Meaning of Islam
Taking the term "Islam," it is
important to emphasize that it is not derived from the name of any
particular person, race, or locality. A Muslim considers the term used
by some writers, "Mohammedanism," to be an offensive violation of the
very spirit of Islamic teaching. The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon
him, is not worshipped, nor is he regarded as either the founder of
Islam or the author of its Holy Book, the Quran.
The term "Islam" is derived from
the arabic root (SLM) which connotes "peace" or "submission."
Indeed, the proper meaning of "Islam" is the attainment of peace, both
inner and outer peace, by submission of oneself to the Will of God. And
when we say submit, we are talking about conscious, loving and trusting
submission to the Will of God, the acceptance of His grace, and the
following of His path. In that sense, the Muslim regards the term
Islam, not as an innovation that came in the 7th Century, Christian era,
with the advent of Prophet Muhammad, but as the basic mission of all the
Prophets throughout history (Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, etc.). That
universal mission was finally culminated and perfected in the last of
these Prophets, Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon them all.
ISLAMIC MONOTHEISM
The next essential concept that needs to be clarified is the term
"Allah." What does it mean? It should be emphasized first that the
term "Allah" has no connotation at all of a tribal god, an
Arabian or even a Muslim god. The term "Allah" in Arabic simply means
the One and Only True, Universal God of all (the same as Eloh in
Aramaic, the language of Jesus). To think that Allah is different from
God, with a capital 'G,' is no more valid than saying the French
Christians worship a different god because they call him "Dieu."
What are the basic attributes of
Allah? The Quran mentions the "most beautiful names" (or attributes) of
Allah. Instead of enumerating them all, let's examine a few. Some
attributes emphasize the transcendence of Allah. The Quran repeatedly
makes it clear that Allah is beyond our limited perception.
"There is nothing whatever
comparable unto Him." (al-Shura 42:11) "No vision can grasp Him,
but His grasp is over all vision." (al-Anam 6:103)
A Muslim never thinks of God as having
any particular image, whether physical, human, material or otherwise.
Such attributes as "The Perfectly-Knowing," " The Eternal," "The
Omnipotent," "The Omnipresent," "The Just," and "The Sovereign"
also emphasize transcendence. But this does not mean in any way that
for the Muslim, Allah is mere philosophical concept or a deity far
removed. Indeed, alongside this emphasis on the transcendence of Allah,
the Quran also talks about Allah as "personal" God who is close, easily
approachable, Loving, Forgiving, and Merciful. The very first passage
in the Quran, which is repeated dozens of times, is
"In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most
Merciful..."
The Quran tells us that when Allah
created the first human
"He breathed into him something of
His spirit," (al-Sajdah 32:9) and that "Allah is closer to the human
than his jugular vein."
In another beautiful and moving passage
we are told, "
"When my servants ask you (O
Muhammad) concerning me, then surely I am near to them. I listen to
every suppliant who calls on Me. Let them respond to My call and obey
My command that they may be led aright."
For the Muslim, monotheism does
not mean simply the unity of God, because there can be different persons
in unity. Monotheism in Islam is the absolute Oneness and Uniqueness of
Allah, which precludes the notion of persons sharing in Godhead. The
opposite of monotheism in Islam is called in Arabic "shirk,"
association of others with Allah. This includes not only polytheism,
but also dualism (believing in one God for good or light and another for
evil or darkness). The concept of "shirk" also includes pantheism, the
idea that God is in everything. All forms of God-incarnate philosophies
are excluded by Islam's monotheism, as is blind obedience to dictators,
to clergy, or to one's own whims and desires. These are regarded as
forms of "associating" others with Allah (shirk), whether by believing
that such creatures of Allah possess divinity or by believing that they
share the Divine Attributes of Allah.
It should be added that, to the
Muslim, monotheism is not simply a dogma. Islam's pure, pristine and
strict monotheism is much more than a thought or a belief; it is
something that deeply influences the Muslim's whole outlook on life.
NATURE OF THE HUMAN
We have talked about Allah. What about you and me? Who is the human
being? Who are you and I? And why are we here on earth? The Quran
teaches that we humans are created of three components. We are created
from clay, representing the material or carnal element. We are endowed
with intellect, that is Allah-given, to be used, not to be put on the
shelf. Reason may be insufficient but it is not the antithesis of
faith, either. And thirdly, we are endowed with the spirit of Allah,
which was breathed into us (al-Sajdah 32:7, al-Baqarah 2:31, al-Hijr
15:29).
The Muslim does not see human existence
here on earth as punishment for eating from the forbidden tree. That
event is regarded as an experiantial lesson for Adam and Eve before they
came to earth. The Quran teaches that even before the creation of the
first human it was Allah's plan to establish human life and civilization
on earth (al-Baqarah 2:30). Thus, the Muslim does not view the human as
all evil, nor as all good, but rather as responsible. It is stated in
several places in the Quran that Allah created the human to be His "khalifah,"
His trustee or viceregent on earth. Humankind's basic trust, our
responsibility, is to worship Allah.
Worship for the Muslim is not only
engaging in formal rituals, but it is any activity in accordance with
the Will of Allah for the benefit of oneself and of humanity at large.
Thus, the Muslim views the earth, its resources and ecology as a gift
from Allah to humans to harness and use in fulfillment of the trust for
which we shall all be held responsible. That is why the Quran speaks
highly of learning. The first word revealed of the Quran was,
"Recite," or "read." As long as they were true to their
faith and to Quranic injuctions about learning, Muslims established a
civilization that saw great advances in science and in the humanities.
Not only did they preserve earlier scientific heritage but they also
added to it and paved the way for European renaissance. When Muslims
again become true to their faith such history is bound to repeat itself.
ALLAH-HUMANKIND RELATIONSHIP
We talked of Allah and of humankind. Now we must ask what is their
basic relationship. The Quran teaches us that the human race is given
an innate pure nature called "fitrah." Knowledge of Allah and innate
spirituality are inherent in human existence, but this spirituality can
betray us if it is not led in the right direction. To depend on a
merely human feeling of the guiding spirit is dangerous.
Many groups, even cults, claim to be
guided by the spirit or by God or by revelation, yet these groups hold
divergent, even contradictory, beliefs. We find people behaving in
contradictory ways who claim nonetheless that each is doing the Will of
God. "I feel,"
they say,
"that the spirit guides and directs me."
A credible source of revelation is
imperative. Throughout history Allah has selected particular
individuals to convey His message, to receive His revelation and to
exemplify it for mankind. For some of these Prophets, holy books or
scriptures were given revealing Allah's commands and guidance. Some
Prophets mentioned in the Quran are Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac,
Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Soloman, John the Baptist, Jesus, and,
finally, the last Prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon them all.
These Prophets carried the same basic
message:
"Not an apostle did We send before
you without this inspiration sent by Us to him: that there is no god but
I; therefore worship and serve Me." (al-Anbiya 21:25)
Further, the Quran insists on calling
all those Prophets Muslims, because a Muslim is one who submits to the
Will of Allah. Their followers are called Muslims as well. Thus, it is
an article of faith for a Muslim to believe in all these Prophets.
Indeed, Muslims are warned that anyone who accepts some Prophets and
rejects others, in fact rejects them all. For a Muslim, to believe in
Moses while rejecting Jesus or Muhammad is against the very teaching of
Moses. And to believe in Jesus but reject Moses or Muhammad is to
violate what Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad stood for.
For a Muslim to believe in Muhammad and
reject either Moses or Jesus is to violate his own Holy Book.
"Those who deny Allah and His
apostles, saying: 'We believe in some but reject others,' and those who
wish to take a course midway, they are in truth equally unbelievers and
We have prepared for unbelievers a humiliating punishment." (al-Nisa
4:150-151)
ACCOUNTABILITY AND SALVATION
We have talked about Allah, about the human, and about the relationship
between them. What about accountability? How can we humans, from the
Islamic perspective, overcome "sin"? The Quran teaches that life
is a test, that earthly life is temporary (al-Mulk 67:2). The Muslim
believes in resurrection, accountability, and the day of judgment and
reward and punishment.
For a Muslim, to demand perfection
in order to gain salvation is not practical. It is demanding the
impossible and is unjust. Islam teaches a person to be humble and to
learn that we cannot achieve salvation by our own righteousness. The
reconciliation of the "sinful" human with Allah is contingent on
three elements: the most important is the Grace, Mercy, and Generosity
of Allah. Then there are good deeds and correct belief. Correct belief
and good deeds are prerequisites for God's Grace and Forgiveness and for
rising above our common shortcomings. How can sin be washed away?
The Quran gives the prescription:
"If anyone does evil or wrongs his
own soul, but afterwards seeks Allah's forgiveness, he will find Allah
is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (al-Nisa 4:110) Another moving
passage reads, "Those things that are good remove evil deeds." (Hud
11:114)
Islam teaches repentance, stopping evil
ways, feeling sorry for what one has done, and determining to follow the
path of Allah as much as humanly possible. The Muslim does not believe
in the necessity of the shedding of blood, much less innocent blood, to
wash away sins. He believes that Allah is not interested in blood or
sacrifice, but in sincere repentance.
The Quran puts it clearly:
"But My Mercy extends to all
things." (al-Araf 7:156)
THE APPLIED ASPECT
How about the application? Are we just talking theology? Since the
human is Allah's trustee, it would be inconsistent for a Muslim to
separate the various aspects of life, the spiritual and the material,
state and religion. We hear a lot about the "five pillars of Islam,"
but they are often presented as the whole of Islam, many times in a
shallow way. They are not the whole of Islam any more than one can
claim to have a functional house composed exclusively of five concrete
pillars.
You also need the cieling, walls,
tables, windows and other things. As the mathematicians put it, it is a
necessary but not a sufficient condition. One is not a true believer
until one wants for his brother what one wants for himself. What may
appear as separate compartments of life simply does not exist for the
Muslim. A Muslim does not say, "this is business and this is moral";
one must be honest in everything one does. Moral, spiritual, economic,
social and governmental are interrelated, because everything, including
Caesar, belongs to Allah and to Allah alone.
MUSLIM/NON-MUSLIM RELATIONS
In conclusion and against this background, what is the implication for
the Muslims in their attitudes toward non-Muslims? To start with, and
we must be frank about it, the Quran makes it incumbent on the Muslim to
convey Allah's message in its final form, the Quran, to all humanity.
We are not talking here about conversion. Indeed, to turn to Islam, the
religion of all the prophets in its final form, is not to turn one's
back on the preceding Prophets.
It is a reversion and augmentation,
rather than a conversion, because it does not involve changing one's
basic spiritual nature; it is a return to the pure monotheism in which
we were all created. In the Quran, pure human nature is a "Muslim
nature," which knows its Lord and wishes to submit to Him.
The Quran states,
"Let there be no compulsion in
religion." (al-Baqarah 2:256)
Thus, the Muslim is taught to be
tolerant toward others. Indeed, the Quran not only prohibits compulsion
in religion, but it prohibits aggression as well, although it allows
defense:
"Fight in the cause of Allah those
who fight you, but commit no aggression; for Allah loves not
transgressors." (al-Baqarah 2:190)
In addition, we find that within
this broad rule of dealing with non-Muslims "the People of the Book"
is a special term accorded to Jews and Christians in the Quran. Why
"People of the Book"? Because the Muslim makes a clear distinction
between a polytheist or an atheist and those who follow the Prophets who
originally received revelations from Allah. Even though a Muslim might
point out areas of theological difference, we still believe in the
Devine origin of those revelations in their "original" forms.
How should a Muslim treat these
"People of the Book"?
Says the Quran:
"Allah forbids you not, with regard
to those who fight you not for your faith nor drive you out of your
homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for Allah loves those
who are just. Allah only forbids you, with regard to those others who
fight you for your faith, and drive you out of your homes and support
others in driving you out, from turning to them for friendship and
protection. It is such as turn to them in these circumstances, that do
wrong." (al-Mumtahanah 60:8-9)
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