It's about time..
... that I make this public post. Through out the past couple of months, I have heard a few of misconceptions or, rather, misinformation about Islam that people have adhered to. I would like to clear some of them so that those who choose to browse through this journal will know a little more than they did before.
No, we don't worship any thing tangible in the universe. In fact, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came during a time when people were idol worshiping and taking false Gods (as did most of the Prophets) to eliminate the false conception. He preached to everyone, as did other Prophets, that there is no God but God. And God is high above and unseen and is completely devoid of any human weaknesses or attributions. Then why is Makkah so important to Muslims? I will do my best to answer that question in a simplified manner to the best of my knowledge. Makkah has religious historical significance. It's physical construction dates back to Abraham (pbuh), so it has a significant history with the Prophets sent by God to guide us to the right path since we have a tendency to deviate... a lot. During the time of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), it was adorned with many idols (360, if I remember correectly), and were worshipped with much reverence. After the non-muslims of Makkah drove Muslims out into the dessert with much persecution and slaughter, it was reclaimed again with greater force when the Muslims grew into Madina and slowly the Kaaba became the focal point.
It is important, very very important, to understand that Kabbah is merely a symbol of our worship to God (or Allah, in arabic). It is a point of unification with religious significance. It is what brings us together, in a sense. We pray to the same place, no matter where we are on earth, and we understand that we pray facing that direction because God wants us to. So, we face the Kaaba in obedience to God rather than worshiping a man-made building. One shouldn't underestimate the importance of the Kaaba to muslims, as this does a decent job of explaining.
I have to make a serious attempt not to roll my eyes and appear rude. I will let the previous reply answer this as well, since it signifies the important of how we worship God of all Creation rather than a specific God of a specific time. Perhaps the confusion lies within the fact that we follow the lunar calender? If that is the case, then one should understand the concept of organization in terms of making a system rather than attribute that fact to understand that we worship a moon god. That mere idea serves as a very big insult to God, a very big ignorance towards the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), and a total lack of intellect. .... I tried not to sound rude! But to say this statement is to say something that entirely refutes the purpose of Islam which states that you should worship no other god but God - the Creator of all the Universe, which includes the sun, the moon, the stars, the planets and all that exists.
We believe that Jesus (pbuh) was a man, a Prophet sent by God, to guide the people. We believe that he was born from a virgin mother, and one of his miracles include that he spoke in the cradle. We believe that he did not die on the cross, but that God raised him up into the Heavens, and he will return again and finish his life. He will refute the idea of divinity that has been attributed to him, he will marry, and he will pass away, and he will be burried. If the idea that of him being the son of God comes from the fact that he was born of a virgin mother and that is the main reason that he should be attributed to being a son of God, then one should give higher preference to Adam, who was born without any intercession from a mother and a father. And Eve, who was born without needing a woman. Rather, every one and every thing is made from the Divide words, "Be" and it is. If we say that God needs to a woman to procure a human being, than we are attributed our human faculties to Him, which in turn makes Him imperfect. Therefore, Jesus (pbuh) was someone who served a purpose that he was made to serve by God, and his purpose is yet to be fulfilled according to God's Will. If he is to be divine because of his miraculous birth, then one should also make divine Adam and Eve who are our parents and all generation sprouted through them.
So far, these are the concepts that have come into my mind that I would like to address. There were many more as my mind was forming the idea of making this into an entry, but they fazed away. If you have any concerns or ideas or more question, feel free to let me know about them and I will do my best to find the right information for you. Again, I merely summarized the small amount of knowledge I have regarding these things, but one has to start from somewhere, right? I hope I will be some form of information to lead you towards getting more information regarding this topic.
Again, let me know if any more ideas come up, and if any more do, I will make haste in addressing them here.
Thanks for reading!
- Muslims worship the Kaaba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia
No, we don't worship any thing tangible in the universe. In fact, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came during a time when people were idol worshiping and taking false Gods (as did most of the Prophets) to eliminate the false conception. He preached to everyone, as did other Prophets, that there is no God but God. And God is high above and unseen and is completely devoid of any human weaknesses or attributions. Then why is Makkah so important to Muslims? I will do my best to answer that question in a simplified manner to the best of my knowledge. Makkah has religious historical significance. It's physical construction dates back to Abraham (pbuh), so it has a significant history with the Prophets sent by God to guide us to the right path since we have a tendency to deviate... a lot. During the time of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), it was adorned with many idols (360, if I remember correectly), and were worshipped with much reverence. After the non-muslims of Makkah drove Muslims out into the dessert with much persecution and slaughter, it was reclaimed again with greater force when the Muslims grew into Madina and slowly the Kaaba became the focal point.
It is important, very very important, to understand that Kabbah is merely a symbol of our worship to God (or Allah, in arabic). It is a point of unification with religious significance. It is what brings us together, in a sense. We pray to the same place, no matter where we are on earth, and we understand that we pray facing that direction because God wants us to. So, we face the Kaaba in obedience to God rather than worshiping a man-made building. One shouldn't underestimate the importance of the Kaaba to muslims, as this does a decent job of explaining.
- Muslims worship a moon god
I have to make a serious attempt not to roll my eyes and appear rude. I will let the previous reply answer this as well, since it signifies the important of how we worship God of all Creation rather than a specific God of a specific time. Perhaps the confusion lies within the fact that we follow the lunar calender? If that is the case, then one should understand the concept of organization in terms of making a system rather than attribute that fact to understand that we worship a moon god. That mere idea serves as a very big insult to God, a very big ignorance towards the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), and a total lack of intellect. .... I tried not to sound rude! But to say this statement is to say something that entirely refutes the purpose of Islam which states that you should worship no other god but God - the Creator of all the Universe, which includes the sun, the moon, the stars, the planets and all that exists.
- The significance of Jesus
We believe that Jesus (pbuh) was a man, a Prophet sent by God, to guide the people. We believe that he was born from a virgin mother, and one of his miracles include that he spoke in the cradle. We believe that he did not die on the cross, but that God raised him up into the Heavens, and he will return again and finish his life. He will refute the idea of divinity that has been attributed to him, he will marry, and he will pass away, and he will be burried. If the idea that of him being the son of God comes from the fact that he was born of a virgin mother and that is the main reason that he should be attributed to being a son of God, then one should give higher preference to Adam, who was born without any intercession from a mother and a father. And Eve, who was born without needing a woman. Rather, every one and every thing is made from the Divide words, "Be" and it is. If we say that God needs to a woman to procure a human being, than we are attributed our human faculties to Him, which in turn makes Him imperfect. Therefore, Jesus (pbuh) was someone who served a purpose that he was made to serve by God, and his purpose is yet to be fulfilled according to God's Will. If he is to be divine because of his miraculous birth, then one should also make divine Adam and Eve who are our parents and all generation sprouted through them.
So far, these are the concepts that have come into my mind that I would like to address. There were many more as my mind was forming the idea of making this into an entry, but they fazed away. If you have any concerns or ideas or more question, feel free to let me know about them and I will do my best to find the right information for you. Again, I merely summarized the small amount of knowledge I have regarding these things, but one has to start from somewhere, right? I hope I will be some form of information to lead you towards getting more information regarding this topic.
Again, let me know if any more ideas come up, and if any more do, I will make haste in addressing them here.
Thanks for reading!