Lessons From History- Dr. Israr Ahemad, Part 8/10

Allies of One Another

The early Christians were generally considered as nothing more than a Jewish sect, but with the passage of time the alien concepts implanted by St. Paul Trinity, Atonement, Abolition of the Mosaic Law made them a different people altogether. The initial three centuries of the Common Era were characterized by severe persecution being inflicted upon the Christians, a considerable segment of which still consisted of Unitarians, at the hands of both the Jews and the Romans. However, the whole situation changed dramatically when the Roman Empire embraced Christianity, as a result of which the Jews became the target of official harassment and oppression.

As the Christians saw it, Jews were guilty of “deicide,” the murder of their God, and therefore they excluded the latter from the mainstream of socio-economic life. This trend continued unabated in the Middle Ages, often manifiesting as wholesale killings of the Jews. In 1096, for example, the Crusaders on their way through France and Germany massacred thousands of Jews. Widespread killings took place in 1146 by the armies of the second Crusade. More than a thousand Jews were hanged in England, in 1234, for allegedly circumcising a Christian boy. In 1290, Jews were banished from England by King Edward. In 1350, they were held responsible for the spread of plague, and hundreds of thousands were murdered in Europe. They were forced to live together under subhuman conditions called “Ghettos.” Religious courts, or “Inquisition,” ordered the burning of thousands of Jews during the 15th century, and these events were witnessed and celebrated as popular holidays.

Ironically enough, during more than a thousand years of humiliation and persecution, the only respite of peace and prosperity enjoyed by the Jews was in the Muslim territories. Jewish historians like Abba Eban and Solomon Grayzel have acknowledged and recognized their “Golden Age of Diaspora” the period of Jewish affluence and growth in Muslim Spain. When the Arab rule came to end in 1492, and the Jews were immediately expelled from Spain by the Christian rulers Ferdinand and Isabella, they were given refuge and asylum in the Ottoman Empire. Large population of Jews continued to prosper peacefully in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Egypt, during the time when their brethren were suffering miserably in Europe, particularly in the Russian lands.

According to the Holy Qur’an, the hatred and enmity between the Jews and the Christians will last till the end of the world (Al-Ma’ida 5:14 & 64). However, we can clearly see that their mutual rancor underwent a very slow and gradual decline during the last few hundred years. The Qur’an seems to be saying, therefore, that the present coalition between the Jews and the Christians is only superficial and cosmetic as well as transient, and also that the end of the world is not very far.

We know that the Jews had always viewed themselves as a special breed of people, superior to the rest of the humanity as the “Chosen People of the Lord,” who are born to rule the Gentiles. As a result, they couldn't come to terms with their shockingly unexpected humiliation, and thus the episodes of Divine retribution instead of softening their hearts and producing in them a desire to repent and the willingness to atone for their collective crimes has produced in them a revengeful and malicious envy and a sort of diabolical bitterness.

It would of course be unfair to make sweeping generalizations because individual persons vary greatly, but as far as the collective psyche of the Jewish nation is concerned, it is undeniable that they have developed a deeply ingrained tendency to conspire and to maneuver things surreptitiously for their own gain, without ever appearing on the stage. It may be pointed out that this character of the Jews was already prominent during the days of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), and that it is this very inclination towards behind-the-scene subversive activities that has produced the present state of alliance and so-called friendship between them and the Christians.

The persecuted Jews were well aware that the only way to turn the table on their arch enemy, the Christians, was by way of minimizing the influence of religion over them and by debilitating the authority of the Church. Thus, they ingeniously used the spirit of rationalism that was already spreading form Muslim Spain into Christian Europe to make a breach in the bastion of Christian faith. As a matter of fact, the highly irrational and almost ridiculously illogical dogmas being enforced by the Church in the name of religion were never in a position to stand against the tide of Reason. The Renaissance in Europe was characterized by an intense interest in the physical world and in the knowledge derived from concrete sensory experience, and a decline in metaphysical beliefs and interest in the life after death, both of which were prominent themes during the Middle Ages. This rise of Reason, therefore, turned out to be the beginning of the end for Christianity and the onset of the domination of materialism and pragmatic morality. The European Jews by playing a key role in polluting the essence of rationalism with the evils of licentiousness and promiscuity, as well as with that of intellectual vagrancy which is euphemistically called “liberalism” were able to increase their influence in the Christian society. The rise of sexual permissiveness and the resulting breakdown of traditional family values in the West represents only one aspect of the defeat of Christian morality against the financial interests and the growing influence of the Jews.

At the same time, the rise of Protestantism and the movement for “Reformation” opened the gates of unlimited individual freedom and destroyed the unity of Christendom. Although usurious money-lending activity of the Jews had existed on a small scale throughout the middle Ages, the weakening of the Church, along with the liberal views of John Calvin (1509-1594) in Economics, ultimately led to an enormous rise in the previously prohibited practice of usury. The acceptance by the Christians that such transactions are unavoidable for economic growth and material prosperity made them willing hostages of the money-lending institutions banks, insurance companies, stock exchanges and the like all of which were, and still are, strongholds of the Jewish people. Today these financial institutions are the uncontested rulers of the Western World, particularly of Great Britain and the United States. The introduction of paper money instead of gold and silver has also greatly bolstered this wicked web of control and exploitation. This is how the Jews were able to take control of the affairs of the world without really exposing or endangering themselves.

This unnatural and artificial alliance between the Jews and the Christians the basis of the so- called New World Order is actually nothing more than the relationship between a parasite and its host, or between a master and his slave. One of the recent manifestations of this bizzare friendship is the decree issued by the Pope, exonerating the Jews from the two-thousand years old charge of crucifying Jesus Christ. The Holy Qur’an had prophetically warned us of the dangers of this coalition thus:

O Believers, do not hold Jews and Christians as your allies. They are allies of one another; and anyone who makes them his friends is surely one of them; and God does not guide the unjust. (Al-Ma’ida 5:51)

Before the Doomsday

It is an essential part of our faith as Muslims that we take the universe in which we live as created and contingent and not eternal. Unlike the early Greeks, who thought that the universe had always existed, the Holy Qur’an teaches us that ours is a very large but finite universe in terms of both space and time, and as such it has a definite beginning and a certain end. The following scenario emerges when we study modern cosmology from an Islamic perspective.

In the beginning, Almighty Allah (SWT) created a concentrated core of light-energy, and then, later on, He caused it to explode in a Big Bang, leading to the creation of time, space, and matter. This phenomenon of creation out of nothing represents the manifestation of divine command “Be!” The Big Bang did not happen at any specific place, as the “space” itself was created with this explosion. Similarly, it did not occur at any particular instant, as the “time” itself came into being with the Big Bang.

Since then, the universe has been continuously expanding, rotating, and evolving. At a predetermined point in the future, it will stop expanding, and from then on the contraction or folding-back phase of the universe will commence either due to the gravitational pull of the unseen matter exceeding the forces of expansion, or as a result of the swallowing up of entire galaxies by Black Holes leading ultimately to the Big Crunch, which is the disappearance of the cosmos in a catastrophic implosion, like the Big Bang in reverse.

The Big Crunch will be followed by another Big Bang, leading to the creation of a new universe that will last forever, and which will be totally different from our present universe, utterly beyond the realm of our imagination. We believe, on the authority of the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad (SAW), in the rebirth of all humanity, their final judgment, the Hell and the Paradise, though the exact nature of that state of existence is simply inconceivable.

As far as the end of our own world is concerned, it seems that a major catastrophe will befall, destroying a part of our galaxy including the sun and the earth, and that this will happen well before the universal doomsday or the Big Crunch. It is this local doomsday that is referred to in the Holy Qur’an as the “Startling Calamity” or the “Inevitable.”

The Ascendancy of Islam

There are a few cryptic remarks in the Holy Qur’an regarding the events which will precede the Doomsday; these points are fully explained in the form of detailed prophecies that appear in the traditions of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). According to these prophecies four major events will happen before the end of the world; in chronological sequence, they are as follows:

(1) The Ultimate World War of human history, which will be fought predominantly in the Middle East;

(2) The appearance of Anti-Christ, or Dajjal, in the final phase of that war a leader who will inflict huge sufferings and destruction on Arab Muslims;

(3) The reappearance of Prophet Isa (AS), who will cause the extermination of Dajjal and his Jewish followers; and finally,

(4) The establishment of the system of Khilafah, or the domination of Islam, over the entire globe.

Except for the reappearance of Prophet Isa (AS), there is nothing supernatural or incredible in these prophecies, as we shall discuss shortly. The very idea of the global domination of Islam however, seems like a fool’s fantasy, keeping in view the present state of humiliation of the Muslims and their virtual enslavement by the New World Order.

Under the existing state of affairs, which is both distressing and disheartening, we must keep on reminding ourselves that the ascendancy of Islam over the entire globe is bound to come, as this has been emphatically foretold by none other than the Last Messenger of Allah (SWT) himself, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him. Although there is no such explicit and unequivocal guarantee in the Holy Qur’an, we find that both the minor and major premises of this syllogism are repeatedly mentioned, the inescapable conclusion of which is the ultimate establishment of world-wide supremacy of Islam. The major premise consists of the fact that Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was appointed a messenger and envoy of Almighty Allah (SWT) for the whole humanity (Al-Qur’an Al-A‘raaf 7:158; Al-Anbia 21:107; Al-Furqan 25:1; Saba 34:28; & Al-Jum‘ah 62:2,3), whereas the minor premise is represented by the Divine assertion that the true way of life or Deen al-Haq will be made superior over the entire system of life (Al-Taubah 9:33; Al-Fath 48:24; & Al-Saff 61:9), and that God the Almighty is going to perfect His Light despite all the resistance from the unbelievers (Al-Taubah 9:32 & Al-Saff 61:8). The logical conclusion that necessarily follows from these premises is that the real purpose and the ultimate aim of the advent of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) will be fulfilled only with the establishment of the ascendancy of Islam over the entire mankind, all over the world.This has been promised by Almighty Allah (SWT) in these words:

God has promised that He will surely make those of you who believe and do the right, vicegerents in the land, as He had made those before them, and He will surely establish their Deen which He has chosen for them, and He will surely change their state of fear into peace and security. (Al-Noor 24:55)

The Ascent of Humanity

The global domination of Islam also appears inevitable in the context of the idea of cosmic evolution, as explained in the following paragraphs:

In sharp contrast to all the materialistic theories of modern science, the Holy Qur’an teaches us that Allah (SWT) is the only real force behind every creative activity that takes place in the universe. The clear and obvious signs of purpose and direction in the cosmos indicate that there is an intelligent mind at work, as pure chance could only have produced total chaos. The cosmic existence, as the Holy Qur’an proclaims again and again, is something profoundly meaningful. The evolution of the universe in the direction of a predetermined goal is what provides everything with a single grand purpose. The universe is continuously in a process of evolution, constantly working to perfect itself.

According to Dr. Muhammad Rafiuddin (whose philosophy of history was mentioned earlier), the cause of the evolution of cosmos is the desire or the will of the Creator. This desire or will of Allah (SWT) is flowing in the universe as a current of consciousness, changing the universe with a view to bringing it to the stage of its highest perfection. This cosmic evolution can be described as taking place in several stages, as follows:

The first stage was that of physical evolution, from the Big Bang up to the time when simple chemical compounds grew into complex organic molecules, leading to the emergence of life on earth. This stage of purely physical change was directed by the Divine current of consciousness that continuously runs through all matter, causing it to behave in specific ways, commonly known as the “laws of nature.”

The second stage was that of biological evolution, when the same current of consciousness took the form of an indwelling life-force (compare Bergson’s élan vital), which directed the process towards the creation of the perfect animal, the Homo sapiens. It has been theorized on the basis of the pointers in the Holy Qur’an that, at this stage, Almighty Allah (SWT) selected a single pair of these human-animals, and endowed them with their spiritual souls; this was the creation of Adam and Eve, the primordial human pair.

The third stage was that of intellectual evolution, when the current of consciousness took the form of an urge for Beauty and Perfection, expressing itself in the love of an ideal (compare Freud’s Libido), guiding the process towards the climax of intellectual and psychological development, that was finally achieved in the personality of Prophet Ibrahim (AS).

The fourth stage was that of the collective social evolution of humanity, reaching its zenith in the life and teachings of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), when the true way of life or Deen al-Huq was perfected and the ideal system of social, economic, and political Justice was presented to the mankind in its final form.

At the present moment, humanity is passing through the final stage of its evolution. The Divine current of consciousness is still active in the collective mind of humanity, urging and guiding us towards the ultimate state of human perfection, i.e., towards the establishment of the global culture-civilization that will be based upon the teachings of the Qur’an. In this way the philosophy of Ideals, as developed by Dr. Muhammad Rafiuddin, makes it even more understandable how the global domination of Islam before the end of the world is inevitable from an evolutionary stand point.

This global domination of Islam has been clearly predicted in the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), three of which are quoted below:

(1) According to a tradition that is narrated by Imam Ahmad (RA) on the authority of Nauman Ibn Bashir (RAA), Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is reported to have said to his Companions: “The period of Prophethood will remain among you so long as Allah wills, then He shall cause it to end. After that, there will be Khilafah among you on the pattern of Prophethood, and this will last as long as Allah wills, and then He shall cause it to end. After that, there will be a reign of oppressive monarchy, and this will also last as long as Allah wills, and then He shall cause it to end. After that there will be a period of enslavement, and this will last as long as Allah wills, then He shall cause it to end. Finally, there will again be Khilafah on the pattern of Prophethood.”

(2) In another tradition narrated by Imam Muslim (RA) on the authority of Thauban (RAA), the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is reported to have said: “Allah (SWT) folded up the whole earth for me (in a vision), so that I was able to see all the easts and all the wests, and surely the domination of my followers will be established over all those places that were shown to me by thus folding the earth.”

(3) Imam Ahmad (RA) has narrated, on the authority of Miqdad Ibn Aswad (RAA), that the Prophet of God (SAW) is reported to have said: “There shall be no house on the entire earth neither of bricks nor one made of camel’s skin but Allah (SWT) will cause the word of Islam to enter it, either with the honor of the one who deserves honor, or with the subjugation of the one who is defeated.” (That is to say, God will confer honor on some and they will embrace Islam, and He will cause the others to give up fighting and they will surrender before the rule of Islam.)

Kingdom

The Way to God’s Kingdom

Belief in the most certain event of Doomsday is part of our faith as Muslims, and, in this context, the global happenings of our age clearly indicate that the end of the world is probably a matter of near future.

This opinion is based upon the predictions of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), many of which have already come true in the world around us, and the stage is obviously being set for the final set of events before Doomsdaythe grand finale of the global drama. We shall now discuss these coming events which will precede the establishment of the domination of Islam, as disclosed by Prophet Muhammad (SAW).

Indications regarding the greatest World War of human history that appear in the Hadith collections are, in general, couched in allegorical language. It seems that The War will take place in three phases, and will be fought predominantly in the Middle East. During the first phase, Muslim and Christian armies will join hands and fight against a third force, the identity of which is uncertain. The allies will defeat their common enemy, but then serious discord and hostility will break out between them, leading to the second phase of The War characterized by fierce fighting between the Muslim and Christian armies. Initially the Christians will have the upper hand, and the Muslims will lose important strongholds like Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq. Although during the first and second phases the Jews themselves will not take part in the battle, their resources, technical know-how, and their propaganda machinery will be used with utmost destructive effect against the Muslims.

According to the prophecies, at this point the Muslims will select a rightly guided man as their military and political leader. This leader, called Mahdi in Hadith literature, will reorganize and unite the Muslim forces against the Christians, shifting the fortunes of The War in favor of the Muslims.

The third phase of The War will commence with the appearance on the scene of an exceedingly cunning Jewish leader Dajjal or Anti-Christ. From then onwards the Jews will start to take active part in the fighting, and the combined forces of Jews and Christians will inflict heavy losses on the Muslims. At this stage Prophet Muhammad (SAW) has told in unequivocal words Prophet Isa (AS) will reappear to strengthen and reinforce the Muslim armies. He will deliver the final installment of Divine punishment to the Jews, and will kill their leader, Dajjal. The reappearance of Prophet Isa (AS) will mark the end of Christianity as a separate religion, and the most glorious and peaceful era of human history will commence.

This will be “God’s Kingdom on earth,” when the Deen of Allah (SWT) will reign supreme, and the world will enjoy unprecedented bounties and blessings of the Lord. This period of Khilafah on the pattern of Prophet-hood will last so long as Almighty Allah (SWT) wills; then, after this blissful era, the world will once again be filled with wickedness. All the faithful population of the world will die peacefully and calmly one day, just before the end of the world. In this way, only the unbelievers and the wicked shall be left to face the dreadful events of the Doomsday.

Lessons From History- Dr. Israr Ahemad, Part 7/10

Islamic Resurgence

We are definitely indebted to the arduous and often un-acknowledged efforts by our Ulama, as they have succeeded in keeping the structure of traditional beliefs and rituals intact during the extremely unfavorable period of Western colonialism. However, the most significant aspect of the process of our revival concerns an entirely different type of response to the decline of Muslims. The forerunners in the revivalist movement include all those organizations and groups which were created with this very purpose in mind, i.e., to re awaken the Ummah and to re-establish the domination of Islam. Such groups and parties have categorically rejected the two common responses to Westernization: either withdrawing in the shells of tradition or blindly accepting whatever arrives from the West. Instead, they have emphasized again and again that Islam is not merely a collection of dogma, rituals, and customs, as are other religions, but that it is the God-given Deen, i.e., a complete way of life encompassing the whole spectrum of human activity, including its social, cultural, legal, economic, and political aspects. And, most importantly, like all other ways of life, Islam demands its complete and total ascendancy, and the struggle to establish that ascendancy is the duty of every Muslim For a number of centuries, India and Egypt have held the distinction of being the two most prominent centers of culture and learning in the Muslim world. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that the two major revivalist movements of the twentieth century Jama‘at-e-Islami and Al-Ikhwan Al-Muslimun rose from the Indian subcontinent and Egypt, respectively. Although, at a certain point in its history, the Al-Ikhwan Al-Muslimun of Egypt had become the focus of all revivalist aspirations due to its unprecedented fervor and widespread influence, the fact remains that the real superiority in this field too belongs to the Indian subcontinent.

The first person to invite the Muslims towards the struggle for Islamic revival in the Indian subcontinent was Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (1888-1958), who, during the early part of the present century, called for the establishment of “God’s Kingdom” through his pioneering magazines Al-Hilal and Al-Balagh, and, in order to reach that goal, formed a group known as Hizbullah. His ability to motivate the audience through a unique style of writing and oratory, which became especially prominent during the Khilafat Movement, made him a well-known public figure throughout the subcontinent, and his own sincerity and enthusiasm conquered the hearts of millions of Indian Muslims. If it were not for the opposition and obstructions created by some of the traditional scholars, he would have been selected as Imamul Hind (supreme leader of Indian Muslims) during the early 1920s. Disillusioned and frustrated by the lukewarm response from the religious establishment, Abul Kalam gave up his mission altogether, and, from then onwards, dedicated his life to the nationalist politics of India, until his death in 1958.

The echoes of his vehement and vociferous clarion call to the Qur’an and Jihad continued to reverberate in the four corners of Muslim India. Like the second runner in a relay race, another unconventional and courageous young man appeared on the scene with the firm resolve to continue the mission that was forsaken by Maulana Abul Kalam. He worked alone for nearly seven years as a journalist, presenting a methodology for the establishment of “God’s Kingdom” and the revival of Islam as a complete way of life. He then worked for sometime at Darul Islam an Islamic research academy established by Chaudhry Niaz Ali Khan, a devotee of Alma Iqbal. He finally laid the foundation of his own party in 1941, called Jama‘at-e-Islami, and started an organized movement. This young man was, of course, none other than Maulana Sayyid Abul A‘la Maududi (1903-1979).

The spirit of Islamic revivalism and the aspiration to establish the ideal Islamic system, as generated by the Jama‘at-e-Islami, has influenced a considerable section of Muslim youth in the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent. Simultaneously, the same spirit — initiated by Hassan Al-Banna when he established Al-Ikhwan Al Muslimun in 1928 — has been active throughout most of the Arab world. Although the widespread impact produced by these movements is beyond dispute, it must be realized that lack of a unanimous policy in relation to the all important matter of methodology has been responsible for the creation of a number of divisions among them, leading to the formation of various smaller parties and organizations.

For example, though the Al-Ikhwan Al-Muslimun in Egypt and Jordan has, in general, taken the path of peaceful social and political struggle, some of its dissatisfied offshoots have adopted violent and even terrorist methods for achieving the same objective. 

However, such radical organizations, along with the enthusiasm of other non-violent but nevertheless revolutionary groups, have succeeded in bringing the goal of Islamic Resurgence a bit closer to reality at least in the eyes of the West. The whole phenomenon has produced a sense of alarm among the Western powers and their “Muslim” stooges, despite the fact that the actual achievements of parties like Takfir-wal-Hijra, Al-Jehad, Islamic Tendency Society, Jama‘a Islamia, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, and Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), are as yet far from the establishment of an Islamic state. One can have a number of disagreements with each of these organizations, but it has to be admitted that these movements represent, as a whole, the revivalist aspirations of the Muslim Ummah, and have become a force that has to be recognized at the international level. The role of the revolution in Iran and the rise of Shi‘ite fundamentalism is also significant in this respect.

Jewish Revival

As mentioned before, the beginning of the third and final phase of rise for the Muslims is coincidental with the temporary upswing of the Jews. It can be seen that, at the present moment, the upward trend in the history of the Muslim Ummah is not only very slow and gradual, but that it is still in its initial stages. On the other hand, the same trend among the Jews not only started much earlier, but that it has shown a far more rapid and swift progress. Thus, the ingenious scheme prepared by the “Elders of Zion” in 1897, and the political Zionism of Theodore Herzel (1860-1904), bore fruit within a short period of twenty years, resulting in the Balfour Declaration by the British Government on November 2, 1927, that paved the way for the “establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people.” Finally, the illegitimate state of Israel was born on May 14, 1948, with the British Government acting as midwife.

The situation at the moment is that not only Israel herself is a formidable military power, but the entire Western world is also there to support and patronize her, both economically and with respect to arms supply. The “Supreme Power” of our time — the United States of America — is practically in the tight grip of a small Jewish minority, who is able to exert an immense amount of control over its international policies.

This last mentioned fact has been forcefully proved by former US Congressman Paul Findley, in his best- selling book They Dare to Speak Out. More importantly, the global financial system is virtually in the hands of Jewish bankers, who, through the institution of interest or usury, have become powerful enough to command the obedience of entire governments. Finally, the monarchs and rulers in most of the Arab countries have either made their peace with Israel or are desperately looking for opportunities to demonstrate their servile acquiescence. It seems, therefore, that there is no power on earth that can prevent the establishment of “Greater Israel.”

Under these apparently hopeless circumstances only the predictions of the Holy Qur’an and Hadith can reassure us. According to these predictions, the third phase of rise for the Muslims will be accompanied by the global domination of Islam, which will last till near the end of the world, whereas the present rise of the Jews is going to be ephemeral. Moreover, as mentioned before, the conflict between the Jews and the Muslims is going to result, ultimately, in the total extermination of the former, according to the Divine law of “annihilation of the worst.” However, the most significant role in this conflict which is gradually warming up to its grand finale is going to be played by a third power, the Christians.

Third of the Trinity: The Christians

An interesting theme that is common to all pagan religions is the idea of “henotheism”; wherever there was a group of people that worshipped a number of divine beings, we find that there was always a Supreme Deity that was considered to be above all other gods and goddesses. This trend is most prominent in Hinduism, in the Greek and Roman mythologies, and among the pagan Arabs of the pre-Islamic era. However, what is really important to note in such religions is that, in actual practice, the smaller gods and goddesses always get the lion’s share in the attention and devotion of their worshipers, while the Supreme God disappears in the background, as He is carelessly ignored and casually brushed aside by the worshipers.

Applying this analogy to the three Abrahamic faiths, we can say that although Christianity is the biggest among them in terms of the number of adherents, yet in reality except for the name and personality of Prophet Isa (AS) there is hardly any thing in this religion that can be described as “Christian.” That is to say, the doctrines and practices of Christianity, as they exist toady, have more to do with the innovations of St. Paul than with the real teachings of Prophet Isa (AS). As such, the present-day Christianity actually belongs to the realm of philosophical religions along with Hinduism, Taoism, and Confucianism instead of the domain of Revealed religions like Judaism and Islam.

Coming back to the original topic of our discussion, it is significant to note that the Christian nations have played a crucial role vis-à-vis the second phase of decline with regard to both the Jews and the Muslims. Thus, we find that the torture, persecution, genocidal killings, and exile suffered by the Jews during the last sixteen hundred years were caused exclusively by the Christians. Ever since the conversion of Romans to Christianity in the fourth century C.E., Jews have continuously been made the target of various allegations, and executed by the thousands on one pretext or the other. Similarly, it was the Christians who were responsible for the brutal massacre suffered by the Muslims during the Crusades, and then the subjugation and exploitation of the Muslims at the hands of Western Imperialism. From even a superficial survey of Jewish and Muslim histories, therefore, it becomes clear that Almighty Allah (SWT) has been using the Christian nations as an instrument of His punishment, or the whip of His retribution, for both the Jews and Muslims of the world.

However and this is vital for us to keep in mind there has been a profound metamorphosis in the nature of the relationship between the Jews and Christians; this change has started from the days of the Renaissance, reaching its climax only during the present century. As a result of this change, the Christian world particularly the White Angle-Saxon Protestants or WASP have become devoted comrades and staunch supporters of the Jewish nation, although they are, in fact, only being cleverly used and manipulated by the latter. On the other hand, the highly ruthless historical role of the Christians in relation to the Muslim Ummah is still very much intact. As such, there is a clear possibility of another massive assault, a ‘la Crusades, that can work havoc upon the Muslims, particularly the Arab world. Such an event can obviously result in killings and destruction on a huge scale, a minor glimpse of which has already been witnessed by the world during the Operation Desert Storm.

The way in which the “threat” of militant and fundamentalist Islam is being hyperbolized by the Western media betrays an attempt to create public hatred against the Muslims, as was done before and during the Crusades. This process of brainwashing is exemplified, at the popular level, by the PBS documentary Jihad in America and the Reader’s Digest article A Holy War Heads Our Way; prominent examples of the same trend at an intellectual level include The Clash of Civilizations by Samuel P. Huntington and The Roots of Muslim Rage by Bernard Lewis. Similarly, a campaign was recently launched in the Western media so as  to inculcate the notion, with reference to the writings of Nostradamus, that the “Anti-Christ” is going to be a Muslim leader from among the Arabs.

The very idea of Muslims going back to their roots the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is being depicted as a dangerous combination of extremism, terrorism, and fanaticism. Unfortunately, after the end of Cold War and the demise of Communism, Islam and Muslims are increasingly being used to fill the vacuum of the “Great Menace” against which the West can test her powers. With ever rising zeal, Islamic fundamentalism is being portrayed as the ultimate evil against which the forces of decency must unite. Despite this continuing campaign of disinformation about the horrible hazard of Islam, the fact remains that, in the history of Muslim-Christian relationship, it was always the Muslims who suffered heavily at the hands of various Christian nations and not the other way round. It appears that the history might repeat itself in the form of a real clash of civilizations.

A B C Of Christianity

According to the Qur’an, there has been only one true religion throughout human history, i.e., Islam; all other systems of belief and worship, as they exist today, are nothing but corrupted and distorted replicas of the originally pure and simple teachings of the various messengers of God. Most versions of these teachings have been perverted beyond recognition, and the historical continuity and doctrinal similarity of only two of them Judaism and Christianity can at present be linked with Islam. Among these three major faiths, as mentioned earlier, only the followers of Judaism and Islam can be described as Ummahs: Jews or the Israelites as the previous Muslim Ummah, and the followers of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) as the present and final Muslim Ummah. According to the prophecies as they appear in the Hadith literature, the ultimate conflict of the future is going to take place between the Jews and the Muslims, although a very significant initial role will be played by the Christian nations. In order to correctly interpret and fully comprehend these prophecies, it is imperative for us to understand the nature and history of Christian faith.

A set of three doctrines is common to the followers of most of the Christian denomination, viz., the Trinity, Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and Atonement. The most basic creed of modern Christianity is, of course, the belief that God is one, in three persons, and in one substance: God the father, God the son, and God the Holy Spirit are not three gods, but one God. The Holy Qur’an emphatically rejects and condemns this polytheistic view.

O People of the Book, do not be fanatical in your faith, and say nothing but the truth about God. The Messiah who is Isa, son of Maryum, was only a messenger of God, and a command of His which He sent to Maryum, as a mercy from Him. So believe in God and His messengers, and do not say “Three.” For God is only one God. (Al-Nisa 4:171)

They are surely infidels who say: “God is the Messiah, son of Maryum.” …Disbelievers are they surely who say:

“God is the third of the Trinity”; but there is no god other than God the One. (Al-Ma’ida 5:72,73)

The Holy Qur’an also repudiates their belief that Prophet Isa (AS) was humiliated and executed on

the cross, and thus indirectly refutes the theory of Atonement the belief that the great sacrifice from the

so-called “Son of God” was necessary to remove the burden of the Original Sin from the shoulders of

humanity. According to the Qur’an: And (the Jews were punished, among other things, because) of saying, “We killed the Messiah, Isa, son of Maryum.” who was a Messenger of God but they neither killed nor crucified him. though it so appeared to them. They have no knowledge about it, other than conjecture, and surely they did not kill him. (Al-Nisa 4:157)

Although the myth of the Crucifixion of Prophet Isa (AS) is narrated in all the four Gospels, there is absolutely no substance whatsoever in them for the doctrine of Trinity or that of the Divine Sonship of Jesus. The earliest evidence of the last two doctrines first appeared in the writings of St. Paul, and these were adopted as official beliefs of Christianity only after extensive debate, and following a long-standing controversy which included, at times, violent episodes between Unitarians and Trinitarians. These dogmas were confirmed as official beliefs of the Church, after much deliberation, during the Council of Nicaea in 325 C.E., almost three centuries after the departure of Prophet Isa (AS).

Five Points of Convergence

As far as the personality of Prophet Isa (AS) is concerned, we find that there are at least five significant points which are common between the Holy Qur’an and the Hadith on the one hand, and the four Canonical Gospels on the other. It is indeed significant that more than half of the world’s population is in agreement regarding these points, three of which are in clear opposition to the normal physical laws of the universe. We shall discuss these points one by one.

(1) The Gospel of Matthew (1:18-24) and Luke (1:26-38) mention that Jesus Christ was conceived without a human father, as a miracle from Almighty God; so does the Holy Qur’an (Aal-e-Imran 3:45-47 & Maryum 19:17-21)

(2) Jesus Christ performed the most astonishing of miracles — unparalleled in the history of Prophethood with respect to their unambiguous and unmistakable nature. These miracles are described in various sections of the Gospels (see, for example, Matthew, Chapters 8 & 14) as well as in the Holy Qur’an (Aal-e-Imran 3:49 & Al-Ma’ida 5:110)

(3) Jesus Christ forcefully and incisively called upon his fellow Israelites to mend their perverted ways, to give up sinful and unethical practices, to repent with the true spirit of repentance, and to purify themselves from all spiritual and moral corruption. He severely criticized the pretentious religiosity, the emphasis on hollow but legally spotless rituals, and the servile adherence to the letter of the law with no regard to its spirit — the hallmark of the religious establishment of his time. (Matthew 23, and the Holy Qur’an Al-Ma’ida 5:78). As a result, he became the sole target of the acrimony and malevolence from the rabbis, the priests, and the pharisees.

(4) The message and proclamation of Jesus Christ attracted the attention of the population both in and around Jerusalem, but it was accepted only by a very minute section of the Jews, of which even fewer became his dedicated companions. The number of these close comrades, according to the Gospels, was twelve, although the matter of their names is controversial.

(5) Jesus Christ was raised up alive from the earth, and he will reappear some time before the end of the world. This has been mentioned in Matthew 28:6,7; Mark 16:19; Luke 24:51, John 20:17. Ascension and reappearance of Prophet Isa (AS) has also been alluded to in the Holy Qur’an (Al-Nisa 4:157, 158 and Al- Zukhruf 43:61), but these hints are explained more explicitly in the Hadith.

Innovations by Paul

Then we have two very important points, regarding which the Qur’an and Hadith as well as the four Gospels are unanimous, but which have been radically changed by St. Paul during the period immediately following the departure of Prophet Isa (AS). These innovations have transformed what was only a reform movement among the Jews into a philosophical religion full of pagan conceptions.

(1) It is abundantly clear from Matthew 5:17-19, Luke 16:17 and Mark 13:31, that Jesus Christ had no intention whatsoever to give any new law, nor to rescind and abolish the Mosaic law, as he was sent by Almighty God only to renew and reinforce the law of the Torah, to purify his people from spiritual and moral degeneration, and to revive the authentic spirit of Deen. He was, obviously, one of the Jews and was not supposed to become the founder of a new religion and a new community. However, preaching in the name of

Jesus Christ, the actual founder of Christianity, St. Paul, simply abrogated the Mosaic law (Romans 4:15). The historian Michael Hart has the following to say in his book “The Hundred”:

Paul, more than any other man, was responsible for the transformation of Christianity from a Jewish sect into a world religion. His central ideas of the divinity of Christ and of justification by faith alone have remained basic to Christian thought throughout all the intervening centuries ... Indeed, the influence of Paul’s ideas has been so great that some scholars have claimed that he, rather than Jesus, should be regarded as the principal founder of the Christian religion.

(2) According to the Holy Qur’an, Prophet Isa (AS) was appointed a prophet only for the Israelites (Aal-e-Imran 3:49 & Al-Saff 61:6), and this is confirmed by his sayings which appear in the Gospels (Matthew 10:5,6 & 15:24), where he forbids his disciples from extending their evangelistic activity outside that circle. However, a controversial step was taken in this respect by St. Paul, who persuaded the small number of early followers of Prophet Isa (AS) after a period of serious dispute to preach among the non-Jews as well. As it happened, Paul had met with little success among the Israelites, but his sweeping innovations made the new faith much more palatable for the neighboring pagan people, and thus his brand of Christianity rapidly gained popularity among these nations.

The Myth of Crucifixion

Last, but not the least, is the matter of the alleged crucifixion of Prophet Isa (AS), regarding which there is a crucial disagreement between the Islamic belief and the account of the four Canonical Gospels. According to the latter, the supreme Jewish authority in Roman Palestine the Sanhedrin convicted Jesus of blasphemy and insisted for death sentence, which was carried out by the Roman governor Pilate Pontius by way of crucifixion. Afterwards, on the third day, the dead body of Jesus Christ was miraculously resurrected and revived; the Christ then met with his disciples, and, after giving them some instructions, ascended into the heaven.

On the other hand, the Holy Qur’an strongly rejects the idea of Prophet Isa (AS) having been crucified, and according to the authentic Prophetic traditions or Hadith he was saved from such an accursed and humiliating death by direct Divine intervention and raised up alive into the heavens. It has also been unequivocally explained to us by Prophet Muhammad (SAW) that Prophet Isa (AS) will reappear on earth to live out the rest of his life, and then he will die like any other mortal.

The only void left in this Islamic tradition, however, concerns the “when” and “where” of the ascension of Prophet Isa (AS), and the question regarding “who” actually got crucified in his place. This vacuum can be satisfactorily filled with the help of the narration in the “Gospel of Barnabas” according to which, when the traitor Judas Iscariot came ahead of the Roman soldiers and entered the garden where Prophet Jesus Christ was hiding, God the Almighty caused his face and voice to be changed so that he looked and talked exactly like Jesus, while in the meantime the prophet himself was raised up into the heavens. Thus it was the traitor who was crucified, while Prophet Jesus Christ was miraculously saved by direct Divine intervention. It may be pointed out here that, unlike Barnabas who was a close disciple and companion of Prophet Jesus, none of the writers of the four so-called authentic gospels i.e., Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John ever met with the prophet himself. These gospels were written between 70 C.E and 115 C.E. but their earliest available manuscripts date back to the fourth century C.E, making their authenticity rather dubious. A number of different gospels were in circulation throughout the early period of Christianity, the manuscripts of which were freely altered and amended by the copyists in order to suit the doctrines of their particular sect. The four gospels that are included in the New Testament were accepted as genuine by the Church and the rest were rejected as apocryphal, and their possession prohibited not on the basis of merit, but only because these four books were in conformity with the official Church dogma. The Gospel of Barnabas was among the books that were banned in 325 C.E by the Nicean Council; it was forbidden by the Decree of the Western Churches in 382 C.E; it was again banned by Pope Innocent in 465 C.E, and then by the Glasian Decree in 496 C.E. To this day, Christian authorities refuse to accept the Gospel of Barnabas as authentic, despite striking similarities between this Gospel and the documents discovered in 1947 in the caves of Qumran, popularly called the Dead Sea Scrolls. This is because the Gospel of Barnabas proclaims absolute Divine Unity, criticizes the pagan innovations of St. Paul, declares the truth about the myth of Crucifixion, and, above all, contains unambiguous prophecies regarding the advent of Prophet Mohammad (SAW), all of which is enough to destroy the very foundations of the Christian faith as it exists today.

However, any unbiased comparative study of the New Testament, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Gospel of Barnabas is bound to reveal that this gospel is the correct and genuine account of the life and teachings of Prophet Isa (AS), notwithstanding the flimsy objections being raised by the Christians.

The Meaning of Islam

ISLAM is derived from the Arabic root "SALEMA": peace, purity, submission, and obedience. In the religious sense, Islam means submission to the will of God and obedience to His law. Everything and every phenomenon in the world, other than man is administered TOTALLY by God-made laws i.e. they are obedient to God and submissive to His laws i.e. they are in the STATE OF ISLAM. Man possesses the quality of intelligence and choice, thus he is invited to submit to the good will of God and obey His law ie. become a Muslim. Submission to the good will of God, together with obedience to His beneficial law, i.e. becoming a Muslim is the best safeguard for man's peace and harmony.  Islam dates back to the edge of Adam and its message has been conveyed to man by God's Prophets and Messengers including Abrahim, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. Islam's message has been restored and  enforced in the last stage of the religious evolution by God's last Prophet and Messenger Muhammad. 

The word Allah in the Arabic language means God, or more accurately The One and Only Eternal God, Creator of theUniverse, Lord of all lords, King of all kings, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful. The word Allah to mean God is also used by Arabic speaking Jews and Christians.



Articles of Faith  (Allah, the One and Only God)
A muslim believes in ONE GOD, Supreme and Eternal, Infinite and Mighty, Merciful and Compassionate, Creator and Provider. God has no father nor mother, no sons nor was He fathered. None equal to Him. He is God of all mankind, not of a special tribe or race. God is High and Supreme but He is very near to the pious thoughtful believers; He answers their prayers and help them. He loves the people who love Him and forgives their sins. He gives them peace, happiness, knowledge and success. God is the Loving and the Provider, the Generous, and the Benevolent, the Rich and the Independent the Forgiving and the Clement, the Patient and the Appreciative, the Unique and the Protector, the Judge and the Peace. God's attributes are mentioned in the Quran. 


God creates in man the mind to understand, the soul and conscience to be good and righteous, the feelings and sentiments to be kind and humane. If we try to count His favours upon us, we cannot, because they are countless. In return for all the great favours and mercy, God does not need anything from us, because He is Needless and Independent. God asks us to know Him, to love Him and to enforce His law for our benefit and our own benefit and our own good.



Messengers and Prophets of God
A Muslim believes in all the Messengers and Prophets of God without any discrimination. All messengers were mortals, human beings, endowed with Divine revelations and appointed by God to teach mankind. The Holy Quran mentions the names of 25 messengers and prophets and states that there are others. These include Noah, Abrahim, Ishmael, Isaac, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. Their message is the same and it is Islam and it came from One and the Same Source; God, and it is to submit to His will and to obey His law; i.e., to become a Muslim. Revelations and the Quran.



A Muslim believes in all scriptures and revelations of God, as they were complete and in their original versions. Allah, the Creator, has not left man without guidance for the conduct of his life. Revelations were given to guide the people to the right path of Allah and sent down to selected people, the prophet and messengers, to convey it to their fellow men.

The message of all the prophet and messengers is the same. They all asked the people of their time to obey and worship Allah and none other. Abrahim, Moses, David, Jesus and Muhammad who were revealed their own book of Allah, were sent at different times to bring back straying human being from deviation to Right Course.



The Quran is the sacred book of the Muslims. It is the last book of guidance from Allah, sent down to Muhammad, peace be upon him, through the angel Jibraeel (Gabriel). Every word of it is the word of Allah. It was revealed over a period of 23 years in the Arabic language. It contains 114 Surahs (chapters) and over 6000 verses.



The Quran deals with man and his ultimate goal in life. Its teachings cover all areas of this life and the life after death. It contains principles, doctrines and directions for every sphere of human life. The theme of the Quran broadly consists of three fundamental ideas: Oneness of Allah, Prophethood and life after death. The success of human beings on this earth and in the life hereafter depends on obedience to the Quranic teaching. 

The Quran is unrivalled in its recording and prservation. The astonishing fact about this book of Allah is that it has remained unchanged even to a dot over the past fourteen hundred years. No scholar has questioned the fact that the Quran today is the same as it was revealed. Muslims till today memorize the Quran word by word as a whole or in part. Today, the Quran is the only authentic and complete book of Allah. Allah is protecting it from being lost, corrupted or concealed. 



The Angels of Allah 
There are purely spiritual and splendid beings created by Allah. They require no food or drink or sleep. They have no physical desires nor material needs. Angels spend their time in the service of Allah. Each charged with a certain duty. Angels cannot be seen by the naked eyes. 


Knowledge and the truth are not entirely confined to sensory knowledge or sensory perception alone.



The Day of Judgment 
A Muslim believes in the Day of the Judgment. This world as we know it will come to an end and the dead will rise to stand for their final and fair trial. On that day, all men and women from Adam to the last person will be resurrected from the state of death for judgement. Everything we do, say, make, intend and think are accounted for and kept in accurate records. They are brought up on the Day of Judgement. One who believe in life after death is not expected to behave against the Will of Allah. He will always bear in mind that Allah is watching all his actions and the angels are recording them.



People with good records will be generously rewarded and warmly welcomed to Allah's Heaven. People with bad records will be fairly punished and cast into Hell. The real nature of Heaven and Hell are known to Allah only, but they are described by Allah in man's familiar terms in the Quran.



If some good deeds are seen not to get full appreciation and credit in this life, they will receive full compensation and be widely acknowledged on the Day of Judgement. If some people who commit sins, neglect Allah and indulge in immoral activities, seem SUPERFICIALLY successful and prosperous in this life, absolute justice will be done to them on the Day of Judgement. The time of the Day of Judgement is only known to Allah and Allah alone.



Qadaa and Qadar
A Muslim believes in Qadaa and Qadar which related to the ultimate power of Allah. Qadaa and Qadar means the Timeless Knowledge of Allah and His power to plan and execute His plans. Allah is not indifferent to this world nor is He neutral to it. It implies that everything on this earth originates from the one and only creator who is also the Sustainer and the sole source of guidance.

Allah is Wise, Just and Loving and whatever He does must have a good motive, although we may fail sometimes to understand it fully. We should have strong faith in Allah and accept whatever He does because our knowledge is limited and our thinking is based on individual consideration, whereas His knowledge is limitless and He plans on a universal basis. Man should think, plan and make sound choice, but if things do not happen the way he wants, he should not lose faith and surrender himself to mental strains or shattering worries.

The Purpose of Life

A Muslim believes that the purpose of life is to worship Allah. Worshipping Allah does not mean we spend our entire lives in constant seclusion and absolute meditation. To worship Allah is to live life according to His commands, not to run away from it. To worship Allah is to know Him, to love Him, to obey His commands, to enforce His laws in every aspect of life, to serve His cause by doing right and shunning evil and to be just to Him, to ourselves and to our fellow human beings. 


Status of Human Being A Muslim believes that human being enjoys an especially high ranking status in the hierarchy of all known creatures. Man occupies this distinguished position because he alone is gifted with rational faculties and spiritual aspirations as well as powers of action. Man is not a condemned race from birth to death, but a dignified being potentially capable of good and noble achievements. A Muslim also believes that every person is born muslim. Every person is endowed by Allah with spiritual potential and intellectual inclination that can make him a good Muslim. Every person's birth takes place according to the will of Allah in realization of His plans and in submission to His commands. Every person is born FREE FROM SIN. When the person reaches the age of maturity and if he is sane, he become accountable for all his deeds and intentions. Man is free from sin until he commits sin. There is no inherited sin, no original sin. Adam committed the first sin, he prayed to Allah for pardon and Allah granted Adam pardon.


Salvation
A Muslim believes that man must work out his salvation through the guidance of Allah. No one can act on behalf of another or intercede between him and Allah. In order to obtain salvation, a person must combine faith and action, belief and practice. Faith without doing good deeds is as insufficient as doing good deeds without faith. Also, a Muslim believes that Allah does not hold any person responsible until he has shown him the Right Way. If people do not know and have no way of knowing about Islam, they will not be responsible for failing to be Muslim. Every Muslim must preach Islam in words and action.



Acceptance of Faith 
A Muslim believes that faith is not complete when it is followed blindly or accepted unquestioningly. Man must build his faith on well-grounded convictions beyond any reasonable doubt and above uncertainty. Islam insures freedom to believe and forbids compulsion in religion (one of the oldest synagogues and one of the oldest churches in the worlds is in Muslim countries).
 
A Muslim believes that the Quran is the word of Allah revealed to prophet Muhammad through the Angel Gabriel. The Quran was revealed from revealed from Allah on various occasions to answer questions, solve problems, settle dbe man's best guide to the truth. The Quran was revealed in Arabic and it is still in its original and complete Arabic version until today. It is memorized by millions. A Muslim also believes in a clear distinction between the Quran and the Traditions (called Hadits) of the Prophet Muhammad. Whereas, the Quran is the word of Allah, the Traditions of Prophet Muhammad (hadits i.e.: his teachings, sayings, and actions) are the practical interpretations of the Quran. Both the Quran and the Hadits of Prophet Muhammad are the primary sources of knowledge in Islam.



Application of Faith
God has laid down for a Muslim four major exercises of faith, some are daily, some weekly, some monthly, some annually and some are required as a minimum of once in a lifetime. These exercises of faith are to serve man's spiritual purposes, satisfy his human needs and to mark his whole life with a Divine touch. These major exercises of faith are:



Prayer (Salah/Namaz)
Praying, to the Creator on a daily basis, is the best way to cultivate in a man a sound personality and to actualize his aspiration. Allah does not need man's prayer because He is free of all needs. Salah is for our benefit which are immeasurable and the blessings are beyond imagination.



In salah, every muscle of the body joins the soul and the mind in the worship and glory of Allah. Salah is an act of worship. It is a matchless and unprecedented formula of intellectual meditation and spiritual devotion, of moral elevation and physical exercise, all combined.


Offering of salah is obligatory upon every Muslim male and female who is sane, mature and in case of women free from menstruation and confinement due to child birth. Requirements of salah: performing of ablution (Wudu), purity of the whole body, clothes and ground used for prayer, dressing properly and having (or declaring) the intention and facing the Qiblah; the direction of the Ka'bah at Mecca.

Obligatory Salah: Five daily salahs, the Friday's noon congregation salah and the funeral salah.
Highly recommended salah: Those accompanying the obligatory salah and the two great festival salahs.
Optional salah: Voluntary salah during the day and night.


Times of Obligatory Salah: 
1. Early Morning - after dawn and before sunrise.
2. Noon - after the sun begins to decline from its zenith until it is about midway on its course to set.
3. Mid-afternoon - after the expiration of the noon salah time until sunset.
4. Sunset - immediately after sunset until the red glow in the western horizon disappears.
5. Evening - after the expiration of the sunset salah until dawn.


Salah should be offered in its due time, unless there is a reasonable excuse. Delayed obligatory salah must be made up. In addition to the prescribed salah, a Muslim expressed gratitude to God and appreciation of His favours and asks for His mercy all the time. Especially at times of, for example: childbirth, marriage, going to or rising from bed, leaving and returning to his home, starting a journey or entering a city, riding or driving, before or after eating or drinking, harvesting, visiting graveyards and at time of distress and sickness.



Fasting     
Fasting is abstaining completely from eating, drinking, intimate sexual contacts and smoking from the break of dawn till sunset. It is a matchless Islamic institution which teaches man the principle of sincere love to God. Fasting teaches man a creative sense of hope, devotion, patience, unselfishness, moderation, willpower, wise saving, sound budgeting, mature adaptability, healthy survival, discipline, spirit of social belonging, unity and brotherhood. Obligatory fasting is done once a year for the period of the month of Ramadan; the ninth month of the Islamic year. Recommended fasting every Monday and Thursday of every week, three days in the middle of each Islamic month, six days after Ramadan following the Feast Day and a few days of the two months before Ramadan. Fasting of Ramadan is a worship act which is obligatory on every adult Muslim, male or female if he/she mentally and physically fit and not on a journey. Exception: women during their period of menstruation and while nursing their child and also in case of travel and sickness. 


Charity Giving (Zakah) 
Charity giving is an act of worship and spiritual investment. The lateral meaning of Zakah is purity and it refers to the annual amount in kind or coin which a Muslim with means must distribute among the rightful beneficiaries. Zakah does not only purifies the property of the contributor but also purifies his heart from selfishness and greed. It also purifies the heart of the recipient from envy and jealousy, from hatred and uneasiness and it fosters instead good-will and warm wishes for the contributors.

Zakah has a deep humanitarian and social-political value; for example, it frees society from class welfare, from ill feelings and distrust and from corruption. Although Islam does not hinder private enterprise or condemn private possession, it does not tolerate selfish and greedy capitalism. Islam adopts a moderate but positive and effective course between individual and society, between the citizen and the state, between capitalism and socialism, between materialism and spiritualism. Zakah is paid on the net balance after paying personal expenses, family expenses, due credits, taxes, etc. Every Muslim, male or female who at the end of the year is in possession of the equivalent of 85 g of gold (approx. $1400 in 1990) or more in cash or articles of trade, must give Zakah at minimum rate of 2.5%. Taxes paid to government do not substitute for this religious duty. Contributor should not seek pride or fame but if disclosing his name and his contribution is likely to encourage others, it is acceptable to do so. The recipient of Zakah are: the poor, the needy, the new Muslim converts, the Muslim prisoners of war (to liberate them), Muslim in debt. Also employees appointed to collect Zakah, Muslim in service of research or study or propagation of Islam, wayfarers who are foreigners in need of help.



The Pilgrimmage (Hajj)
It is a pilgrimage to Mecca, at least once in a lifetime and it is obligatory upon every Muslim male and female who is mentally, physically and financially fit. It is the largest annual convention of faith on earth (in 1989: 2.5 million). Peace is the dominant theme. Peace with Allah, with one's soul, with one another, with all living creatures. To disturb the peace of anyone or any creature in any shape or form is strictly prohibited.

Muslim from all walks of life, from every corner of the globe assemble in Mecca in response to the call of Allah. There is no royalty but loyalty of all to Allah, the Creator. It is to commemorate the Divine rituals observed by the Prophet Abrahim and his son Ishmael, who are the first pilgrim to the house of Allah on earth; the Ka'bah. It is also to remember the grad assembly of the Day of Judgement when people will stand equal before Allah.

Muslims go to Mecca in glory of Allah, not to worship a man. The visit to the tomb of Prophet Muhammad at Madena is highly recommended but not essential in making the Hajj valid and complete.



Islam is a Code of Life
It is a Muslim belief that Muhammad's mission was for the whole world and for all the time; because: Its universality has been clearly confirmed by the Quran (Surah 7: verse 158, 6:19, 34:28, 81:27).

It is a logical consequences of the finality of his prophethood. He had to be the guide and the leader for all men and for all ages. Allah has provided, through him, a complete code which is to be followed, and this in itself supports the concept of finality, because without completeness, the need for other prophets would remain.

It is a fact that during the last 1400 years no man has arisen whose life and works bear even the slightest resemblance to that of a prophet. Nor has anyone presented a book which could be remotely considered a divine communication. Still less has there been a man to claim legitimate authority as a law-giver fro mankind. The mission of Muhammad, as well as of other prophets who brought the universal message of Islam, does not end with the announcement of the message. He has to guide the people by explaining to them the implications of the Islamic creed, the morale code, the divine injunctions and commandment, and the form of worship that sustains the whole system. He has to exemplify the faith so others can pattern their participation in the evolution of Islamic culture and civilization. The believers must grow under his guidance into an organized community so that Allah's word will prevail over all other words.



1. Spiritual Life: prayer (salah), fasting, charity giving (zakah), pilgrimage (hajj), love for Allah and His Messenger, love for truth and humanity for the sake of Allah, hope and trust in Allah at all times and doing good for the sake of Allah.



2. Intellectual Life: True knowledge based on clear proof and indisputable evidence acquired by experience or experiment or by both. The Quran points to the rich sources of knowledge in the whole universe. Islam demands faith in Allah on the basis of knowledge and research and leaves wide open all field of thought before the intellect to penetrate as far it can reach.



3. Personal Life: purity and cleanliness, a healthy diet, proper clothing, proper behaviour, and good healthy sexual relations within marriage.



4. Family Life: A family is a human social group whose members are bound together by the bond of blood ties and/or marital relationship and nothing else (adoption, mutual alliance, common law, trial marriage...etc.). Marriage is a religious duty on all who are capable of meeting its responsibilities. Each member of the family has rights and obligations.



5. Social Life: Man is ordained by Allah to extend his utmost help and kindness to other family members, relations, servants and neighbours. No superiority on account of class, colour, origin or wealth. Humanity represents one family springing from the one and the same father and mother. The unity of the humanity is not only in its origin but also in its ultimate aims.



6. Economical Life: Earning one's living through decent labour is not only a duty but a great virtue as well. Earning is man's private possession. The individual is responsible for the prosperity of the state and the state is responsible for the security of the individual. The Islamic economic system is not based on arithmetical calculations alne but also on moral and principles. Man comes to this world empty-handed and departs empty-handed. The real owner of things is Allah alone. Man is simply a trustee.



7. Political Life: The sovereignty in the Islamic State belongs to Allah; the people exercise it by trust from Him to enforce His laws. The ruler is only an acting executive chosen by the people to serve them according to Allah's law. The State is to administer justice and provide security for all citizens. Rulers and administrators must be chosen from the best qualified citizens. If an administration betrays the trust of Allah and the people, it has to be replaced. Non-Muslim can administer their personal life of marriage, divorce, foods and inheritance according to the Islamic law or to their own religious teachings. They may pay Zakah or a different tax tributes "Jizyah". They are entitled to full protection and security of the State including freedom of religion.



8. International Life: Man has a common origin, human status and aim. Other people's interests and right to life, honour and property are respected as long as the right of Muslim are in tact. Transgression is forbidden. War is only justified if the state security is endangered. During war, destruction of crops, animals and homes, killing non-fighting women, children and aged people are forbidden.