Beautifully written:
I used to write poetry to clear my mind. I haven’t done it in a very long time. After a hiatus – I wrote what I felt is a piece living the last few days, and tried to share some of the emotions of what it mean for me to be a refugee, living in a generation of struggling to overcome our cultural dichotomy. I hope it speaks to you, too.
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Below please read this insight about Islam by a fellow christian blogger. To my muslim friends I say, make a good example of yourself, and the rest follows… Happy reading.
Probably the two biggest influences for me regarding my views of Muslims has been personally knowing some Muslims and reading scholarly books about Islam, not to mention reading the Qur’an for myself. Like knowing someone who is LGBT, it’s pretty difficult to demonize an entire group of human beings when you have a familiar face […]
https://jessedooley.wordpress.com/2015/08/18/islams-real-face-to-me/
This is a supplement to the previously published article with the same title:
The Central Node of God`s Religion: Abraham | It is not Islam-ic.
https://itisnotislamic.wordpress.com/2015/07/27/the-central-node-of-gods-religion-abraham/
These are verses from the Quran that contain the word “hanif”, within their context.
2:130-136
And who would be averse to the religion of Abraham except one who makes a fool of himself. And We had chosen him in this world, and indeed he, in the Hereafter, will be among the righteous. When his Lord said to him, “Submit”, he said “I have submitted to the Lord of the worlds.” And Abraham instructed his sons and Jacob, “O my sons, indeed God has chosen for you this religion, so do not die except while you have submitted.” Or were you witnesses when death approached Jacob, when he said to his sons, “What will you worship after me?” They said, “We will worship your God and the God of your fathers, Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac – one God. And we are in submission to Him.” That was a nation which has passed on. It will have what it earned, and you will have what you have earned. And you will not be asked about what they used to do. They say, “Be Jews or Christians you will be guided.” Say, “Rather, [we follow] the religion of Abraham, inclining toward truth (hanif), and he was not of the polytheists.” Say, [O believers], “We have believed in Allah and what has been revealed to us and what has been revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the Descendants and what was given to Moses and Jesus and what was given to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are in submission to Him.”
3:64-67
Say, “O People of the Scripture, come to a word that is equitable between us and you – that we will not worship except God, and not associate anything with Him and not take one another as lords instead .” But if they turn away, then say, “Bear witness that we are submitting to Him.” O People of the Scripture, why do you argue about Abraham while the Torah and the Gospel were not revealed until after him? Then will you not reason? Here you are – those who have argued about that of which you have some knowledge, but why do you argue about that of which you have no knowledge? And God knows, while you know not. Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth (hanif), a submitter to God. And he was not of the polytheists.
3:95
Say, ” God has told the truth. So follow the religion of Abraham, inclining toward truth (hanif); and he was not of the polytheists.”
4:124-125
And whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while being a believer – those will enter Paradise and will not be wronged, even as much as the speck on a date seed. And who is better in religion than one who submits himself to God while being a doer of good and follows the religion of Abraham, inclining toward truth (hanif)? And Allah took Abraham as an intimate friend.
6:74-79
Abraham said to his father Azar, “Do you take idols as deities? Indeed, I see you and your people to be in manifest error.” And thus did We show Abraham the realm of the heavens and the earth that he would be among the certain in faith. So when the night covered him, he saw a star. He said, “This is my lord.” But when it set, he said, “I like not those that disappear.” And when he saw the moon rising, he said, “This is my lord.” But when it set, he said, “Unless my Lord guides me, I will surely be among the people gone astray.” And when he saw the sun rising, he said, “This is my lord; this is greater.” But when it set, he said, “O my people, indeed I am free from what you associate with Allah . Indeed, I have turned my face toward He who created the heavens and the earth, inclining toward truth (hanif), and I am not of those who associate others with Allah .”
6:161-163
Say, “Indeed, my Lord has guided me to a straight path – a correct religion – the way of Abraham, inclining toward truth (hanif). And he was not an idol worshipper .” Say, “Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my dying are for God, Lord of the worlds. No partner has He. And this I have been commanded, and I am the first of the Muslims.”
10:104-105
Say, [O Muhammad], “O people, if you are in doubt as to my religion – then I do not worship those which you worship besides God; but I worship God, who will take your life. And I have been commanded to be of the believers and ‘Direct your face toward the religion inclining to truth (hanif), and never be a polytheist.
16:120-123
Indeed, Abraham was a leader, devoutly obedient to God, inclining toward truth (hanif), and he was not a polytheist. He was grateful for His favors. God chose him and guided him to a straight path. And We gave him good in this world, and indeed, in the Hereafter he will be among the righteous. Then We revealed to you, [O Muhammad], to follow the religion of Abraham, inclining toward truth (hanif); and he was not a polytheist.
30:29-30
But those who wrong, follow their desires without thinking. Then who can guide one whom Allah has sent astray? And for them there are no helpers. So [O Muhammad] direct your face toward the religion, inclining to truth (hanif). Adhere to the primordial human nature upon which He has created all people. No change should there be in the creation of Allah . That is the correct religion, but most of the people do not know.
Even Turkey isn’t immune.
The story comes from Times of India.
Suicide bomber kills 30 in Turkey, attack blamed on ISIS
ANKARA: A suicide bomber attacked on Monday a cultural centre hosting anti-Islamic State activists in a Turkish town near the border with Syria, killing 30 people in an “act of terror” blamed on the jihadist group.
The blast ripped through the centre in Suruc, a town opposite the Syrian flashpoint of Kobane — which was itself later hit by a suicide car bombing.
Most of the dead were university students who had been planning a mission to help Kobane residents, according to a pro-Kurdish party official.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on a visit to northern Cyprus, condemned the attack as an “act of terror”.
“On behalf of my people, I curse and condemn the perpetrators of this brutality,” he said. “Terror must…
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This is a good attempt to simply claim that one God must have one way (religion).
If you are following my blog, I have written about the misuse of the word Islam and it`s derivatives. I find this to be a very important topic because the truth of a concept is lost if new meanings are assigned to it. This has been done very conveniently to the word ‘Islam’. Today, Islam is perceived as a religion, a terrorist movement, a source of backwardness and brutality, a political movement among others. But, what is the real meaning of this word? Are all of these true?
As in any other concept, and especially a contreversial one, the source of the concept is one of the best indicators of its pure meaning. Going to the source, would help us focus on the intended meaning, help us get rid of the baggage that has been assigned to it.
The source of the world ‘Islam’ as we know it first appeared in the Quran. According to tradition and the Quran, The Quran was verbally revealed by God to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel over a period of 22-23 years starting in 610, and concluding in 632. This is explained in the Quran; Here is an example:
17:106: “We have divided the Quran into many segments so that you would read them to the people in gradual steps as We reveal them to you from time to time.”
The word “Islam” as we know it as a religion most definitively goes back to the Quran. However, note that Islam actually means submission in short, and in this context submitting oneself to the law and ideals of God. It is both a noun and a verb at the same time. In other words, the religion is an act of submission to God. Please notice that this makes it very difficult to find this word in the Quran to mean the religion of Islam (vs. Judaism for example) as we know it today. That is because the Quran does not bother with classifying a new religion for muslims, but it tries to get people to submit to the laws of the Eternal Creator, as other monotheistic religions do. Therefore, Quran does not truly bring a seperate religion, it rather clarifies or emphasizes the same religion that is God’s religion that was brought by the prophets (Jesus, Moses etc.).
Let`s examine this verse:
3:85: “If anyone desires a religion other than submission to God/Islam, never will it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter He will be in the ranks of those who have lost.”
Here, “a religion other than submission to God” could mean submitting to wealth, reputation, bad deeds, or man made and mystisized idols etc. instead of the Eternal Creator. Basically, this command is the command of all monotheistic religions including Chritianity and Judaism. Except, this act of submission to God is referred to as “Islam” in the Quran.
There is a place in the Quran that refers to the religion as literally “The Islam” (Al-Islam in Arabic), as though it was referring to the Islam religion as we know it today:
3:19: “The religion before God is Islam (submission to His Will): Nor did the People of the Book dissent therefrom except through envy of each other, after knowledge had come to them. But if any deny the signs of God, God is swift in calling to account.”
Notice, however, that the translator felt the need to put in parenthesis the verbal meaning of Islam: submission to His (God’s) Will. That is because even the word “Islam” here coming close to the meaning of the religion of Islam (noun) as we know it today, it is impossible to refer to it without also meaning the verb – submission. If you look at this verse again, submission to the religion of the Eternal Creator would be the claim of all monotheistic religions. The rest of the verse is interestingly referring to the People of the Book, who are the people that received written message from God (Christians, Jews etc.). The verse goes on to say they dissented due to envy of each other, even though they knew right from wrong. So, the verse calls on them and all humanity to submit to the laws of the Eternal Creator. This is NOT saying Jews and Christians need to convert to Islam (noun usage only).
In conclusion, Quran considers itself a unifier, a clarifier, and a reminder or approver of the true path that was sent to humanity beforehand. That path here is called submission to the rules and laws of the Eternal Creator (God). The word “Islam” -a verb and a noun- exactly means that. It does not really refer to a different religion that is segragated or in competition with other monotheistic religions (Christianity, Judaism etc.). One should consider the real meaning of Islam when they are making it to mean a terrorist movement, a source of backwardness and brutality, or a political movement etc.
Just like the word “Islamic” is often a misused word, the word “Islamist” is a horrible, devilish made up derivative of the word Islam.
Today’s big news for me is what seems to be a terrorist attack by ISIS in France. The link to BBC article is below, and it keeps updating, so if you go there you should see the latest news about the subject matter.
Man decapitated in attack near Lyon
When I first read the news earlier today many things were uncertain. Decapitation, and black flags with white arabic writings were certain. BBC immediately published this article about Islamic terrorism, ISIS connection, and what was going on in Kobane by association. All these were concluded from a stand alone head, and black flags. Theoretically, things anyone could phisically accomplish.
The article above uses two descriptions: “Islamist attack” and “Islamist radicals”. Below is a quote from the title:
“France has begun a terror investigation after a decapitated body was found at the scene of a suspected Islamist attack on a US-owned gas factory near the south-eastern city of Lyon.”
To tell you the truth, after getting to know about the details I also thought there may be a connection between this attack and the Psychopaths of Syria and Iraq (PSI, is the acronym I use instead of ISIS or its derivatives). Alternatively, it could have been done by any other group with phisical or conceptual connection to PSI. Nevertheless, I take issue on the fact that this is to be considered an “Islamist attack”, done by “Islamist radicals”.
First, philologically what are the areas the word “Islamist” is used? We understand its combination with terror, but anywhere else? Since this word stems from the word Islam, it must have some use in the religion. Take for instance Islamist temple, or Islamist country. Neither of these make any sense, and are not in use. These two examples could only imply a terrorist connection in today’s world. The suffix “-ist”, adds the meanings ‘one who’ or ‘that which’ to the foregoing word, such as artist, scientist or dentist. I suppose Islamist would mean a person who does Islam (the religion). That is meanigless by itself. Note that there is a name for a person who practices the religion, and that is muslim. In the final analysis the only use of the word “Islamist” is as it pertains to a an act of terrorism.
Second, religiously this word is also meaningless. As mentioned above, there is no use of this word in the religious life itself. In the Quran there are mentions of muslims, there are people who fight on the side of the muslim society (these are called soldiers), there are the people who worship to a pantheon of gods, there are people who appear to be muslims only for their societal benefits, there are prophets, societies etc. No description in the Quran can be adjusted to mean Islamist.
As a result, I have to conclude that the word “Islamist” can only mean something in conjunction with a terrorist act. The only benefit of the use of this word can be to the Western politics, which seem to try to keep the religion of Islam and its people under scrutiny, and this is an understandable political agenda. Clearly, their best allies are the terrorist groups such as PSI, who are not living a religious life, are not muslims, and conduct acts of violence under God’s watch, in contradiction with Quran’s and Bible’s teachings.
It is not Islam-ic. 