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Imamology

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A Condemnation of Terrorism

Qa'im

Entry posted by Qa'im

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In these trying times, it has become ever more important to teach the world about the Islam of Muhammad (s) and the Ahl al-Bayt.

The name of Islam has been hijacked by merciless thugs who have killed, maimed, tortured, enslaved, exiled, and silenced others for their views. These thugs are ignorant of the universal principles that undergird the teachings of Islam, and have oppressed many Muslims and non-Muslims alike from all walks of life.

Islam is the middle way, not the way of extremes. It is about taming one's self, not terrorizing others. Islam is order, and not chaos. It is with the oppressed, and not with the tyrants. It teaches its adherents to be humble, not arrogant. It advances the intellect and it opposes ignorance.

Islam has taught us to greet everyone with peace, to feed our hungry neighbours, to give a portion of our wealth in charity, to forgive those who harm us, to make excuses for those who trespass us, to seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave, to respect and honour all people, to avoid filling our stomachs with unnecessary foods, to abstain from substances that impair our judgment, to cease gossiping and backbiting, to refrain from judging others, to spend our nights praying to the Creator, and to protect our Earth and its precious resources from misuse and abuse.

Since the inception of Islam, forces have been trying to destroy the religion's core principles from within and from without. Soon after the Prophet Muhammad (s), our civilization was hijacked by corrupt dynasties that committed unspeakable injustices. The family of Muhammad (s) rose against these horrors in the name of his legacy, but they were brutally killed and persecuted. However, ideas are bulletproof. The Ahl al-Bayt risked their lives, and often fought and died, to protect their ethical ideals from the contamination of wild beasts. Today, it is a miracle that we can talk openly about Imam Ali and Imam Husayn, who shook the thrones of the pre-modern ISIS, al-Qaeda, al-Shabab, and Boko Haram.

The ISIS of today is nothing new. It is a crystallization of this fringe group of oppressors, who threaten the lives of all people and bask in their massacres. It is the rotten fruit of an ideology that only values the conquering of others.

We are all in this together. We must not ignore the negative effects of colonialism and neo-imperialism in the Muslim world, which have, in part, created this monster. However, we must also condemn this evil caricature of Islam, which ignores Quranic context, defiles the image of our Prophet, and neglects the role of his Ahl al-Bayt in the interpretation of this religion.

Our enemy is our own ignorance. The cure is humility and knowledge.

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Umar Khattab

Umar Khattab 0

Posted

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That is the most foolish piece of article I have read.Shias are the most corrupt people in Earth

  • Advanced Member
Noor al Batul

Noor al Batul 1,045

Posted

  • Advanced Member

^wow, you have completely convinced me that this article is "foolish"! The counter-arguments you brought forth, how you dissected the article and proved your point - marvellous. I am speechless, really *sarcasm for those who don't realize it*

@Qa'im Sorry, I know you can handle such things but when I read so much... the term I'd use isn't nice, it's hard to keep silent. Someone puts real effort in writing an article, the least what an opponent can do is stay polite while criticising and do it with rationality. Why do people (Muslims) lack politeness and respect for others, especially other Muslims? Honestly.

As for your article: It is true, we need to teach the world the Islam of Muhammad (s) and his family (a) - it is not only important to show non-Muslims what the true teachings of Islam are but also Muslims, sadly enough. As regards to the first group, if you'd tell an ignorant non-Muslim that Islam is not about violence, they'd think you are crazy. I had a discussion with one, once, (atheist, I believe) who had read the Quran and tried to show me through verses how violent the Holy Book is - all that had to be done was explain the context, and show other verses, as well, which emphasize on humanity. And the reply was, "Well, yes, you could do that to every verse, so?" Something along these lines. Which made me wonder, do non-Muslims even know what a tafseer is? Hadiths?

And Muslims, well. Instead of trying to understand their religion better, many seem to just turn away from it. Which makes me wonder whether they really believe ISIS, Boko Haram and whatnot represent Islam or whether they just need an excuse. Islamic education amongst many Muslims lacks, a lot, in general.

Either way, it is our responsibility to show the world what Islam really is. All of us. Those who want to listen will listen, and those who don't want to will have to take responsibility for that. What is importan to us, Shi'a, is that we do not let the teachings of the Ahlul Bayt (a) die- as you pointed out, the sufferings our revered personalities endured was to preserve the teachings, the message. If we say, "Imam Hussain saved Islam," isn't it our duty, as his (a) followers, to continue what he (a) did by protecting what he (a) saved? In a way, is this not also what we owe the Imam of our time, may Allah hasten his re-appearance, at the very least? Responsibilities need to be realized by each and every one of us.

Nice article :) And my reply got too long... sorry for that.

Ma'asalama.

أبو فاطمة المحمدي

أبو فاطمة المحمدي 763

Posted (edited)

8 hours ago, Umar Khattab said:

That is the most foolish piece of article I have read.Shias are the most corrupt people in Earth

I am not surprised by your comment, considering your username. The character of one's role model often appears in one's manners.

Edited by أبو فاطمة المحمدي
StrugglingForTheLight

StrugglingForTheLight 1,637

Posted

The issue is not us can claim to be representatives of Islam. If you show goodness, non-Muslims will assume you might be cherry picking for all you know while ISIS is interpreting Islam more literally and sincere to the texts. There is no way to prove it by simply claiming Islam actually teaches this and not their way.  

The true way of submitting to God, every religion has their own followers with various views on that.

Islam is a mess as a result but the true religion remains that of Islam still. 

People will never see your good as a result of Islamic teachings, so to follow Islam a a result. They will see it these days, that in spite of Islamic teachings, you are being more human towards  other due to humanistic values and nothing to do with Islam.

And more often then not, they are right because those characteristics are universal practically in all societies among many good people.

Does Islam really condemn terrorism? I believe so. But of course I can't tell a non-Muslim that this the only right way to interpret the religion, because to them, the issue of right or wrong way is irrelevant because Islam to them has not been proven to be true. They maybe believe you ought to interpret that way if it was true, but how can those interpreting it the other way be said not to be part of the religious teachings.

That said, your post is an important perspective for non-Muslims to consider. Had people actually followed the family of Mohammad....would this mess of ISIS and what not, exist today?

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