THE TRUE RELIGION OF GOD
The first thing
that one should know and clearly understand about Islam is what the word
"Islam" itself means. The Arabic word "Islam" means the
submission or surrender of one's will to the only true God, known in Arabic as
"Allah". One who submits his will to God is termed in Arabic a
"Muslim". The religion of Islam is not named after a person or a
people, nor was it decided by a later generation of man, as in the case of
Christianity which was named after Jesus Christ, Buddhism after Gautama Buddha,
Confucianism after Confucius, Marxism after Karl Marx, Judaism after the tribe
of Judah and Hinduism after the Hindus. Islam (submission to the will of God) is
the religion which was given to Adam, the first man and the first prophet of
God, and it was the religion of all the prophets sent by Allah to mankind.
Further its name was chosen by God Himself and clearly mentioned in the final
scripture which He revealed to man. In that final revelation, called in Arabic
the Qur'an Allah states the following:
"This
day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and I
have chosen for you Islam as your religion."
(Soorah
Al-Maa'idah 5:3)
"If
anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to God), never will it be
accepted of Him." (Soorah
Aal'imraan 3:85)
Hence, Islam does not claim to be a new religion brought by
Prophet Mohammed into Arabia in the seventh century, but rather to be a
re-expression in its final form of the true religion of Almighty God, Allah, as
it was originally revealed to Adam and subsequent prophets.
At this point we
might comment briefly on two other religions that claim to be the true path.
Nowhere in the Bible will you find God revealing to Prophet Moses' people
or their descendants that their religion is called Christianity.
In other words, the names "Judaism' and "Christianity" had
no divine origin or approval. It
was not until long after his departure that the name Christianity was given to
Jesus' religion.
What,
then, was Jesus' religion in actual fact, as distinct from its name?
His religion was reflected in his teachings, which he urged his followers
to accept as guiding principles in their relationship with God. In Islam, Jesus is a prophet sent by Allah and his Arabic
name is Eesa. Like the prophets
before him, he called upon the people to surrender their will to the will of God
(which is what Islam stands for). For
example, in the New Testament it is stated that Jesus taught his followers to
pray to God as follows:
"Our
father in heaven, hallowed be your name, may your will be done on earth as it is
in heaven". (Luke 11:2/Mathew 6:9-10)
This concept was
emphasised by Jesus in a number of his statements recorded in the Gospels.
He taught, for example, that only those who submitted would inherit
paradise.
Jesus also pointed out that
he himself submitted to the will of God.
"None
of those who call me, 'Lord' will enter the kingdom of God, but only the one who
does the will of my Father in heaven.". (Mathew 7:21)
"I
cannot do anything of myself. I
judge as I hear and my judgment is honest because I am not seeking my own will
but the will of Him who sent me." (John 5:30)
There
are many reports in the Gospels which show that Jesus made it clear to his
followers that he was to the one true God.
For example, when speaking about the final Hour, he said:
"No-one
knows about the day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, not the son, but
only the Father." (Mark 13:32)
Thus, Jesus like
the prophets before him and the one who came after him, taught the religion of
Islam : submission to the will of the one true God.
GOD
AND CREATION
Since
the total submission of one's will to God represents the essence of worship, the
basic message of God's divine religion, Islam, is the worship of God alone. It
also requires the avoidance of worship directed to any person, place or thing
other than God. Since everything
other than God, the creator of all the things, is God's creation, it may be said
that Islam, in essence, calls man away from worship of creation and invites him
to worship only his Creator. He is
the only one deserving of man's worship, because it is only by His will that
prayers are answered.
Accordingly,
if a man prays to a tree and his prayers are answered, it is not the tree which
answers his prayers but-God, who allows the circumstances prayed for to take
place. One might say, "That is
obvious". However, to tree-worshippers, it might not be so.
Similarly, prayers to Jesus, Buddha, or Krishna or Saint Christopher, or
Saint Jude or even to Muhammad, are not answered by them, but
are answered by God. Jesus
did not tell his followers to worship him but to worship God, as Qur'an states:
"And behold! Allah will say:' O Jesus, the son of Mary! Did you say to men, worship me and my mother as gods besides Allah?, He will say:' Glory to you, I could never say what I had no right (to say)." (Soorah Al-Maa'idah - 5:116)
Nor did he worship himself when he worshipped but rather he worshipped Allah. This basic principle is
Nor
did Jesus worship himself when he worshipped, but rather he worshipped God.
And Jesus was reported in the Gospels to have said,
"It
is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only'". (Luke 4:8)
This basic principle is
contained in the opening chapter of the Qur'an, known as
Soorah Al-Faatihah, verse 4:
"You
alone do we worship and from you alone do we seek help."
Elsewhere, in the final book
of revelation, the Qur'an, God also said:
"And
you Lord says: 'Call on Me and I will answer your (prayer)."(Soorsh
Mu'min 40:60)
It is worth emphasizing that
the basic message of Islam (namely, the worship of God alone) also proclaims
that God and His creation are distinctly different entities.
God is neither equal to His creation nor a part of it, nor is His
creation equal to Hi or a part of Him.
This
might seem obvious, but
man's worship of creation, instead of the Creator is to a large degree based on
ignorance, or neglect, of this concept. It
is the belief that the essence of God is everywhere in His creation or that His
divine being is or was present in some parts of His creation,
which has provided justification for the worship of God's creation and
naming it the worship of God. However,
the message of Islam, as brought by the prophets of God, is to worship only God
and to avoid the worship of His creation either directly or indirectly.
In the Qur'an God clearly
states:
"For
we assuredly sent amongst every people a prophet, with the command: Worship Me
and avoid false Gods." (Soorsh
Al-Nahl 16:36)
When idol worshippers are
questioned as to why they bow down to idols created by men, the invariable reply
is that they are not actually worshipping the stone image, but God who is
present within it. They claim that
the stone idol is only a focal point for God's essence and is not in itself God!
One who has accepted the concept of God being present in any way within His
creation will be obliged to accept this argument for idolatry.
Whereas, one who understands the basic message of Islam and its
implications would never agree to idolatry no matter how it si rationalized.
Those who have
claimed divinity for themselves down through the ages have often based their
claims on the mistaken belief that God is present in man.
Taking one step further, they claim that God is more present in them than
in the rest of us, and that other humans should therefore submit to them and
worship them as God in person or as God concentrated within their persons.
Similarly, those who have asserted the godhood of others after their
deaths have found fertile ground among those who accept the false belief
of God's presence in man.
It should be abundantly clear
by now that one who has grasped the basic message of Islam and its implications
could never agree to worship another human being under any circumstance.
God's religions, in essence, is a clear call to the worship of the
Creator and the rejection of creation-worship in any form.
This is the meaning of the motto of Islam:
"Laa
ilaaha illaa Allah"
(There
is no God but Allah)
The sincere declaration of
this phrase and the acceptance of prophethood automatically bring one within the
fold of Islam, and sincere belief in it guarantees on Paradise.
Thus, the final prophet of Islam (p.b.u.h.) is reported to have said,
"
Any one who says: There is no God but Allah, and dies holding that (belief) will
enter paradise."
Belief in this
declaration of faith requires that one submit his/her will to God in the way
taught by the prophets of God. It
also requires the believer to give up the worship of false gods.
THE
MESSAGE FALSE RELIGIONS
There are so many sects,
cuts, religions, philosophies, and movements in the world, all of which claim to
be the right way or the only true path of God!
How can one determine which one is
correct or whether, in fact, all are correct?
One method by which the answer can be found is to clear away the
superficial differences in the teachings of the various claimants to the
ultimate truth, and identify the central object of worship upon which they call,
directly or indirectly. False religions all have in common one basic concept with
regard that specific men were God, or that nature is God, or that God is a figment of man's imagination.
Thus, it may be
stated that the basic message of false religion is that God may be worshipped in
the form of His creation. False
religions invite man to the worship of creation by calling the creation or some
aspect of it God. For example,
prophet Jesus invited his followers to worship God, but those who claim to be
Jesus' followers today call people to worship Jesus, claiming that he was God.
Buddha was a reformer who
introduced a number of humanistic principles in the religion of India.
He did not claim to be God, nor did he suggest to his followers that he
be an object of worship. Yet today
most Buddhists who are to be found outside of India have taken him to be God and
they prostrate themselves to idols made in their perception of his likeness.
By using the
principle of identifying the object of worship, we can easily detect false
religions and the contrived nature of their origin.
As God said in the Qur'an.
"That
which you worship besides Him are only names and you and your forefathers have
invented for which Allah has sent down no authority; the command belongs only to
Allah: He has command that you worship Him; that is the right religion, but most
men do not understand.". (Soorah
Yoosuf 12:40)
It may be argued
that all religions teach good things, so why should it matter which one we
follow? The reply is that all false religions teach the greatest evil: the
worship of creation. Creation-worship
is the greatest sin that man can commit because it contradicts the very purpose
of his creation. Man was created to
worship God alone as Allah has explicitly stated in the Qur'an.
"I
have only created Jinns and men, that they may worship me." "(Soorah
Zaareeyaat 51:56)
Consequently, the
worship of creation, which is the essence of idolatry is the only unforgivable
sin. One who dies in this state of
idolatry, has sealed his fate in the next life.
This is not an opinion, bit a revealed fact stated by God in his final
revelation to man:
"Verily
Allah will not forgive the joining of partners with Him, but He may forgive
(sins) less than that for whomsoever He wishes." (Soorah
An- Nisaa 4:48 and 116)
UNIVERSALITY
OF GOD'S RELIGION
Since the consequences of
following a false religion are so grave, the true religion of God must have been
universally understandable and universally attainable in the past and it must
continue eternally to be understandable and attainable throughout the entire
world. In other word, the true
religion of God cannot be confined to any one people, place, or period of time.
Nor is it logical that such a religion should impose conditions that have
nothing to do with the relationship of man with God, such as baptism, or belief
in man as a savior, or an intermediary. Within
the central principle of Islam and its definition (the surrender of one's will
to God) lie the roots of Islam's universality.
Whenever man comes to the realization that God is one and distinct from
His creation, and submits himself to God, he becomes a Muslim in body and spirit
and is eligible for paradise.
Consequently,
anyone at any time in the most remote regions of the world can become Muslim, a
follower of God's religion, Islam, by merely rejecting the worship of creation
and turning to God alone. It should
be noted, however, that in order to actually submit to God's will, one must
continually choose between right and wrong.
Indeed, man is endowed by God with the power not only to distinguish
right from wrong but also to choose between them. These God-given powers carry with them an important
responsibility, namely, that man is answerable to God for the choices he makes.
It follows, then, that man should try his utmost to do good and avoid
evil. These concepts are expressed
in the final revelation as follows:
"Verily,
those who believe (in the Qur'an), and those who follow the Jewish faith, and
the Christians, and the Sabians (angel-and-star-worshippers)... any of these who
believe in Allah and the Last Day and work righteousness shall have their reward
with their Lord. They will not be
overcome by fear or grief." (Soorah
Al-Baqarah 2:62).
If, for whatever
reason, they fail to accept the final message after it has been clearly
explained to them, they will be in grave danger.
The last Prophet said:
The question which arises here is, "How can
all people be expected to believe in Allah given their varying- backgrounds,
societies and cultures? For people to be responsible for worshipping Allah they
all have to have access to knowledge of Allah. The final revelation teaches that
all mankind have the recognition of Allah imprinted on their souls, a part of
their very nature with which they are created.
In Soorah Al-A'raaf, Verses 172-173; Allah explained that when He created Adam, He caused all of Adam's descendants to come into existence and took a pledge from them saying:
"'Am
I not your Lord?' To which they all replied, ' Yes, we testify to It.' "
Allah then explained why He had all of mankind
bear witness that He is their creator and only true God worthy of worship. He
said, "That was In case you (mankind) should say on the day of
Resurrection, "Verily we were unaware of all this." That is to say, we
had no idea that You Allah, were our God. No one told us that we were only
supposed to worship You alone. Allah went on to explain That it was also In case
you should say, "Certainly It was our ancestors who made partners (With
Allah) and we are only their descendants; will You then destroy us for what
those liars did?" Thus, every child is born with a natural belief in Allah
and an inborn inclination to worship Him alone called in Arabic the
"Fitrah".
If the child were left alone, he would worship
Allah in his own way, but all children are affected by those things around them,
seen or unseen.
The
Prophet (PBUH) reported that Allah said, "I created my servants in the
right religion but devils made them go astray". The Prophet (PBUH) also
said, "Each child is born in a state of "Fitrah", then his
parents make him a Jew, Christian or a Zoroastrian, the way an animal gives
birth to a normal offspring. Have you noticed any that were born
mutilated?" (Collected by
Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim).
So, just as the child submits to
the physical laws which Allah has put in nature, his soul also submits naturally
to the fact that Allah is his Lord and Creator. But, his parents try to make him
follow their own way and the child is not strong enough in the early stages of
his life to resist or oppose the will of his parents. The religion which the
child follows at this stage is one of custom and upbringing and Allah does not
hold him to account or punish him for this religion.
Throughout people's lives from childhood until the
time they die, signs are shown to them in all regions of the earth and in their
own souls, until it becomes clear that there is only one true God (Allah). If
the people are honest with themselves, reject their false gods and seek Allah,
the way will be made easy for them but if they continually reject Allah's signs
and continue to worship creation, the more difficult it will be for them to
escape. For example, in the South Eastern region of the Amazon jungle in Brazil,
South America, a primitive tribe erected a new hut to house their main idol
Skwatch, representing the supreme God of all creation. The homage to the God,
and while he was in prostration to what he had been taught was his Creator and
Sustainer, a mangy old flea-ridden dog walked into the hut, The young man looked
up in time to see the dog lift its hind leg and pass urine on the idol.
Outraged, the youth chased the dog out of the temple, but when his rage died
down he realized that the idol could not be the Lordof the universe. Allah must
be elsewhere. he now had a choice to act on his knowledge and seek Allah, or to
dishonestly go along with the false beliefs of his tribe. As strange as it may
seem, that was a sign from Allah for that young man. It contained within it
divine guidance that what he was worshipping was false.
Prophets were sent, as was earlier mentioned, to
every nation and tribe to support man's natural belief in Allah and man's inborn
inclination to worship Him as well as to reinforce the divine truth in the daily
signs revealed by Allah. Although, in most cases, much of the prophets'
teachings became distorted, portions remained which point out right and wrong.
For example, the ten commandments of the Torah, their confirmation in the
Gospels and the existence of laws against murder, stealing and adultery in most
societies. Consequently, every soul will be held to account for its belief in
Allah and its acceptance of the religion of Islam; the total submission to the
will of Allah.
We pray to Allah, the exalted, to keep us on the right path to which He has guided us, and to bestow on us a blessing from Him, He is indeed the Most Merciful. Praise and gratitude be to Allah,the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be on prophet Muhammed, his Family, his companions, and those who rightly follow them.
By
Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips