Wednesday, October 26, 2011
People Who Turn Away
Top reason why people turn away from religion: Unsavory followers.
Obviously, there are members of every group that are embarrassing. People in your family, people on your team at work, people in your classroom, people in your city/state, people in your political party, people in your country, people in your gender, and of course and most of all, people in your religion.
People who turn away from religion and/or faith are not repulsed by how courageous and admirable Moses was, or offended about how loving and amazing Jesus was, or disgusted about how respectable and gentle Mohammed was. Not at all! How could they be? That is not what people who turn away are worried about.
They are worried about how repulsive it is for people who claim to be religious kill innocent people in the direct name of God. They are offended by how judgmental many religious leaders and followers are to everyone. These people are disgusted how hypocritical and harmful religious speakers' words are to many others.
It is not hard at all to see why people turn away from religion and faith. Although, I don't find this to be an excuse.
For me personally, if I do not like something or find something a little off, I do research on the subject. If you grow up around a family who claims to be Christian, and you see nothing but negativity and bad influences, why not research exactly what being Christian means, instead of taking your family's bad example as truth? Why not read the Bible yourself? You can NEVER take anothers' opinion & word as your own if you don't look into exactly what it means for you.
Every American on television reality shows are an embarrassment to me as an American citizen, but I definitely wouldn't want a non-American person to watch Keeping Up with the Kardashians and think all Americans are like that family. That is most definitely a FALLACIOUS hasty generalization.
You cannot accurately judge an entire faith based on the limited followers you run into in your life. You cannot judge it based on the people you know + the people you see on TV & in the news. You must find things out on your OWN, because if you don't, aren't you just a clueless follower yourself?
For me, it's difficult to know that others connect me to the type of Muslim that I definitely don't agree with on most levels. That is why I try to avoid the label Muslim if possible, and prefer saying that I practice Islam, or follow Islam. Unfortunately, others connect bad things to the word "Muslim" (and "Christian," etc) and that really is a shame, because it's very far from facts. When people do their OWN research about faiths, they see it in a whole new light.
Obviously, there are members of every group that are embarrassing. People in your family, people on your team at work, people in your classroom, people in your city/state, people in your political party, people in your country, people in your gender, and of course and most of all, people in your religion.
People who turn away from religion and/or faith are not repulsed by how courageous and admirable Moses was, or offended about how loving and amazing Jesus was, or disgusted about how respectable and gentle Mohammed was. Not at all! How could they be? That is not what people who turn away are worried about.
They are worried about how repulsive it is for people who claim to be religious kill innocent people in the direct name of God. They are offended by how judgmental many religious leaders and followers are to everyone. These people are disgusted how hypocritical and harmful religious speakers' words are to many others.
It is not hard at all to see why people turn away from religion and faith. Although, I don't find this to be an excuse.
For me personally, if I do not like something or find something a little off, I do research on the subject. If you grow up around a family who claims to be Christian, and you see nothing but negativity and bad influences, why not research exactly what being Christian means, instead of taking your family's bad example as truth? Why not read the Bible yourself? You can NEVER take anothers' opinion & word as your own if you don't look into exactly what it means for you.
Every American on television reality shows are an embarrassment to me as an American citizen, but I definitely wouldn't want a non-American person to watch Keeping Up with the Kardashians and think all Americans are like that family. That is most definitely a FALLACIOUS hasty generalization.
You cannot accurately judge an entire faith based on the limited followers you run into in your life. You cannot judge it based on the people you know + the people you see on TV & in the news. You must find things out on your OWN, because if you don't, aren't you just a clueless follower yourself?
For me, it's difficult to know that others connect me to the type of Muslim that I definitely don't agree with on most levels. That is why I try to avoid the label Muslim if possible, and prefer saying that I practice Islam, or follow Islam. Unfortunately, others connect bad things to the word "Muslim" (and "Christian," etc) and that really is a shame, because it's very far from facts. When people do their OWN research about faiths, they see it in a whole new light.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Why Muslims Use Arabic All The Time
I'm sure many non-Muslims wonder why Muslims use the word "Allah" instead of God when they are English speakers. Let me answer that question! Alright, so the word "god" means deity, right? Well, the name "God" has more than one meaning and can mean deity, as well as the name of the one true God. The reason Allah is used is because the name "Allah" is exactly that: a name. It is not another word for "god." "Allah" is the name for the one true god.
So, for example, when talking about the god of the Torah, "Allah" would be a correct term to use for God. When talking about the god of the Bible, "Allah" would be a correct term to use for God. When talking about the god of the Qur'an, "Allah" would be a correct term to use for God. Does this make sense? There is no exact word translation for "Allah" is English, although when the word "God" is used, it's the same idea. I hope this is making sense to everyone!
Let me try another example: Let's say you have a son. You call him "Son" sometimes because he is your son. The more direct, personal way to address him would be "Adam." Adam directly refers to your son alone, because the word son is a general term, and can mean anyone's son.
***
Now, let me delve into my problem with Muslims using Arabic terms all the time, even if they aren't Arab (which most Muslims are not) & even if their first language is not Arabic.
So, I'm sure everyone is familiar with the saying "Allahu akbar," which most Muslims use in prayer and everyday life. This means, "Allah is the greatest." Other terms used often are "alhumdulillah" which means "praise be to Allah," "subhanaallah" which means "glory be to Allah," and "inshaallah" which means "Allah willing."
So, why do you hear these terms from English-speaking Muslims in everyday life? Why do they find it necessary to speak these sayings in Arabic? Is it because the Qur'an was written in Arabic? If so, do these Muslims believe that Arabic is superior in any way?
Allah is closer to you than your jugular vein. If you pray in Arabic, and you have no idea what the f*ck you are saying, how can you appreciate your prayer? How can you genuinely MEAN your prayer if you don't know the meaning of the words you are saying? Even if you vaguely know the meaning, or the gist of your Arabic prayer, it is not even CLOSE to being as powerful as your prayer in your native language.
Back to the question: why do Muslims feel the need to use Arabic in their everyday language? Some answers to this could be that they want to keep the integrity of the Qur'an intact because there will be much less confusion and mistranslation if it stays in Arabic.
My reply would be, so if you say "Praise Allah" or "Praise be to Allah," are you misrepresenting Islam? Are you corrupting Islam? Are you defacing Allah? Things mean MUCH more to you personally when in your native tongue.
Now, if you are using Arabic words because you love Arabic and think it's beautiful and love the sound, etc, etc, etc, then there is no issue. But I do not feel that most Muslims use these Arabic terms because they love the language. I bet if I asked, a lot would say something about how the prophet Mohammed said this in Arabic, so they want to be like him. Or even, they might not know WHY they use Arabic!
Any thoughts???
So, for example, when talking about the god of the Torah, "Allah" would be a correct term to use for God. When talking about the god of the Bible, "Allah" would be a correct term to use for God. When talking about the god of the Qur'an, "Allah" would be a correct term to use for God. Does this make sense? There is no exact word translation for "Allah" is English, although when the word "God" is used, it's the same idea. I hope this is making sense to everyone!
Let me try another example: Let's say you have a son. You call him "Son" sometimes because he is your son. The more direct, personal way to address him would be "Adam." Adam directly refers to your son alone, because the word son is a general term, and can mean anyone's son.
***
Now, let me delve into my problem with Muslims using Arabic terms all the time, even if they aren't Arab (which most Muslims are not) & even if their first language is not Arabic.
So, I'm sure everyone is familiar with the saying "Allahu akbar," which most Muslims use in prayer and everyday life. This means, "Allah is the greatest." Other terms used often are "alhumdulillah" which means "praise be to Allah," "subhanaallah" which means "glory be to Allah," and "inshaallah" which means "Allah willing."
So, why do you hear these terms from English-speaking Muslims in everyday life? Why do they find it necessary to speak these sayings in Arabic? Is it because the Qur'an was written in Arabic? If so, do these Muslims believe that Arabic is superior in any way?
Allah is closer to you than your jugular vein. If you pray in Arabic, and you have no idea what the f*ck you are saying, how can you appreciate your prayer? How can you genuinely MEAN your prayer if you don't know the meaning of the words you are saying? Even if you vaguely know the meaning, or the gist of your Arabic prayer, it is not even CLOSE to being as powerful as your prayer in your native language.
Back to the question: why do Muslims feel the need to use Arabic in their everyday language? Some answers to this could be that they want to keep the integrity of the Qur'an intact because there will be much less confusion and mistranslation if it stays in Arabic.
My reply would be, so if you say "Praise Allah" or "Praise be to Allah," are you misrepresenting Islam? Are you corrupting Islam? Are you defacing Allah? Things mean MUCH more to you personally when in your native tongue.
Now, if you are using Arabic words because you love Arabic and think it's beautiful and love the sound, etc, etc, etc, then there is no issue. But I do not feel that most Muslims use these Arabic terms because they love the language. I bet if I asked, a lot would say something about how the prophet Mohammed said this in Arabic, so they want to be like him. Or even, they might not know WHY they use Arabic!
Any thoughts???
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Fasting Plan
You have no idea how badly I feel about failing.
The end of Day 2, I ate a meal. It's strange, though. . . After I ate, and prayed (for quite a while), while I was reading Qur'an, I felt like it was being spoken to me. I felt extremely close to Allah. It was as if Truth was being poured into my brain as I was reading. During my prayer, I asked for clarity in a situation, and right after prayer, the very first surah I read pertained exactly to what I prayed about.
I know I failed on a 7 day water fast, but I feel almost like I was being. . . comforted from my absolute guilt for only going 2 days. I think simply the fact I was doing something for Allah and only for Allah that I was rewarded by a STRONG, very stern presence.
I believe that one reason why I wasn't able to complete all 7 days is because my body is not used to fasting for that long. I don't count Ramadan as pure fasting, as you get to eat twice a day.
New game plan: I am going to do some intermittent fasting. That means, I am going to fast every other day. This fast will also be dedicated to God, but it will also be a primer to a longer fast, like 3 days, then 7 days. So I will fast tomorrow, Friday, then Sunday, then Tuesday, then Thursday, etc. My plan is to continue this through the month of October.
Also, there are endless health benefits to fasting as well. Of course, I am taking vitamins to accompany this fast.
The end of Day 2, I ate a meal. It's strange, though. . . After I ate, and prayed (for quite a while), while I was reading Qur'an, I felt like it was being spoken to me. I felt extremely close to Allah. It was as if Truth was being poured into my brain as I was reading. During my prayer, I asked for clarity in a situation, and right after prayer, the very first surah I read pertained exactly to what I prayed about.
I know I failed on a 7 day water fast, but I feel almost like I was being. . . comforted from my absolute guilt for only going 2 days. I think simply the fact I was doing something for Allah and only for Allah that I was rewarded by a STRONG, very stern presence.
I believe that one reason why I wasn't able to complete all 7 days is because my body is not used to fasting for that long. I don't count Ramadan as pure fasting, as you get to eat twice a day.
New game plan: I am going to do some intermittent fasting. That means, I am going to fast every other day. This fast will also be dedicated to God, but it will also be a primer to a longer fast, like 3 days, then 7 days. So I will fast tomorrow, Friday, then Sunday, then Tuesday, then Thursday, etc. My plan is to continue this through the month of October.
Also, there are endless health benefits to fasting as well. Of course, I am taking vitamins to accompany this fast.
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