posted
Ok, i'm going out on a limb here and i know i will be slated from both sides, but i need to be able to ask somewhere and figured this was the best place to do it.
Lately ive been feeling a bit disheartened, i always grew up believing in God, there is no question for me there, I love so much about islam, hence becoming muslim, however, there IS a lot of agression in the quran that from the moment i picked it up i cant get my head round, even down to the name calling of non believers, it just doesnt seem like the God i know would do that??? on the other side there is the christian view of God which i can relate to more because he seems more forgiving in a sense, although christianity seems to have strayed from proper teachings and been bent to suit man alot. Plus i cant quite accept the concept of the holy trinity.
So where is the god i believe in?, the god that believes in love, caring, respect, not in fighting and competition, or in being forced to believe or be punished by man...i.e violence.
does anyone else feel like this or is it just me getting religion confused with the actions of man?
Posts: 1017 | From: uk | Registered: Mar 2006
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posted
caterpillar, I *think* it may be you getting confused with the actions of man.
Why not give references to the verses in Quran you think are violent then they can be discussed in context? I know the verses have been thrown in by others here but I know YOU would ask and want answers and would actually take onboard what is said and think about it. Give it a go
-------------------- If you don't learn from your mistakes, there's no sense making them. Posts: 15090 | From: http://www.egyptalk.com/forum/ | Registered: Jul 2004
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posted
cat I had the same feelings you are having before, it's natural to feel confused, after all someone great once said 'the first step on the road to true belief is doubt' (can't remember who said that...). I would suggest to find a book (any book) by an american convert by the name of Jeffrey Lang, if you can't find one let me know and I'll send you one that I have, he REALLY helped me with some of these particular issues. In the meantime, be careful of what answers you might receive here...and get some sleep. Posts: 13440 | Registered: Feb 2006
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posted
CAT, I think this will be of help. Start from the bottom as the list is reversed and work your way up. I'm sure by the time you reach the end you will feel a lot more comfortable. The series can be purchased on DVD with subtitles from that website as well. It was originally a series of lectures about the names and attributes of Allah that was aired last Ramadan on Iqraa chanel.
There's also another series by the same preacher about the life of the prophet. It is excellent. It's called on the path of the beloved or in the footsteps of the beloved. It can be obtained from the website too.
If you cant order it, get back to me and I'll make inquiries for you on how to get them.
Posts: 670 | From: alex living in leeds, UK | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
Also CAT, have you voiced your concerns with your husband? I find SO often when I have confusion or concerns about things, my born muslim husband is one of the best helpers, if he doesn't know the answer he's quick to admit it and always finds out for me. Posts: 13440 | Registered: Feb 2006
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-------------------- If you don't learn from your mistakes, there's no sense making them. Posts: 15090 | From: http://www.egyptalk.com/forum/ | Registered: Jul 2004
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posted
wow, you lot are soooo nice. I will start trawling through that lot, hope it helps and thank you so much for making me feel normal. smucks..yes i've told him, he just gets annoyed with me and thinks i'm a lost cause because i have doubts, so then he ignores me.
Posts: 1017 | From: uk | Registered: Mar 2006
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quote:Originally posted by caterpillar: wow, you lot are soooo nice. I will start trawling through that lot, hope it helps and thank you so much for making me feel normal. smucks..yes i've told him, he just gets annoyed with me and thinks i'm a lost cause because i have doubts, so then he ignores me.
Lol, maybe he's afraid for you and doesn't know how to handle it. ? Just explain that you're constantly on a journey as a convert always learning and growing and you need his support 100%. Tell him it isn't that you don't believe, just that you want to be sure of exactly what it is you are believing. Of course, you always have your friends here and since there are many of us converts with you, we're always willing to help, as well. And we're nice because you're a nice member and you deserve to have your confusions addressed in a soft and serious manner. I think you are only being honest and the fact that you are allowing yourself to question (and in turn grow inshallah) only means you want to be so strong in your faith. Nothing wrong with that one bit. Posts: 13440 | Registered: Feb 2006
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posted
agree with smucks, its nice you feel you can ask here. When ( I wont say if) the nasty replies start just ignore them. There are very few I will listen to here and take seriously, and 2 have replied already.
-------------------- If you don't learn from your mistakes, there's no sense making them. Posts: 15090 | From: http://www.egyptalk.com/forum/ | Registered: Jul 2004
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I think it’s normal to have times when you doubt Islam; I’m sure many Muslims go through the same at some point during their life.
When you read the Quran, it’s a good idea to back up your reading with some tafsir or ahadith (in my opinion) because then you will be able to understand the reasoning behind the revelation. I did start to give example verses and the tafsir for them, but I’ve decided instead to give you some advice which I think (hope) will help you when reading the Quran.
You can say that the Quran has 2 parts. The Meccan and the Madinan (sp?), reason being, that these were the 2 physical locations where revelations were given to the Prophet Mohamed (SAWS). Mecca was where Prophet Mohamed first started preaching Islam and Madina is where the Muslims fled to and settled due to the persecution they faced in Mecca. The Meccan half of the Quran concentrates on Tawheed (Monotheism) and the Madinan concentrates on the rules of Islam.
I think it would be a good idea if you try to read the Meccan parts first and gain some understanding from it regarding our purpose in life and how strongly Islam is about believing in the one true God. In Mecca the Prophet Mohamed was trying to preach to the Jews, Christians and Pagans that they had erred in their ways and they must put right their beliefs. It gives many reminders of the messages they had received before, evidence of Allah’s existence and warnings that Allah was watching them and they would be judged accordingly if they did not change their ways. Therefore, the same message revealed to the Muslims was also revealed to the others so Prophet Mohamed wasn’t telling them anything new! They knew this very well hence their fierce opposition to the messenger. When you’re reading the Meccan surahs try to put yourself back in the 7th Century. Imagine the torturing of the sahabah because of their beliefs. Imagine how you would feel if you were tied to the back of a horse by your legs and the horse ran around dragging you against the floor while your oppressor commanded that you renounce your faith? Many people today wouldn’t have the strength of faith or belief to handle that kind of torture, but the sahaba did. It’s only expected that Allah would grant them some reprieve from this and thus allowed them to defend themselves “within reason” i.e. being a terrorist isn’t within reason!
Imagine also how angry you would be with your children if you had warned them time and time again not to do something and they deceptively went against all you said (at the same time causing harm to others and not only themselves). If you gave them examples of why they shouldn’t do said things, if you had forgiven them time and time again when they went against your rules before, even though they knew you had given them preference over everything else in your life? This would be a tiny fraction of the anger felt by Allah against some of the people of the book and even then, he will be ready to forgive them if they only turn back to the right way. (And I don’t necessarily mean converting to Islam!).
In the Meccan surah’s Allah also warns the Prophet and consequently the sahaba that people around them were dishonest, saying they were Muslim and believed but in reality they were against the Muslims.
Reading sahih ahadith can help you to understand the way in which the Prophet Mohamed interpreted Allah’s revelations, because you will be able to see for example when he went to war, why, his actions during war and his actual relationships and interactions with people of the book. There are some things in the Quran which are exceptions and not rules.
When you come to read the Medinan surah’s you will probably be ready to understand and accept (even more if you do already), the guidance and rules that Allah has set for us.
BTW, the bible also has “aggressive” messages if taken out of context. When some people try to find faults in the bible, I believe Deuteronomy is used for this purpose.
Posts: 815 | From: London and the other | Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
I also think , CAT, that the reason you feel that way is related to the incessant propaganda around the "aggressive" verses while nobody ever mentions the merciful, peaceful parts of the quran so you get to see things out of proportion. The reality is that Islam has more mercy and gentleness in it than there is "aggression". And Allah's mercy has superceded his justness. I've been putting aggression between inverted comas so far until I reached this word, justness. If you were to understand the verses that worry you properly, you will come to understand that where there is violence there is always justice and that it wouldnt make sense not to have those verses because Islam aims to provide a comprehensive guide to a whole way of life that is supposed to span centuries and cover every possible contingency.
-------------------- Noha Posts: 670 | From: alex living in leeds, UK | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
So I was going to suggest we read the quran together and focus on its mercy in order to realize the overwhelming abundance of it...while at the same time, do as Ayisha says and discuss the ones that worry you.
-------------------- Noha Posts: 670 | From: alex living in leeds, UK | Registered: Jun 2005
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