A Call To Islam

A CALL TO ISLAM

Published as an e-book in 1427 AH/ 2006 CE By SA’IDU SULAIMAN E-mail address: [email protected]

“LET THER BE NO COMPULSION IN RELIGION: TRUTH STANDS OUT CLEAR FROM ERROR, WHOEVER REJECTS EVIL AND BELIEVES IN GOD HAS GRASPED THE MOST TRUSTWORTHY HANDHOLD THAT NEVER BREAKS”. QUR’AN 2:256 “’WE HAVE NOT SENT THEE BUT AS A UNIVERSAL (MESSENGER) TO MEN GIVING THEM GLAD TIDINGS AND WARNING THEM (AGAINST SIN) BUT MOST MEN UNDERSTAND NOT.’’ QUR’AN 34:28. “INVITE (ALL) TO THE WAY OF THY LORD WITH WISDOM AND BEAUTIFUL PREACHING AND ARGUE WITH THEM IN THE WAYS THAT ARE BEST AND MOST GRACIOUS: FOR THY LORD KNOWETH BEST WHO HAVE STRAYED FROM HIS PATH AND WHO RECEIVE GUIDANCE”. QUR’AN 16:125

Sa’idu Sulaiman

CONTENTS

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PREFACE

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CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Preaching Islam

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Introducing the Holy Books and Other Sources Quoted in the Book

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CHAPTER TWO SCIENTIFIC PROOFS FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD The Origin of the Universe

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Evolution or Creationism?

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The Relationship between Religion and Science

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CHAPTER THREE PROOFS FOR THE ONENESS OF GOD Commonsense and Logic

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Scientific Reasoning

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What the Holy Books Say about the Oneness of God

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CHAPTER FOUR ISLAM AND OTHER RELIGIONS Islam and Religions Based upon Superstitious Beliefs and Taboos

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Relationship between Judaism, Christianity and Islam

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Evidences of the Continuity of Divine Guidance in the Bible

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CHAPTER FIVE WHO IS THE AUTHOR OF THE HOLY QUR’AN? Evidences that Prophet Muhammad Didn’t Copy the Holy Bible

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Muslims’ Respect and Regard for all Prophets

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Qur’an, Hadith and Scientific Discoveries

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CHAPTER SIX THE TRUE PICTURE OF ISLAM The Meaning of Islam

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Fundamental Pillars of Islam

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Universality of Islam

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Shari’ah

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The Stand of Islam on Contemporary Issues

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CONCLUDING REMARKS

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PREFACE This book is intended to create awareness among non-Muslims about the religion of Islam and to invite them to embrace it. Creating this awareness can also clear the misconceptions of many people about Islam and promote understanding, tolerance and mutual respect between Muslims and nonMuslims. The book is also expected to strengthen the faith of its Muslim readers. The book should be regarded as a humble but a great gift one can give to a non-Muslim relative, friend or associate. One can therefore contribute to this noble task by distributing free copies of this book. Individuals and organisations wishing to reproduce this book or to translate it into other languages either for free distribution or for sale are free to do so. However, they should guard against distortions of its contents and against free translation of the Holy Qur’an or the Holy Bible, they should instead, use copies of these Holy books that have been translated into the appropriate languages or seek the assistance of experts where such translations do not exist. The author wants to use this medium to express his profound gratitude to all people who, in one way or another, contributed to the production and distribution of this book. May Almighty Allah grant them endless bliss in the hereafter and continue to help and guide them here on earth. Sa’idu Sulaiman

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CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious Most Merciful. Preaching Islam One common impression that a number of believers (Muslims inclusive) have about a preacher of another religion, faith or creed is that he is their enemy. This impression is logically incorrect because a preacher tries to share a belief he reveres with other people whom he pities because they have gone astray. A sincere preacher loves and pities his audience. Enlightened people and civilized societies do not see preachers as enemies, because they have religious tolerance and give room for freedom of expression and of religion; these qualities promote understanding and peaceful co-existence among people that adhere to different religions or sects. Turning away a preacher or refusing to listen to or read his messages is another common mistake made by many people. Had our parents or grandparents not listened to preachers we could not have “inherited” the religion we are now practicing because most people simply follow the religion of their parents. The behaviour of Muslims is supposed to convince one to accept Islam but to be frank this is not always possible due to the moral decadence of Muslims nowadays. This is very unfortunate. Non-Muslims do not see a difference between Islam and a Muslim as such the behaviour of some Muslims serves as a means of making Islam unattractive. Islam, which means total submission to the will of Allah, is the body of rules, regulations and guidance from Allah concerning the spiritual and temporal life of Muslims. These rules, regulations and guidance are permanent, unchangeable and devoid of defects. A Muslim on the other hand, is someone who believes in Islam, so the difference between him and the religion is that as a human being; he may have certain weaknesses in observing some of its injunctions. Preaching is not synonymous with compelling someone to practice certain religions or hold some views so long as the preacher employs reasoning as a means of conviction. The inclusion of freedom of religion among the

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fundamental human rights in many nations of the world is not a new thing to Muslims because Islam granted this freedom over 1, 400 years ago. Allah says in the Holy Qur’an:

“Let there be no compulsion in religion: truth stands out clear from error whoever rejects evil and believes in God hath grasped the most trustworthy handhold that never breaks”. Qur’an 2:256 However, this verse does not mean that Muslims should not preach Islam. It rather indicates that faith, which is something hidden in a believer’s heart should not be imposed on him or her by force but through conviction. In another verse of the Holy Qur’an Allah does not only enjoin Muslims to preach but asks them to do so with wisdom.

“Invite (all) to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching and argue with them in the ways that are best and most gracious: for thy Lord knoweth best who have strayed from His path and who receive guidance”. Qur’an 16:125 It therefore stands clear that Muslims are enjoined to preach Islam with wisdom. Preaching must not be dogmatic and offensive and the preacher’s manners and arguments should be courteous and backed up with most gracious examples. This is what this book attempts to do. Mutual understanding and religious tolerance are inculcated in the minds of people adhering to different faiths when they appreciate and become aware and respect the teachings of one another’s religion. Religious intolerance and bigotry are promoted by absence of preaching and the creation of situations in which people are left to make judgments or make statements based upon hearsay, suspicion, pre-conception and inherited dogma. Introducing the Holy Books and Other Sources Quoted in this Book The Holy Qur’an and Hadith of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him (P.B.U.H), are the major sources of Islamic teachings. A lot will be quoted from them in this book. The Holy Qur’an contains nothing but the words of Allah, which were revealed to Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) through Archangel Jibril (Gabriel). The Holy Qur’an was revealed to the Prophet in about 23 years in

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bits and in accordance with the needs of the time, events and situations. Whenever a verse or verses of the Qur’an were revealed to Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), he would recite them to his companions who were memorizing and writing them down. The Prophet had also been telling his companions where to place the verses and to which chapters they belong. These companions compiled the Holy Qur’an in form of a book after the demise of the Prophet (P.B.U.H.). The Holy Qur’an was revealed, written and still exists in Arabic language. It is being translated into many languages for the benefit of those who don’t understand Arabic but these translations cannot totally replace or perform the functions of the Arabic text. Hadith or Tradition of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is second to the Holy Qur’an and is also a source of Islamic teachings, which Muslims must observe. The Prophet made an elaborate and most dependable interpretation of the Holy Qur’an through his sayings, deeds and silent approval of what his companions did in his presence. This is what Hadith, traditions or “Sunnah” of the Prophet means. These traditions were also committed to memory and were written down by the Prophet’s companions. The traditions are kept in volumes and are well separated from the Holy Qur’an, which contains the words of Allah only. There are thousands of these traditions compiled by various Muslims. The most popular collections of the traditions are those of Bukhari, Muslim, Nasa’i, Ibn Majah, Abu Dawud and Tirmiziy. Bukhari, whose full name is Muhammad bin Isma’il Al-Mughira Al-Bukhari, made the most popular collection of the traditions of the Prophet. He compiled the traditions in nine volumes, which contain over seven thousand traditions dealing with various aspects of human life. The Holy Bible, which is also quoted in several places in this book, deserves an introduction to the non-Christian readers of this book. The Bible covers events right from the beginning of creation to the coming of Jesus (peace be upon him) and beyond. It does not have a single author but a myriad of authors, who according to the belief of the Christians, were inspired by God when writing the books contained in it. The Bible being used by the Protestants has 66 of such books, 39 of which formed the Old Testament and the remaining 27 constituted the New Testament. Each book has chapters and verses for easy reference. The Bible being used by

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the Catholics has 73 books. The Bible has versions like the King James Version, the Revised Standard Version and the New International Version. The very copy of the Holy Bible quoted in several places in this book is a paraphrase, that is, a restatement of the contents of the Bible in a simple language. Its title is The Living Bible Paraphrased, and was published by Tyndale House Publishers in 1973. It was preferred for quotations in this book because learned and well-versed Christian scholars wrote it in a simple language; this makes it suitable for quotations in this book, which is also written in simple and straightforward language for the benefit of readers with different educational backgrounds. Some quotations were also made from a book written by a Buddhist scholar because the author could not have access to the Dhammapada, the main book containing the teachings of Buddha. Commonsense and scientific findings were also employed in this book to arrive at certain conclusions. Islam encourages science, and its teachings are continuously being supported by scientific findings. It also supports the use of commonsense and rationality that is why only adults and sane people are held responsible for the sins they commit.

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CHAPTER TWO SCIENTIFIC PROOFS FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD The Origin of the Universe The universe refers to all creation. The theory of the origin of the universe, which is called “cosmogony”, is an attempt by scientists to explain how the universe came about. It may be of relevance if we know what “matter” is and what “energy” is before dwelling on issues concerning the origin of the universe. Any thing that can be weighed, however light or heavy is called matter. Matter can be in solid, liquid and gaseous state. A basic principle of physics is that matter can be transformed from one state to another but it can never arise from nothing or disappear into nothing. Water, wood, stone, smoke and steam are made from matter and in the universe matter also exists in terms of stars, planets, moon, debris, dust, comet, etc. Energy is simply defined as anything that performs or can perform work. It can be in electrical, chemical, magnetic and other forms. A bicycle moves when its rider uses his energy, a fan works with the power of electricity, a car moves with the help of petrol and a bird’s feather moves when carried by air or a flowing body of water. All these things mentioned use various forms of energy hence they cannot move or function by themselves. Like matter, energy can never be created from nothing and nor can it disappear into nothing. It was in the 1920’s that an American Astronomer called Edwin Hubble discovered that the universe is expanding or getting larger. Hubble’s discovery helped other astronomers in finding out how the universe came into existence. There are theories concerning the origin of the universe. There is the “big bang” theory, which was made by a Belgian called George Lemaire who said all matter was once squashed together into a mighty fireball. This ball exploded, shooting matter out in all directions, which later cooled and took the form of stars. Another theory came later in England when Hermann Bondi, Thomas Gold and Fred Hoyle came up with the “steady state theory”. According to this

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theory, the universe had always existed and that as star groups speeded off into space new ones were born to take their place with the universe expanding. One thing in common to these two theories is that the universe is expanding. Let us now question the theories. The “big bang” theory, which was based on the explosion of matter, did not tell us from where did the matter come from and the source of energy that caused the explosion. The “steady state” theory did not tell us from where the earlier universe came from and the power that caused its expansion. Lastly, the theories have failed to tell us how matter and energy came about in the first place before any explosion or expansion was to take place. A better attempt to explain how the universe had came about was made by another scientist called Albert Hinkelbein in his book “Origin of the Universe” published by Colins in 1972. Every matter, it is said, must occupy a space however small, so without space there can never be matter. And without matter and space the concept of time will not hold. Since the universe is expanding and it does so at a constant rate it means, as Hinkelbein explains, the volume of space was supposed to be zero at the very beginning. He reasons that when the volume of space was zero there was no matter and no time, no “before” and no “after”, whatever existed by then was not made of matter, was independent of space and had no “before” and “after”. Hinkelbein continues to reason that whatever existed when space was zero could not be perceived by feeling, smelling, touching or be symbolized by an image because it was not made from matter! These characteristics of independence of time, space and matter can only apply to God for He has no “before” and He is not made out of matter, in fact He is the Creator of matter the origin of which the “big bang” theorists could not explain. The Holy Qur’an has this to say concerning the universe and the origin of living things.

“Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before We clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?” Qur’an 21:30

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This message to mankind is contained in the Holy Qur’an for over 1,400 years ago while it was only in the 19th and 20th centuries that the theory of evolution and “big bang” theory were made respectively. In another verse of the Holy Qur’an Allah says:

“And God has created every animal from water: of them there are some that creep on their bellies; some that walk on two legs and some walk on four. God creates what He wills for verily God has power over all things”. Qur’an 24:45 Evolution or Creationism? Let’s look at things we see in our environment. The immediate question that comes into our minds is “who created these things and from what?” Chairs, cars, goats, oceans, mountains and sand are some of the myriad objects and creatures that surround us. Looking at the sky we also see the sun, the stars and the moon. People make the chairs and the cars, but what about the goats, the sun, and the stars? We all agree that a carpenter, an engineer, a mechanic or any other human being did not make the sun, the moon and the mountains. If you think you can create one of these things what material will you use and who made that material in the first place? People with religious beliefs argue that God, gods or goddesses, depending on the peculiarities or nature of the religion in question, created everything. This is what is referred to as creationism. Scientists that believe in the existence of God believe that He has created the universe and what it contains. These scientists are called creationists. Other scientists who deny the existence of God and believe that the universe and what it contains came about through evolution, are called evolutionists. A well-known scientist who tried to prove the non-existence of God was Charles Darwin (1809 – 1882). He made journeys around the world during which he saw and collected many creatures. Two years after his return to England, Darwin read an article on population written by an Economist called Robert T. Malthus. Malthus thought that disease and hunger would solve the problem of population explosion because there would be “struggle for existence”.

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Influenced by the Malthusian view, Charles Darwin came out with the theory of “survival of the fittest”, that is, of all creatures only the strongest would be able to survive and they would transmit their favourable characteristics to their offspring. For this reason there would be a “natural selection”, which according to Darwin would lead to emergence of new species. Darwin published his book Origin of Species in 1859, and twelve years later, he published another book on the evolution of man called Descendent of Man. Darwin theory was adopted and refined by other scientists. The theory is known as “theory of evolution”. Evolution means a slow development and of generally more complicated animals and plants from their simpler ancestors. In other words, it is a system in which most earlier and more primitive organisms give rise to progressively more varied and more complex forms of these organisms. The theory of evolution was based on evidences such as fossils, that is, traces of former living organisms preserved in rocks, detailed comparison of anatomy of related animals, for example patterns of their bones, the evidence from the study of comparative embryology and so on. The scientists found that life evolved on earth in stages and at the first stage all living things came from oceans. Life, they said, first appeared when warm oceans were like a broth of chemicals, which might have produced first living things. These living things were tiny particles able to use food, grow and reproduce themselves. Birds and mammals were said to have evolved after a long time. Man’s ancestors were said to be apes. One of the earliest apes whose skull was found was called “proconsul”, later on there was another ape called “Homo erectus” which was capable of making tools and walking upright. In the second version of an article captioned ‘Introduction to Evolutionary Biology’, Chris Colby describes evolution as “a change in the gene pool of a population over time’’ (http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/faq-intro-tobiology.html visited on July 1, 2005). He describes the gene as a hereditary unit that is passed on unaltered for many generations, and the gene pool, as the set of all genes in a species or population. Colby, who claims that many people, including some biologists, do not have a correct understanding of evolution, provides a brief history of life. He begins by testifying to the fact that the section on the history of life

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contains material that “ranges from some issues that are fairly certain to some topics that are nothing more than informed speculation”. The following is a summary of what he wrote on the history of life: •

Life evolved in the sea; it stayed there for the majority of the history of earth.

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The first replicating molecules were most likely RNA, which is nucleic acid similar to DNA.

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The first cells must have been anaerobic because there was no oxygen in the atmosphere.

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Photosynthesis, a process that allows organisms to harness sunlight and manufacture sugar from simpler precursors, evolved around 3.4 billion years ago.

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Animals started appearing about 600 million years ago.

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Plants evolved from ancient green algae over 400 million years ago.

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Vertebrates moved onto the land by the Devonian period, about 380 million years ago.

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Dinosaurs evolved from archosaur reptiles; crocodiles were their closest living relatives.

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The end of Cretaceous, about 65 million years ago witnessed minor mass extinction, which marked the demise of all the lineages of dinosaurs except birds. Up to this moment mammals were confined to nocturnal, insectivorous niches. Mammals evolved from therapsid reptiles, and humans, who are neotenous apes, became one of the most successful lineages of the mammals.

Colby argues that the scientific community regards evolution and common descent as fact. He criticizes creationists and accuses them of not raising objections to evolution on the basis of scientific reasoning or data. “Evolution is science. Creationism is not”, he concludes (http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/faq-intro-to-biology.html visited on 1st July 2005).

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There are various forms of creationism, some based on religious teachings and others on myths, so one cannot support every form of creationism. Mark Isaak, in his article “What is Creationism” (www.talkorigins.org/faqs/wic.html visited on November 6, 2004), sees creationism and evolution as ends of a continuum in the Christian creationism containing twelve different versions or views. He also explains a number of beliefs in the non-Christian creationism, one of which is the Raelians belief that scientists from another planet created life. On Islamic creationism, Isaak simply gives the numbers of chapters and verses of the Qur’an on creation without explaining their contents. The verses are 2:109111, 7:52-57, 16:1-17, 40:66-70, 41:9-12, 42:28 and 65:12. The article also explains creation beliefs or myths of other cultures. One of these myths is called creation by spoken word. As Isaak puts it, “at first there was only sky above and water below. The gods, Sovereign Plumed Serpent and Heart of Sky spoke together, joined their thoughts, and conceived of creation”. In view of the above one should not entirely accept creationism or reject evolution because creationism has many forms some of which are based on myths while evolution is largely based on speculations by scientists that disagree with one another and who continue to revise their theories on account of new discoveries. Evolution does not provide a conclusive proof for the non-Existence of God because of its limitations. There are a number of questions to which evolution has no acceptable answers: if we accept that life evolved in the sea from where did the sea come from? Who provided the atmosphere and other conditions that make the evolution possible? Is it by accident that man, in addition to his intellect, is also provided with certain physical characteristics like the hands that can be used to hold a pen to write, a needle to stitch clothes and working tools to perform a number of duties? If a donkey or a camel is as intelligent as man how it could handle these materials to enhance its living conditions? Is it also by accident or by God’s design that man, having been given intellect, intelligence and the physical features for using them, is deprived of other features like the long hairs of rabbits and rams and the feathers of birds? These animals were provided with these features because they cannot make a cloth to cover their bodies.

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Man’s beautiful and useful features are certainly according to the design of God not by the accident of evolution. The designer and maker of man says:

“We have indeed created man in the best of moulds” Qur’an 97:4. Those who rejected the existence of God as a result of the Darwinian theory of evolution which denies God would be surprised to note the following developments that came several years after the publication of Darwin’s works. Writing on the Modern Synthesis of Genetics and Evolution, Laurence Moran, rightly observes, “It is no longer appropriate to claim that evolutionary biologists believe that Darwin’s theory of Natural Selection is the best theory of the mechanism of evolution”. (www.talkorigin.org/modern-synthesis.html visited on July 4, 2005) The Neo-Darwinian theory of evolution, which incorporated genetics and population biology into the studies of evolution, has also been replaced by a new concept that includes mechanism of evolutions in addition to natural selection. This new concept, which is known as Modern Synthesis would be incompressible to Darwin because he was unaware of genes and genetic drift. Chris Colby also writes that Darwin’s book was titled The Origin of Species despite the fact that Darwin “did not really address this question; over one hundred and fifty years later, how species originate is still largely a mystery” . On the evidence for common descent and macroevolution, Colby states that while microevolution can be studied directly, macroevolution cannot. “Macroevolution could be postulated”, he says “But this extrapolation, in and of itself, does not provide a compelling explanation of the patterns of biological diversity we see today,”(http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/faqintro-to-biology.html visited on July 1, 2005). Despite the mystery surrounding the origin of species and the failure of macroevolution to adequately explain the patterns of the biological diversity we see today, Colby concludes his write-up by asserting that biologist can provide an elegant answer to the question, “How did we get here?” and

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acknowledges the fact that science has no answer to the question, “Why are we here?” The second question for which Biology has no answer is very important; we have to therefore, resort to what our creator says about the purpose of our creation. As we shall see below, Biology cannot even provide an elegant answer to the first question on how we arrive at where we are, this is simply because it relies only upon empiricism. Empiricism is limited to what the senses can perceive as a result of observation, pure chance and serendipity. A person’s inability to perceive the existence of a hidden treasure in his backyard does not mean that the treasure is non-existent. Thus the existence of something does not depend on our ability to perceive with our senses. We cannot have absolute knowledge when we rely upon empiricism, postulations and speculations. The ultimate truth about creation comes from only the Creator Himself, and He makes it possible for human beings to have some knowledge of the creation according to His will and at the time He chooses. In November 2004, the Time Magazine carried a news item about a discovery made by a team of Australian and Indonesian Scientists, which was published in the Nature journal (www.time.com/time/magazine/article accessed on November 6, 2004). The discovery was that of a tribe of tiny humans, only about 3 feet tall that lived in the caves of Flores. The discovery rocked the world of paleoanthrophy as the bones of the seven individuals found are an entirely new twig on the human family tree. With this discovery, as the Time Magazine puts it, “the chapter of biology on family tree has to be rewritten”. Again in January 2005, BBC News item says that an astonishing new fossil was unearthed in China and the discovery has overturned the accepted view about the relationship between dinosaurs and early mammals. Mammals were thought to be living in the shadow of the dinosaurs but the US – Chinese team of researchers found a mammal with a dinosaur in its stomach in the famous fossil beds of Liaoning Province in north – eastern China. The discovery suggests that mammals were not the timid insecteaters they have been portrayed in the past (story from http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/sci/tech/4165973.stm accessed on January 13, 2005). It is only recently (2004 – 2005) that scientists discovered two new planets. Astronomers using California’s Mount Polomar Observatory detected what

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could be the Solar System’s 10th Planet. The Planet, which they named Sedna after the Inuit goddess of the ocean, measures 1,180 – 2,360 km (730 – 1,470 miles) (http//news.bbc.co.uk/1/sci/tech/3511678.stm visited on 15/5/2005). The second planet named 2m12076, was seen and photographed by European and American scientists of the European Southern Observatory (ESO). The planet is about five times the mass of Jupiter. Gael Chauvin, an ESO astronomer, says, “this really is a planet – the first planet that has ever been imaged outside our Solar System,” th (http//news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4501323.stm visited on 15 May 2005). In an article captioned What We Don’t Know About The World, Jonathan Duffy states that 15,000 to 20,000 new species are identified annually in the animal kingdom alone. He acknowledges that: There are still huge gaps in our knowledge about the natural world that surrounds us. In fact, even by conservative estimates, there are more living species on the planet that haven’t been identified and documented than have (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk-news/magazine/4534871.stm accessed on 15th May 2005). These developments are indications that biology and science in general have not yet been able to adequately explain how we have arrived on earth as new discoveries can be made at any time, which can bring changes to the subjects. The Relationship between Religion and Science Facts discovered through Science do not go against religious teachings so long as they are divine and have not been tempered with by men. In other words, scientific truth must coincide with religious teachings because of their divine nature and applicability to all times. Advancement in science and technology are supposed to increase one’s faith in God. For religions based on myths as well as the divine religions that have been altered by man, or into which mythologies are introduced, the increasing impact of science on the lives of people as a result of breakthroughs, is a major factor distancing them from religious beliefs. In the Society and the

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Arts column of the News Week Magazine of July12, 1999, for instance, it has been reported on page 48 that: Judging by the statistics of people at prayers, Europe is a post – Christian continent. While churches in Latin America, Africa and the United States are full of worshippers; those in Europe – from village chapels to some of the world’s most sublime works of architecture – are lucky if they attract tourists. Eighty – nine percent of Britons don’t bother to go to Church regularly at all … why should prayer matter in a world that has found the power to clone sheep and build its own cyber – infinity on the web? In the same magazine (P.52), Karen Armstrong, in an article captioned Where Has God Gone? States that: In Europe, however, fundamentalism True, the more evangelical churches than others, but the overall trend conventional religion. Churches are restaurants, theatres and art galleries.

has been insignificant. are doing their better seems to be against being converted into

Kevin Ward, in an inaugural lecture entitled “Is New Zealand’s Future Churchless?” delivered at the School of Ministry, Knox College, on 23rd February, 2004, gives the following account on the decline of church going in the West: That church going has been in decline in all western countries, particularly since 1960s, is beyond dispute. Whatever statistics one uses, and however one looks at them, they all point in one direction – down. In New Zealand church attendance in 1960 was about 20% of the population weekly and 40% monthly. By 2000 this had been halved to 10% and 20% respectively, figure identical to Australia and very similar to Britain (18% and 8% weekly), although most of the decline occurred from the late 60s to the late 80s and the figures have stabilized somewhat since. These certainly raise the question as to whether at some point in time in the future New Zealand will in fact be a churchless society. [www.schoolofministry.ac.nz/kevinward/articles/inaugural%20 lecture%20v2%2004.doc]

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Those who deny the existence of God, substitute Him with nature, and his wonderful powers to create and control all existence, with laws of nature. David Myatt defines nature as : That innate creative force which operates in the physical world, on this planet, and which causes, or is the genesis of, and controls, living organisms in certain ways. These “certain ways” are the laws of Nature (www.geocities.com/davidmyatt/whatisnature.html accessed on 6th November. 2004). He further explains that nature is a living and changing entity “which is and which becomes incarnate, in all living things, all of which have their own nature, their own destiny or fate”. Myatt does not imply that Nature refers to God by saying that it is a living entity. He says: Many religions and many philosophies do not accept that Nature is alive, or that there is a creative force inherent in Nature. Instead, many religions posit God as the Creator (www.geocities.com/davidmyatt/whatisnature.html accessed on 6th November. 2004). The best thing for us is to differentiate between the Creator (God) and the creature (everything that God had created), and to accept that the most reliable source of knowledge about the nature of creature is the creator Himself. If you want to know about the rocks, the sun, the moon, the oceans, and about yourself as a human being, check the Qur’an first. The holy Qur’an provides us with certain knowledge about the nature of creature and enjoins us to study the creature in order to get further details. The following are examples of verses of the holy Qur’an, which talk about the nature of creature:

“And the heaven We constructed with strength, and indeed, We are (its) expander”. (Qur’an 51:47) This indicates that the universe is expanding.

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“Have those who disbelieved not considered that the heavens

and the earth were a joined entity, and We separated them and made from water every living thing? Then will they not believe?” (Qur’an 21:30). This verse talks about the “big bang” that separated the earth from the heavens and indicates that water is the origin of all living things.”

“And it is He who has released (simultaneously) the two seas (i.e. bodies of water), one fresh and sweet and one salty and bitter, and He placed between them a barrier and a prohibiting partition.” (Qur’an 25:53) There is partition, which prevents the waters of two different oceans from mixing with one another at a point where they meet one another. This is a wonderful feature of oceans.

“Exalted is He who created all pairs from what the earth grows and from themselves and from that which they do not know”. (Qur’an 36:36). This verse talks about the general nature of creation, that things are created in pairs or in the form of male and female. This applies to human beings, animals, plants and things, which we don’t even know. All the above verses indicate man can study and understand nature from the holy Qur’an because it contains the words of the creator of nature. In order to get the necessary details about nature, the same Qur’an enjoins people to study the nature of creation. This study serves a number of purposes: it enables us to be aware of and make the best use of things which God had created for our own benefit, it enable us to protect ourselves from harm and danger coming from what surrounds us, and it provides us with the signs of the Creator and strengthen our belief in Him. The following verses call upon us to investigate and study nature:

“Then do they not look at the camels – how they are created? And the sky – how it is raised? And at the mountains – how they are erected? And the earth – how it is spread out?” (Qur’an 88:17-20)

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These verses invite us to study these creatures.

“Say, (O Muhammad), “Travel through the land and observe how He began creation. Then Allah will produce the final creation (i.e. development). Indeed Allah, over all things, is competent.” (Qur’an 29:20) “So have they not travelled through the earth and have hearts by which to reason and ears by which to hear? For indeed, it is not the eyes that are blinded, but blinded are the hearts which are within the breasts.” (Qur’an 22:46) These two verses enjoin us to travel and observe creation and also to have hearts with which to reason. Charles Darwin, during his H.M.S Beagle voyage, had the eyes to observe things but could not have the heart to reason well, so he came to a wrong conclusion that God did not create things. Observations made through the use of the senses enable us to make inferences through the use of the heart. Science accepts inferences, for instance, we can infer that there is fire burning somewhere close to us when our senses perceive its smoke, light and heat. These are signs of fire, if we perceive them; we accept that fire exists even if we do not go the spot where it is burning. God had chosen not to be seen during our life on earth, and one of His attributes is that He does not resemble anything that we see because He is not made of matter, so we cannot prove His existence in the manner we prove the existence of material objects. In the alternative, He reveals His numerous signs in what He creates. The beauty of nature which we appreciate, the wonderful laws of nature, which govern matter and energy and allow us to measure and predict natural phenomena, and the occurrences of natural disasters like the tsunami, earthquakes and hurricane, which render man helpless despite all his knowledge of science and technology, are all signs of God. They do not exist as a result of accident; this is because they follow a pattern, they maintain a balance and work according to a law and a design. There cannot be a law without a lawgiver or a design without a designer. We make objects such as nails, buckets and toothpicks for a purpose, God also created us for a purpose. Science does not tell us the purpose of creation; it only attempts to explain its origin. In so doing, science has no means of controlling our moral aspect or dealing with our psychological and spiritual problems. It cannot for

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instance, control crimes, delinquency, and suicides because it has nothing to do with the purpose for which we are created and to where we shall return after death for the judgment of our actions. The purposes of the signs of God are therefore to enable us have a faith in His existence, if we refuse to do this, the result will be too bad for us:

“But those who deny our signs – We will progressively lead them (to destruction) from where they do not know”. (Qur’an 7:182)

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CHAPTER THREE PROOFS OF THE ONENESS OF GOD In this chapter an attempt is made to prove the oneness of God through the use of commonsense and logic and also the use of scientific knowledge. The oneness of God is also proved through quotations of some verses contained in the Holy Qur’an and the Holy Bible. Commonsense and Logic Let’s suppose that one believes in the existence of five gods. The first thing to be considered is how they could have come into existence. Did they start to exist at the same time or did some of them come into existence before others? If some of the gods had created or gave birth to others do those created or born have the same power with their creators or parents? If the five gods do not have the same power how do they control the universe and what it contains? This is because there is every possibility that they can disagree over certain issues and some gods may try to dominate others. Logically we should not worship gods that can be dominated or controlled by other gods. If such disagreements and dominations do not occur because the gods agree on everything all act in the same manner then one of these two things must be accepted: a)

Existence of five independent gods with the same abilities, powers and actions and who agree on all matters so as to avoid conflicts: This will be just like having only one God because there is no way by which you can differentiate one of them from the rest. Under this condition, the five gods act as one God, and anyone of them can do what the rest could do. This creates redundancy or duplication of efforts among them. Existence of only one independent God is the best alternative

b)

Having five incomplete (dependent) gods: they will have different

powers and areas of specialization like having the god of rain, of fire, of evils, etc, just like having ministers for agriculture, health, education, etc, in the administration of a nation. Under this situation the gods must always work together to run their affairs since each has a limited power and knowledge. When you add up their different powers it will be equal to the power of one full-

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fledged God (1/5 + 1/5 +1/5 +1/5 +1/5 = 5/5 = 1). This means they have the same proportion of power for carrying out a single task, which the one full-fledged God can do alone. If some of the gods are more powerful or more knowledgeable than others, this worsens the situation; they can dominate or outsmart the rests. Commonsense and logic will not accept a situation of having either more than one complete (independent) gods or more than one incomplete (dependent) gods. There has to be only one God who has all powers which He does not share with anyone and who does not have to seek help from anybody. Scientific Reasoning In the previous chapter it was stated that God being independent of time, matter and space, has no “before”, no “after” and cannot be symbolized by matter. These characteristics do not apply to idols, people, jinns and angels whom some people worship as gods. These gods or idols have a beginning and an end, they occupy a space because they started to exist after creation and lastly, they are made of matter. It is because they are made from matter that they can be seen and touched with the exception of angels and jinns. Angels and jinns, as their creator informed us in the Holy Qur’an, are created from fire and light respectively. Even though hidden, certain people selected by God can see them. In as much as God has neither beginning nor end it means He is neither created nor born by someone else. Whatever is created or born has at least a beginning. If a “beginning” can apply to God in terms of being created or born then who controls the universe and its contents before His existence and if an “end” applies to Him who takes over after Him? In as much as we believe that God had created the universe from nothing we should also believe that He does not need any kind of help from anybody. This means there is no need for other gods to exist so as to assist the true God What the Holy Books Say about the Oneness of God God has the power to create something (like the universe) from nothing. In fact He created man from clay (no father no mother) as He created Prophet

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Adam (P.B.U.H) and created a woman from man (with no mother) as He created Adam’s wife called Hauwa’ (Eve). Similarly God had created man through a woman alone (no father) as He created Prophet Isa (Jesus) (P.B.U.H). To regard anyone of the above-mentioned people, as a child of God is to deride His power of creation to a mere birth through which people and animals multiply themselves. The word son is too inaccurate to be used in describing the relationship between God and His creatures. For if God is the father of someone it means He requires a consort to serve as the mother of that individual. Jews and Christians, whom the Holy Qur’an addresses as the people of the Book, fall into the mistake of ascribing sons to God. The Jews call Uzair (Ezra) a son of God while the Christians call Jesus (P.B.U.H) a son of God. The Holy Qur’an says a lot about Christians and Jews so much so that one should not preach Islam to them without referring them to some Qur’anic verses. Below are some verses of the Holy Qur’an, which indicate the oneness of God and the fact that He has no son, no equal, no end, no parents and cannot be comprehended in terms of matter.

“Say: He is God, the One and Only; God the Eternal, Absolute; He begtteth not, nor is He begotten; and there is none like unto Him”. Qur’an 112:1-4. “Yet they make the Jinns equal with God, though God did create the Jinns; and falsely, having no knowledge, attribute to Him sons and daughters. Praise and glory be to Him. (For He is) above what they attribute to Him. To Him is due the primal origin of the heavens and the earth; How can He have a son when He hath no consort? He created all things and He hath full knowledge of all things. That is God, your Lord. There is no god but He, the creator of all things: then worship ye Him and He hath power to dispose all affairs. No vision can grasp Him, but His grasp is over all vision: He is above all comprehension, Yet is acquainted with all things.” Qur’an 6:100 – 103.

On the mistakes of Jews and Christians of ascribing sons to God, the Holy Qur’an says:

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“The Jews call Uzair a son of God and the Christians call Christ the son of God. That is a saying from their mouth; (in this) they but imitate what the unbelievers of old used to say. God’s curse be on them how they are deluded away from the truth.” Qur’an 9:30. Still in the following verses of Holy Qur’an Allah warns mankind not to join other gods with Him. We can also read that Jesus (P.B.U.H) did not call himself God. It were his followers who, either because of their excessive love for him or of an evil intention to distort his teachings, decided to regard him as God. The verses also touched on the issue of the Holy Trinity, which according to some Christians is made up of God the Father, God the son and God the Holy Spirit or ghost. This is what Allah the Most High said:

“They do blaspheme who say: “God is Christ the son of Mary”. But said Christ: “O children of Israel. Worship God my Lord and your Lord.” Whoever joins other gods with God, God will forbid him the Garden and Fire will be his abode. There will for wrong-doers be no one to help. They blaspheme who say: God is one of the three in a Trinity: for there is no god except one God”. Qur’an 5:75-76.

Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H) started existing when his mother Maryam (Mary), who never had an affair with a man, became pregnant as a result of God’s command- the word “Be” (and it is). That is why Jesus is also called Word of God. Since Prophet Jesus had a beginning, he cannot be God. In the Holy Bible it is stated that Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H) has always been alive and created everything in the heaven and earth. Christians also believe that Jesus (P.B.U.H) did not start existing only as a human being born by Virgin Mary. The Holy Bible says:

“Before anything else existed, there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive and is himself God. He created everything there is nothing exists that he didn’t make”. JOHN 1:1-3.

“Christ is the exact likeness of the unseen God. He existed before God made anything at all, and in fact Christ himself is

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the creator who made everything in the heaven and earth”. COLOSSIANS 2:15 – 16

If Jesus (P.B.U.H) “is the creator who made everything in the heaven and earth”, it means the other God i.e. his “Father” did not create anything, but then in another verse of the Holy Bible it is stated that Jesus (P.B.U.H) admitted that he could not do anything by himself.

“Jesus replied, “The son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing and in the same way”. JOHN 5:19 Here it is made clear that Jesus (P.B.U.H) could only imitate the Father and by implication is not the only creator of “everything in the heaven and earth”. The conclusion that is reached through the use of commonsense and scientific knowledge and the verses quoted from the Holy Qur’an is that oneness is one of the attributes of God. The Holy Bible also contains statements made by Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H), which also point to the oneness of God. Jesus was asked on the most important of the commandments of God and this is what we read in the Holy Bible:

“Jesus replied: the one that says “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one and only God”. MARK 12:29 Still on the oneness of God, Jesus was reported to have said in the Holy Bible:

“Why do you call me God?” Jesus asked. “only God is truly God.” MARK 10:18 From the above we can clearly understand that there is only one God and he (Jesus) didn’t regard himself as God. The truth, as Muslims believe, is that Jesus is a messenger and a Prophet of God. He was sent to preach the words of God not his own. This true position of Jesus can still be understood from this verse of the Holy Bible:

“So Jesus told them, “I am not teaching you my own thoughts, but those of God who sent me” JOHN 7:16

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Is it possible for God to be incapable of knowing the future? If the answer is yes, it means God has a limited knowledge. Commonsense will not accept this answer. Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H), a true messenger of God and whom some people mistakenly regard as God, was reported in the Holy Bible as saying that he had no knowledge of when the Last Day would come.

“Heaven and earth will disappear but my words remain forever. But no one knows the date and hour when the end will be, not even angels. No, nor even God’s son. Only the Father knows.” MATHEW 24:35 – 36 This verse points to the fact that Jesus had limited knowledge and depended upon what God revealed to him. In another verse he was saying that he was not co-equal with God when he declared “the Father is greater than I” (John 14:28). It is a pity that Christians are made to believe that these types of statements by Jesus and some of his behaviours, like crying while on the cross, describe his human form only, and that as God, he is above these limitations. It is not necessary for God to assume the position of human beings before understanding their conditions and forgiving their original sins. The miracles performed by Jesus (P.B.U.H), do not make him God because there are other people who performed the same or even greater miracles. Jesus had no father; Eve (Hauwa in Arabic) had no mother and was created from Adam who had no father and no mother. God miraculously created all these people. Jesus should not be God simply because he performed miracles such as raising the dead or curing lepers because Elisha too cured a leper (2 kings 5:14) while Elijah raised the dead (1 Kings 17:22) and like Jesus, he was raised to the heaven (2 Kings 11:12) Lastly, Jesus should not be regarded as God simply because it was stated in the Gospel of St. John (John 1:1-3) that as a word of God, he had been with God and is God. The Holy Bible also speaks about the existence of a “man” who had neither beginning nor end, and neither father nor mother but is only a high priest, (refer to Hebrew 7:1-3). Some Christians say that this man whose name is Melchizedek, is no one other than Jesus. This is not true because Jesus was born by Mary, so unlike Melchizedek, he had a mother.

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It could safely be concluded that there is only one God. Commonsense, science and some of the quotations made from the Holy Qur’an and the Holy Bible all support this conclusion.

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CHAPTER FOUR ISLAM AND OTHER RELIGIONS Followers of every religion existing today believe that they are the only ones practicing a true religion while other people have gone astray. As for the atheists and agnostics, all religions are taboos or superstitious practices. The true situation is that there must be only one true religion at a particular point in time and this implies that some religions are outcomes of taboos and superstitions while others, even though divine, were supposed to have expired with time. This chapter provides evidences of the continuity of divine guidance from one God revealed to different Prophets and messengers at different times. Islam and Religions Based Upon Superstitious Beliefs and Taboos There is no need to make a lengthy analysis on the relationship between Islam and religions that arise from superstitious beliefs and taboos. It is in these types of religions that trees, statues, graves, animals, heroes and heroines and so on, are being worshipped as gods. Buddhism which, is also one of the major religions in existence today and with a numerous followers in India, Thailand, Tibet, Japan, Nepal, Vietnam, China and Cambodia can be cited here as an example of religions that are founded by men or involve the worship of men. Buddhism was founded by an Indian prince called Gautama and the most famous of its scriptures is called Dhammaphada. Gautama was born to a royal family in 560 BC at Lumbia village near Kapilavastu. An astrologer foretold Gautama’s father that his child would forsake the throne, renounce the world and become a wandering ascetic. To prevent these occurrences, the father built a big palace for his son and provided him with food, drinks and girls who were dancing and singing songs to entertain the young prince. At the age of 29, Gautama ran away from the palace to experience suffering and to engage in a search for “reality”. He studied Hinduism (a Hindu religion) and found it dissatisfying. He then took to meditation under a bodhi tree. After passing through many stages of meditation, he finally

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attained enlightenment for which he got the title Buddha, meaning the enlightened one. Gautama Buddha spent the rest of his life preaching and he died in 480 BC (refer to Imran Nazar Hussein (1977), Islam and Buddhism in the Modern world). A Buddhist scholar, H. Saddhatissa, in his book The Buddha’s Way (published in 1971 by George Allen and Unwin) wrote that Buddha did not claim to be anything other than a human being. On page 37 of the book he wrote “Buddhism not being a revealed religion, at least not in the usual sense of the word, is wholly based on human experience”. This statement is enough for us to say that Buddhism is an unacceptable religion because it is man-made and involves the worship of man who had a known beginning because he was created. Relationship between Judaism, Christianity and Islam We shall now focus our attention to the relationship between Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Muslims believe that all divine religions including Judaism and Christianity, and the revelations made to the apostles who preached them, emanated from the same and only one God (Allah). All prophets and messengers from Adam (P.B.U.H) to Muhammad (P.B.U.H) were chosen by Allah irrespective of whether they preached Christianity, Judaism or Islam. In fact they were Muslims (i.e. those who submitted themselves to Allah) and taught their followers to practice Islam (submission to Allah). Let us read from the following chapters of the Holy Qur’an.

“When Jesus found unbelief on their part he said: “Who will be my helpers to (the work of) God? Said the disciples:” We are God’s helpers: we believe in God, and do thou bear witness that we are Muslims”. Qur’an 3:52. “The religion before God is Islam (submission to His will): Nor did the people of the Book dissent there from except through envy of each other, after knowledge had come to them. But if any denies the sign of God, God is swift in calling to account. Qur’an 3:19.

It is pertinent at this stage for the reader to know the meanings of the words “Prophet” and “Messenger”. A Prophet is he who receives inspiration from God and has not been asked to communicate it to others. A

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messenger or an apostle is he who receives inspiration from God and has been asked to communicate it to others. All apostles are therefore prophets but not all prophets are apostles. While addressing Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), Allah said in the Holy Qur’an:

“We did afore time sent Apostles before thee: of them there are some whose story We have related to thee and some whose story We have not related to thee. Qur’an 40:78.

Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is the last Prophet and messenger of Allah.

False prophets, prophetesses and apostles have their ways blocked by this verse of the Holy Qur’an:

“Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Apostle of God and the Seal of Prophets.” Qur’an 33:40.

It is pertinent to list down the names of the 25 Prophets that appear in the Holy Qur’an because most of the names also appear in the Holy Bible. This will prove that Islam, Christianity and Judaism originated from the same and only God. The Prophets were not necessarily sent in the order given below, however, Adam (P.B.U.H) came first and Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is the last of all. 1. Adam 2. Nuh (Noah) 3. Ibrahim (Abraham) 4. Isma’il (Ishmael) 5. Ishaq (Isaac) 6. Idris (Enoch) 7. Salih 8. Shu’aib 9. Yusuf (Joseph) 10. Zul-Kifl (Ezekiel) 11. Dawud (David) 12. Zakariya (Zacharia) 13. Sulaiman (Solomon) 14. Hud 15. Ilyas (Elias) 16. Alyasa’a (Elisha)

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17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25.

Ayub ((Job) Harun (Aaron) Yaqub (Jacob) Yunus (Jonah or Jonas) Yahaya (John) Lut (Lot) Musa (Moses) Isah (Jesus) Muhammad

The above names can be found in a number of verses of the Holy Qur’an, for example the following verse mentions the names of eleven prophets of Allah. Referring to Prophet Muhammad, Allah says:

“We have sent thee inspiration, as We sent it to Noah and the Messengers after him: We sent inspiration to Abraham, Isma’il, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes, to Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron and Solomon, and to David We gave the Psalms”. Qur’an 4:163.

The same and only one God who appointed the entire Prophets also revealed all the Holy Books used at different times. Muslims are required to believe in all the Holy Books and but follow the teachings of the Holy Qur’an, which is the final revelation and the most comprehensive of all. Allah dictated in the Holy Qur’an:

“Say: “We believe in God, and in what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Isma’il, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes and in (the Books) given to Moses, Jesus and the Prophets from their Lord: We make no distinction between one and another among them, and to God do we bow our will (in Islam).” Qur’an 3:84. The relationship between Judaism, Christianity and Islam is that of continuity of the divine guidance and of replacement of one form of worship with another. This continuity of Allah’s messages to mankind on how to worship Him can clearly be seen in the ways the Apostles were sent and the relationship between the Holy Books revealed to them. The Apostles and the Holy Books came in a manner that confirmed and or foretold the coming or teachings of one another.

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The Jews were supposed to abandon Judaism and accept Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H) as an Apostle of God. Had it been the Jews did not reject Jesus, there could have not been any religion called Judaism existing side by side with Christianity. Some of the early Christians who witnessed the coming of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) acted in the same manner as the Jews. They rejected Prophet Muhammad as an Apostle of God despite the fact that they were told (in the scriptures) about his coming, as we shall see later. The evidence of the continuity we are talking about can be seen from many verse of the Holy Qur’an before we turn to the Holy Bible. For instance, Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H) confirmed the Law of Moses and this meant Moses (P.B.U.H) is a true Apostle. Allah says in the Holy Qur’an:

“And in their footsteps We sent Jesus the son of Mary, confirming the Law that had come before him: We sent him the Gospel: therein was guidance and light, and confirmation of the Law that had come before him: a guidance and an admonition to those who fear God.” Qur’an 5:49. In another verse of the Holy Qur’an we are informed that Jesus (P.B.U.H) told his followers (Children of Israel) that he was an Apostle of God sent to confirm what had come before him and to foretell the coming of prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H).

“And remember, Jesus the son of Mary said: “O children of Israel I am the Apostle of God (sent) to you confirming the Law (which came) before me and giving glad tiding of an Apostle to come after me whose name shall be Ahmad.” Qur’an 61:6.

Ahmad or Muhammad means “the praised one”. A.Yusuf Ali, who made a very popular English translation and commentary of the Holy Qur’an, wrote that the name Ahmad is almost the translation of the Greek word “Periclytos”. He also wrote that the Greek word “Paracletos” which means the “comforter’ was an easy corruption from “Periclytos” which is almost a literal translation of the name Ahmad or Muhammad. He also wrote that there were Gospels that had perished but whose remnants can still be found and they were specific in their reference to Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. An example was the Gospel of St. Barnabas the Italian translation of which still exists in a library at Vienna. It was also edited in

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1970 with an English translation (see a footnote to chapter 61:6 in A, Yusuf Ali’s The Holy Qur’an: Text, Translation and Commentary published by the Islamic foundation). Evidences of the Continuity of Divine Guidance in the Bible We can still find some evidences in the Holy Bible that point to the fact that Jesus (P.B.U.H) foretold the coming of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) and which show that the relationship between Judaism, Christianity and Islam is that of continuity of divine guidance from the one and only God. Muslims believe that the Holy Bible suffered from loss and distortion so much so that the true teachings of Jesus (P.B.U.H) became corrupted. This will be proved here without any intention of disrespect to the Holy Bible. The Holy Bible had undergone through a series of revisions apart from what it suffered from in the course of its writing and various translations. Those who compiled the Holy Bible in the form we see it today did not include some written documents either intentionally or due to the in availability of such documents during the compilation process. It is unreasonable for one to state that the Holy Bible suffers from loss and distortions unless the claim is proved. This proof is very simple because it is not easy for man to distort God’s words or regard his own words as the words of God without leaving loopholes in form of contradictions and inconsistencies, which God will never make. Revision of the Holy Bible also indicates that there is something wrong with what is being revised or that some short – comings are bound to be discovered with time. The distortions of what God revealed to Prophet Isa (Jesus) (P.B.U.H) and the additions made to his teachings can be understood in terms of the contradictions that abound in the Holy Bible despite St. Paul’s statement that all scripture is inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16). Paul could be right if he were referring to the revelations made by God to Apostles like Abraham, David, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, peace be upon them, and could be wrong if he was referring to all the writings of the many authors of the books contained by the Holy Bible including his own epistles. The same St. Paul acknowledged the fact that he spoke not on the command of God but was simply giving his own personal opinion, (see 1 Corinthians 7:25). One of the authors of the Holy Bible, James, also indicated that he and other teachers of the Gospel made mistakes (James 3:2), this could mean that their sayings and writings were not inspired by God.

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Let’s come back to the issue of contradiction, which we want to use as a yardstick for measuring the genuineness and reliability of religious teachings. A renowned Greek Philosopher, Plato, warned that truth could not be contradictory and must be self-consistent (see Macmillan’s encyclopedia of education Vol. 3, P. 419). Muhammad William Sheared, a Christian convert to Islam, also wrote that “contradiction is the mortal enemy, the fatal ambuscade of the liar” (see page 5 of his book Who Founded Christianity, Jesus or Jewry? ). God himself had stated in the Holy Qur’an that it would contain many discrepancies or contradictions if it were invented by man (see Qur’an 4:82). One interesting thing is that the Holy Bible too has provided its readers with a means of detecting any addition or alteration made to it. It says every word of God proves true and then warns, “Do not add to his words lest he rebukes you and you be found a liar” (see Proverbs 30:5-6). All the above statements and warnings point to the fact that contradictions can serve as a criterion for judging the validity and authenticity of a Holy Book. There are clear contradictions in the accounts of how Paul was assigned to preach Christianity. In Acts, 9:3-7 it has been stated that Jesus asked Paul to enter the city to be told what to do but in Acts 26:13-18 Paul said that Jesus himself told him what to do, that is, to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles. Note the serious contradiction from the underlined words. In Acts 9:37 it is stated that those traveling with Paul when the event occurred heard the voice of Jesus but saw no one but in Acts 22:6 Paul said those traveling with him saw a light but didn’t hear the voice of Jesus. This is also another serious contradiction. The preface written to the Revised Standard Version (R.S.V) (1967 publication) of the Holy Bible, sincerely acknowledges the corruption of the Holy Book. Explaining the arrangement of the R.S.V. to readers and referring to the work done by the committee of 32 scholars who made the revision, the preface states: If in the judgment of the committee the meaning of a passage is quite uncertain or obscure, either because of

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corruption in the text or because of inadequacy of our present knowledge of the language, the fact is indicated by a note. On the issue of loss of portions of the Holy Bible, the preface also provides some light. It says: For the Old Testament only late manuscripts survive, all (with the exception of the Dead Sea texts of Isaiah and Habakkuk and some fragments of other books) based on a standardized form of the text established many centuries after the books were written. Another evidence of loss is a collection of Christian scriptures, which carries the title of “The Lost Books of the Bible and the Forgotten Books of Eden”. The book was published by William Colin and World Publishing Company (A Fount Book). The book was printed for the 35th time in 1977. In an introduction to the book, Dr. Frank Crane writes that: the publication of the book will do good because it takes away the veil of secrecy that has hidden for many years, the act of the Church in accepting certain scriptures and rejecting others. The book has two sections. The first section contains the lost books of the Bible, which are 27 in number. Some of them are 1 Clement, 2 Clement, Romans, Trallians, Barnabas and the Last Gospel of Peter. The second section of the book contains the “Forgotten Books of Eden” which comprises of 20 books some of which are Judah, Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, The Secret of Enoch and the Testament of Rueben. Despite the above proofs that the Holy Bible suffers from loss, distortions and corruptions, the attitude of Muslims towards it, as Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) advised in a Hadith, should be a belief in all the revealed things it contains, this is because the Bible is a mixture of the words of God, Prophets and ordinary men or historians. Muslims must not disrespect it, in fact, Islam does not support disrespect to the teachings of other religions. Let us now trace the evidences of continuity of Allah’s religion from the Holy Bible despite the distortions.

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In the Gospel of St. John we can find a place where Jesus Christ told his followers about the coming of Prophet Muhammad even though we cannot see the word “Muhammad” as it had been replaced by the word “Comforter”. The Christians take the comforter to be the Holy Spirit who is part of the Holy Trinity. To find whether the word “comforter” as used in the Holy Bible was originally meant to refer to Prophet Muhammad or to the Holy Spirit is an easy task. This is because the attributes or characteristics of the Holy Spirit who is seen as part of the Holy Trinity should not be the same as that of Prophet Muhammad who is simply a servant and a messenger of God. Let us read from the Holy Bible in order to find some of the attributes of the Holy Spirit (comforter) as given by Jesus himself.

“But I will send you the comforter, the Holy Spirit, the source of all truth. He will come to you from the Father and will tell you about me” JOHN 15:26. “But now I am going away to the one who sent me: and none of you seems interested in the purpose of my going; none wonders why. Instead you are only filled with sorrow. But the fact of the matter is that it is best for you that I go away, for if I don’t, the comforter won’t come. If I do, he will-for I will send him to you. And when he comes he will convince the world of its sins and of the availability of God’s goodness and of deliverance from judgment”. JOHN 16:5-8. “When the Holy Spirit, who is truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not be presenting his own ideas but will be passing on to you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future”. JOHN 16:13. The following are some of the characteristics of the Holy Spirit, which appear in the verses quoted above: a) b) c)

He will come from God (the Father) and tell Christians about Jesus. He will not come unless Jesus goes away. He will not be presenting his own ideas but passing on what he has heard.

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The first characteristic of the Holy Spirit befits Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H). This is because the Prophet told Christians about Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H). The Holy Qur’an and the Hadith of the Prophet mentioned a lot about Jesus Christ and also confirmed his Prophethood. The Holy Spirit does not say anything about Christ to the Christians as they are made to believe. Some Christians believe that the Holy Spirit guides their thoughts and actions, some claim to have knowledge of the future and powers of healing because of the Holy Spirit. Some Christians believe that for one to get the Holy Spirit one has to become a born-again Christian or has to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. There are also Christians that claim to have communication with the Holy Spirit when they speak in “tongues”. All these mystical experiences and claims connected with the Holy Spirit cause confusions in the religion and open the gates for new “Prophets” who claim to have communication with God just for worldly gains. The fact is that the Holy Spirit is not God but a Spirit of God given to Jesus Christ himself to strengthen him. The Advanced Learners’ Dictionary (Revised and Updated) too defines the word “comforter” as “strengthener”. The second characteristic (He will not come unless Jesus goes away) also suits Prophet Muhammad because God sent him many years after the departure of Jesus Christ. If this characteristic is to apply to the Holy Spirit it means that the Spirit was not present during the time of Jesus Christ. The truth is that the spirit had always been with Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H). In fact, Allah strengthened Jesus with Holy Spirit as the following verses of the Holy Qur’an indicate.

“We gave Moses the Book and followed him up with a succession of Apostles: We gave Jesus the son of Mary Clear (signs) and strengthened him with the Holy Spirit” (Qur’an 2:87).

“Those apostles We endowed with gifts, some above others: to one of them God spoke; others He raised to degrees (of honour); to Jesus the son of Mary We gave Clear (signs), and strengthened him with the Holy Spirit”. (Qur’an 2:253). These verses show that the Holy Spirit is not what the Christians imagine they have with them but what was given to and co-existed with Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H). Fortunately, the Holy Bible also shows that the Holy Spirit co-existed with Jesus Christ. The Gospel of John states that God’s Spirit is upon Jesus Christ without a measure of limit:

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“Those who believe in him discover that God is a fountain of truth. For this one sent by God-speaks Gods words for God’s Spirit is upon him without measure of limit. The Father loves this man because he is his son and God has given him everything there is”. JOHN 3:34-35. Saying “God’s Spirit is upon him without measure of limit” had contradicted the words: “it is best for you that I go away, for if I don’t, the comforter

won’t come.”

The last characteristic of the Holy Spirit according to the Holy Bible is that he will not be presenting his own ideas. This is also a characteristic that belongs to Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) as he did not invent the Holy Qur’an nor did he tell his personal desires to his companions even in form of a Hadith. The Holy Qur’an testified to this fact:

“Your companion is neither astray nor being mislead, nor does he say (ought) of (his own) desire. It is no less than inspiration sent down to him: he was taught by one Mighty in Power.” Qur’an 53:2-5. To apply this characteristic of not presenting one’s own ideas to the Holy Spirit renders him dependent and puts him in the position of an apostle. Anybody who is expected not to pass on his ideas to others but only say what he is told by someone else is a messenger not a God. And Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is a servant and a Messenger of Allah. The Holy Bible, despite the distortions it contains, proves the continuity of divine guidance we have been talking about: there is only one God who

sent different Prophets to different people at different times.

To warn Jews and Christians whose religions, with the coming of Prophet Muhammad, were supposed to have expired, and also to warn the rest of mankind, Allah says:

“If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to God) never will it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who have lost (all spiritual good).” Qur’an 3:85.

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CHAPTER FIVE WHO IS THE AUTHOR OF THE HOLY QUR’AN? Non-Muslims have the impression that the Holy Qur’an is a creative work or the brainchild of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) whom they regard as a false Prophet. Some of them believe that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) copied the Holy Bible in order to write the Holy Qur’an due to some similarities in the two Holy Books. Yet others regard Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) as one of the most pious and honest people the world ever had. Non-Muslims historians who wrote about Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) all agreed that he was unlettered, that is, he could not read and write. It is also an undisputable fact that there was never a claim by anybody that he taught Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) or saw the Prophet attending some kind of a school. This chapter contains some reasons, which prove that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) did not invent the Holy Qur’an but God revealed it to him. Evidences that Prophet Muhammad Didn’t Copy the Holy Bible Had it been that a liar wrote the Holy Qur’an, it could not have contained historical accounts about the past prophets. Those who claim that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) copied the Bible do so because of some similarities of the historical accounts of events contained in the two Holy Books. These people could not reason that these similarities are obtained due to the relationship of continuity between Islam on the one hand and Christianity and Judaism on the other. In the previous chapter an in depth discussion was made about this relationship. The question that remained unanswered is how could somebody whom even the non-Muslim historians agreed was incapable of reading and writing, copy even a single verse of the Holy Bible? Not only that, the Holy Qur’an contains many things that cannot be found in the Holy Bible. If prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) was a liar who wanted to replace Christianity, Judaism and other religions with Islam, he would not have, for instance, written verses in the Holy Qur’an which confirmed the Prophethood and the miraculous birth of Jesus Christ (P.B.U.H) and other nice statements about him. The Holy Qur’an contains many verses about Jesus (P.B.U.H); here are just some of them:

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“And in their footsteps We sent Jesus the son of Mary, confirming the Law that had come before him: We sent him the Gospel: therein was guidance and light and confirmation of the Law that had come before him: a guidance and an admonition to those who fear God”. Qur’an 5:49. “Behold! The angel said: “O Mary, God giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary; held in honour in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest to God. “He shall speak to the people in childhood and in maturity. And he shall be (of the company) of the righteous.” She said: “O my Lord. How shall I have a son when no man hath touched me? He said: Even so: God createth what he willeth when He has decreed a plan He but saith to it “Be and it is.” Qur’an 3:4547.

When Christians read these verses they may feel contented with their religion and regard Muslims as incapable of understanding the realities because even the Holy Qur’an agrees that Christ’s birth was a great miracle. But why shouldn’t the Christians and other non-Muslims also reason that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) would not have written verses like these in the Holy Qur’an if he were a liar and a false prophet? If he were a liar he would have written verses that would tarnish the image of Jesus Christ so as to make Christianity unattractive. Creating Jesus with God’s word “Be” (and it is) does not make him a son of God, Prophet Adam was also created form this same word of command – a word that changed clay to a human being. Nothing is beyond the capability of God. Muslims’ Respect and Regard for All Prophets The second reason that shows that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) did not invent the Holy Qur’an has to do with the Muslims’ respect and regard for all prophets of Allah. Muslims are not allowed to have less regard for any prophet or messenger of Allah. Muslims are required to respect all prophets and believe in what was revealed to them as the following verses of the Holy Qur’an dictate:

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“Say ye: “We believe in God, and the revelations given to us, and to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to (all) prophets from their Lord: We make no difference between one and another of them: and we bow to God (in Islam).”Qur’an 2:136. “Those who deny God and His Apostles and (those who) wish to separate God from His Apostles, saying: “We believe in some but reject others”, and (those who) wish to take a course mid way, - they are in truth (equally) unbelievers and We have prepared for unbelievers a humiliating punishment.” Qur’an 4:150 – 151.

Qur’an, Hadith and Scientific Discoveries The Holy Qur’an and traditions of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) contain facts, which scientists had confirmed. This is evidence, which proves that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), who lived in a distant past (571-622 C.E.) and did not go to school, was not the author of the Holy Qur’an nor was he the inventor of Islam. In the second chapter of this book we have already read verses of the Holy Qur’an that touched on issues relating to the “big bang” theory and the origin of life. We are going to examine more scientific testimonies that proved the divine nature of Islam and the true Prophethood of Muhammad (P.B.U.H). The New Nigerian newspaper of 7th June, 1985 reproduced a wonderful story from Radiance, a New-Delhi (India) based Journal published in July – August 1983. The story was captioned “Captain Cousteau Embraces Islam”. In the story, Captain Jacques Cousteau, an eminent French research scholar, was quoted as follows: We were busy examining the findings of some researchers who maintained there were barriers which separate the different oceans from each other. The result of our research proved that the Mediterranean Sea has its own temperature conditions, its certain salt condition and its own density. Captain Cousteau was told by a friend that what they discovered was also stated in the Holy Qur’an. The captain was shown the verses as a result of

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which he was overcome with great astonishment and made the following declaration: I declare that the Qur’an is pure revelation of God. Our science today acknowledges only what has been told to humanity in the Qur’an 14 centuries ago. History had never shown that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) was an ocean explorer, so how could he (without Allah’s inspiration) make statements on the nature of oceans, which no explorer made until recently. These are the verses of the Qur’an, which talk about the barriers between oceans.

“It is He who has let free the two bodies of flowing water: one palatable and sweet and the other salty and bitter: Yet has He made a barrier between them, a partition that is forbidden to be passed”. Qur’an 25:53. ‘He has let free the two bodies of flowing water meeting together: between them is a barrier which they do not transgress.” Qur’an 55:19-20. Qur’anic verses and a tradition (Hadith) of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) also stated the stage-by-stage development of human embryo. It should be remembered that it was only in 17th century that microscope was invented. It was after this invention that it became possible for scientists to examine cells under the microscope. With the help of the microscope, it was discovered in the 18th century that human development resulted from the growth and differentiation of the embryonic cells. Professor Keith Moore, an internationally renowned Embryologist found in some Qur’anic verses a graphic and accurate description of the stage-bystage development of the human embryo (refer to “Africa Events” Vol. 1, No. 5 of May, 1985). Professor Moore, who was the chairman of the department of Anatomy at the University of Toronto, wrote on page 16 of this magazine: I was amazed at the scientific accuracy of these statements, which were made in the 7th century A.D. The verses which amazed the learned Professor were also quoted in the magazine and here is just one of them.

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“Man We did create from a quintessence (of clay); then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm in a place of rest, firmly fixed. Then We made the sperm into a congealed blood; then of that clot We made a (fetus) lump; then We made out of that lump bones and clothed the bones with flesh; then We developed out of it another creature. So blessed be God the best to create.” Qur’an 23:12-14. The Hadith (tradition) of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), which form the second source of Islamic teachings, is not a record of the prophet’s personal wishes and desires but what Allah informed him. That is why, like the Holy Qur’an, the Hadith too contains statements that even today’s scientists approved. Here is what the unlettered prophet said about a housefly many centuries ago:

Narrated Abu Huraira, Allah’s Apostle (P.B.U.H) said, “ If a fly falls in the vessel of any of you, let him dip all of it (into the vessel) and then throw it away, for in one of its wings there is a disease and in the other there is healing (antidote for it) i.e. the treatment for that disease.” Bukhari Vol. 7 Hadith No. 673:

It is medically proved that a fly carries pathogens (disease) on some parts of its body and also antidotes for those organisms. Recent experiments have shown this. For example, the note written to the above Hadith by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan on page 453 of the Arabic – English – Sahih – AlBukhari Vol. 7 states: Microbiologists have proved that there are longitudinal yeast cells living as parasites inside the belly of a fly and these yeast cells in order to repeat their life cycle protrude through the respiratory tubules of the fly and if the fly is dipped in a liquid, these cells burst in the fluid and the contents of these cells is an antidote for the pathogens which the fly carries.

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CHAPTER SIX THE TRUE PICTURE OF ISLAM Islam has become a misunderstood religion due to the ignorance of people and the willful misrepresentations it suffers from in the hands of its enemies who are incompetent to speak about its teachings. This chapter is aimed at presenting certain features and provisions of Islamic religion to non-Muslims so as to let them have a true picture of the religion. We shall examine four important issues. The Meaning of Islam Islam means total submission to the will of Allah. By that total submission it is meant that whoever wants to become a Muslim must heartily accept all what Allah commands him to do or not to do with regards to all aspects of his life. In addition, he must act in accordance with what Allah decreed as much as possible. Islam is also said to mean peace. Peace here refers to the kind of situation that will prevail when people accept and practice the teachings of Islam. When they do so, they will have peace with their God as He will not punish them but provide them with His uncountable blessings. Secondly, peace will prevail among them, for they will form a community in which there is no oppression, in which the poor is being helped by the rich, where social evils are reduced to the barest minimum and where love and mutual respect obtain. Therefore when it is said that Islam means peace, the peace is not tolerating oppression in any form and from any quarters, is not forsaking one’s rights, it is not condoning the imposition of values, laws and ways of life that run counter to Islamic teachings. Islam is not only a religion but also a comprehensive way of life. This is because when you gather all the “do’s” and “don’ts relating to marriage, child rearing, education, politics, business, visiting toilet and so on, which are contained in the Holy Qur’an and Hadith (sayings) of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) you find that a complete way of life is formed. The religion of Islam is not a private affair, for it directs how its followers should interact not only with one another but with non-Muslims too, it is therefore concerned with the personal and public life of Muslims and rejects secularism which robs people of divine guidance and places them at the mercy of man-made laws that are replete with selfishness, inadequacies and manipulations.

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Fundamental Pillars of Islam Islam is built upon five fundamental pillars namely, Kalimah, Sallat, Zakkat, Fasting, and Pilgrimage. The Kalimah means saying of “La Ilaha Illal Lah, Muhammad Rasulul Lah” and a belief in its full meaning. The translation of the Kalimah is: “There is no deity worthy of being worshipped except Allah and Muhammad is His Messenger.” In a nutshell, the Kalimah means there is only one God who must be worshipped and whose dictates and guidance alone must be accepted and observed. Secondly, Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is the Messenger or Apostle of the One and only God. Therefore whatever Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) brought to Muslims is from Allah and obedience to him is obedience to Allah. The moment a non-Muslim says the Kalimah, after knowing it’s meaning and believing in it he becomes a Muslim. The saying and believing in the Kalimah is the only means of accepting Islam and without it observing other pillars of Islam is useless. Accepting the Kalimah means one has made a pledge to abandon laws and regulations designed by himself or other people, which oppose those made by God. The moment one intentionally (without being forced) decides to drop the pledge one is at the same time dropping the faith in Islam. Faith in Islam has six articles namely: belief in Allah, His books, His messengers, His angels, the Last Day and Destiny. The first one is that one must believe that there is God and He is one and only. The second article requires one to believe that Allah revealed Holy Books to His Prophets. He must believe in all what the Holy Books contain. If, for example, a person does not believe in a single verse of the Holy Qur’an he is not a Muslim. Of all the Holy Books revealed only the Holy Qur’an will continue to exist in its perfect form. Up to today the Holy Qur’an remains perfect because Allah promised to protect it from distortions.

“No falsehood can approach it from before or from behind it is sent down by One full of Wisdom, worthy of all Praise.” Qur’an 41:42.

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It is common to find many people, including children, who have memorized the Holy Qur’an and could detect any mistake made in writing or reciting its verses. In fact these people can detect even a change in a vowel or consonant introduced into the Holy Qur’an. It is a favour to the mankind that Allah protects the Holy Qur’an for it is His last revelation and there won’t be any prophet after Prophet Muhammad (P.B.UH.). A Muslim must also believe in all the prophets of Allah. He must believe that angels exist and Allah creates them, some of these angels are Jibril (Gabriel), Mika’il (Michael) and Malik. The fifth article of faith is the belief in the Last Day. It means a Muslim must believe that a time will come when he will be resurrected after his death to account for his actions on earth. Lastly but not the least, a Muslim must believe in Destiny. He must believe that whatever happens to him, good or bad, is ordained by God. Nothing can happen without God’s will. Despite being the controller of everything, God provides His creatures with some freedom to act as they wish, to be righteous or to be rebellious, but they are enjoined to be righteous and shun evils. God also sets limit to one’s actions for example, one must eat, drink, go to the toilet, sleep and die whether one likes it or not. A belief in destiny does not mean folding your arms and waiting for God to change your condition, you must strive and you must do the right thing. The second pillar of Islam is Sallat, which is inaccurately translated as prayer in the English language. Sallat is what a Muslim does after performing ablution, during which he stands, bends down and prostrates and which is only said in the Arabic language. Du’a is what the English man calls prayer and it can be said in any language even though Arabic language is still preferred. Sallat as a pillar of Islam refers to the five compulsory and daily prayers, which are spread along the length of the day and early part of the night. The third pillar is Zakkat, which means compulsory alms given out of one’s wealth to the poor, the needy and other categories of people recommended by God in the Holy Qur’an. Zakkat is only compulsory upon one whose wealth reaches or passes a given minimum amount (Nisab) and which must remain intact for a full year. A fraction of that Nisab (1/40 in case of money) is given out as Zakkat. Compared to the great tax burdens placed

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on people by secular tax systems, the Zakkat is very simple to observe. Zakkat is a means of bridging the gap between the rich and the poor. Fasting is the fourth pillar of Islam and it is compulsory in a single month of the Muslim calendar – the month of Ramadan. Fasting in Islam means abstinence from eating, drinking and sexual intercourse from dawn to dusk for the sake of Allah. The last pillar is Hajj, which means pilgrimage to Mecca. It is compulsory once in a Muslim’s life. The compulsion applies to him only when he has the means to perform the pilgrimage. These are the fundamental pillars of Islam, which must be observed by all Muslims. Being a fundamentalist is therefore a must; Islam accepts it but rejects extremism (going beyond the teachings of Islam), mediocrity (partial observance of the teachings of Islam) and laxity. Universality of Islam Islam is not a religion reserved only for the Arabs nor is it a foreign religion to non-Arabs. Since there is only one God who created everything there has to be a religion that is for all people, more especially when there will not be new revelations and new prophets. Some prophets were in the past sent to specific communities but prophet Muhammad (P.B.UH.) was sent to the whole mankind and Islam is a universal religion. Referring to Prophet Muhammad, Allah said:

“We have not sent thee but as a universal (messenger) to men giving them glad tidings, and warning them (against sin) but most men understand not.” Qur’an 34:28 Allah has chosen Arabic as the language of the Holy Qur’an not because Islam is only for the Arabs. The use of a common language (Arabic) when performing Sallat makes it possible for all ethnic groups to worship God in a common place at the same time. That is why you hardly see different mosques for different tribal groups, and this promotes unity. Shari’ah Shari’ah simply means rules, regulations and guidance, which govern the temporal and spiritual life of Muslims, both as individuals and as members of a community or nation. These rules, regulations and guidance are

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sourced from the Holy Qur’an, Hadith, Qiyas and Ijma. The first two sources, which have been explained in chapter one, are the major or primary sources of the shari’ah. Qiyas refers to personal deduction from what the major sources state, when making a decision on a matter for which there is no direct ruling. Ijma is a consensus of opinion reached by a group of learned people in religious affairs, on matters for which there are no direct rulings. Qiyas and Ijma make the Shari’ah dynamic even though they must not oppose the Qur’an and Hadith of the prophet. the learned people in religious affairs term bank interest as illegal despite the fact that banks did not exist during the lifetime of prophet Muhammad (P.B.UH.), they do so because the Qur’an and Hadith condemn usury or interest in any form. This is an example of how Qiyas is made. A legislation by the majority of an assembly cannot make what is unlawful in Islam lawful or what is lawful unlawful. There is no provision for a partial belief in Islam, therefore a Muslim must believe in all the provisions of the Shari’ah as the following verse of the Holy Qur’an indicates:

“Then is it only part of the Book that ye believe in, and do ye reject the rest? But what is the reward for those among you who behave like this but disgrace in this life? And on the Day of Judgement they shall be consigned to the most grievious penalty”. Qur’an 2:85 To be free from disgrace in this world and from grievous punishment in the hereafter, Muslims must regard Allah’s laws as supreme and try to abide by them as much as possible. When a Muslim willingly prefers man – made laws to the Shari’ah he becomes an unbeliever.

“If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what God hath revealed, they are (no better than) Unbelievers.” Qur’an 5:47 Whoever decides to reject Allah’s guidance and rules (Shari’ah) has gone astray, as this is made clear in the Holy Qur’an:

“And who is more astray than one who follows his own lust devoid of guidance from God?” Qur’an 28:50

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“It is not fitting for a Believer, man or woman when a matter has been decided by God and His Apostle, to have any option about their decision: if anyone disobeys God and His Apostle he is indeed on a clear wrong path.” Qur’an 33:36 From the foregoing it is clear that shari’ah is Islam, and Islam is shari’ah, any attempt to prevent Muslims from implementing the shari’ah is a denial of their freedom of worship and a mark of intolerance. The Stand of Islam on Contemporary Issues Islam is a religion that respects the dignity of all human beings regardless of their beliefs, sex and social status. It does not condone oppression in whatever form. It abolished maltreatment of women and provided people with freedom and the fundamental human rights many centuries before the Universal Declaration on Human Rights. Islam is against all forms of injustice. Islamic teachings enjoin leaders to seek advice from their subjects, to consult them in affairs and to allow them to express their views. Despite all these provisions made by Islam, enemies of truth and the people who are ignorant of Islam claim that the religion supports oppression and backwardness, and denies people, especially women and children, of their rights. The crux of the matter is that freedom, human rights and democracy, are terms that are manipulated by people for selfish ends. For example, a businessman wanting to use video clips of semi-naked women in order to advertise his products would term the prohibition of women from taking part in the advertisement as infringement of their right. The women too because of their desire to earn money may have the same view. Islam provides the best guidance to man in matters pertaining to freedom, personal and public life, good governance, social justice and human rights, because it is based on the teachings of the impartial God and of His noble Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H.). True liberation, therefore, comes from adherence to Islamic teachings. Islam has a legal system with provisions on how to settle criminal cases and inter-personal disagreements over properties and issues. Islam, therefore, does not support jungle justice and terrorism. Instances of terrorism, a crime committed by some atheists as well as some deviant

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followers of the different religions we have, have no backing in the Shari’ah. Terrorism is caused by frustration, ignorance, and oppression coming from other quarters, and from despotic leadership, domination and injustice. Solution to it lies in doing justice to all people and nations, respect and tolerance for the religious beliefs of people and abstinence from forceful imposition of uniform laws and ways of life by a section of nation over other sections or by a powerful nation or nations over the weak ones. Since people differ in terms of belief, culture, worldview and orientation, pluralism, tolerance and non-interference in the affairs of one another are the best means of reducing terrorism and promoting peace.

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CONCLUDING REMARKS You have read the proofs on the existence of God, the justifications for the expiration of other divine religions with the advent of Islam and the Prophethood of Muhammad (P.B.U.H.), you have seen the inadequacies and unreliability of “religions” that are based on hero worshipping and other superstitious beliefs which science, logic and commonsense will not accept, you are now in a position to talk to your inner self. Your decision to embrace Islam or to remain committed to your present religion or to atheism has to be very critical. The decision should be based on the facts and proofs presented in this book or in similar publications. It should be free from dogma and from the influence of culture, tradition, family background, socio-economic status and other factors, which may hinder you from accepting the truth. You are strongly advised to disregard these factors (even though it is difficult) because they can distort your perception of reality and lead you to the greatest mistake you can make in your life and which cannot be corrected once you are dead. You should also note that the author of this book is not having a debate or arguing with you on the issues raised in this book, he is simply enlightening you and helping you to make the greatest decision in your life. By the time you whole-heartedly believe in the following words and utter them with your mouth, you automatically become a Muslim.

“La Ilaha Illal Lah, Muhammadur-Rasulul Lah” The words mean, “There is no God worthy of being worshipped except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah”. Doing this renders you a Muslim whether you do it in privacy or in public. I recommend that you do it in the presence of some Muslims (not necessarily a large gathering) so that they can know your new status and extend the spirit of Islamic brotherhood to you. Let me inform you that you do not have to confess your sins before anybody or to pay money before you become a Muslim. At the time you embrace Islam you are sinless but from that time you are required to learn about the injunctions of the religion gradually and to observe them according to your capabilities and means. May Allah continue to guide us, ameen.

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