This is my first post in this forum, so I will make this brief and hope to start a nice discussion.
With Allah's (s.w.t) blessings, it was only recently that I started to take my beloved religion seriously. I am 21 and living in the West, but that gives me no excuse to have strayed from Islam. It took me a few sermons to get me researching and with the help of Allah (s.w.t) I have acquired some knowledge. At first, I indulged in the various miracles in Islam, then read the Qur'an and hadiths (mainly Sahih Bukhari, Muslim and Tirmidhi) after which, I was certain that Islam is indeed a miraculous religion. However, curiousity got the better of me and I dwelved into reading other religious books (Bible and Hindu Scriptures). It wasn't because my imaan wasn't firm after reading the Qur'an in its entirety, but it was to perceive Islam without any bias.
It was while I ventured on the internet that I discovered the various Anti-Islamic websites. I read various articles in which the numerous miracles of Islam were "debunked". At first, I must admit I doubted myself (May Allah forgive me) but upon educating myself, I realised that majority of the arguments didn't carry any weight. They could easily be refuted, as is evident in the various Islamic websites' rebuttals. However, the missionaries of religious groups use other modes to attack Islam, such as making false claims about our beloved Prophet Muhammed (pbuh). The thing I found most fascinating is the fact that their focus is on attacking Islam rather than spreading their own religion. They must consider us tough opposition - what with Islam at a rapid growth, if they go out of their way to spread lies. Does this not strike a resemblance to the dirty politics technique of this age? Making the competition look bad does not necessarily make their religion any truer.
However, there are some that truly believe in their anti-islamic messages, but these people are devout followers of their religious groups. For them, their religion is so far ingrained in themselves that any message from Islam will encounter severe resistance. Even if they read the Qur'an, their intentions will be to find errors to satisfy themselves that Qur'an is indeed a man-made book. As they dwelve into this impossible task, they start to misinterpret the verses to suit their arguments. (Evident with the 'Earth is flat in the Qur'an' argument amongst non-muslims or 'Why iron -sent down- verse in Qur'an is taken literally and figuratively in other verses?')
Insha allah, I hope to start a discussion regarding the true motives of these Anti-Islamic websites. I hope Allah (s.w.t) gives tawfeeq and hidayat to these people.
MashaAllah excellent first post. Welcome to the forum.
Would it be possible to post some of your findings here and maybe some basic refutations of the lies for the benefit of the more moderate readers?
So far, the issue raised is already very interesting and I hope the lack of replies here does not hold you back. Everyone does read but hardly anyone replies, it's normal here.
One day I was on the internet looking for some evidence, (Wrong place to look, I know, but what can one do). I came accross a website that i cant recall at this moment in time. It had some very interesting subjects and un heard of things. I was reading and reading until I got to a comment where this web site was trying to prove that a particular Sahaba was (Nauzo Billah) Gay. I was shocked to see this. Immediately after reading the name of the Sahaba, I was able to guess where this site was comming from. I looked into the website further and further only to find signs of Shia'ism. Very sly website.
There are many Evangelical Christian websites with names that look good and Islamic. When you look into these, you realise that it is totaly unIslamic.
Many text messages go round providing these names for us to look into and avoid. Many times the Jews are accused of doing such things, it turns out that the Jews dont have time for this, it is infact athiests, Christians and the like.
For this reason too, I had posted a blog "Do not Google your way of Islam"
Its Scary out there. But InshaAllah just as Allah used the weakest house to protect the Prophet (SAW) and his companion Abu Bakr (RA), we too can make the use of such a house and spread our Deen and protect it too. The World Wide WEB.
One can ponder over why Allah made mention of the weakest house, The Spiders Web, in The Quran.
Is it a sign for us? is it a hidden Jewel of the Quran for us? Can we use the WEB to protect our Deen? or are we already using the WEB to protect our Deen?
Many of us do make great use of this WEB to expose false hood.
May Allah guide us all and keep us on the right path. Aameen
aameen...like anything, one can use it for good or for evil...alhamdulillah for authentic websites and may Allah ta'ala reward all those working so hard to get reliable, authentic material on the web. Only a few years ago there was hardly anything with reliable or authentic. Today alhamdulillah the works of our Ulama are readily avialable...even on google! They plan and Allah subhaanahu wa ta'ala plans and He is the better planner
Jazakallah for the replies. Insha-allah I will post some of my findings here. Before that, let me assure you all that the reason I am posting these things here is so that we are better equipped when it comes to answering our non-muslim friends - it is our duty as muslims. Also, many people label religion as something that you follow with blind faith. But in Islam, it doesn't have to be that way. There is ample evidence for the truthfulness of Islam and educating ourselves with these will only strengthen our imaan. Ever wonder why more and more reverts to Islam are becoming scholars? It is because they had the benefit of studying Islam without bias.
The first claim is one that is very popular amongst Christian missionaries - it is that Allah in the Qur'an is actually the pagan Arab's moon-god from pre-islamic times. A Christian apologist by the name, Robert Morey wrote a book named 'The Islamic Invasion: Confronting The World's Fastest-Growing Religion'. In this, he asks his readers:
"Is it any wonder then that the symbol of Islam is the crescent moon? That a crescent moon sits on top of their mosque and minarets? That a crescent moon is found on the flags of Islamic nations? That the Muslims fast during the month which begins and ends with the appearance of the crescent moon in the sky?" [p.14]
He also asks his readers why Prophet Muhammed's (s.a.w) father had "Allah" in his name, indicating that the name was a reference to the moon idol of "Mecca". Add to this, presenting genuine archeological findings from the middle east of statues with the crescent moon engraved on them (supposed "moon-god" deities), you can see how even a muslim can be mislead. These are only few of his allegations, but rest assured all his claims have been clearly refuted by our Muslim apologists.
With regards to Morey's questions, it is funny how he doesn't state his conclusions. He wants his readers to draw the conclusion that these facts prove that Muslims are worshipping the Moon-god. But perhaps the real reason is because he knows Muslims are far from it. Let's try and answer some of his questions.
1) What is the significance of the crescent moon in Islam?
Qur'an answers, They ask you about the new moons. Say: These are signs to mark fixed periods of time for mankind and for the pilgrimage (Qur'an 2:189)
2) Why is the crescent moon our symbol?
Well, Qur'an and Hadiths don't give signifance to the crescent moon and during the time of Prophet Muhammed (s.a.w), the Islamic soldiers flew solid coloured flags and it stayed that way for a while. It wasn't until the Ottoman Empire that the crescent moon and star became affiliated with the Muslim world. When the Turks conquered Constantinople in 1453, they adopted the city's existing flag and symbol. Legend holds that the founder of the Ottoman Empire, Osman, had a dream in which the crescent moon stretched from one end of the earth to the other. Taking this as a good omen, he chose to keep the crescent and make it the symbol of his dynasty.
3) Why Islam follows a lunar calendar?
Even the Jewish Bible uses the lunar calendar for religious festivals, so is it fair to suggest they are moon worshippers? The Christians follow the solar calendar, so does that mean they are worshipping the sun?
4) Why is Ramadhan marked with the appearance of the crescent moon?
That is because Allah (s.w.t) has commanded it through his messenger (pbuh). Besides, it is a universally applicable method and it allows Ramadhan to move through all the different seasons.
5) How was Allah's name used on the Holy Prophet's (s.a.w) father (Abdullah) before Islam established itself?
Because Allah means Creator, or supreme deity, just the same as El, and so what if the pagan arabs called an idol by that name during pre-islamic times (infact, Morey's claim is that a "moon"-idol was called Illah, but this has been refuted my Muslim apologists). Many Christians at the time of Jesus (pbuh) were called Samu-el, Emmanu-el, et al, does that mean the Christians are moon worshippers?
In a nutshell, all this polemicist has done throughout his book is concoct the evidence to fit his pre-conceived notion that Allah was a moon-god of the pagan Arabs.
Insha-allah, I will follow up with more claims soon. If anyone wants a thorough read on this subject, just let me know. I am not sure if it is permissible to post links here.
This cannot be undone and I am sure it will be greatly appreciated.
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