many people are (very) surprised when they learn that Muslims 1. believe in Jesus Christ, p.b.u.h., 2. they love and revere him very much, 3. consider him one of the mightiest messengers of Islam, 4. believe in his virgin birth, 5. believe that he will come back at the end of times to establish justice on earth and defeat the antichrist (among other tasks), 6. believe that he is the Messiah, 7. believe that Sadducees and Pharisees (I believe that is what they were called) persecuted him and planned to crucify him, during his life, 8. believe that Jesus performed many amazing miracles (by the permission of God), 9. believe that he was a gentle person who was most moral and pious, and 10. that Jesus is mentioned in the noble Qur’an much more than even prophet Muhammad (I think the figure is like 25-to-five).
I really like what one Islamic teacher said: We (as a society) need to wake up and smell the coffee–Muslims do believe in Jesus, and love him.
~
An Arabic Glossary (for the Arabic words used, in the video)–
-sayidina ‘Isa – our master/prophet, Jesus
-hawariyeen – disciples (of Jesus)
– subhana wa ta’ala (glorified and exaulted–a description of Allah, to be used after one mentions Allah)
– al-Yahood – the Jews
– surah – chapter (of the Qur’an)
-ayat – verses (of the Qur’an)
-Maryam – Mary, the mother of Jesus
-subhan Allah – glory be to Allah (a common phrase)
-ambiyah – prophets
“And whoever fears Allah – He will make for him a way out. And He will provide for him from (sources) he could never imagine. And if any one puts his trust in Allah, sufficient is (Allah) for him. For Allah will surely accomplish his purpose: verily, for all things has Allah appointed a due proportion.”
“My servant draws near to Me with nothing more loved by Me than the acts of worship that I have enjoined upon him. My servant continues to try to draw near to Me with more devotion, until I love him. When I love him, I will be his hearing with which he hears, his sight by which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, his feet on which he walks. When he asks Me for something, I will respond and when he takes refuge in Me, I will grant it to him. I do not hesitate in doing anything I intend to do as much as I hesitate in seizing the soul of My faithful servant; he hates death and I hate hurting him. But death is a must for him.”
And what will make thee realise what the Sure Reality is?
The Thamud and the ‘Ad People (branded) as false the Stunning Calamity!
But the Thamud,- they were destroyed by a terrible Storm of thunder and lightning!
And the ‘Ad, they were destroyed by a furious Wind, exceedingly violent;
He made it rage against them seven nights and eight days in succession: so that thou couldst see the (whole) people lying prostrate in its (path), as they had been roots of hollow palm-trees tumbled down!
Then seest thou any of them left surviving?
And Pharaoh, and those before him, and the Cities Overthrown, committed habitual Sin.
And disobeyed (each) the messenger of their Lord; so He punished them with an abundant Penalty.
We, when the water (of Noah’s Flood) overflowed beyond its limits, carried you (mankind), in the floating (Ark),
That We might make it a Message unto you, and that ears (that should hear the tale and) retain its memory should bear its (lessons) in remembrance.
Then, when one blast is sounded on the Trumpet,
And the earth is moved, and its mountains, and they are crushed to powder at one stroke-On that Day shall the (Great) Event come to pass.
And the sky will be rent asunder, for it will that Day be flimsy.
And the angels will be on its sides, and eight will, that Day, bear the Throne of thy Lord above them.
That Day shall ye be brought to Judgment: not an act of yours that ye hide will be hidden.
Then he that will be given his Record in his right hand will say: “Ah here! Read ye my Record!
“I did really understand that my Account would (One Day) reach me!”
And he will be in a life of Bliss,
In a Garden on high,
The Fruits whereof (will hang in bunches) low and near.
‘Eat ye and drink ye, with full satisfaction; because of the (good) that ye sent before you, in the days that are gone!’
And he that will be given his Record in his left hand, will say: ‘Ah! Would that my Record had not been given to me!
And that I had never realised how my account (stood)!
Ah! Would that (Death) had made an end of me!
Of no profit to me has been my wealth!
My power has perished from me!..’
(The stern command will say): ‘Seize ye him, and bind ye him,
And burn ye him in the Blazing Fire.
Further, make him march in a chain, whereof the length is seventy cubits!’
This was he that would not believe in Allah Most High.
And would not encourage the feeding of the indigent!
So no friend hath he here this Day.
Nor hath he any food except the corruption from the washing of wounds,
Which none do eat but those in sin.
So I do call to witness what ye see,
And what ye see not,
That this verily is the word of an honoured messenger.
It is not the word of a poet: little it is ye believe!
Nor is it the word of a soothsayer: little admonition it is ye receive.
(This is) a Message sent down from the Lord of the Worlds.
And if the messenger were to invent any sayings in Our name,
We should certainly seize him by his right hand,
And We should certainly then cut off the artery of his heart:
Nor could any of you withhold him (from Our wrath).
But verily this is a Message for the Allah-fearing.
And We certainly know that there are amongst you those that reject (it).
But truly (Revelation) is a cause of sorrow for the Unbelievers.
This piece and the overall topic are very near and dear to my heart; I very much appreciate you taking time to read this…
Thank you again,
may Allah s.w.t. bless you, and guide us all, and protect.. .
-sister ethar e. hamid
essay ⤵️
All lgbtq+ people are in my prayers.
They go through a lot, in their lives – from family and community members not accepting them, to physical and emotional abuse…to extreme amounts of violence and other forms of hatred being aimed at them.
I honestly and truly don’t know why this animosity is directed at the lgbtq community. I mean; how would any of us (or; the perpetrators of this abuse, I should say) – how would any of us like to be treated like that? It’s one of the most hateful acts to be abusive/mean towards anyone, in life – to show animosity and dislike towards someone for absolutely no reason. What did the lgbtq community ever do to anybody?
I hope things get better for them. (Around the world.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I often wish that my religion (Islam), as well as other faiths (Judaism, Christianity…elements of Sikhism and Hinduism, I think) – I often wish these faiths would allow same-sex marriage. Like, in their creed.
As in; these faiths – or, many elements/traditions in these faiths – prohibit same-sex marriage. I wish they didn’t.
I wish marriage was defined as being between two humans, rather than as between a man and woman; I wish same-sex marriage was ok, in these religious faiths. (In all denominations and all schools of thought, within them).
I mean, that’s how I feel about the whole thing. (About the ‘religion and the lgbtq community’ thing/issue.)
((I do know that there is of course reasoning (within these religious communities) as to why marriage can only be between two people of opposite gender..))
~~~~~~~~~~
So…I’m kind of sad. 😥 I wish I could be a “100% ally to the lgbtq community.” I know I can’t really be that, though, which frustrates me. (Or, at least I can’t, in many people’s eyes. What with my religious beliefs on ‘the definition of marriage.’ {Ugh – I confess, that term has become really stale and nauseating, even to me.})
~
But, there is good news, for meh! (Yay! 🎇🎆)
The wonderful news is that:
Just because I personally (and often quite reluctantly) believe in traditional marriage (as outlined by my religious faith), that doesn’t mean I can’t be a strong ally to the lgbtq community. I can still fill this responsibility/role.
There are lots of things i can do, to help this segment of humanity (with any challenges that they might face).
– for starters, I can help to fight back against the abuse they face, on a daily basis. ((I’d hate to be so mistreated, by the way! 😓 I like to think of myself as a fierce believer in being kind to everyone – to live by the Golden rule, and treat everyone the way I would like them to treat me..).
((**It’s actually awesome, because my religion says that I should (rather: have to) push back against and eradicate cruelty, on earth. (So, it’s a bit of a funny situation, in a slight way; I’m part of a religion that teaches a traditional view of marriage…but this same religion urges me to love and be empathetic/putting-myself-in-other-people’s-situation, towards everyone – regardless of what they believe, or what they hold to be true and right…correct, and good.
Like, Islam says to spread peace everywhere you find yourself, and to all people, no matter what their story, background or identity might be. (**hadiths on loving people, and being good to everyone coming soon, in this little space…)
Lastly (*thank you for reading all the way to this point in the essay);
As a final thought: I always kind of joke (to myself–I would never say this to anyone, irl…just because…idk) – anyways: i always joke to myself that I actually cannot be prejudiced towards the lgbtq community…like; it’s not in my blood to be that way, at all. the reason why is because to some degree, I really understand what it’s like, for them. To be emotionally and/or romantically attracted to people of one’s same gender. I mean, like, who doesn’t feel that way, sometimes?? It’s a natural human emotion to have….whether constantly, or at times. Again, I don’t see anything wrong with it..
~I’m glad my religion demands me to be nothing less than kind and loving to everybody – that’s what i like to focus on, and hold close to my heart, at all times – this comforting teaching…
*
Here are a couple of (short) videos that I like-
~
Lastly, lastly- I end with this du’a (prayer) that I recommend to everyone dealing with anything, in life. (Whether that be dealing with abusive people…whether that be struggling to come to terms withwho you are vs. what your religious background says, and directs you towards…Even whether it be dealing with illnesses, in life ((like my own SMI – serious mental illness. (this annoying thing called schizoaffective disorder, hehe😞).
I say this after each of my 5 daily prayers…(the formal ones, with kneeling, prostrating, etc.):
(my mother actually introduced me to this particular prayer/these words—I have to say, this has really helped me through some rough patches);
This was narrated by Ahmad (3528) from ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ood, who said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “No person suffers any anxiety or grief, and says: ‘O Allah, I am Your slave, son of Your slave, son of Your female slave, my forelock is in Your hand, Your command over me is forever executed and Your decree over me is just. I ask You by every Name belonging to You which You named Yourself with, or revealed in Your Book, or taught to any of Your creation, or have preserved in the knowledge of the unseen with You—that You make the Qur’an the life of my heart, and the light of my breast, and a departure for my sorrow, and a release for my anxiety’ but Allah will take away his sorrow and grief, and give him in their stead joy.” It was said: O Messenger of Allah, should we not learn them (these words)? He said: Yes indeed; whoever hears them should learn them.”
~This specific Hadith is classified saheeh (highly authentic) by al-Albaani in as-Silsilah as-Saheehah, 199.
(Taken from https://islamqa.info/en/149276 ).
~
Jazakum Allahu kheir. **may Allah s.w.t. ease our suffering, and give us a good life..~Ameen, ameen, ya rab (ameen, o Lord).
“And I pray that all of the fear that has ever been in your heart will be taken out. And when you look at that man, and you know that he’s nothing but a coward, you won’t fear him. If he wasn’t a coward, he wouldn’t gang up on you…
This is how they function—they function in mobs. That’s a coward. They put on a sheet, so you won’t know who they are. That’s a coward. The time will come when that sheet will be ripped off. If the federal government doesn’t take it off, we’ll take it off.”
-Malcolm X
Words that should be written in gold ink. ❤ ❤
I love this hero…Simply revere him. May Allah (glorified and exalted be He) place him in the highest of Heavenly ranks (al-firdaws). Ameen.
To speak out against the Ku Klux Klan, and to speak out against the U.S. government, which was a segregationist government…and a cruel one, for not caring/doing much for its black citizens while they were tormented by those around them–to speak out so plainly and directly, takes an astounding amount of courage. Again; May the Most Merciful give our brother the highest station in Jannah. Ameen.
~ courage is not the absence of fear–it is action in the face of fear.
~
I hope people who don’t know much about Malcolm X take the time to learn about him—learn about his life and values, and such.
I think that many people (like; historians, or people who like to read about events, in history (though Malcolm X isn’t “ancient history,” of course. It was 1950s/60s…) are laser-focused on his life before embracing orthodox Islam…e.g., before his pilgrimage to Mecca (the Hajj pilgrimage).
And unfortunately, that (earlier) part of his life is all that some people know about him. But if one researches the late civil rights leader (by, for example, reading his autobiography (The Autobiography of Malcolm X—an amazing book…I actually read it, being the weird kid I was, at like 11 years old), they will come to realize that after learning about true Islam (and embracing it), Malcolm x’s hard feelings (if you will) towards whites evaporated.
For example; after Malcolm X went on his pilgrimage to Makkah (and after he saw “the whitest/palest people, with the bluest of eyes, walking, praying, eating, hugging, worshipping, etc. with the darkest-skinned people…and vice versa”), his views regarding race and the importance of race completely changed. I.e., he learned that race is not a factor, in anything. It is like hair color. (or; nose shape, or something.) It is not a big deal at all, like some people make it out to be.
It’s kind of funny that he had to travel half-way around the world to realize this truth (he couldn’t find this truth in America. He had to learn it in Mecca.)
America, back then (and right now, even) was so messed up. It was a terrible place to live in. I know that there is hardly any country or region in the world in which race/ethnic relations (like; between people of neighboring countries, different ethnic/racial groups within the same country, or another situation) were/are not tense, harsh…even extremely heated and violent. But America has one of the bloodiest histories of racial relations, in the world. People’s houses were burned down, people were physically abused, and people were murdered, because of the racist ideas of some.
~
May Allah s.w.t. have mercy on the souls who lost their lives in the struggle for civil rights (like brother Malcolm)…
~
May Allah s.w.t. also have mercy on bro. Muhammad Ali, who passed away a few days ago. 😢 May Allah grant him the highest of Paradise. Ameen.
This is a new sketch I drew. It’s of a Muslim lady travelling to Jannah. Though the road and every footstep she should take is paved right in front of her, it’s really hard to travel down the road! As it is for everybody who is making this journey. It’s not an easy journey…but Allah s.w.t. is there to help (and what a best Helper; “hasbee Allahu wa n’im al Wakeel…n’im al mawla wa n’im al Naseer*”). 🙂 ❤
When seeing all the easier routes at her disposal, the Muslima thinks “Ya Hadi, ahdinee…” (“O Guider, guide me…”).
~
If you wanna see more artwork, please see the “Visual Art” page….
Jazak/i Allahu kheira for viewing!
-Ethar
*Allah is enough for me, and what an excellent Disposer of Affairs…what an excellent Patron, and what an excellent Protector.”
Submitting to Allah s.w.t. sets u free..Being a slave/servant of Allah sets u free. It may sound ironic…But serving Allah, doing only what He wants you to do, lets you see the sweetness and joy of life–You become obligated to do freeing and beautiful acts, like praying, fasting, worshipping, giving alms, and saying good things. And it releases you from being a slave to anyone else, in the world–(like your “friends,” who pressure you to do negative things (drink/smoke, etc. The command of Allah, which is always goodness, supersedes the peer pressure of your “friends,” in this case).
I’d rather be a slave of Allah, who wants only good for me, who is the Most Compasionate and Wise, and who created me and who has the most authority over me than anyone else in life.
“Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The Parable of His Light is as if there were a Niche and within it a Lamp: the Lamp enclosed in Glass: the glass as it were a brilliant star: Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it: Light upon Light! Allah doth guide whom He will to His Light: Allah doth set forth Parables for men: and Allah doth know all things.”
