Arguing with you concerning the truth after it had become clear


By: Faten Sabri

What is revealed to you from your Lord is the truth:


As a child, I have always been keen in knowing the right religion. Due to my mom’s keen in watching the religious programs at the time, I always asked her about that topic. I was born in Kuwait. As a society that receives expatriates from different countries, it contained different religions and cultures. I always pondered the adherence of the followers of each religion in declaring that theirs was the true religion. And I used to say to myself: The true religion ought to be one; What is this ‘religion’? Why is Islam the accurate religion? And with this question being asked a lot to my mother when I was in the elementary school level, she told me: Read, search and see for yourself that the true religion is the one that provides you with a direct relationship with your Creator.

Hence, I embarked on reading despite my young age, so that before I reached high school, I had had a crystal-clear picture about monotheism, and I felt an immense energy to tell the world about this great treasure, and I remembered the Noble Verse: What is revealed to you from your Lord is the truth.  And I was very pleased.

And argue with them in a way that is best:

In an interview that I conducted with three journalists of Indian nationality, who -according to my understanding- came with a missionary campaign for Christianity.


 


One of them said: The Messiah is God.

I told him: What is your evidence?

He said: Christ said in our books: ‘Before Abraham was, I am.

I told him: Is this how God introduces himself, by saying that I was before so and so?

Indeed, I am Allah; There is no deity except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance. 

I asked him: How did God introduce himself to Moses? Did he not say, “O Moses, that I am God, worship Me.”? 

He faltered.

His colleague hastened to interject quoting: Christ said: “I and God are one?”

I replied: He also said, “I and the disciples are one.” and “God and Christ and the disciples are one.” Again, I repeat: Is this how God introduces himself?

You, for example, when you come to my home asking my help on something, and if I am not there, my son tells you: My mother and I are one, how can I help you?

He said: The proof of the Trinity that God is in eternity and before his creation of the universe, if there were only one, his attributes would be disrupted, so there must have been three, to be merciful, give sustenance, and interact through the three who are within him.

I interjected, because his comment angered me: I, for example, have the trait of being “a very good speaker”. Therefore, when I decide to be silent and not to speak now, does this trait break inside me?

Someone said: You are not only a good speaker, but also endowed with the ability of intuitive replying. He went on saying: Who is Muhammad?

I said: He is a descendant of Ismail.

He said: But Ismail is not a legitimate son of Abraham.

I asked: Who said so?

"So, after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife." Genesis 16:3


This passage in the Old Testament indicates that Hagar was a legitimate wife of Abraham. And the word Ismail means "God hears", for God responded to Abraham's supplications to be blessed by a son. God chose this name for Ismail, nor was it ever mentioned in the Old Testament that Ismail was an illegitimate son.

"And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD has heard thy affliction." Genesis 16:11

And God has vowed to bless Ishmael and bring forth a great nation out of his descendants.

"And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation." Genesis 17:20

He said: Please give me references to verify for myself.

Then said afterwards: God in your book changes his mind, on one hand, he says: “There is no compulsion in religion,” on the other hand He says: “Fight those who do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day,” do you deny the existence of Nasikh and Mansookh (abrogation) in your Book.

I was very impressed by the eloquence of his pronunciation of these two Arabic terms, even though our dialogue was in English.

I countered: There is no abrogation between these two verses. The first verse has completely different topic; as it establishes a great Islamic principle, which is to prevent coercion of religion. Whereas the second verse deals with a specific topic, concerning those who repel off of God’s pathway, or those who prevent others from accepting the calling of Islam; in fact, there is no contradiction between the two verses.

But in all cases, the evolution of the provisions of legislation, the discontinuing of a previous ruling, the replacement of another ruling with another, the reinstatement of a later decree, the constriction of the released, and the release of the restricted, are inured and familiar things in previous covenants ever since the era of Adam. Just as the marriage between brothers and sisters was judicious in the law of Adam, peace be upon him, then it became prohibited in all other covenants. 

Likewise, permitting work on a Saturday was advantageous in the law of Abraham, peace be upon him, along with all other laws before him, only to become banned in the law of Moses, peace be upon him.

Likewise, God Almighty had ordered the Israelites to kill themselves after worshiping the calf, then this command was abrogated from them after that. And many other examples. Therefore, replacing one provision with another is commonplace in the same Shari’a or between different religions.

I added: The doctor who starts treating his patient with a particular drug and over the course of therapy either increases or decreases the doses of the drug in a gradual attempt of treatment, you consider him sage.

I continued: I am genuinely amazed by your question, for you have embraced the abrogation made by Saint Paul, which was not in only one commandment, instead he altered the whole creed. From Monotheism to the Trinity, and made you violate God's eternal covenant with you to adhere to performing the right of circumcision as mentioned in your books.

He asked: You claim that God protected Christ from crucifixion and murder, so why did he not protect Muhammad from being killed when he died poisoned by a Jewish lady? 

I answered: God protected His Messenger from the poison of the Jews when he was warned that the sheep was poisoned. And he did not die from that poison; he lived nearly four years after the incident, completing his message and great victories. And God has protected him until the moment of his death. So, if his death was due to the effect of poison later on or from another cause, that doesn’t make the Jews triumphant over him by murdering him in order to impede him from completing the mission he was sent for. Rather, the death of the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, was done by God’s ordinance after he had finished conveying his message. Accordingly, the story does not refute his infallibility.

Someone said: Although, the Qur’an is in a high degree of order and accuracy; nonetheless the disjointed and incomprehensible letters in it are evidence of deficiency and defect.

I retorted: You are like a person who sees a high building with a great degree of order and accuracy, then he sees a number of designs at an angle of the building that he sees as unnecessary and useless, and says: ‘I do not understand them, then that is a defect in the building. Is your level of understanding and perception of things a measure of their quality? 

Rather, we would say that whoever constructed that building with all its grandeur, precision and sophisticated systems cannot ignore these elements. He must have put them there for a good reason, which my ignorance of, does not negate its existence. It is peculiar that no one at the time of the descent of the Qur'an objected to these letters; they always praised its miracle and its uniqueness even from its enemies.

He asked me: And why was the Qur'an revealed in Arabic?

I answered: In what language would you like it to descend? You have thousands of languages and dialects in India, so which language would you prefer? If it had been in one of these languages, you would have said why not the other. 

I said further: God sends the Holy Books in the language of their people. And God Almighty chose His Messenger Muhammad to be the seal of all His messengers.

The language of the Qur’an was in the language of his people, and God safeguarded it from distortion until the Judgment Day. Similarly, He chose -for example- the Aramaic for the Book of the Messiah.

He countered: What is the story of the collection of the Qur’an during Abu Bakr’s era and its burning during the reign of Uthman?

I answered: The Messenger left the Qur’an documented and written in the hands of his Companions to recite it and teach others, and when Abu Bakr


-may God be pleased with him- became the caliphate, he ordered the collection of these scrolls to be in one place and for reference.

Whereas during the reign of Uthman may God be pleased with him he ordered the burning of the copies and scrolls that were with the Companions all over the township, and provided them with new copies identical to the original copy which was left by the Holy Prophet and collected by Abu Bakr.

He did that to ensure that all the regions will refer back to the same original and only copy that The Messenger has left. Thus, The Qur’an remained as it was without no change or alteration ever since it has been inherited to Muslims throughout the ages for them to contemplate among themselves and recite in their prayers.

He said: The Qur’an says: 


Your Lord is God; He who created the heavens and the earth in six stages, then established Himself on the Throne. He makes the night overtake the day, as it pursues it persistently; and the sun, and the moon, and the stars are governed by His command. His is the creation, and His is the command. Blessed is God, Lord of all beings.  


Here, it says that God has created the heavens and the earth in six days, he said ‘in six days’ to teach His worshipers not to haste in getting things done, and this is comprehensible.


Yet here he says:

Do you reject the One who created the earth in two stages? And you attribute equals to Him? That is the Lord of the Universe. He placed stabilizers over it, and He blessed it, and He assigned its foods in four stages—equally for the seekers. Then He turned towards the sky, and it was smoke, and He said to it and to the earth, “Come, willingly or unwillingly.” They said, “We come willingly.” Then He completed them seven universes, in two Days. And He assigned to each universe its law. And We decorated the lower universe with lamps, and for protection. That is the design of the Almighty, the All-Knowing.  


  


Here, God has created the earth in two days, placed the stabilizers over it, and estimated the sustenance in four days, so the sum becomes six. Then he created the Heavens in two days, thus the total is eight days. Is this not a contradiction in the Qur’an?

I responded: If I told you that I traveled from Paris to London in ten days, and to Chicago in fifteen days, then this means that I completed my journey in fifteen days, and this is what is meant in this verse.

He came back with: You Muslims live in largely scattered groups, because you do not have a religious leadership like the Vatican to govern you.

I said: How did the Vatican help Christianity? Was the Vatican able to unify the Christian sects. Actually, the rift is increasing.

His colleague said: We will leave now, but we have meetings to come.

Who argues in God without knowledge:

One day in Africa, I was attending a language class where I was the only Muslim among everyone. The language teacher asked me a surprising question: Do you pray five times a day? And you pray at five in the morning? Isn't this weird?

I had a prior knowledge that this professor is employed on a part-time contract. Which means that if he gave the lesson, he takes a fee, and if he did not give the lesson, he does not get anything. I told him based on my prior knowledge of this information: If this lesson was at five in the morning, would you give it, or will you stay asleep?

He said: Of course, I will give it, because this is my livelihood and the livelihood of my children.

I said: Prayer is our livelihood, and for us it is greater than millions of dollars. Then followed: How many times does your wife talk to you on the phone a day?

He laughed: She almost never stops calling.

I inquired: Are you deprecating us for addressing our Lord five times a day?

He said: Why pray though?

I told him: I wake up for prayer at five in the morning every day, while my non-Muslim friends are doing morning exercises at exactly the same time. My prayers, for me, are nourishment for my body and soul, but exercising for them is only a physical sustenance. Look at how much we take care of our bodies although our souls are starving from hunger; the result is countless suicide cases for the wealthiest people in the world. 

Worshipping abolishes the sensation found in the center of the brain; which is particularly responsible for self-awareness and of those around us. As a result, a person will feel a great sense of sublimation, and that is a feeling that you will not understand unless if you experienced it.

I went on: Worshipping stimulates the centers of feeling in the brain, and the faith transforms from theoretical information and rituals into subjective, emotional experiences. For example, let’s say that a father wants to greet his son after he returns from a trip. Would the father be satisfied if he only told his son “Welcome”? He will not feel happy until he hugs and kisses him. 

The mind has an innate desire to embody our beliefs and thoughts in a physical form. Therefore, worship rituals were provided to satisfy this craving. Servanthood of God and obedience are manifested in prayer and fasting, and so on.

Dr. Andrew Newberg said: ‘Worship rituals play a major role in improving physical, mental and psychological health, and in achieving tranquility and spiritual transcendence. Likewise, turning to the Creator leads to more tranquility and transcendence.

The teacher said: You’re right, and we are unfortunately always depressed, gasping after our worldly pleasures.

During my dialogue with a Muslim who belittled the importance of prayer and supplication, he said: The concept of supplication contradicts the divine course and the laws of nature, and a deity must not be debased as to alter his words and amend his rulings.

I told him: The reality of the laws of nature is endorsed by religion and science. The fact that God exists is not sufficient alone nor it satisfies our need to communicate with him. The existence of these laws does not mean that the deity does not communicate with his creation, nor does it say that being connected with him and being segregated away from him are alike.


 


“Oliver Lodge”-one of the most acclaimed scientists in Physics-responded to those who claim that supplication contradict the of universal laws by saying: They consider prayer as if they are observing a natural phenomenon outside the boundaries of the universe. When in fact it is a cosmic phenomenon to be reckoned within the working of the universe, as it governs all other incidents that occur in our lives without prayer. Prayer is a psychological upbringing, so why do protesters think that this education is not a reason to achieve some incidents as caused by every other rearing method in which a person is being prepared for any other goal?

He said: There is no difference between a person’s praying for himself or for another or for his Lord.

I replied: One cannot give what one does not have. How can I ever ask someone for help when he is incapable of helping himself? Besides, appealing to God Almighty is glorifying while doing so with others is degrading. Is it reasonable to equalize the king with the general public in the request? Both reason and logic completely refute this concept.

He said: The request is either in conformity with the Divine Will, in this case it is fulfilled with no request, or it is contrary to the Divine Will, and in this case, there is no meaning to this request.

I countered: The will of God is represented in his creation of the nature of man, and that it is a human nature to seek aid when needed. But seeking this from someone other than God is in vain when believing in the existence of God Almighty.

He said: The universal laws were an ancient matter that have happened and done with.

I countered back: The whistle of the train blows before its arrival but it is not the reason for arrival, and the light of the missile is seen upon explosion before hearing its sound. There is no relationship between the reason for seeing or hearing.

We did not limit all the factors of the laws of the universe. What we achieve into might help us in estimating the consequences resulting from them in general but estimation is only valid through approximation.

Despite that God has allowed the scientists to study the universe which is not limited by laws, God Almighty remains The Doer of whatever He wills. For creation is a continuous process and not a mechanical one that The Divine Providence has left in negligence without alteration.

Indeed, there is no changing in the laws of God. Although we do not know from these laws except from what we are led to with our minds and the guidance of God.  The laws of God in the humans’ destiny might be dependent on a psychological breeding through praying. This psychological breeding might be a conditional reason for the Divine laws that the believer may not disable.

Praying for the Unitarians is a sign of human progress in understanding the facts of the universe, comprehending the Divine Attributes, and communicating with the source of all goodness.


 


It was not known to the polytheists in that way. They performed their prayers in a bargaining method, as they believed that their gods needed their offerings. 

There is no substance for a religion without the belief in praying on the basis of request and supplication, with believing in its spiritual sport and its close relevance that links the world of the unseen and the testimony, and makes the existence of God a reality grander than the reality of the universal laws, or the reality of universal events that concern a person in the pursuing the demands of his livelihood, as well as in the compelling of his conscience.  

And Allows for Them All Good Things, And Prohibits for Them Wickedness:

I remember being very impressed by the story of a Filipino colleague of mine who converted to Islam. She told me that the reason behind her conversion to Islam was the swine.

I asked her in astonishment: How come?

She said: I knew very well that this animal is very filthy and that it inflicts the body with many diseases. I’ve hated this animal for my whole life. I used to think that Muslims worshipped it because they are prohibited to eat it, which caused me to hate them. Until later on, when I left the Philippines and lived in an Arabic country, I realized that pork is forbidden by Muslims because it is a filthy animal and its meat is harmful to health. I then appreciated the greatness of this religion, and from that time on I have been dedicated to reading and searching the content of this hidden gem.

I recall a conversation I’d had with a Brazilian man who was very interested in the doctrine of monotheism. The issue of consuming animal meat prevented him from converting to Islam because he is vegetarian and he mistakenly assumed that converting to Islam would force him to eat meat.

I explained: The fact that the consumption of red or white meat is permissible in Islam does not mean that you are obliged to eat it.

He said: Why was it allowed in the first place?

I said: Meat is an essential source of protein. Humans have incisors, molars and canines. These teeth are suitable and prepared to cut, chew and grind meat. God created human’s teeth for masticating both plants and meat and prepared our digestive systems to fully digest one and the other. That is the reason behind the sanctioning of their consumption.

He persisted: Isn’t the method of slaughter inhumane?

I corrected: The method of Islamic slaughter, which is severing the animal’s neck with a sharp blade, is more merciful than the stunting and strangulation, which the animal suffers from, because once the blood flow to the brain is interrupted the animal does not feel pain. The animal’s convulsions are not from pain, rather due to the blood gushing out of the veins. It facilitates the drainage of all the blood outward, unlike other methods that seal the blood within the animal's tissue, which harms the health of those who devour that meat.

He criticized: Don’t these animals have spirits just like us?

I clarified: There is a difference. An animal’s soul is the driving force of the body. If it is separated from the body by death, the animals turn into lifeless bodies and that is a form of life. Plants and trees also have a type of life which is not called a soul. Rather, it is a life that passes through its particles with water. If they get separated, they whither and fall.

 And We made from water every living thing. Will they not believe?  

But the animal soul is not like a human spirit that has been attributed to God, for the purpose of honoring and dignifying. Its essence is known only to God and is pertaining only to the human beings. 

As a matter of fact, the soul of a person is a divine issue that man is not required to understand its essence. It is basically merging the force of the body, combined with reasoning power (the mind), perception, knowledge and faith; and that is what distinguishes it from the spirit of animals.

A person has a visible external nature, which is the body, portraying all the characteristics of matter. It is capable of being weighted and measured. Then there is another nature completely contrary to the first, characterized by serenity, timelessness, and no place.

He said: This nature, according to my understanding, is supposed to belong to the body?

I replied: The body is the one belonging to it, because when we fast during Ramadan, for example, what motivates us to be patient and refrain from eating? That is due to a strong urge within ourselves that drives us to make this decision.

He said: Why don’t we feel it?

I explained: When we use the elevator, for example, we do not feel its movement because we’ve become part of it, and we can only feel it when it starts moving or when it stops.

He asked: What is the human soul (self)?

I answered: The human soul is the product of the encounter of the soul with the body, in which a person is defined by his spirit, conscience, his feelings and his perceptions. It is his self, which carries the forces of good and evil, and because of which a person commits sins or is keen to obey.

He said: What is a human? 

I told him that a person is the human personality in its entirety, flesh, blood and character.

He challenged: What is the difference between the angel, the jinn and Satan?

I answered back: As for the angels: they are one of God’s creation also, but a glorious creation, they were created from light. They are compelled for goodness. Obedient to the orders of God, glory be to Him, they are ever glorifying, ever worshiping, they are tireless and weariless.

They praise night and day, without ever tiring.  

….They never disobey God in anything He commands them, and they carry out whatever they are commanded.  

Believing in angels is shared by Muslims, Jews, and Christians. Among them Gabriel, whom God has assigned to mediate between Him and his messengers; he used to descend with the revelation to them. Michael’s assignment is rain and vegetation. Israfil’s responsibility is to blow the Horn on the Day of Resurrection, and many others.

I went on: As for the jinn, it is of the realm of the prescience, they live with us on this Earth, and they are commanded to obey God, and forbidden to disobey Him, like mankind, but we do not see them. God mentioned stories that show the extent of the power and ability of the jinn, including their ability to influence through whisper or allusion without physical intervention, but they do not know the invisible nor are they able to harm the strong believer.

 The devils inspire their followers to argue with you…  


 


The Devil is any dispassionate rebellious, whether human or jinn.

He said: Aren’t the sins of man from Satan?

I said: There are two types of sins; sins that are self-incited and sins committed because of Satan’s whispers.

He exclaimed: Which is more dangerous for a person? How can we differentiate between them?

I clarified: The soul is much more dangerous if you do not persevere, just as a young child is weaned from breastfeeding by gradual taming.

The soul that commands evil is the soul that coax person and pushes him to commit sins. It persists on a specific sin, such as planning and plotting to kill a human being, and there is no rest for it or retreat until it achieves its desired goal.

Likewise, the soul adorns the vile act and shows it right, and it goes overboard in the path of sin and disobedience, until its natural instinct is buried, and then it loses the ability to distinguish the good from the bad. For it, the bad deeds look like good deeds, as happened with the brothers of the Prophet of God, Joseph, peace be upon him when they threw him into the bottom of the well, and they assumed that they were doing well.

He said, your souls enticed you to do something. But patience is beautiful, and God is my Help against what you describe.  

Those whose efforts in this world are misguided, while they assume that they are doing well.  

What of him whose evil deed was made attractive to him, and so he regards it as good? God leads astray whomever He wills, and He guides whomever He wills. Therefore, do not waste yourself sorrowing over them. God knows exactly what they do.  

As for Satan, God Almighty has told us that he is weak. God said: 

Surely the strategy of the Devil is weak.  

So, Satan’s plotting is confined to the boundaries of the legislative and mandatory actions of man with whispering and displaying falsehood in the appearance of truth, but he has no authority over man.