Question : I am a non-muslim learning about Islam. My question is regarding the recent earthquake in Haiti. If God is Love, if Allah is All Merciful, then why do people suffer?

Why do innocent men, women and children have to endure unspeakable hardship? How can I believe in a Merciful and Loving God when He allows so much suffering? Michelle Lee, UK

Answer : “Or do you think that you will enter Heaven without being tested like those who were tested before you? They endured suffering and adversity, and were so shaken in spirit that even the Prophet and those of faith who were with him cried: ‘When will the help of Allah come?’ Ah! Truly, Allah’s help is always near!” [Holy Quran 2:214]

Dear Sister - Thanks a lot for your question. The recent earthquakes in Haiti brings tears to our eyes. Our hearts bleed for the suffering and pains of our brothers and sisters—Muslims and non-Muslims—who are victims of the disaster.

May the Almighty alleviate the suffering of the victims and reward those who hurry to aid them.

The Test.

By earthquakes, Allah Almighty tests the faith, patience, cooperation, helpfulness, and brotherhood of His servants. A believer can be tested with adversity and prosperity.

Suffering is a test for us, a test of our patience. Peace and prosperity is also a test, a test of our gratitude to Allah.

The test may be mild and light or hard and exacting. Sickness, fear, hunger, poverty, death, loss of power or control, losing a battle, failing an examination, failing a marriage, failing a business, losing a job or a friend…etc. are just few examples of testing with adversity.

Testing may also be in the form of blessings, wealth, health, knowledge, children, family, security, peace…etc. What to do with these blessings is a great test. The test may also be given, by testing us by one another. The true believers submit to God in all cases and under all circumstances.

We will surely test you through some fear, hunger, and loss of money, lives, and crops. Give good news to the steadfast. [2:155]

You should know that your money and your children are a test, and that GOD possesses a great recompense. [8:28]

You will certainly be tested, through your money and your lives, and you will hear from those who received the scripture, and form idol worshippers, a lot of insult. If you steadfastly persevere and lead a righteous life, this will prove the strength of your faith. [3:186]

This is a tragedy but it’s also a wake up call.

Allah wants us to really feel and experience our desperate need for Him. He wants us to persevere, patiently. He wants us to repose our complete trust in His mercy, so that we can set ourselves apart from those who disbelieve, those who stand against faith.

Earthquakes are, in fact, signs from Allah Most High.

A Muslim has to reflect on Allah’s creation and always be mindful of His signs. As for the recent earthquakes and disasters, they are not necessarily a type of punishment. Allah Almighty may warn His servants against committing sins and violating His laws.

It Wasn’t God, It Was Scientists

Look at all the scientific experiments being done on earth. Huge holes are dug to the core of the earth. Testing of nuclear experiments are done. The result - calamities and natural disasters.

Scientists who boost of being conquered the world, couldn’t predict the disaster in advance - which could have averted the intensity of the disaster.

Earthquakes Reiterates the Need for Day of Judgement and Afterlife

Earthquakes are a manifestation that this world is not the end. In a world where dreams are left unfulfilled. Buildings brought down in a split second. Earthquakes and other natural disasters teach humanity a great lesson - there needs to be a life where there is no sorrow. A life where only happiness exists. A life where all our dreams are fulfilled. For a believer, earthquakes reiterates the need for an afterlife.

What should the Believers do?

Say, “Nothing happens to us, except what GOD has decreed for us. He is our Lord and Master. In GOD the believers shall trust.” [9:51]

“When an affliction befalls them, they say, “We belong to God, and to Him we are returning.” [2:156]

In face of adversity or hardship, the true believers are expected to submit. We are being tested to see if we are truly submitters or not, whether we submit to God during the bad times and the good times or not. God gave us the correct solution in His book, the Quran. Submitting to God, means to accept whatever God has given us or taken away from us, to steadfastly persevere and to wait for God’s victory. In practical terms, let us put it in steps;

Whenever an adversity or hardship afflict a believer, he/she should:

(1) Should not panic. God does test the believers and if He is punishing us, it is to get our attention to correct something wrong we did. He is helping us out instead of leaving us in the dark. Since we asked for our freedom, He gave it to us and it is up to us to correct any wrong doing on our own, He only points things to us and we freely chose.

(2) Check to see if he/she has got off the right path. Is he/she still worshipping God alone and following His book. Correct your path and stay with God alone, if you were not.

(3) Submit to God, by accepting what happened to you without objecting.

“We will surely test you through some fear, hunger, and loss of money, lives, and crops. Give good news to the steadfast. When an affliction befalls them, they say, “We belong to GOD, and to Him we are returning.” These have deserved blessings from their Lord and mercy. These are the guided ones.” [2:155-157]

(4) Implore God to remove the hardship or adversity. God wants us to implore Him. Do not rush an answer. God runs everything.

“Your Lord says, “Ask Me, and I will respond to you. Surely, those who are too arrogant to worship Me will enter Hell Fire, forcibly.”  [40:60]

(5) Steadfastly persevere - this is the greatest trait of the true believers. God promised those who steadfastly persevere great recompense.

“O you who believe, seek help through steadfastness and the Contact Prayers (Salat). GOD is with those who steadfastly persevere.” [ 2:153]

(6) Believe that God’s promise is the truth and that victory belongs to the believers, but you have to pass your test. Victory is in the way. God’s victory is near.

“We have sent messengers before you to their people, with profound signs. Subsequently, we punished those who transgressed. It is our duty that we grant victory to the believers.” [30:47]

(7) There are two kinds of victories according to the Quran, victory in this life and the bigger and most important victory in the Hereafter. God has promised the believers both victories. Some of these victories may be in disguise and not apparent to other people. Other victories are obvious and clear.

The true believer can identify many victories in his/her life even during the most difficult times or the time of testing. Of the many victories that the believers will see in this life, finding the right path and accepting God alone is the most important one. The believers accept whichever victory or testing comes  their way, and always strive to achieve the eternal victory in the Hereafter.

With the help of God and the assurance in the Quran, the true believers will make the best out of their test or punishment and wait for God’s victory. They are absolutely sure that God’s Victory is near and that God’s victory is their reward.

Allah Knows Best

Question : Is it not true that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has copied the Qur’an from the Bible?

Answer : “Or do they say, ‘He invented it’? Rather, it is the truth from your Lord, [O Muhammad], that you may warn a people to whom no warner has come before you [so] perhaps they will be guided.” [Al-Qur’an 32:2-3]

The day-to-day life of the Prophet is an open book for all to see. We discuss few facts that makes a person ponder while discussing the authenticity of Quran.

1. MUHUMMAD (PBUH) WAS AN ILLITERATE

The theory that Muhummad (pbuh) authored the Qur’an or copied it from other sources can be disproved by the single historical fact that he was illiterate.

“And thou was not (able) to recite a Book before this (Book came), nor art thou (able) to transcribe it with thy right hand: in that case, indeed, would the talkers of vanities have doubted.” [29/48]

Allah (swt) knew that many would doubt the authenticity of the Qur’an and would ascribe it to Prophet Muhummad (pbuh). Therefore Allah in His Divine Wisdom chose the last and final Messenger to be an ‘Ummi’, i.e. unlettered, so that the talkers of vanity would not then have the slightest justification to doubt the Prophet. The accusation of his enemies that he had copied the Qur’an from other sources and rehashed it all in a beautiful language might have carried some weight, but even this flimsy pretence has been deprived to the unbeliever and the cynic.

Allah reconfirms in the Qur’an in Surah Al A’raf chapter 7 verse 157:

“Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (Scriptures) in the Law and the Gospel”

The prophecy of coming of the unlettered Prophet (pbuh) is also mentioned in the Bible in the book of Isaiah chapter 29 verse 12.

“And the book is delivered to him that is not learned.” [Isaiah 29:12]

The Qur’an testifies in no less than four different places that the Prophet (pbuh) was illiterate. It is also mentioned in Surah A’raf chapter 7 verse 158 and in Surah Al-Jumu’a chapter 62 verse 2.

2. ARABIC VERSION OF THE BIBLE WAS NOT PRESENT

The Arabic version of the Bible was not present at the time of Prophet Muhummad (pbuh). The earliest Arabic version of the Old Testament is that of R. Saadias Gaon of 900 C.E. - more than 250 years after the death of the Prophet (pbuh). The oldest Arabic version of the new Testament was published by Erpenius in 1616 C.E. - about a thousand years after the demise of the Prophet.

3. SIMILARITIES IN THE QUR’AN AND THE BIBLE DUE TO COMMON SOURCE

Similarities between the Qur’an and the Bible does not necessarily mean that the former has been copied from the latter. In fact it gives evidence that both of them are based on a common third source; all divine revelations came from the same source - the one universal God. No matter what human changes were introduced into some of these Judeo-Christian and other older religious scriptures that had distorted their originality, there are some areas that have remained free from distortion and thus are common to many religions.

It is true that there are some similar parallels between the Qur’an and the Bible but this is not sufficient to accuse Muhummad (pbuh) of compiling or copying from the Bible. The same logic would then also be applicable to teachings of Christianity and Judaism and thus one could wrongly claim that Jesus (pbuh) was not a genuine Prophet (God forbid) and that he simply copied from the Old Testament.

The similarities between the two signify a common source that is one true God and the continuation of the basic message of monotheism and not that the later prophets have plagarised from the previous prophets.

If someone copies during an examination he will surely not write in the answer sheet that he has copied from his neighbour or Mr. XYZ. Prophet Muhummad (pbuh) gave due respect and credit to all the previous prophets (peace be upon them). The Qur’an also mentions the various revelations given by Almighty God to different prophets.

4. MUSLIMS BELIEVE IN THE TAURAH, ZABOOR, INJEEL AND QUR’AN

Four revelations of Allah (swt) are mentioned by name in the Qur’an: the Taurah, the Zaboor, the Injeel and the Qur’an.

Taurah, the revelation i.e. the Wahi given to Moosa (a. s.) i.e. Moses (pbuh).

Zaboor, the revelation i.e. the Wahi given to Dawood (a.s.) i.e. David (pbuh).

Injeel, the revelation i.e. the Wahi given to Isa (A.S.) ie. Jesus (pbuh).

‘Al-Qur’an’, the last and final Wahi i.e. revelation given to the last and final Messenger Muhammad (pbuh).

It is an article of faith for every Muslim to believe in all the Prophets of God and all revelations of God. However, the present day Bible has the first five books of the Old Testament attributed to Moses and the Psalms attributed to David. Moreover the New Testament or the four Gospels of the New Testament are not the Taurah, the Zaboor or the Injeel, which the Qur’an refers to. These books of the present day Bible may partly contain the word of God but these books are certainly not the exact, accurate and complete revelations given to the prophets.

The Qur’an presents all the different prophets of Allah as belonging to one single brotherhood; all had a similar prophetic mission and the same basic message. Because of this, the fundamental teachings of the major faiths cannot be contradictory, even if there has been a considerable passage of time between the different prophetic missions, because the source of these missions was one: Almighty God, Allah. This is why the Qur’an says that the differences which exist between various religions are not the responsibility of the prophets, but of the followers of these prophets who forgot part of what they had been taught, and furthermore, misinterpreted and changed the scriptures. The Qur’an cannot therefore be seen as a scripture which competes with the teachings of Moses, Jesus and the other prophets. On the contrary, it confirms, completes and perfects the messages that they brought to their people.

Another name for the Qur’an is the ‘The Furqan’ which means the criteria to judge the right from the wrong, and it is on the basis of the Qur’an that we can decipher which part of the previous scriptures can be considered to be the word of God.

5. SCIENTIFIC COMPARISON AND DIFFERENCE BETWEEN QUR’AN AND BIBLE

If you glance through the Bible and the Qur’an you may find several points which appear to be exactly the same in both of them, but when you analyse them closely, you realize that there is a difference of ‘chalk and cheese’ between them. Only based on historical details, it is difficult for someone who is neither conversant with Christianity or Islam to come to a firm decision as to which of the scriptures is true; however if you verify the relevant passages of both the scriptures against scientific knowledge, you will yourself realize the truth.

a) Creation of the Universe in Six Days

As per the Bible, in the first book of Genesis in Chapter One, the universe was created in six days and each day is defined as a twenty-four hours period. Even though the Qur’an mentions that the universe was created in six ‘Ayyaams’, ‘Ayyaam’ is the plural of years; this word has two meanings: firstly, it means a standard twenty-four hours period i.e. a day, and secondly, it also means stage, period or epoch which is a very long period of time.

When the Qur’an mentions that the universe was created in six ‘Ayyaams’, it refers to the creation of the heavens and the earth in six long periods or epochs; scientists have no objection to this statement. The creation of the universe has taken billions of years, which proves false or contradicts the concept of the Bible which states that the creation of the Universe took six days of twenty-four hour durations each.

b) Sun Created After the Day

The Bible says in chapter 1, verses 3-5, of Genesis that the phenomenon of day and night was created on the first day of creation of the Universe by God. The light circulating in the universe is the result of a complex reaction in the stars; these stars were created according to the Bible (Genesis chapter 1 verse 14 to 19) on the fourth day. It is illogical to mention the result that is the light (the phenomenon of day and night) was created on the first day of Creation when the cause or source of the light was created three days later. Moreover the existence of evening and morning as elements of a single day is only conceivable after the creation of the earth and its rotation around the sun. In contrast with the contents of the Bible on this issue, the Qur’an does not give any unscientific sequence of Creation. Hence it is absolutely absurd to say that Prophet Muhummad (pbuh) copied the passages pertaining to the creation of the universe from the Bible but missed out this illogical and fantastic sequence of the Bible.

c) Creation of the Sun, The Earth and the Moon

According to the Bible, Book of Genesis, chapter 1, verses 9 to 13, the earth was created on the third day, and as per verses 14 to 19, the sun and the moon were created on the fourth day. The earth and the moon emanated, as we know, from their original star, the Sun. Hence to place the creation of the sun and the moon after the creation of the earth is contrary to the established idea about the formation of the solar system.

d) Vegetation Created on the third day and Sun on the fourth day

According to the Bible, Book of Genesis, chapter 1, verses 11-13, vegetation was created on the third day along with seed-bearing grasses, plants and trees; and further on as per verses 14-19, the sun was created on the fourth day. How is it scientifically possible for the vegetation to have appeared without the presence of the sun, as has been stated in the Bible?

If Prophet Muhummad (pbuh) was indeed the author of the Qur’an and had copied its contents from the Bible, how did he manage to avoid the factual errors that the Bible contains? The Qur’an does not contain any statements which are incompatible with scientific facts.

e) The Sun and the Moon both Emit light

According to the Bible both the sun and the moon emit their own light. In the Book of Genesis, chapter 1, verse 16 says, “And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night”.

Science tells us today that the moon does not have its own light. This confirms the Qur’anic concept that the light of the moon is a reflected light. To think that 1400 years ago, Prophet Muhummad (pbuh) corrected these scientific errors in the Bible and then copied such corrected passages in the Qur’an is to think of something impossible.

6. ADAM (PBUH), THE FIRST MAN ON EARTH, LIVED 5,800 YEARS AGO

As per the genealogy of Jesus Christ given in the Bible, from Jesus through Abraham (pbuh) to the first man on earth i.e. Adam (pbuh), Adam appeared on the earth approximately 5800 years ago:

1948 years between Adam (pbuh) and Abraham (pbuh)

Approximately 1800 years between Abraham (pbuh) and Jesus (pbuh)

2000 years from Jesus (pbuh) till today

These figures are further confused by the fact that the Jewish calendar is currently on or about 5800 years old.

There is sufficient evidence from archaeological and anthropological sources to suggest that the first human being on earth was present tens of thousands of years ago and not merely 5,800 years ago as is suggested by the Bible.

The Qur’an too speaks about Adam (pbuh) as the first man on earth but it does not suggest any date or period of his life on earth, unlike the Bible - what the Bible says in this regard is totally incompatible with science.

7. NOAH (PBUH) AND THE FLOOD

The Biblical description of the flood in Genesis chapter 6, 7 and 8 indicates that the deluge was universal and it destroyed every living thing on earth, except those present with Noah (pbuh) in the ark. The description suggests that the event took place 1656 years after the creation of Adam (pbuh) or 292 years before the birth of Abraham, at a time when Noah (pbuh) was 600 years old. Thus the flood may have occurred in the 21st or 22nd Century B.C.

This story of the flood, as given in the Bible, contradicts scientific evidence from archaelogical sources which indicate that the eleventh dynasty in Egypt and the third dynasty in Babylonia were in existence without any break in civilization and in a manner totally unaffected by any major calamity which may have occurred in the 21st century B.C. This contradicts the Biblical story that the whole world had been immersed in the flood water. In contrast to this, the Qur’anic presentation of the story of Noah and the flood does not conflict with scientific evidence or archaeological data; firstly, the Qur’an does not indicate any specific date or year of the occurance of that event, and secondly, according to the Qur’an the flood was not a universal phenomenon which destroyed complete life on earth. In fact the Qur’an specifically mentions that the flood was a localised event only involving the people of Noah.

It is illogical to assume that Prophet Muhummad (pbuh) had borrowed the story of the flood from the Bible and corrected the mistakes before mentioning it in the Qur’an.

8. MOSES (PBUH) AND PHARAOH OF THE EXODUS

The story of Moses (pbuh) and the Pharaoh of the Exodus are very much identical in the Qur’an and the Bible. Both scriptures agree that the Pharaoh drowned when he tried to pursue Moses (pbuh) and led the Israelites across a stretch of water that they crossed. The Qur’an gives an additional piece of information in Surah Yunus chapter 10 verse 92:

“This day shall We save thee in thy body, that thou mayest be a sign to those who come after thee! But verily, many among mankind are heedless of Our Signs!”

[Al-Qur’an 10:92]

Dr. Maurice Bucaille, after a thorough research proved that although Rameses II was known to have persecuted the Israelites as per the Bible, he actually died while Moses (pbuh) was taking refuge in Median. Rameses II’s son Merneptah who succeeded him as Pharaoh drowned during the exodus. In 1898, the mummified body of Merneptah was found in the valley of Kings in Egypt. In 1975, Dr. Maurice Bucaille with other doctors received permission to examine the Mummy of Merneptah, the findings of which proved that Merneptah probably died from drowning or a violent shock which immediately preceeded the moment of drowning. Thus the Qur’anic verse that we shall save his body as a sign, has been fulfilled by the Pharaohs’ body being kept at the Royal Mummies room in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

This verse of the Qur’an compelled Dr. Maurice Bucaille, who was a Christian then, to study the Qur’an. He later wrote a book ‘The Bible, the Qur’an and Science’, and confessed that the author of the Qur’an can be no one else besides God Himself. Thus he embraced Islam.

CONCLUSION

These evidences are sufficient to conclude that the Qur’an was not copied from the Bible, but that the Qur’an is the Furqaan - ‘the Criteria’ to judge right from wrong and it should be used to decipher which portion of the Bible may be considered as the Word of God.

Question : “Muslims look at Kaabah and do the worship. Is this another form of Idol worship  ?”

Answer : “We have rendered the shrine (the Ka`aba) a focal point for the people, and a safe sanctuary. You may use Abraham’s shrine as a prayer house. We commissioned Abraham and Ismail: “You shall purify My house for those who visit, those who live there, and those who bow and prostrate.” [Holy Quran; 2:125]

Kaabah is a creation, there is no denial in that. Then why do muslims face Kaabah and pray ?

Kaaba, also known as, Ka’bah, Kabah and Caaba is the center of the holiest place of worship in Islam (Submission in English), i.e. the Sacred Mosque of Mecca, Al Masjid Al-Haram. Its name is an Arabic word that means a home or a room that looks like a cube. It is a cube shaped stone structure built in the middle of the Sacred Mosque.

The Kaaba is the first house built for the worship of God. It is in Macca.The Kaaba was built by prophet Abraham as a landmark for the House of God, for the sole purpose of worshipping of God alone.

“As Abraham raised the foundations of the shrine, together with Ismail (they prayed): “Our Lord, accept this from us. You are the Hearer, the Omniscient. ” [Quran; 2:127]

The Kaabah is used as a focal point for prayer, to unify the muslims in their prayer. Not as an object of worship.

It was the FIRST house of worship built:

“Verily, the first house (of worship) appointed for mankind was that in Bakka (Mecca), full of blessing, and guidance for all people.” Qur’an 3:96

Kaabah gives a communal direction that unifies the worshippers around the world. The concept is a symbolic representation of One God and One nation, and there is not all any idea or belief of worship in it. If there is any, then the person who does this will go out of Islam

Allah knows best.

Question : What is wrong if two individuals desire to get involved in a sexual relationship with each other ?

Answer : “And do not go near zina (fornication). It is indeed a shameful and an evil path.” (Surah Al Isrâ’, Ayah 32)

Sexuality is a divine gift. Its foremost function amongst living creature is reproduction. It is also true that in the case of man, besides reproduction, his mental health, solidarity of the family, the peace of social life : all are linked to sexuality.

Islam teaches that if two individuals are to have sexual relations with each other they are to do so only throughthe contract of marriage.

Rasûlullah (SA) said: “O young men, who amongst you can afford to get married, should marry, for this will be a means of restraining the eyes from casting an evil glance and keeping one pure and chaste.” (Mishkât)

According to Islam, the sexual act between a married couple is an act of worship.

In the sexual act of each of you there is a sadaqah (charity or gift).” The Companions replied: “O Messenger of God! When one of us fulfils his sexual desire, will he be given a reward for that?” And he said, “Do you not think that were he to act upon it unlawfully, he would be sinning? Likewise, if he acts upon it lawfully he will be rewarded.(Buqari)

Non-marital sexual life destroy the very fabric of all values in society. It cast the seeds of suspicious within one’s marital life. Such suspicion then create cracks within the rapport between hearts. It disrupts family relations - It even gravely affect the mental health of future generations.

The greatest social problem continues to be the girls who are rendered pregnant at a very tender age. Another important issue with which the government continues to grapple is the problem of illegitimate children.

Social scientists warn that such violations of behavioural norm leads to the collapse of the institution of the family and consequently create social problems of a grave nature which will, in the long run, end in the total failure and destruction of the western world.

Islam strives for the creation of a society wherein a peaceful family environment and marital relationship prevails. This is the kind of society that Islam envisions and inspire mankind to follow.

Question : “I know about a new movie called ‘2012′ which portray 2012 as the end of the world. Can you tell me Islamic point of view on this topic ?   Janet , Texas, US

Answer : ”Surely, knowledge of the Hour is with Allah alone. ” (Holy Qur’an 31:34)

The knowledge of time of Qiyamah (End of the world) has not been given to any angel, man or being. The exact time of the Doomsday is given neither in Qur’an nor in Hadith.  It is something that only Allah knows - as mentioned in the above Quranic verse.

Much like Y2K, 2012 has been analyzed and the science of the end of the Earth thoroughly studied. Contrary to some of the common beliefs out there, the science behind the end of the world quickly unravels when pinned down to the 2012 timeline. Below, NASA Scientists answer several questions that we’re frequently asked regarding 2012.

Question (Q): Are there any threats to the Earth in 2012? Many Internet websites say the world will end in December 2012.

Answer (A): Nothing bad will happen to the Earth in 2012. Our planet has been getting along just fine for more than 4 billion years, and credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012.

Q: What is the origin of the prediction that the world will end in 2012?

A: The story started with claims that Nibiru, a supposed planet discovered by the Sumerians, is headed toward Earth. This catastrophe was initially predicted for May 2003, but when nothing happened the doomsday date was moved forward to December 2012. Then these two fables were linked to the end of one of the cycles in the ancient Mayan calendar at the winter solstice in 2012 — hence the predicted doomsday date of December 21, 2012.

Q: Does the Mayan calendar end in December 2012?

A: Just as the calendar you have on your kitchen wall does not cease to exist after December 31, the Mayan calendar does not cease to exist on December 21, 2012. This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period but then — just as your calendar begins again on January 1 — another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar.

Q: Could a phenomena occur where planets align in a way that impacts Earth?

A: There are no planetary alignments in the next few decades, Earth will not cross the galactic plane in 2012, and even if these alignments were to occur, their effects on the Earth would be negligible. Each December the Earth and sun align with the approximate center of the Milky Way Galaxy but that is an annual event of no consequence.

Q: Is there a planet or brown dwarf called Nibiru or Planet X or Eris that is approaching the Earth and threatening our planet with widespread destruction?

A: Nibiru and other stories about wayward planets are an Internet hoax. There is no factual basis for these claims. If Nibiru or Planet X were real and headed for an encounter with the Earth in 2012, astronomers would have been tracking it for at least the past decade, and it would be visible by now to the naked eye. Obviously, it does not exist. Eris is real, but it is a dwarf planet similar to Pluto that will remain in the outer solar system; the closest it can come to Earth is about 4 billion miles.

Q: What is the polar shift theory? Is it true that the earth’s crust does a 180-degree rotation around the core in a matter of days if not hours?

A: A reversal in the rotation of Earth is impossible. There are slow movements of the continents (for example Antarctica was near the equator hundreds of millions of years ago), but that is irrelevant to claims of reversal of the rotational poles. However, many of the disaster websites pull a bait-and-shift to fool people. They claim a relationship between the rotation and the magnetic polarity of Earth, which does change irregularly, with a magnetic reversal taking place every 400,000 years on average. As far as we know, such a magnetic reversal doesn’t cause any harm to life on Earth. A magnetic reversal is very unlikely to happen in the next few millennia, anyway.

Earth, as seen in the Blue Marble: Next Generation collection of images, showing the color of the planet’s surface in high resolution. This image shows South America from September 2004.

Q: Is the Earth in danger of being hit by a meteor in 2012?

A: The Earth has always been subject to impacts by comets and asteroids, although big hits are very rare. The last big impact was 65 million years ago, and that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs. Today NASA astronomers are carrying out a survey called the Spaceguard Survey to find any large near-Earth asteroids long before they hit. We have already determined that there are no threatening asteroids as large as the one that killed the dinosaurs. All this work is done openly with the discoveries posted every day on the NASA NEO Program Office website, so you can see for yourself that nothing is predicted to hit in 2012.

Q: How do NASA scientists feel about claims of pending doomsday?

A: For any claims of disaster or dramatic changes in 2012, where is the science? Where is the evidence? There is none, and for all the fictional assertions, whether they are made in books, movies, documentaries or over the Internet, we cannot change that simple fact. There is no credible evidence for any of the assertions made in support of unusual events taking place in December 2012.

Q: Is there a danger from giant solar storms predicted for 2012?

A: Solar activity has a regular cycle, with peaks approximately every 11 years. Near these activity peaks, solar flares can cause some interruption of satellite communications, although engineers are learning how to build electronics that are protected against most solar storms. But there is no special risk associated with 2012. The next solar maximum will occur in the 2012-2014 time frame and is predicted to be an average solar cycle, no different than previous cycles throughout history.

Islam and Doomsday

Islam believes in Doomsday - a day when the entire world will be destroyed. This day is called “Day of judgement.”

Holy Quran has explicitly stated this “Verily, Allah! With Him (Alone) is the knowledge of the Hour“ (Surah Luqman 31/34).

So there is no indication in Quran or the saying of the prophet Muhammad (SA)  that 2012 is the end of the world - according to what projected by the mayan calender, and as potrayed by the movie.

Signs Before the End of The World

The exact time of the Doomsday is given neither in Qur’an nor in Hadith. But Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) have pointed out the distinctive signs in Hadiths and in Qur’anic verses, which will happen near to the last hour constantly warned the believers for the appointed day.

There are major and minor signs that point to the Doomsday event. Here are 68 minor signs and 12 major signs before the Doomsday.

The Major Signs:

Although they appear here in no particular order, it is important to point out that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said that these last, major signs will follow each other like pearls falling off of a necklace…

1. Coming of Masih ad-Dajjal (The AntiChrist)
2. Arrival of The Mahdi
3. The appearance of Masih al-Isa (Jesus Christ), the son of Mary (peace be upon him)
4. Yajuj and Majuj (Gog and Magog)
5. The destruction of the Kabah and the recovery of its treasure
6. Emergence of the Beast
7. The smoke
8. Three major landslides (one in the East, one in the West, and one on the Arabian peninsula)
9. The wind will take the souls of the believers
10. The rising of the sun from the west
11. The fire will drive the people to their final gathering place
12. Three blasts of the trumpet (fear & terror, death, resurrection)

The Minor Signs:

1. The disappearance of knowledge and the appearance of ignorance (Bukhari, Muslim, Ibn Majah, & Ahmad)
2. Books/writing will be widespread and (religious) knowledge will be low (Ahmad)
3. Adultery and fornication will be prevalent (The Prophet, peace be upon him, said that this has never happened without new diseases befalling the people, which their ancestors had not known.) (Bukhari, Muslim, Ibn Majah, & Al-Haythami)
4. When fornication becomes widespread among your leaders (The Prophet, peace be upon him, said that this will happen when the people stop forbidding evil) (Ibn Majah)
5. Adultery and fornication will be performed in the open
6. The consumption of intoxicants will be widespread (Bukhari & Muslim)
7. Women will outnumber men……eventually 50:1 (Bukhari, Muslim, & Ahmad)
8. Killing, killing, killing (Bukhari, Muslim, Ibn Majah, & Ahmad)
9. The nations of the earth will gather against the Muslims like hungry people going to sit down to a table full of food. This will occur when the Muslims are large in number, but “like the foam of the sea”.
10. People will beat others with whips like the tails of oxen (Muslim) ?The Slave Trade
11. The children will be filled with rage (at-Tabarani, al-Hakim)
12. Children will be foul (at-Tabarani, al-Hakim)
13. Women will conspire (at-Tabarani, al-Hakim)
14. Rain will be acidic or burning (at-Tabarani, al-Hakim)
15. Children of fornication will become widespread or prevalent (at-Tabarani, al-Hakim)
16. When a trust becomes a means of making a profit (at-Tirmidhi, Al-Haythami)
17. Gains will be shared out only among the rich, with no benefit to the poor (at-Tirmidhi)
18. Paying zakat becomes a burden and miserliness becomes widespread; charity is given reluctantly (at-Tirmidhi & Al-Haythami)
19. Miserliness will be thrown into the hearts of people (Bukhari)
20. Episodes of sudden death will become widespread (Ahmad)
21. There will be people who will be brethren in public but enemies in secret (He was asked how that would come about and replied, “Because they will have ulterior motives in their mutual dealings and at the same time will fear one another.”) (at-Tirmidhi)
22. When a man obeys his wife and disobeys his mother; and treats his friend kindly while shunning his father (at-Tirmidhi)
23. When voices are raised in the mosques (at-Tirmidhi)
24. People will walk in the marketplace with their thighs exposed
25. Great distances will be traversed in short spans of time
26. The people of Iraq will recieve no food and no money due to oppression by the Romans (Europeans) (Muslim)
27. People will hop between the clouds and the earth
28. A tribulation will enter everyones home (Ahmad)
29. The leader of a people will be the worst of them (at-Tirmidhi)
30. Leaders of people will be oppressors (Al-Haythami)
31. People will treat a man with respect out of fear for some evil he might do (at-Tirmidhi)
32. Men will begin to wear silk (at-Tirmidhi)
33. Female singers and musical instruments will become popular (at-Tirmidhi)
34. When singers become common (Al-Haythami)
35. People will dance late into the night
36. When the last ones of the Ummah begin to curse the first ones (at-Tirmidhi)
37. People will claim to follow the Qur’an but will reject hadith & sunnah (Abu Dawood)
38. People will believe in the stars (Al-Haythami)
39. People will reject al-Qadr (the Divine Decree of Destiny) (Al-Haythami)
40. Time will pass rapidly (Bukhari, Muslim, & Ahmad)
41. Good deeds will decrease (Bukhari)
42. Smog will appear over cities because of the evil that they are doing
43. People will be carrying on with their trade, but their will only be a few trustworthy persons
44. Wealth will increase so much so that if a man were given 10,000, he would not be content with it (Ahmad & Bukhari)
45. A man will pass by a grave and wish that he was in their place (Bukhari)
46. Earthquakes will increase (Bukhari & Muslim)
47. There will be attempts to make the deserts green
48. The appearance of false messengers (30 dajjals) (Bukhari)
49. Women will be naked in spite of being dressed, these women will be led astray & will lead others astray (Muslim)
50. The conquest of Constantinople by the Muslims (Ahmad)
51. The conquest of India by the Muslims, just prior to the return of Jesus, son of Mary (peace be upon both of them)(Ahmad, an-Nisa’i, at-Tabarani, al-Hakim)
52. When people begin to compete with others in the construction of taller buildings (Bukhari)
53. There will be a special greeting for the people of distinction (Ahmad)
54. The Euphrates will disclose a treasure (The Prophet, peace be upon him, said that whoever is present should not take anything from it) (Bukhari & Muslim)
55. Two large groups, adhering to the same religious teaching will fight each other with large numbers of casualties (Bukhari & Muslim)
56. Wild animals will be able to talk to humans (Ahmad)
57. A man will leave his home and his thigh or hip will tell him what is happening back at his home (Ahmad)
58. Years of deceit in which the truthful person will not be believed and the liar will be believed (Ahmad)
59. Bearing false witness will become widespread (Al-Haythami & Ahmad)
60. When men lie with men and women lie with women (Al-Haythami)
61. Trade will become so widespread that a woman will be forced to help her husband in business (Ahmad)
62. A woman will enter the workforce out of love for this world (Ahmad)
63. Arrogance will increase in the earth (at-Tabarani, al-Hakim)
64. Family ties will be cut (Ahmad)
65. There will be many women of child-bearing age who will no longer give birth.
66. There will be an abundance of food, much of which has no blessing in it.
67. People will refuse when offerred food.
68. Men will begin to look like women and women will begin to look like men

Question : “I believe that God is a power that expands the entire world. But to comprehend God I cannot do as a layman. What is the wrong in taking an earthly object and worship by seeing the God in it. ” Radha Krishnan, India

Answer : “Verily, I am Allah! None has the right to be worshipped but Me, so worship Me, and perform al-Salaah [prayer] for My Remembrance.” [Ta-Ha 20:14]

Right to worship is fundamental to every human being, and anyone has the right to worship whoever he wills, and no one can curb that freedom from him or her.

Truly it is right that we cannot comprehend how the God looks like, or how is He.  But the thought that to worship the God, we cannot do it directly, and thus we need someone in the middle to do it for us. This is the problem here.

Islam says that you can understand the Creator. How you can understand Him. Understand that He is One. Understand that His names and attributes are protected from the limitation that we give to creations. Then only worship Him - your true Lord.

Islamic point of view is that - “A creation should not worshipped. Only the Creator should be worshipped.” How much great a creation is, he/it should not be worshipped.

“O mankind! Worship your Lord (Allaah), Who has created you and those before you so that you may become al-muttaqoon (the pious).” [al-Baqarah 2:21]

Why does Islam deny worshipping a creation.

Answer to this question is that only one thing worthy of our worship, is our Creator. This is because, worship doesn’t not just include few ritualistic activities. But, worship is based on the thoughts and prayers that arise from a human mind. Within our heart. Within our soul. Whenever I have a problem, I raise my hand towards the Creator. This is worship.

1) The person to whom I raise my hand should be able to hear my prayers. From where a man does his prayers, within his tongue or within his body, Quran says that it is Allah who will know about it.

2) It should be able to answer to my prayers. Quran says that it is Allah who can do it as well.

3) In my prayers, do we know what is good or bad for us. What we pray, it could be based on our limited knowledge of what we need. I pray something thinking it is good for me. But actually it could be bad for us.  Do I know it. No I don’t know it.  But our creator is someone who know this information exactly well.  Quran says that Allah is the one who can do this.

Can we think that we are giving our worship to God and then give it to someone else.

Truly this should also not be done. For eg, a position that we should give to our father. Thinking that we are actually giving it to our father, can we give to someone else. Will this be acceptable to our father .

Or imagine a wife who should give certain rights to her husband. Now the wife is telling - thinking that it is husband, I am giving it to others. Can this be accepted ?

If it is No, then how is it that the worship and prayers, that should be given to the God, be given to someone else. Be it be a person or an idol. The question is not about person or Idol. It is about something other than the true God. If I do my worship to it, will it be a right thing to do.

So Islam actually is against worshipping the creation. Even if that creation is Prophet Muhammad (SA), the person who does that goes out of Islam.

“Such is Allaah, your Lord! None has the right to be worshipped but He, the Creator of all things. So worship Him (Alone), and He is the Wakeel (Trustee, Disposer of affairs, Guardian) over all things.”[al-An’aam 6:102]

Question : I find that muslim women are oppressed in Islam. Men have always upper hand and women are not given their right. Can you clarify this for me ?

People often fail to distinguish between culture and religion, Two things that are completely different..

Everybody focuses to Muslim women worldwide as oppressed, more specifically the Muslim Women of Afghanistan.

The media shows us how oppressed the Muslim women are there and people start linking three words in their minds: ‘Islam,’ ‘women’ and ‘oppression.’ Therefore, they think that Islam commands oppressing women.

People often fail to distinguish between culture and religion, two things that are completely different. In fact, Islam condemns oppression of any kind whether it is towards a woman or in general.

Now, the Qur’an is the sacred book by which Muslims live. This book was revealed 14 centuries ago to a man named Muhammad who would later become the Prophet. Fourteen centuries have passed and this book has not been changed since, not one letter has been altered.

In surah number 33, entitled Al-Ahzab (Arabic for ‘The Clans’), on verse 59, it says: “O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw cloaks all over their bodies. That will be better as they shall be known (as free respectable women) and will not be annoyed. And Allah is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most-Merciful.” This verse shows that Islam makes wearing a Hijab necessary, Hijab is the word used for covering, not only the headscarves (as some people may think) but also wearing loose clothes that are not too bright.

Sometimes, people see covered Muslim women and they think oppression. This is wrong. A Muslim woman is not oppressed, but she is liberated. This is because she is no longer valued for something material such as her good looks or the shape of her body. She compels others to judge her for her intelligence, kindness, honesty and personality. Therefore, people judge her for who she actually is.

Women cover their hair to be modest. When they wear loose clothes, they are trying to be modest. In fact, nuns cover their hair out of modesty. Also, when we see frequent pictures of the Virgin Mary, she is covering her hair out of modesty. Therefore, Muslim women are doing the exact same thing as righteous Christian women.

The lives of the people who accepted the Qur’an changed drastically. It had a tremendous impact on so many people, especially women. It was the first time openly declared that the souls of men and women are equal. They would be bestowed the same obligation as well as the same rewards.

In addition to being equal to men, women get economic independence. The money they bring into marriage is theirs as well as the money they earn. A woman is allowed in Islam to choose their own husbands and in extreme cases, divorce. A woman has the right to be educated, contrary to what the contemporary world might think. The responsibility is of the person who is raising her.

Now picture this: Fourteen hundred years ago Islam allowed women to vote for a leader. It was recently, in 1925, Canadian women became allowed to vote. Worst, in Quebec, the law became final in 1940. Muslim women got rights before Western women got any.

Islam is a religion that holds women in high regard. Long ago, when baby boys were born, they brought great joy to the family. Girls brought less and occasionally none. Actually, girls were hated so much that they were sometimes buried alive. Islam was always against this female infanticide.

The two great roles a woman plays in life are a wife and a mother. The Prophet once said to a group of men: “The best among you are those who are the best to their wives.” This shows that Islam highly encourages the well treating of the wives. This should be shown love, respect and care.

A man came to the Prophet, sallallahualayhe wa sallam, and asked: “Who among my kinfolk is worthy of my good companionship?” The Prophet, sallallahu alavhe wa sallam, replied: “Your mother” three times before saying: “Your father.” This indicates the impact that a mother has in a person’s life. So women are highly honored in this great religion. Islam is a only religion that treats women fairly. Oppression is condemned. I hope all of you know and remember this.

Aminah Assilmi was born as a Southern Baptist and was a feminist working for women’s rights. Although she was initially opposed by her entire family for accepting Islam in 1977, subsequently most of her family members accepted Islam. She was the President of the International Union of Muslim Women. She passed away on March 5th in a car accident. May Allah grant mercy to her soul and give her the best of paradise - Jannathul Firdous. Ameen. Let us read the life story of this inspiring women.

She was a Southern Baptist girl, a radical feminist, and a broadcast journalist. She was a girl with an unusual caliber, who excelled in school, received scholarships, ran her own business, and were competing with professionals and getting awards – all these while she was going to college. Then one day a computer error happened that made her take up a mission as a devout Christian. Eventually, however, it resulted into something opposite and changed her life completely around.

It was 1975 when for the first time computer was used to pre-register for a class in her college. She was working on her degree on Recreation. She pre-registered for a class and then went to Oklahoma City to take care of a business. Her return was delayed and she came back to college two weeks into the class. Making up the missed work was no problem for her, but she was surprised to find that the computer mistakenly registered her for a Theatre class, a class where students would be required to perform in front of others.

She was a very reticent girl and she was horrified to think about performing in front of others. She could not drop the class for it was too late to do so. Failing the class was also not a choice, for she was receiving a scholarship that was paying for her tuition and receiving an ‘F’ would have jeopardized it.

Advised by her husband, she went to her teacher to work out some other alternative to performing, such as preparing costumes, etc. Assured by the teacher that he would try to help her, she went to the next class and was shocked by what she saw. The class was full of Arabs and “camel jockeys”. That was enough for her. She came back home and decided not to go back to the class anymore. It was not possible for her to be in the middle of Arabs. “There was no way I was going to sit in a room full of dirty heathens!”

Her husband was calm as usual. He pointed out to her that God has a reason for everything and that she should think about more before quitting. Besides, there was the scholarship that was paying her tuition. She went behind locked doors for 2 days to think about. When she came out, she decided to continue the class. She felt that God gave her a task to convert the Arabs into Christianity.

Thus she found herself with a mission to accomplish. Throughout the class, she would be discussing Christianity with her Arab classmates. “I proceeded to explain to them how they would burn in the fires of hell for all eternity, if they did not accept Jesus as their personal savior. They were very polite, but did not convert. Then, I explained how Jesus loved them and had died on the cross to save them from their sins. All they had to do was accept him into their hearts.” They still did not convert, and so she decided to do something else: “I decided to read their own book to show to them that Islam was a false religion and Mohammed was a false God”.

At her request, one student gave her a copy of the Qur’an and another book on Islam. With these two books she started on her research, which she was to continue for the next one and half years. She read the Qur’an fully and another fifteen books on Islam. Then she came back to the Qur’an and re-read it. During her research, she started taking notes that she found objectionable and which she would be able to use to prove that Islam was a false religion.

Unconsciously, however, she was changing from within which did not escape the attention of her husband. “I was changing, just in little ways but enough to bother him. We used to go to the bar every Friday and Saturday, or to a party, and I no longer wanted to go. I was quieter and more distant.” She stopped drinking and eating pork. Her husband suspected her of having an affair with another man, for “it was only for a man that a woman changes”. Ultimately, she was asked to leave, and she soon found herself living in a separate apartment.

Watching A Rose Open - Petal By Petal

Throughout these times, she continued studying Islam and although she was changing subtly from within, she remained a devout Christian. Then one day, there was a knock on her door. It was a man in traditional Muslim robe, who appeared to her as a “man in a long white night gown with a red and white checkered table cloth on his head”. His name was Abdul-Aziz Al-Sheik and he was accompanied by three other men in similar dress. She was very offended by Muslim men coming to her in nightgowns and pajamas. She was further shocked when Abdul-Aziz told her that he understood that she waited to be a Muslim. She replied that she was a Christian and she did not have any plan to become a Muslim. However, she had some questions to ask if they had the time.

At her invitation, they came inside. She now brought up the questions and objections that she noted down while she was researching. “I will never forget his name”, she said of Abdul-Aziz who proved to be a very patient and soft-mannered person. “He was very patient and discussed every question with me. He never made me feel silly or that a question was stupid.” Abdul-Aziz listened to every question and objection and explained it within the proper context. “He explained that Allah had told us to seek knowledge and questions were one of the ways to accomplish that. When he explained something, it was like watching a rose open – petal by petal, until it reached its full glory. When I told him that I did not agree with something and why, he always said I was correct up to a point. Then he would show me how to look deeper and from different directions to reach a fuller understanding.”

It would not be long before she would externally submit to what she had already been submitting to internally during the last one and half years. Later in that same day, this Southern Baptist girl would declare in front of Abdul-Aziz and his companions: “I bear witness that there is no god but God and Mohammed is His Messenger.” It was May 21, 1977.

Conversion to Islam, or to any other religion for that matter, is not always a simple thing to do. Except for a few fortunate ones, a new Muslim usually face consequences. The convert may face isolation from family and friends, if not pressure to go back to the family faith. Sometimes, a convert may even face sever economic hardship, as in the case of those who are asked to leave the house because of converting to Islam. Some converts are fortunate to continue to be well respected by family and friends, but most of them face minor to severe hardship especially during the first few years after the conversion.

But the difficulty that Aminah Assilimi had to go through and the sacrifice that she had to make for the sake of her conviction and faith is almost unheard of. There are few who could rely so much on Allah as she did, standing firm and meeting the challenges, making sacrifices, and yet maintaining a positive posture and influencing people around with the beauty of what she found and believed in.

She lost most of her friends, for she was “no fun anymore”.

Her mother did not accept her becoming a Muslim and hoped that it was a temporary zeal and that she would soon grow out of it.

Her “mental health expert” sister thought that she lost her mind. She attempted to put her in a mental health institution.

Her father was a calm and wise man. People would come to him for advice and he could comfort anyone in distress. But when he heard that his daughter became a Muslim, he loaded his double-barrel shotgun and started on his way to kill her. “It is better that she be dead rather than suffering in the deepest of Hell”, he said.

She was now without friends and without family.

She soon started wearing hijab. The day she put it on, she was denied her job. She was now without family, friends, and job. But her greatest sacrifice was yet to come.

She and her husband both loved each other very much. But while she was studying Islam, her husband misunderstood her for her apparent changes. She became quieter and stopped going to the bar. Her changes were visible to him and he suspected her of having affair with another man, for whom she must have been changing. She could not explain to him what was happening. “There was no way to make him understand what was changing me because I did not know.” Eventually he asked her to leave and she started living separately.

After she openly accepted Islam, it went worse. A divorce was now inevitable. This was a time when Islam was little known, much less understood for what it is. She had two little children whom she loved dearly and whose custody should have rightfully be given to her. But in a grave violation of justice, she was denied their custody just because she became a Muslim. Before giving the formal verdict, the judge offered her a harsh choice: either renounce Islam and get custody of the children, or keep Islam and leave the children. She was given 20 minutes to make a decision.

She loved her children very dearly. It is perhaps the worst nightmare that a mother can have: asked to willfully leave her child - not for one day, month, or year, but forever. On the other hand, how could she keep the Truth away from her children and live as a hypocrite? “It was the most painful 20 minutes in my life”, she said in an interview. Those of us who are mothers and fathers, especially of young children, little imagination is needed to feel the pain and torment that she must have passed every second in those 20 minutes. What added further to her pain was that according to doctors, she could never bear another child because of certain complications. “I prayed like I had never done before … I knew that there was no safer place for my children to be than in the hands of Allah. If I denied Him, there would be no way in the future to show my children the wonders of being with Allah.”

She decided to retain Islam. Her two dear children – one little boy and one little girl – were taken away from her and given to her ex-husband.

For a mother, is there a sacrifice greater than this – a sacrifice that is done for no material reason but only for faith and conviction?

“I left the court knowing that life without my babies would be very difficult. My heart bled, even though I knew, inside, I had done the right thing”. She found comfort in the following verse of the Qur’an:

Bibliography:

Aminah Assilmi, Choosing Islam (The Introduction and Decision)
Scripps Howard News Service: Former Baptist Explains why she is now a Muslim, Nov 1, 1997
The Post (Ohio Univ Student Newspaper), Veil is Not Oppressive, Oct 25, 1995
Aminah Assilmi, Getting to Know Allah Through Nature (video)
Welcome Back, a radio interview of Aminah Assilmi by Islamic Foundation of America, August, 2001

Story about Pamela Barret’s journey to Islam. She passed away on 2006. May Allah have mercy on her. Let her journey inspire all those who are searching for truth.

My background was typical California American growing up in the early sixties. My parents raised us five kids as Catholic, but with the divorce of my parents when I was 11, we kind of fell away from the church. In those years, it was very disgraceful to divorce so we felt like outcasts. I never really felt connected to Christianity though, even as a child. It somehow never really made any sense to me and I detected inconsistencies even at an early age. I used to go to communion so I wouldn’t have to answer questions during Catechism.

Well, in typical California style we were kind of left to raise ourselves after the divorce. There wasn’t much in the way of guidance. Although my mom loved us a lot, she was suddenly the sole caregiver of five children. My dad I only saw about five or six times after that. Left to our own devices, I was pregnant by the time I was 16 and ended up married to the father of my children. Pretty much a “shot-gun wedding” I’m afraid. We stayed married for 16 years and had two children. I had missed out on the “hippie” thing when I had gotten married in 1964 when all that “drop out and drop acid” stuff was happening. To make this short, I ended up leaving after all those years and running away to San Francisco to “find out who I was” and become “liberated”!

What I found was liquor, drugs, sex, rock & roll. I was in such a hurry to “live” that I gave no thought to morality or anything like that…just a completely hedonistic approach to life.

I came to know about Islam through a young man newly arrived in America. He was from a large family and was here alone and feeling quite lost with all the new experiences confronting him. We found a comfort in each other as I was also alone without family or friends for the first time in my life. I began to respect some of the qualities I saw in him. He was very honest and never made excuses for himself. I saw a complete acceptance and confidence in him that I never experienced in anyone before. He would tell me things about the Quran which were interesting to me. He was very low key and didn’t ever pressure me in any way. I liked what I saw in him. The fact that he was honest really impressed me. I had never even thought that a person could survive in life in a clean and honest manner. He had me do Shahada the first time we were together even though I didn’t have any idea what it was. Sometimes I think that even though I didn’t know what I was saying…God did and took it seriously!

As a matter of fact, I was really afraid of Islam because I was afraid that God would make me boring and trapped if I was Muslim. I was so naive about Islam that my perceptions were really skewed. I carried all of the mis-information as many Americans. What I had in the back of my sick mind was some correlation to the nuns I had seen as a child. They seemed to me to be trapped in a prison of morals. I remember always feeling that they were lonely and dull and all they could do was pray. That seemed to me to be an empty life. At that point anything that seemed “fun” was not allowed.

But God truly is great. Somehow, He gave me all the rope I needed to hang myself then ended up being there when I fell. Anyway, therein followed a few more years of “wandering in wilderness”.

After my young man and I parted ways, I called the mosque and asked if I could get a copy of the Quran. I just wanted to know more about it. I never intended to “become” Muslim.

Well, when I read the very beginning of the Yusuf Ali edition, the summary actually, I just cried. I was awestruck by the beauty and mercy and grace. It touched me in a way that nothing else ever had. When I read the Fatiha, I knew it was something very special but I was certainly not ready to accept or understand even a fragment of it. The beauty of its verses galvanized me. Many of the fundamental principles I just could not imagine ever agreeing with or understanding. What most impressed me was the forgiveness and mercy. That incredible Graciousness of Allah. I was going to need lots of these blessings with the kind of life I was living and continued to live for several more years. Even though I would read the Quran and gradually began to truly and deeply in my heart believe in it as the words of God, I still wasn’t ready to give up my fast and loose lifestyle. I was certainly very much like a baby taking baby steps into an unknown world.

I was recently asked, “How difficult was it to suddenly stop and give up many of the things you had been doing when you became Muslim?” It wasn’t difficult because I didn’t suddenly give up anything! It took me five years from the time I first started reading the Quran to make the conscious decision to stop eating pork! My family was Italian, so pork was a mainstay of our cuisine. But when I said to myself after five years of reading the Quran that maybe I should give it up because Allah had prescribed it to us as unclean, it was very difficult! It took me about a year of eating it and feeling guilty before it began to make me sick when I ate it. Now, I just look at the salami in the supermarket and say, “Well, it’s a small thing Allah asks of us”.

That’s how I feel about Ramadan. I asked someone what is the first thing they think of when they realize Ramadan is coming. They said the first thing is, “Oh, Aghhh!”, then right after that is, “Oh, Yea!” That’s what I think too. That feeling of anxiety, I guess because we know we are facing a challenge and fearful that we might fail. And then we think of that sweet feeling upon breaking fast at the proper time and knowing that you have offered up to Allah one more day in honor of your devotion to Him… because it is a small thing that He asks of us - to fast for one month only - to really try for one month only to follow his path in a very concentrated and focused way. Sometimes when I feel temptation during Ramadan, I say that to myself…”it’s a small thing He asks of us” and He grants us so much mercies and forgiveness.

Liquor, promiscuity, stealing, lying, cheating, etc… have slowly departed over the course of these thirteen years. Now when I think back I can’t even imagine that the person behaving that way was me. It is so different from who I am today. Liquor brought me to my knees and Allah was there to help me back up. I had disappointed my children and certainly was a poor role model for them. But Mash’Allah, they both have the Holy Quran in their homes today and see the different person I have become because of my most sincere and deep belief in it. My grand daughters believe in Allah and always want to hear “God Stories”.

My father has passed on, but my mother is surprisingly tolerant towards my belief in Islam. Although sometimes I think she thinks it is ‘just a phase’. My brothers and sisters all are respectful towards my beliefs although they too have many of the misconceptions and stereotypes of many Americans.

One thing I had a great problem with when I finally accepted that I was becoming Muslim was some of the attitudes of the Muslims I met. I would occasionally try to go to the Mosque but was usually disheartened by the questions or instructions I would receive from brothers and sisters there. Usually, the first question is, “Who is your husband?” If I said that I didn’t have one, I was viewed with suspicion and usually no one would talk to me after that. I was told that Allah would not accept my prayers because I was wearing nail polish. That can be very discouraging for someone seeking knowledge and contact with Allah and the Islamic community. I was instructed to do some very unusual things which I found odd to say the least. It took me about seven years to differentiate between “cultural customs” and Islamic practices. I know from other converts I have talked with they have had similar experiences. But, there are the sweet memories of praying alongside my sisters during Ramadan or Jumah when I feel so close to Allah that I weep with gratitude for the gift He gave me of the Quran and Islam.

I sometimes see this journey as one Allah has chosen for me and which He isn’t going to let me out of! Of course, I have come to be very grateful for His patience and tolerance for my weakness. Allah has never backed out on the promises in the Quran. That’s how I see it. If it seems disrespectful to someone else, I apologize, but my faith in Allah is at the deepest core of my being and today guides my life.

I still have many goals which I wish to achieve with my faith. I have come to accept my belief in Islam as a progression, a journey, a seed that was planted and has grown into a strong and living presence in my soul. I am not perfect, but I believe that I am a better Muslim this year than I was last year. I know by the number of things that I have left behind that were not pleasing to Allah. I know with each passing Ramadan because I can look back at my first weak attempts at fasting and realize that I can look forward to this month and that Allah will be there to help me through the weak moments. My children respect me. I honor my mother as Allah asks of us. I have come to accept the difficulties in my life as opportunities for Allah to strengthen me or let me practice patience or tolerance… or to “grow” me in some way.

For me, embracing Islam has been the single greatest gift ever granted to me. I am still grateful and awestruck by it.

Question : “I am now learning about Islam. I want to know whom do muslims worship”

Muslims submit and surrender their will and desires to the will and the laws of the Creator. By referring to, “The Creator”, Muslims are talking about “Allah.”

The Name Allah

The name “Allah” is unique. It has no feminine or masculine form (unlike ‘god’ or ‘goddess’). It also has no plural form (unlike ‘gods’ and goddesses’). The name “Allah” simply means “The One and Only True God.”

Allah is the Arabic word for God. This is the way all Arab Jews, Christians and Muslims call God. Allah is the personal name of God, which He gave to Himself in the Qur’an.

The name “Allah” was not a name invented by the Arabs. It has been the name of God since the beginning of time. In the Torah, we can easily find the name that God gave Himself, “Elah”, or in some cases, “Eloh” (Elohim -[im] being a form of respect in the Hebrew language). It was also used in the Aramaic language, which was the language spoken by our beloved Prophet Jesus, alayhes salam.

Only One God - Taught by Moses, Jesus and Muhammad (SA)

From the Prophet Moses, alayhes salam, calling out to his people, “Hear ‘O Israel: The Lord our God is One” [Deuteronomy 6:4 (English-KJV)];

to Prophet Jesus, alayhes salam, teaching and reprimanding his disciples, “Why does thou callest me good? There is none good but one, that is, God” [Matthew 19: 17; Mark 10: 18; Luke 18: 19 (English-KJV)];

to the last messenger of monotheism who came with the final revelation from God proclaiming, “Your God is One God, there is none who has the right to be worshipped but He, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful” [Qur'an 2: 163].

Allah is the creator of Heavens and Earth

Allah is the Creator of all that is in the heavens and the earth. In Islam, Allah is the True and Only Creator, and only he deserves to be worshipped. Nothing else is worthy of worship; not stones, statues, crosses, the sun, the moon, stars, temples, animals, Prophets (from any religion), messengers, priests, movie stars, musicians, athletes, or religious scholars. All of those are created beings, and are not worthy of worship in Islam. In fact, doing that is to associate partners with Allah, and it is the only sin that would never be forgiven on the Day of Judgment.

He is the First; there was none before Him and is the Ever-living

The Creator, Allah, has perfect attributes. He is the First; there was none before Him, and He is the Last. Allah is the Ever-living; everything will end in death, except Him. He is the Protecting Friend and to Him is the Final Return, where everything will be dealt with and judged in the Most Perfect and Just way.

He does not beget, nor is He begotten.

Allah also tells us in the Qur’an, that He does not beget, nor is He begotten. Begetting offspring, eating and sleeping are all characteristics of created things. Compare this, for example, to the Biblical ideas of God resting on the seventh day of creation, and begetting a son.

Allah is the One and Only God that the muslims worship.

The declaration of faith for one who wants to embrace Islam is: “Ashadu Alla Ilaha Illallah wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan rasoolullah”, which means when translated to English: “There is nothing worthy of worship but Allah; alone, and Muhammad is His Messenger.”

It is Me, Allah; there is none worthy of worship except Me, so worship Me and establish Salaah for My remembrance.  [Quran 20/14]

Such is Allah, your Lord! La ilaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), the Creator of all things. So worship Him (Alone), and He is the Wakil (Trustee, Disposer of affairs, Guardian, etc.) over all things. [ Quran 6/102]