Letter To Non-Muslims
Abu-Alwafa
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings
be upon His Messenger.
Letter To Non-Muslims
Dear reader
Whether you are thinking of converting, looking for information for a school
project or are merely curious, welcome. Welcome to a world that
may be familiar or unfamiliar, hated or loved, often misunderstand -
depending on who you are and what you have been taught but when analyzed
with pure intentions, it never fails to pleasantly surprise - regardless of
who you are and what you've been taught. Islam is for every single human
being that walks this earth - whether you are sick or healthy, rich or poor.
If you are one who holds prejudices against this religion, someone who loves
to hate and condemn. then, a renowned convert, Gary Miller
http://www.themodernreligion.com/essays_Gary_Miller.htm
Have these words to say to you...
There is no compulsion for man to accept truth. But it is certainly a shame
upon the human intellect when man is not even interested in finding out what
the truth is. Islam teaches that God has given us the FACULTY OF REASON
http://www.themodernreligion.com/misc/edu/edu_attain.htm
and therefore expects man to reason things out objectively and
systematically for ourselves - to reflect and to question and to reflect.
Nobody should press you to make a hasty decision to accept the teachings of
Islam, for Islam teaches that man should be given the freedom to choose.
Even when a man is faced with the truth, there is no compulsion upon man to
embrace it.
But before you begin to form an opinion about Islam, ask yourself, whether
your existing knowledge of Islam is thorough enough. Ask
yourself whether that knowledge has been obtained through non-Muslim third
party sources who themselves have probably been exposed to only random
glimpses of Islamic writings and have yet to reason on Islam objectively and
systematically themselves.
Is it fair that one should form an opinion about the taste of a particular
dish just by hearsay from others who may themselves not necessarily have
tasted the dish yet? Similarly, you should FIND OUT for yourself about Islam
from RELIABLE SOURCES and not only taste it...digest it well before you form
an opinion.
That would be an INTELLECT approach to Islam.
It is up to you to make the next move - to realize the truth, reality and
purpose of your existence. In making your move, Islam continuously reassures
you that your rights to freedom of choice and freedom to use that GOD GIVEN
FACULTY OF THOUGHT AND REASON will be respected. Every man has that
individual will. No one else can take away that will and force you to
surrender to the will of God.
You will have to find and make that decision yourself. What are you waiting
for? Get it right
http://www.beconvinced.com/
http://islamonline.net
http://www.cair-net.org
jaj
decisions from incorrect data is not possible. The Christians believe
the Bible is the divinely revealed word of God, the Muslims believe
the Koran is, the Mormons believe the Book of Mormon is, the Hindus
believe the Gita is and other 'revealed' scriptures like Oahspe and
the Urantia Book have their believers.
50 years ago I read a book called "Mystics of Islam" which impressed
me highly and I thought "What a beautiful religion" which is what I
also thought about Buddhism when I read "Buddhism" by Christmas
Humphreys. Both religions seemed to have such beautiful auras or
spiritual atmospheres about them, although they were quite different -
two beautiful flowers in God's garden.
But nowadays the Islamic religion has been highjacked by ignorant
politial fanatics and criminals who use it as a means of controlling
the masses for political ends, and the mystics and saints referred to
in "Mystics and Islam" would be denounced as heretics and murdered in
some muslim countries. According to Muhammad Atta's diary the
September 11 highjackers spent the night before their monstrous crime
against innocents in praying and reading the Koran, and the Koran is
used to justify all the terrorists crimes against innocents. You
should reassess whether Islam fulfills your qualifications for being
the true religion. Christianity also has a very bad record and a few
centuries ago and in the days of the Crusades murdered countless
thousands of people for being heretics etc. Buddhism is the only major
religion that has not had a war waged in its name.
I heard a woman say at a public meeting that she used to be a muslim
but she gave it up because of the cruelty of its punishments like
chopping off of hands for stealing etc. No compassionate and merciful
God would approve of such cruel and barbarous punishments. Its time
for the Islamics and Christians to realise that the devil as they call
him has crept into their religions and used it for his own ends.
Quote:
Save Amina Lawal from being stoned to Death 3481 Signatures
Category: Human Rights
Region: Global
Web-site: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-389123,00.html
Charity: Amnesty International
Description/History:
A 31-YEAR-OLD Nigerian woman was led from an Islamic court in tears
recently after judges dismissed her appeal against death by stoning
for bearing a child out of wedlock. If her conviction and sentence are
not overturned on appeal before a higher court, she will be buried up
to her waist and stoned to death by fellow villagers and the Islamic
authorities.
The packed courtroom in the conservative town of Funtua in Nigeria's
northern state of Katsina reverberated with cries of Allahu akbar (God
is greatest) after Judge Aliyu Abdullani ordered that Amina Lawal
should be stoned to death after her eight-month-old daughter, Wasila,
has been weaned, which could be when she is two.
He spoke on behalf of a panel of judges as Lawal cradled the child in
her arms.
Lawal, a divorcee who says that she was misled by the father of the
child, could be the first woman to be executed for adultery since a
dozen states in Nigeria's predominately Muslim north began adopting
the Sharia system more than two years ago.
Petition:
We, the undersigned, appeal to the UN to speak out and act to save
women sentenced under this barbaric law. Sharia Law goes against Human
Rights. Save Amina Lawal from being stoned to Death.
Sign the petition
The "Save Amina Lawal from being stoned to Death" Petition to "U.N.'s
human rights chief Mary Robinson" was written by "Gulu Future". The
petition is hosted free of charge at www.gopetition.com. There is no
expressed or implied endorsement of this petition by gopetition.com
pty ltd, or our sponsors.
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In 1882 the book "The Perfect Way, or the Finding of Christ" was
published as an eirenicon, or peacemaker, between the three great
faiths broadly called Christianity, Islam and Buddhism. All three
need reform and improvement, and its time for their adherents to
recognise that. The book can be found at "Our Online Theosophical
Documents" and I paste some excerpts from it here:
"51. Since of the spiritual union in the one faith of Buddha and
Christ, will be born the world's coming redemption, the relations
between the two peoples through whom, on the physical plane, this
union must be effected, becomes a subject of special interest and
importance. Viewed from this aspect the connection subsisting between
England and India rises from the sphere political to the sphere
spiritual. As typical peoples of the West and of the East, of the
races light and dark, these two, as representative Man and Woman of
Humanity, will in due time constitute one Man, made in the image of
God, regenerate and having power. And so shall the "lightning from the
East", after "illuminating the West", be reflected back, purified and
enhanced, "a light to lighten all nations and to be the glory of the
spiritual Israel". Thus, then, in Christ Jesus the holy systems of the
past find their maturity and perfectionment. For by Christ is made
possible the gift of the Divine Spirit, – the "Paraclete" – who could
not come by Pythagoras nor by Buddha, because these represent the
outer elements of the Microcosm; and the nucleolus, or Spirit, can be
manifest only in the inner element, or Nucleus, of which Jesus is the
representative. And thus, as said in Genesis xv. 16, "in the fourth
generation," shall the spiritual seed of Abraham, or Brahma, – for
they are one and the same word and denote one and the same doctrine, –
"return" to the promised land of their inheritance; and, as said by
Jesus, 'many shall come from the East and West, and shall sit down
with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.' "
"53. In this forecast of the now imminent future is to be found the
clue to the world's politics. The "kings of the East," or Magi, may,
in one sense, indeed, be they who – being in the West – hold political
sovereignty over the provinces of Hindustan. But in the profounder
sense they are those everywhere – whether in the East or in the West –
who possess the "magical" knowledge or keys of the kingdom of the
Spirit. For these are always Magians. Of one of the chief depositaries
of this knowledge – the Bible – England has long been the foremost
guardian and champion. For three centuries and a half– at once the
mystic "time, times, and half a time," and the "year of years" of the
solar hero Enoch – has England lovingly and faithfully, albeit
ignorantly, cherished the Letter which now, by the finding of the
Interpretation, is – like its prototype – "translated" to the plane of
the Spirit. Becoming thus a partaker of the divine Gnosis, England
will be fitted for the yet loftier sovereignty to which she is
destined. For then, through the union of East and West in the same
doctrine, the waters of "the great river Euphrates" – symbol of the
Spirit – will, as said of old of the Red Sea, be "dried up," so that
between the two hemispheres there will no longer be any barrier of
creed, but a way divinely prepared and safeguarded, whereby the "kings
of the East" may freely pass on their mission of enlightenment to all
the world. All, therefore, that tends to bind England to the Orient is
of Christ, and all that tends to sever them is of Antichrist. They who
seek to wed Buddha to Jesus are of the celestial and upper; and they
who interpose to forbid the banns are of the astral and nether.
Between the two hemispheres stand the domain and faith of Islam, not
to divide, but, as umbilical cord, to unite them. And nought is there
in Islamism to hinder its fulfillment of this high function, and keep
it from being a partaker of the blessings to result therefrom. For,
not only is it the one really monotheistic and non-idolatrous religion
now existing; but its symbolic Star and Crescent are essentially one
with the Cross of Christ, in that they also typify the elements
masculine and feminine of the divine existence, and the relation of
the soul to God. So that lslamism has but to accomplish that other
stage of its natural evolution, which will enable it to claim an equal
place in the brotherhood of the Elect. This is the practical
recognition in "Allah" of Mother as well as Father, by the exaltation
of the woman to her rightful station on all planes of man's manifold
nature. This accomplished, Esau and Ishmael will be joined together
with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in Christ."
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"42. THIS discourse was closed for the writer by a vision, an account
of which will form an equally fitting conclusion for the reader. This
vision was as follows: –
"A golden chalice, like those used in Catholic rites, but having three
linings, was given to me by an Angel. These linings, he told me,
signified the three degrees of the heavens, – purity of life, purity
of heart, and purity of doctrine. Immediately afterwards, there
appeared a great dome-covered temple, Moslem in style, and on the
threshold of it a tall Angel clad in linen, who with an air of command
was directing a party of men engaged in destroying and throwing into
the street numerous crucifixes, bibles, prayer-books, altar-utensils,
and other sacred emblems. As I stood watching, somewhat scandalized at
the apparent sacrilege, a Voice at a great height in the air, cried
with startling distinctness, "All the idols he shall utterly destroy!"
Then the same Voice, seeming to ascend still higher, cried to me,
"Come hither and see!" Immediately it appeared to me that I was lifted
up by my hair and carried above the earth. And suddenly there arose in
mid-air the apparition of a man of majestic aspect, in an antique
garb, and surrounded by a throng of prostrate worshippers. At first
the appearance of this figure was strange to me; but while I looked
intently at it, a change came over the face and dress, and I thought I
recognized Buddha, – the Messiah of India. But scarcely had I
convinced myself of this, than a great Voice, like a thousand voices
shouting in unison, cried to the worshippers: "Stand upright on your
feet: – worship God only!" And again the figure changed, as though a
cloud had passed before it, and now it seemed to assume the shape of
Jesus. Again, I saw the kneeling adorers, and again the mighty Voice
cried, "Arise! worship God only!" The sound of this Voice was like
thunder, and I noted that it had seven echoes. Seven times the cry
reverberated, ascending with each utterance, as though mounting from
sphere to sphere. Then suddenly I fell through the air, as though a
hand had been withdrawn from sustaining me: and again touching the
earth, I stood within the temple I had seen in the first part of my
vision. At its east end was a great altar, from above and behind which
came faintly a white and beautiful Light, the radiance of which was
arrested and obscured by a dark curtain suspended from the dome before
the altar. And the body of the temple, which, but for the curtain,
would have been fully illuminated, was plunged in gloom, broken only
by the fitful gleams of a few half-expiring oil-lamps, hanging here
and there from the vast cupola. At the right of the altar stood the
same tall Angel I had before seen on the temple threshold, holding in
his hand a smoking censer. Then, observing that he was looking
earnestly at me, I said to him: "Tell me, what curtain is this before
the Light, and why is the temple in darkness?" And he answered, "This
veil is not One, but Three; and the Three are Blood, Idolatry, and the
Curse of Eve. And to you it is given to withdraw them; be faithful and
courageous; the time has come." Now the first curtain was red, and
very heavy; and with a great effort I drew it aside, and said, "I have
put away the veil of blood from before Thy Face; shine, O Lord God!"
But a Voice from behind the folds of the two remaining coverings
answered me, "I cannot shine, because of the idols." And lo, before me
a curtain of many colours, woven about with, woven about with all
manner of images, crucifixes, madonnas, Old and New Testaments,
prayer-books, and other religious symbols, some strange and hideous
like the idols of China and Japan, some beautiful like those of the
Greeks and Christians. And the weight of the curtain was like lead,
for it was thick with gold and silver embroideries. But with both
hands I tore it away, and cried, "I have put away the idols from
before Thy Face; shine, O Lord God!" And now the Light was clearer and
brighter. But yet before me hung a third veil, all of black; and upon
it was traced in outline the figure of four Lilies on a single stem
inverted, their cups opening downwards. And from behind this veil, the
Voice answered me again, "I cannot shine, because of the curse of
Eve." Then I put forth all my strength, and with a great will rent
away the curtain, crying, "I have put away her curse from before Thee.
Shine, O Lord God!"
And there was no more a veil, but a landscape, more glorious and
perfect than words can paint, a Garden of absolute beauty, filled with
trees of palm, and olive, and fig, rivers of clear water and lawns of
tender green; and distant groves and forests framed about by mountains
crowned with snow; and on the brow of their shining peaks a rising
Sun, whose light it was I had seen behind the veils. And about the
Sun, in mid-air hung white misty shapes of great Angels, as clouds at
morning float above the place of dawn. And beneath, under a mighty
tree of cedar, stood a white elephant, bearing in his golden houdah a
beautiful woman robed as queen, and wearing a crown. But while I
looked, entranced, and longing to look for ever, the garden, the
altar, and the temple were carried up from me into Heaven. Then as I
stood gazing upwards, came again the Voice, at first high in the air,
but falling earthwards as listened. And behold, before me appeared the
white pinnacle of a minaret, and around and beneath it the sky was all
gold and red with the glory of the rising Sun. And I perceived that
now the voice was that of a solitary Muezzin standing on the minaret
with uplifted hands and crying: –
"Put away Blood from among you!
Destroy your Idols!
Restore your Queen!"
And straightway a Voice, like that of an infinite multitude, coming as
though from above and around and beneath my feet, – a Voice like a
wind rising upwards from caverns, under the hills to their loftiest
far-off heights among the stars, – responded, –
"Worship God alone!" [ See
Appendice, No III, Part 2 ]"