Do you have any questions about Islam?

Question

I've seen a lot of questions here about Islam, and I've seen a lot of people who aren't Muslims answering.

I'm from London, I'm an Islamic teacher, and I would like to answer any questions you may have, as well as I possibly can.

Please, only serious questions...

1- Muslims believe Jesus to be one of the greatest Prophets. He above most other prophets is quite special. He did not die, but God took his body up to the heavens, and he will be returned back to earth before the end of time.
The Quran is very specific about the point that God is alone, He is one, He was not born of anyone and has no children. God showed a miracle by creating Adam from no father and no mother, another miracle by creating Eve from a father and no mother, yet another miracle by creating Jesus from a mother and no father, and an amazing miracle thousands of times a day, creating life from a mother and a father. We love Jesus dearly, just as we love all of the prophets, but we are told that God does not have a son.

2- Is sharia law compatible with democracy?

Yes. There are certian God given laws we cannot change. But the prophet would regularly sit with people, gather people from every walk of life, business men, farmers, even children, and have them give their opinion on matters, matters from day to day life, to how a war should be carried out, a vote was taken and whatever the majority voted on, the prophet would carry it out even he had personally voted against it. Islam agrees with using a democratic system, as long as none of the God given laws are changed or ignored.

3- why is there no general condemnation of terror?

There is. Over and over again there is a verse repeated in the Quran which says, ' order and encourage good, forbid bad and evil' .

The Quran warns us against turning against eachother. What is happening in Iraq has nothing to do with Islam, it just happens to be muslims doing the fighting. They are using Islam as an excuse to fight eachother, to give themselves a false justifiable cause. There is nothing in the Quran which in anyway shows Islams acceptance of this behaviour. The quran and the prophets teachings have given clear guidlines on the rules of war. No elderly person is to be harmed, no women, no children, no property to be destroyed, no plant to be cut down... It pains me greatly to see so called muslims using their religion to get away with murder... Honest muslims are struggling to show the beauty of Islam, don't judge a whole religion, billions of people on the actions of one country. Please.

4-Why do Muslim people think that every other race of people should be destroyed from the face of the earth?

We don't. Islam came to unite people, to free slaves to show that the poor should be treated with just as much respect as the rich, that woman should be treated with even more respect then men, that people of every different colour should be treated the same. When Malcom X first became a muslim, he joined the cult, Nation of Islam, which only allows black people to become muslim. When Malcom X when to Makah, to prefrom holy pilgrimage, he realised how wrong he had been. He saw the beauty of a blonde blue eyed man praying next to an asian, next to a european, next to an american, next to a black man, next to an arab man. He finally saw what Islam came to do. Islam teaches us how to get along, how to work together with people from other religions. I admit many muslims leave that lesson out when they are learning about Islam, but that is human error, not Islams fault.

5- Why does Islam condone young people giving their lives to destroy other people? They believe they are doing God's will. I do not understand this.

Islam condones anyone, young, old, male, female, giving their life for the sake of God, and Islam and the Prophet, for the protection of Islam. It does NOT condone these actions to destroy people. I feel there is no justification for the killing of innocent by standers by any religion of any group of people. However, many muslims from many countries are at war with certain governments. I believe, in a war situation, militery targets are fair and just. But when the western governments bomb muslims in their homes, and kill children, dont think it doesnt happen coz you don't see it on the westen news, how do you expect muslims to react? We are in very difficult times, and I worry that unless a miracle happens, things will get much much worse before it gets better. Islam teaches peace...but it also teaches that we are not to be walked over

6- I would like to know what´s the difference between muslims that live in Turkey and muslims that live in another countries like Pakistan.

I'm sorry I can't answer. Islam is the same religion wherever you are from and wherever you live. A lot of people change the rules of Islam by introducing their own cultrual traditons which is not correct in Islam.

7 - hi, i have a Q, well my bro now's a lot of stuff bout different religons i asked him wut Islam ppl believe in exactly, all he told me at the moment is tht they believe in a god named Ala or sumthin, is tht tru? if so pleaz verify, ty.


Muslims believe in one God (his name in arabic is Allah), he has no children and is alone in being the creator of everything. We have 5 major rules we must follow. 1 - To believe him God alone and worship no one but Him and believe in His final messenger Mohammed. 2 - Pray 5 times a day. 3 - Give regular charity. 4 - Fasting the month of Ramadan. 5 - Once in a life time pilgrammage to Makkah in Saudi. These are the basic rules of Islam. But as with every religon there is a lot more detail involved but that is the basic outline.

8 - Why are Muslims so intollerant of Christians or Jews?
Why don't Muslims condemn terrorist attacks?
Why do Muslims alienate themselves from other members of society?

The Quran tells us, if we are to take any ally other then a muslim, then let it be from those people of the book. The people of the book are Christians and Jews. The quran tells us to make them closer to us then any other people as we have many similiarities between us. Unfortuantly Muslims and Jews have had a very rocky history as have Arabs and Jews, and there is a lot of bad blood between the 2. But this is due to bad history and many wars, not due to Islam.
Muslims do not alienate themselves from society but it may seem as if they do because we are strict with our rules, we do not believe they can be changed or even bent. Islam teaches in fine details how to have manners when dealing with people of all religions, but to never be so accomadating as to change God given laws. I believe your 2nd q I already ansd

9 - why does your religion make women dress up in all those black bedsheets?

Islam instructs all woman to cover themselves modestly only showing their face and hands. The quran and the prophets teachings never specify a colour. I have always assumed most women wear black as it is a sliming colour. If you were to wear something covering you from head to toe, would you chose bright orange? How fat would that make them look!It is up to personal choice what colour to wear and what style to wear, as long as you are covered and what you are wearing does not outline the contours of the body.
I went out today wearing a long red skirt, black jumper and dark red scarf.. sometimes I'll wear long black clothing (aabayah) almost like a dress with long sleeves and lose fitting and a colourful scarf to go with it. Completely personal choice. Thanks for your question.

10 - Womens value and, is it not just completely unnatural to make women cover up to such an extent, surely the genders are supposed to attract each other so whats the point in covering up so even the face cant be seen?

The covering of the face in Islam is purley optional. It does not have to be done. Yes we are to be attracted to eachother so we can find a mate, that one person we will share our lives with, that one person alone who we can be attracted to and them to us. But not by our physical appearence, though yes it is nice, but that won't make a marrige last. Islam teaches us to love people and draw people to us by their souls, by whats inside, don't be distracted by their outward apperance. Judge people by how they speak, by their actions, by their manners, by their knowledge, by how they treat the poor, not by how they look. As for womens value, it is unfortunate that most of the Muslims are from areas where it is culture and tradition from men to treat women so badly...

Islam was completed over 1400 years ago and rid the middle east of such behaviour, but over time is has crept back. Some men in these areas are inclined to pick and chose which parts of the religion they want to follow and abuse and misuse other elemts of the Islam to give themselves the upper hand.

If we look to the western world. There are millions of abused women. Is it fair for Muslims to say, Christianity treats women so unfairly, it lets the men beat their wives and abuse them... We would never say such a thing as we know it isnt true, we know that there are just a lot of bad people in the world. So please don't accuse Islam of such terrible deeds by the actions of those who are ignorant.

11 - Please read, thanks..........
by splinterjah.

Thank you very much for that, I found it very intersting. However you did pick and chose! There are hundreds and hundreds of verses in the Quran that talk about God's mercy, how he forgives any sin on the condition that we ask forgivness. It is not fair to committ a crime and to still be loved and to still be forgiven without showing remorse and to aplogise and ask forgivness, once you have done so, His forgivness upon you is inevatble. So many verses in the Quran tell us we should have mercy on man just as God has shown us mercy. The verse you quoted was sent down to the prophet during a battle when they had been betrayed by the jewish community they were living with. The thing about the quran is you have know the context of the verse. There are plently of verses in the bible that talk of Gods anger and of his punishment and of Hell. We accept the good with the parts we find disagreeable.

Answer 1

I would like to know what´s the difference between muslims that live in Turkey and muslims that live in another countries like Pakistan

Answer 2

I agree there is a lot of misinformation going around about most religions.

I appreciate and agree with the majority of your answers, but would like to enquire about some of your last statements.

I would like to expand on the last poster (without the christian comparison mind you!)

I asked the same question about verses saying kill the unbeliever and about 10 others (at least) like it, and received pretty much the same answer - that it was in a historical setting I don't know about. If I accept your version without doing the research, then I still worry about the people that may read and misinterpret this section. Why should the inspired word of god need a history book to go along with it?

Even if I accept your answer, what I find is that I believe the punishments (normally death) were far too harsh for the crime. So someone conspired against you, imprision them till the end of the war then banish them - that would be more correct to do than kill them wouldn't it? Other transgressions are less than this, and met with the same end.

You then said that you take the good with the bad, so if you find bad laws or teaching amongst the islamic teachings you accept them equally and follow them as you would one you agree with?

You also said that you can ally with those of the book (the bible). What about buddhists, taoists, atheists, pantheists, pagans, wiccans, zoroastra, etc...? Can you ally with these, especially the atheist.

Also, hypothetically if part of Sharia Law or law in the Quran is illegal in the country of which the muslim lives, do you consider that the Sharia Law or otherwise supercedes the laws of the land and that muslims should ignore it, until they can get it possibly changed.

Do you think the majority of muslims are literalists in the same way you can get bible literalists, or is it like christianity for example ( i am atheist ) where the majority don't actually follow or believe a lot of what is written in their holy books.

Do you believe that mohammed had sex with a 9 year old? If so, do you believe it is immoral at any time in any culture to have sex with children of this age? So what was he doing? One answer I have heard is it was part of the times? Isn't that a cop out? If I was a prophet of god with superior morals and having transcribed the word of god I would hope I wouldn't be swayed by the times in such manner.

Are muslims encouraged and made to feel comfortable looking at critical material on islam, and mohammed's life. Do you accept any of the criticism, do you therefore throw out the bad?

Why do women have to cover up but men don't? I read what you wrote. I believe that is unfair, isn't this blatant discrimination against the woman? It seems to me to be about the fact that man can't be trusted to control his urges so women have to cover up? When you said it was optional did you mean just the part that covers the face or the whole thing?

I also heard (from an islamic teacher) that women have equity but are not equal. Thus they are entitled to their rights, which are generally less than a mans. Only over their child do they seem to get more rights, everything else goes to the man. That is why you need 2 women to 1 man in a court, and why a woman gets half the inheritance of her brother...(regardless of age). Was/is this correct?

Many thanks for your time & I hope you can inform me better of my current opinion on Islam.

Answer 3

Hi, I was wondering:
whenever people ask about Islam + womens rights people always talk about how in Islam women are valued and considered equal and allowed to vote...
but in reality, in countries where Islam is the main religion women do lead restricted lives, I'm thinking of Saudi where women are not allowed to drive or vote.
I'm sure people are telling me the truth when they say the religion does describe women as equals, but I am confused as to why the cultures that include Islam seem to demonstrate the complete opposite, particularly with stuff like honour killings still going on, like that case in London just recently.
Also, is it not just completely unnatural to make women cover up to such an extent, surely the genders are supposed to attract each other so whats the point in covering up so even the face cant be seen?

Answer 4

1. Hadith 6 states:-
The first of people against whom judgement will be pronounced on the day of resurrection will be a man who has died a martyr.
He will be brought until Allah will make known to him his favours and he will recognise them.
(The Almighty) will say:
And what did you do about them? He will say, I fought for you until I died a martyr.
He will say, You have lied, you did but die that it might be said, He is courageous.
Then he will be ordered to be dragged along on his face until he is cast into hell fire.

This passage seems to apply directly to suicide bombers. Many muslim leaders state that they are totally against suicide bombers. If this is the case why do they not make the above teaching well known?
2. Has any other muslim apart from Mohammed received revelations in dreams over the ages and also claimed that they had come from God?
3. There are various groups of Muslims with differing beliefs and practices. Which one is the true Islam?

Answer 5

Hi,

Thanks for the opportunity to put questions to you.

Firstly, I understand that Muslims believe that the Qur'an is the word of Allah. The Qur'an teaches that Muhammed is His Prophet and that Muhammed is an example for Muslims to follow.

1) How do you know what his example was when very little of his life is mentioned in the Qur'an?

2) Is it the Hadith?

3) If so, who are the authors of the Hadith?

4) And if the Hadith is the work of men and not Allah, how can we be sure that everything in it is accurate because it took a few centuries after the death of Muhammed for it to be written?

5) And is Muhammed's example to Muslims in the Hadith as relevant today as it was when he was alive?

Regards.

Jake

Answer 6

Why do you hate Jews so much when you know you are blood related to them through Abraham?

Why does Islamic countries condone labeling Christian converts "infidels" when you know very well killing is against Islam?

Why are Islam countries so eager to enforce Sharia Law when if you read up, you will find Mohammed was more egalitarian, granting women a great many rights?

Why do you force women to wear burqas, (if thats the right word)?

Why do you, in the 21st century, still resort to primitive laws and discriminative practices?

Answer 7

From what I have witnessed Islam is a violent and oppressive religion, not exactly the "Holy Relgion" I have read in the texts of the Qu'ran.

Why are Muslims so intollerant of Christians or Jews?
Why don't Muslims condemn terrorist attacks?
Why do Muslims alienate themselves from other members of society?

Answer 8

One question. If Islam is truely a religion of peace, why is there no general condemnation of terror? No even considering terror brought on non-Muslim, but the Muslim on Muslim terror seen in Iraq. Women and children!! The Islamic world seems deathly silent on this!

Answer 9

Why does Islam condone young people giving their lives to destroy other people? They believe they are doing God's will. I do not understand this.

Answer 10

looks like you are [confused]... just a joke, no offese.

Please read, thanks..........

NOTE: I want you to see the deference between Christianity and Islam, I assume that you are a peaceful, perhaps, liberal Muslim.

Do you agree with this teaching in the Quran?

"Fight and slay the pagans(Christians and Jews and non-believers) wherever you find them, and sieze them, beleagur them, and lie in wait for them in every strategem(of war)."- Surah 9:5, the Quran

or do you agree with this teaching of the Bible?

"Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and percicute you."- Matthew 5:44, the Bible

The Quran was written by Allah and the Bible was written by God.

God is love Allah is not love but shows mercy to His followers.

God loves all even those who have rejected Him, Allah does not love all.

God is a Father, Allah has no children

God is knowable, Allah can never be known

God promises salvation, Allah promises nothing of the sort

God is a healer, Allah is not

God gives grace to all who call on Him, Allah shows mercy only to His followers.

For all I know, Allah hates me, but I know for a fact that God loves me.

In knowing this, Why do you follow Islam? Even if you are peaceful, don't you realize that good deeds alone will never make us good enough for God? God sent His Son Jesus to die for our sins and pave the way to God. He is the way. I called upon Him and He saved me, and He loves me and He has made me a rightious person, but My good deeds didn't save me, because they cannot cleanse me of my sin, only Jesus can.

I do good because I am saved, not in order to be saved.

Allah promises none of this, not even a faithful Muslim knows if he is good enough for Allah.

Don't you see, I love you as a person, I am concered for your salvation.

Peacefull Islam states that you do not have to be a Muslim to go to heaven, just do good deeds and you will make it. Even athiest do this.

But there is a reason for Christianity, God provided a way for man to be forgiven of his sins. That way is Jesus.

If God judged us by the 10 commandments we would all be guilty, but Jesus paid for our punishment so that we may know God and live with Him in heaven.

You see I don't have a religion but a relationship with God via His Son Jesus, And I want that for you to, but it is a choice that only you can make. God gave us free will, and He cannot make us love Him, it is a choice to accept Jesus, it requires faith. And I believe in it, because If not all of mankind would have no way to God.

I call God Father because I know and love Him, you can too if you want.

"That if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."-Romans 10:9, the Bible

That is a promise from God, and God will help you to be rightious and He will love you and you will know Him as Father.

Thank you for reading... I know you probably won't believe, because I have one who doesn't believe, His life is sinfull and He is my first cousin in my family, I love him as my brother. I have tried to tell Him about God's love but he has chosen, it is a choice, he will be responsible for it.

I have told you all of this because my Bible tells me so...

"You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, " says the Lord". Ezekiel 2:7, the Bible

May my God bless you and your family and show you the Truth.