those of understanding,

[Rashad]

Have you ever been in the situation where you've been shouted down, in your beliefs, by an extremist who equates being a moderate Muslim with being a "bad Muslim"? What guidance and support does the Quran offer to moderates who find themselves in that situation?

I have actually, many times, it doesn't even bother me anymore. I mean sure I try my best to establish dialogue but that doesn't work with everybody.

Quran 07:199

199. Take what is given freely, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the ignorant.

Quran 25:63

63. And the servants of the Most Merciful are those who walk upon the earth humbly, and when the ignorant address them [harshly], they say [words of] peace.

Quran 28:55

55. And when they hear ill speech, they turn away from it and say, "For us are our deeds, and for you are your deeds. Peace will be upon you; we seek not the ignorant."

[flying]

This thread here is to encourage dialogue I don't want you to feel unwelcome just because you have a negative opinion on Islam.

If you ever need to know more than what you learned on 9.11 then you can always ask.

 

This is a very nice demonstration of turning the other cheek, to borrow from another Book. Well done. I truly appreciate your calm level-headedness, Rashad.