General
From Issue: 253 [Read full issue]
| Living the Quran |
Al-Imran
(The House of Imran)
The birth of Jesus is indeed amazing when compared to what is familiar to man. It is, however, far from amazing when it is compared with the creation of Adam, the father of the human race. The people of earlier revelations who debated and argued about Jesus's nature, because of his miraculous birth, and wove around him all sorts of legends and fantasies because he had no father, believed that Adam was created of dust, and that it was the breathing of a spirit from God into him which made him a human being. They did not, however, weave any similar legends around Adam as they did around Jesus. They did not claim that Adam had any Divine nature. Yet, the very element which made Adam a human being is the same one which caused Jesus to be born without a father: spirit from God was breathed into both Adam and Jesus. There was also the Divine command, "Be", to initiate whatever God wanted to initiate and cause to come into existence. We can, then, appreciate the simplicity of the creation of Jesus, Adam and all creatures. We find ourselves accepting it with ease and clarity. We indeed wonder why the birth of Jesus should lead to all these disputes and arguments when it took place according to God's law which applies to all creation. We can also appreciate the method of the Quran, the wise reminder, in addressing human nature with simple, realistic and natural logic which makes even the most complicated of matters appear to be so simple. Source: |
| Understanding the Prophet's Life |
The Right to Self-Defence Abu Hurayrah reported that a person came to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, and said, "Oh Messenger of Allah, 'What is your opinion of a person who approaches me to steal my possessions?' The Prophet said, 'Do not surrender your possessions to him.' The man asked, 'What if he fights me?' The Prophet said, 'Then fight him.' The man said, "What if he kills me?' The Prophet said, 'You will be a martyr.' The man continued, 'What if i kill him?' The Prophet said, 'He will be in the fire.' (Muslim) Modern society has been plagued by crime. The rich exploit the poor through corporate robbery and the strong among the masses feed off the weak in their neighbourhoods. Fear is a decisive factor in the success of most crimes. The thief intimidates his victim and by threatening the individual, he gains a psychological advantage. The true Muslim refuses to submit to intimidation and turns the table on the criminal by refusing to hand over his money. This stance is strengthened by his willingness to die in the path of Allah. If more people took this position, it would become extremely difficult for criminals to continue living off the weak. Source: |
| Blindspot |
The Freedom to Criticise Under the Shariah, people are granted the freedom to criticise and monitor government activity, by means of sincere advice, constructive criticism, or even ultimately by a refusal to obey the government if it is guilty of violating the law. This is a corollary of the Quranic principle of commanding good and forbidding evil which entitles, indeed commits the individual to criticise, change or rectify transgression and wickedness when he or she witnesses or anticipates its occurrence be it on the part of a government leader, a fellow citizen, or indeed anyone who is engaged in a crime. Freedom to criticise must not be used as a means of self-aggrandisement. There are at least three conditions which need to be met in order to ensure the validity of a given criticism. These are as follows:
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