Articles

 Why Religion?


A Journey  From The Memory by Faten sabri





I pray to God that He accepts this book from me and adds it to my and the following people’s balance of good deeds:





My compassionate father, may God have mercy on him, who taught me how to live with dignity and honor.





My affectionate mother, may God have mercy on her, who was the symbol of dedication and devotion.





My husband ...who is the highest symbol of sincerity, loyalty, and partner of the journey.





My siblings … who support me and share life’s joys and sorrows.





My children and grandchildren... who are pieces of me.





 All thanks and appreciation go to:


The unknown soldier who taught me how to stand firmly on the ground, the example of devotion and sincerity.





The one who never refused to help me, provided me with advice and guidance, and asked God to give me the good.





To my husband, the ideal man; may God prolong his life to remain my aid.





To whose guidance lay behind every word and sentence in this book.





My dear husband, Loai Sabri.





 All thanks and appreciation go to:


Prof. Dr. Muhammad ibn Abdullah as-Saheem: Professor of theology at King Saud University.





Islam House’s team of reviewers and editors.





 My Success is Through God


I have always asked God for help in my life and asked Him to facilitate useful knowledge that I can benefit from. I used to pray to Him and say: O Lord, plan for me, because I do not manage well. I saw in a dream then, that Prophet Muhammad, may blessings and peace be upon him, gave me a set of books, and I did not understand the interpretation of the dream. My husband began his journey as a diplomat assigned to the United Nations.





I decided to join him with the children. I felt that I had a lot of free time because I was separated from my work, family, and friends. Then, God opened the way for me to study languages ​​that filled this free time.





Many friends believed that my diligence in studying languages ​​would not add anything to my education. They also thought that it was a waste of time because I would forget what I learned as soon as we returned to our country after my husband’s retirement. Back then, I never stopped repeating the supplication: O Lord, plan for me, for I do not manage well. Until God opened a way for me to speak with non-Muslims about Islam, and because of my proficiency in languages, it amazed everyone.





I came across many obstacles that almost stopped me from continuing. Until a moment of despair, I heard someone telling me to “go on” during a dream, which encouraged me a lot.  Then God sent me an unexpected helping hand and encouragement. Based on this encouragement and distinguished professors’ advice, I decided to write this summary of my experience during the home quarantine period imposed on everyone due to the Corona pandemic.





I thank God the Almighty for helping me write this book. I pray to God that this book will be the lantern that lights the way for people with bright minds and open hearts, wanting to seek the truth. I pray to Him to make it a message of goodness and peace for all by getting to know the right and innate religion. The religion of all the previous prophets of God which is represented by the tolerance of Islam and was delivered by the final Prophet Muhammed, may peace be upon him, which is: “The belief in the Creator of the universe and worshiping Him alone without an intermediary”. The religion that came to correct misconceptions and to restore faith to its correct position.





 Invite to the Way of Your Lord with Wisdom


The need for religion is greater than the need for food and drink. A person is by nature a religious person. If he does not find the true religion, he will then invent a religion for himself, similar to what happened with the pagan religions created by humankind. Human beings need security in this life, just as they need protection after death; the true religion gives its followers complete safety in this life and the Hereafter.





 The measures of the true religion:


 Belief in God:


It is essential for a person to have faith in a deity, whether the belief in the true God or in any false deity. He may call this deity god or name it anything else.  His god may be a tree, a star in the sky, a woman, his boss at work, a scientific theory, or even identity in himself, but it is necessary to believe in something that follows it and sanctifies it, along with returning to it in his way of life and may die for it. This is what we call worship. Worshiping the true God frees a person from slavery to others.





 The true God is the Creator: 


Worshiping someone other than the true God includes claiming that they are gods, but God must be a creator. The evidence that He is the Creator is either by witnessing what He created in the universe or by inspiration from God who has been proven to be the Creator. If this claim has no evidence, neither from who created the universe nor from the words of the Creator Himself, it is necessarily invalid.





Belief in the Creator is based on the fact that things do not appear without a cause, nor chance can be a creator to the universe because chance is not a primary cause, but rather a secondary result that depends on the availability of other factors (the existence of time, space, matter and energy) in order for these factors to form something accidentally. The word "coincidence" cannot be used to explain anything because it is nothing at all.





 The Creator:


-          He must have preceded time, space, energy, and existence. Therefore, nature cannot possibly be a creator to the universe because nature itself is time, space, and energy. Thus, the Creator (the primary cause) must have existed before nature.





-          He must also be omnipotent (having power over everything).





-          He must be a decision maker, producer, originator, and initiator, to start creation.





-          He must have the foresight, and must be omniscient (have perfect knowledge of all things).





-          He must be one, because if this cause is perfect, it should not need any other reason. The Creator should not need to be incarnated in the image of one of His creatures, nor should He have a wife or son in any case, because He possesses all the attributes of perfection.





-          He must be wise and does nothing except with superior wisdom.





-          He must be fair to reward and punish.





-          He must be in contact with people. He would not be God if He created them and left them.





That’s why He sent messengers to help clarify the path and inform people of His method. People who took this path deserves the reward, and punishment to those who goes astray.





 Religion:


Religion is a way of life, which organizes a person’s relationship with his Creator and those around him, and it is the path to the afterlife. 





-          It should be closer to the first human instinct, which needs a direct relationship with its Creator, without the intervention of intermediaries, and it represent the virtues and good qualities in human beings.





-          It should be one religion; easy and simple, understandable, and uncomplicated. 





-          It must be a fixed religion for all generations, countries, and kinds of people, which does not accept an increase or decrease according to whims, as is the case in the customs and traditions that originate by humans.





-          It must contain clear and proven beliefs; it does not need a mediator. Religion should not be taken by sentiments, but by correct and proven evidence.





-          It should cover all life issues and every time and place. It should fit this life and the Life after death, build the body and not forget the soul. 





-          It should protect people’s lives and preserve their honor and money. 





Thus, those who did not follow this approach, which came in accordance with their nature, lived in a state of turmoil and instability with a feeling of restlessness in the soul. Also, he’d experience the torment of the Hereafter. 





 Why Islam?  


-          The religion of Islam is compatible with human nature.  





-          The religion of Islam has a proven belief that is clear and straightforward. It is far from blind faith.  Islam is not satisfied with addressing the heart and conscience by relying on them as a basis for belief only, it instead follows its principles with a convincing and compelling argument, along with clear proof and correct reasoning that holds the reins of minds and takes the path to hearts.





-          The religion of Islam is a comprehensive teaching of all life aspects. It is flexible, because it is related to the human nature that God created man, and this religion came following the laws of this instinct, which is:





The faith in one God “the Creator”, Who has no child or any partner, Who does not incarnate in any of His creature’s image or body nor in any idol. And to have direct connection with this God by worshiping Him directly without any intermediary (priests, saints, prophets or idols, etc.).





-          The religion of Islam brought answers to human beings’ innate questions about the purpose of existence, the source of existence, and destiny. It establishes evidence in the issue of divinity from the universe, soul, and history on the existence, oneness, and perfection of God. In the issue of resurrection, it indicates the possibility of creating humans, the heavens, and the earth, and it indicates God’s wisdom of justice in rewarding the benefactor and punishing the offender.





Humanity meets in one origin and proceeds towards one goal. Diversity and difference are a universal necessity that obligates the human being of the importance of continuing of the dialogue. 





God said:





And if your Lord had willed, He could have made mankind one community; but they will not cease to differ.[1]





The purpose of this difference is acquaintance and integration between all races; the path of dialogue is the path that God’s messengers took from Adam to Muhammad, peace be upon them all.





God said:





O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of God is the most righteous of you. Indeed, God is Knowing and Acquainted.[2]





Everyone is of one origin. Everyone came to earth with one goal: knowing God and worshipping Him alone as the Messenger of God worshipped Him, not by worshipping the Messenger himself or worshipping anything else.  





To spread the message of monotheism, God sent all messengers to all nations, guiding their people to the universe realities, so they start from it and achieve the purpose which they were created for. Every nation had a messenger, and all heavenly messages across time and space have come to serve this purpose. 





God said:





And We indeed sent into every nation a messenger, [saying], Worship Allah and avoided Taghut (idolatry).[3]





Each heavenly message confirms what was brought by the previous one, as the messengers, peace and blessings be upon them, graduated in delivering the message of God. They were united in receiving the message of monotheism from God, but they had different laws according to the human need.  





The Holy Qur’an, which is the book of God and His words, has not changed despite hundreds of years and the different nations and civilizations. It is still as it was revealed, and it continues to lead Muslims in their worldly life and on their way to the Hereafter.





It confirms the origins of the religions that preceded it, which were brought by the messengers for their time.





By taking the path of dialogue, the believer has realized the truth of the oneness of the source of God’s message to proceed from his own faith towards the beginning of the journey on the earth.





This diversity is not considered an obstacle to the human communication. The dialogue has foundational principles, premises, and faith which enforce humans to respect them and start from them to communicate with the other.





The dialogue aims to eliminate fanaticism and fantasy, along with the projections of blind neurotic affiliations that prevent the human from understanding the reality of pure monotheism and leads to collision and destruction as is the situation now.





The dialogue of the messengers of God begins on a fundamental basis, which is the belief in all the heavenly messages.





With the Noble Qur’an’s recognition of cosmic facts, and by presenting a summary of the divine messages that meet in the origin of monotheism, and by calling on its followers to recognize this origin, this final book was the culmination of this human communication. 





The believer recognizes that God is the source of everything, and this is the greatest motivation for his journey in life according to God’s method and law. 





Therefore, the worldly life is the beginning of an eternal journey that a person resumes after death.





Islam considers that our existence in this world is for a supreme goal and purpose: God Almighty’s knowledge and to worship Him by having a direct connection with Him.





Any misfortunes that happen, God knows it, and have allowed it. God has absolute wisdom, and absolute wisdom is related to absolute good. There is no absolute evil in existence.





Despite the shortness of this worldly life, it is like a place of affliction and a test for human beings, so that they are distinguished in degrees and ranks when they approach the next life.  





Islam provided harmony between reason and religion, reason and the information transformed through narrated chains (Qur’an and sayings of Prophet Muhammed), along with harmony between the mind and heart. Therefore, there is no enlightenment, renaissance, progress, beauty, or true science except by embracing the religion of Islam.





Islam has succeeded as a method, while capitalism and communism have failed. No orientalist has studied Islam and its civilization - whatever his stand from Islam is –did not admit that Islam is a Religion and a State. 





However, Muslims being away from their true religion and their inability to properly spread Islam’s principles has contributed in recent decades to an increase in the number of atheists, sceptics, and perplexities in the world.





People in the West advanced in science and knowledge when they abandoned the wrong beliefs based on the distorted religion they had, and adopted science and logic. Still, with their approach to science properly, they lost the values, morals, and purpose of their existence, by neglecting to embrace the correct religion.





We will examine these points in detail by narrating real-life conversations with personalities from different nationalities and cultures on this Journey.








 Starting the Journey


 Can There be Doubt about God?


 There is no refuge from God except to Him!


The Qur’anic verse “There is no refuge from God except to Him” have always been on my mind growing up, but I did not fully understand it until a funny situation occurred with my son around 20 years ago. He was playing in the kitchen and wanted to touch the hot stove. He was very stubborn, and I had to hit his hand to prevent him from touching it again. He cried and started to wander around from one place to another, not knowing where to go. His father tried to calm him down and cheer him up, but the surprise was that he ran directly back to me and cried on my lap. His father laughed and said: Glory be to God.





I remembered the words of God Almighty There is no refuge from God except to Him[4], and I understood the verse. I said to myself that God Almighty reminds us when we are subjected to some difficulties, to always return to Him whenever we find ourselves far away from Him. I felt great joy after this incident.





 Coronavirus and the wisdom of God:


The catastrophes that occur on earth which affect humans, such as diseases, volcanoes, earthquakes, and floods, manifest the names and attributes of the Divine Majesty.





These catastrophes are at the same time a trial and test for a person; if the person assists and helps in these situations, that person will be rewarded. Suppose the person gets directly affected by these situations and shows patience, in that case, the person will know his Lord’s Majesty through this affliction, just as he recognizes Gods attributes of beauty through the good that God provides to him. Seeing Gods attributes in the good and the bad situations gives us a clearer understanding of Gods attributes. In fact, if a person only knew the characteristics of Divine Beauty, it is as if he did not know God Almighty.





One atheist asked me one day about those who had been plagued by disasters, diseases, and similar disasters, so I simply said to him:





The worldly life is only a moment if you compare it with eternal life, a dip in heaven can make them forget any pain or distress, as Prophet Muhammed said.





The presence of calamities, evil, and pain was the reason behind the atheism of many contemporary materialistic philosophers. In 2007, Sir Anthony Flew, arguably the most influential atheistic philosopher of the twentieth century, published a book stating: “There is a God.” Flew said: “The most impressive arguments for God’s existence are those that are supported by recent scientific discoveries”.





Then he said:





“The presence of evil and pain in human life does not negate God’s existence, but it prompts us to reconsider the divine attributes of Him.”





Anthony Flew considers that these disasters have their silver lining.





He also said: “The existence of evil and pain has been credited with building human civilizations throughout history”. Also, he said: “No matter how many claims there are regarding the interpretation of this dilemma, the religious understanding remains the most acceptable and most consistent with the nature of life.”





Any person who looks at life events in an external sense will not see the other side of a bad situation. Corona Virus (COVID-19) has taken lives, affected over a million individuals, and impacted everyone’s life across the globe. 





However, this should be seen as a wake-up call to humanity for several aspects of life that have been neglected by us for so many years; we will be able to adjust our standard of living from this point onwards. It includes government preparations for an epidemic, general hygiene, care for the environment, and even some of our living style.





Pollution in this period fell to its lowest levels worldwide due to the suspension of air and vehicle traffic, which in turn led to reducing emissions from these engines polluting the environment. It’s like the globe and environment entered a recovery phase during the spread of Corona disease. A person must reflect and reconsider his life affairs.





This situation caused families to reunite inside their homes, as it reminded them of God’s blessings, and their shortcomings in praise and thanks to the Lord of the Worlds. A person does not feel the grace except when he loses it.





People also began to realize the importance of hygiene more than ever, and were aware of the need to adopt severe prevention methods, the use of disinfectants excessively, and washing hands with soap and water at all time. Who would have expected all this?





There is no doubt that this great event re-arranged life priorities, as it showed the extent of human weakness and fragility, and the lack of preparation for such an event.





In a matter of a week, the whole world was standstill against this virus. We have heard and been dealing with fears of wars, or destruction between countries, but we have never expected that the next outbreak would be microbial. 





This event broke the pride of many who thought that humans had reached the highest levels of materialism, and they became more like deities and felt that they do not need their Creator. 





Corona disease kills the small and large, weak, and strong, poor and rich, simple man and king. It does not differentiate anyone. We heard about many wealthy people who fled to isolated shelters or palaces to escape the oppression of this disease. These same people were indifferent to most epidemics and conditions because they thought they could eliminate them by spending on treatment. The problem now for the wealthy is that money exists while the treatment does not exist. It’s like the virus came to establish equality between humans; it does not differentiate between strong and weak. Also, it does not distinguish between rich and poor.





It is strange to see that the whole of humanity united for the first time in history to confront this microbe.





 If there is no God, then from where do we get all this good?


Atheists who question why evil exists also reveal numerous fault lines in their worldview.





Questioning the existence of good is the far worthier question, for only after identifying the dominant principle can the exceptions to that principle be understood. People would forever see the extraordinary laws of physics, chemistry, and biology as incoherent if they were to begin studying these sciences with the rare exceptions that deviate from these laws. Likewise, atheists can never overcome the “hurdle of evil” until they find the humility to concede that evil is the exception in a world of innumerable phenomena that are good, orderly, and beautiful.





Consider periods of sickness versus health over the average lifetime, or impaired versus functional across human race. Consider the moments when arteries flow versus clogging throughout life or the decades of prosperity versus ruin for an average civilization. Consider the centuries of dormancy versus eruption of volcanoes, or the millennia of non-collision between planets. Where does all this prevalent good come from?





Energy and matter swimming in a world of chaos and coincidence could never produce a world where the default is suitable. Ironically, scientific empiricism attests to the second law of thermodynamics stating that the total entropy (degree of disorder or randomness) in an isolated system with no external influence will always increase and that this process is irreversible.





In other words, organized things will always break down and dissipate unless something from the outside pulls them together. As such, blind thermodynamic forces could never have produced anything useful on their own, nor made good as widespread as it is, without the Creator organizing these seemingly random, chaotic phenomena that appear into the marvelous things like beauty, wisdom, joy, and love. All this is only after proving that the rule is good and bad is the exception.





Ibn al-Qayyim says:





“Evil and pain is either benevolence and mercy, justice and wisdom, or reform and preparation for the good that happens after it, or to prevent more difficult evil than it.”





In my dialogue with a Russian atheist, he asked many questions, including the troubles and pains that cause people to suffer.





I told him: Our view of evil and pain depends on our view of the reality of this worldly life, and the purpose of human existence in it, which differs between religious people and materialists.





I told him what I have read before [5]: The materialistic perspective considers that this life has no meaning behind it. If a person dies, that’s it; it becomes nil. With this perspective, people will feel the urge to obtain the maximum level of pleasure. Therefore, when that person experiences any pain, he cannot comprehend it, because they cannot look at a bigger picture of a bad situation. With a limited perspective, this person will be living in life with a shallow look, and will not understand the “random” conditions that life puts him in. Therefore, the saying that there is a god who is the source of mercy and love regulating this life becomes nonsense and absurd for them, and this means that whatever prevents them from this pleasure is considered pain for them.





 Knowing God:


And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.[6]





Islamic Revelation provides us with many reasons for why God has allowed evil and suffering to exist. The problem of evil is not presented in Islam as a problem, but rather as an instrument in the actualization of God’s plan, which is intertwined with human experiences in this world as an experience that it is necessary for man’s spiritual development. As we mentioned, God has attributes, and the key to happiness in this life and in the Hereafter, is to know His characteristics and attributes very well. We must teach our children the names of God and His attributes.





The attributes of Majesty:





The Possessor, The All-Mighty, The Compeller, The Restorer, The Ever-Dominating, The Magnificent, The Supreme, The All-Strong, The Capable, The Powerful, etc.





The attributes of Beauty:





The Most Gracious, The Most Generous, The Source of Goodness, The Compassionate, The Most Kind, The Pardoner, etc.





Our mission in this life is to know our Creator, so when we know only His attributes of Beauty, then we don’t know Him very well.





Having hardship and suffering enables us to realize and know God’s attributes, such as The Protector and The Healer. For example, without the pain of illness, we would not appreciate God’s attribute of being the Healer or the One who gives us health.





Knowing God in the Islamic teachings is a greater good, and worth the experience of suffering or pain. It will ensure the fulfilment of our primary purpose, which ultimately leads to Paradise.





Indeed, We have made that which is on the earth adornment for it that We may test them [as to] which of them is best in deed. [7]





The original concept of God: In my dialogue with an atheist woman who was previously a believer, she said that when her daughter died, she became an atheist, and she didn’t want to believe in God anymore.





The woman claims that He took her daughter from her. She said that I prayed to Him and told Him: “if you keep my daughter alive and protect her from cancer and cure her, I will believe in you, but if you take my daughter, I will stop believing in you.”





This lady doesn’t know who her Creator is nor His mercy. She doesn’t know that in any case, it must be noted that God did not make this world permanent. This world is temporary, and everything in this life is limited by time. When it’s time finishes, it dies or ends.





Neither are the good things of this world everlasting nor are the bad things eternal. We are here for a short time, and we are being tested. Those who pass this test will find an endless world that is perfect and permanent, and those who fail this test shall see the consequences of their sins and corruption.





I told her: According to mathematics, any number compared to infinity is zero. So, this life is zero, we live in the zero, because if I lived 100 or 90 or 200 years, eventually, I will leave this life. So, compared to the eternal life with the Creator, we are here in the zero.





I told her:  You must understand the wisdom behind natural disasters and suffering. Natural disasters and suffering bring out the best in some people to display elevated human values and charity. The suffering of the righteous comes with promises of a great reward and blessings from God.





Let us say you knew God and believed in His existence; you realized that he is more merciful than your parents, and you acknowledged the fact that God Almighty has a paradise that displays the heavens and the earth. Do you prefer losing faith in Him, His mercy, and His everlasting paradise over this worldly life? Would you choose zero over infinity?





I told her: It is not logical to judge a play without continuing it to the end or to reject a book because you did not like the first page.





I received many questions about the protection from atheism. How can we protect our children from atheism?





As you notice, I always insist on saying that The Original Concept of God is the key to protecting our children from atheism. Our children must understand and realize their Creator’s attributes, that the Creator is more merciful than their mothers.





I say and repeat that the solution is to know God’s true concept because whoever knows God, knows everything. Because, of course, we did not realize our fathers’ and mothers’ wisdom when we were young in many behaviors, and we always wondered why the parents behave this way. Does my father love me? Why did he agree to go on this trip?





Do you love me, mom? If you love me, why do you pressure me to study and get high marks? Why do you force me to do my daily homework? Why does my mom send me to sleep every day early?





When we grew up and had children, we understood the wisdom of our fathers’ behaviors, and we understood as well that no one on earth loves the best for us more than them.





In-depth knowledge of God helps us find explanations for many matters. When our awareness and expertise widen, we can guide ourselves to solve many problems.





No disaster strikes except by permission of God. And whoever believes in God - He will guide his heart. And God is Knowing of all things. [8]





I often hear about the increase in atheism due to human-caused wars and natural disasters; there is no doubt that God’s acceptance of these matters to take place is only a test of their faith. These tests bring out the truth in people, whether they have full faith in God or are hesitant in their belief.





Should I worship God or only mention Him in prosperity?





And of the people is he who worships God on an edge. If he is touched by good, he is reassured by it; but if he is struck by trial, he turns on his face [to the other direction]. He has lost [this] world and the Hereafter. That is what is the manifest loss. [9]





The mercy of the Creator:





In a dialogue with an atheist, I told him that it’s enough to understand or believe that the Creator is waiting for us to judge us, and that He is very merciful with us. To make this idea very clear or very close to our minds, we just need to imagine that our mothers will be the one to judge us. How happy will we be? We will be so happy, relaxed, and relieved. It’s enough for us to get reassurance in this life that our mothers are waiting to judge us on the day of judgement. So, there’s no need to be scared.





I gave him a simple example of the importance of knowing God. I told him: If they told you that Faten Sabri is a lion tamer with an unforgiving and robust personality. When you come to meet her, of course, you will be careful to talk to her because you don’t know anything about her except that she has a formidable personality. But the people who know her will laugh at this claim and will be surprised because everyone knows very well that Faten is afraid of cats. He laughed a lot.





During the priest’s visit from the Vatican and his colleague to our center, I took them to show them the mosque. While we were discussing the concept of monotheism, I was telling them that God the Almighty, is the Creator, according to our faith. Allah is the One and the Only, who does not come to earth in any animal form or human form. He is very merciful, has no son, no partner. He created us to have mercy on us, and He sent one message through many prophets to all nations. He sent this message with Prophet Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Jesus Christ, and more. We consider Jesus Christ a human messenger who was created without a father or a male same as Prophet Adam, who was created without a father or a mother. We pray to God, worship Him as Prophet Jesus did, and like what Mary, the mother of Jesus did, but we don’t pray to Mary, Jesus, or Muhammed. We pray like them.





So, he said: We don’t pray to Mary, but we use Mary as an intermediary to let our supplication reach the Creator. As you know, in most families, when the children want something from their father, they prefer to speak to the mother. The mother is very merciful and has a very soft heart, and she loves her children very much. So, she can take their requests and speak with their father. So that’s why we talk to Mary first, to let our supplication reach the Creator.





I told him: Yes, you are right, but this is in case the children don’t know the real nature of their father. They don’t know that he’s very merciful, more than their mothers, and he loves them more. Maybe he doesn’t show this love.





He said: No, no, let me explain more about this point. Mary, for us, is like a tray. When you serve your guests, you put the juice or the water on a tray to give the visitor. So, Mary is like a tray. We put our supplication on this tray to give it to the Creator.





I told him: Okay, so who was Mary’s tray? Mary prayed directly to God; she didn’t use anyone for her supplication to reach her Creator. She prayed directly to Him. So, who was Mary’s tray?





This story was the starting point for spreading the true concept of God and was the reason for writing my book “The Original Concept of God”, in which I wanted to explain to the world that the true concept of God is the missing point now.





Not knowing the Lord of the Worlds leads to misconceptions about Him, such as being embodied in three hypostases or represented in a human being’s flesh.





Distorting God’s true concept in the Old Testament not only confused people’s minds and put them at loss, but also caused them to resort to atheism and distract them from religion.





The Torah, which God Almighty revealed to Moses, peace be upon him, stated that God is the One and the Only. The One who is Eternal, Merciful. Exalted is the Creator of every defect or deficiency. But we find in the Old Testament (the distorted Torah) claims about specific attributes that do not fit God’s Majesty (forgetting, lack of knowledge, fear, tiredness), Glory be to Him.





In my childhood, I always wondered why God Almighty mentioned in the Holy Qur’an that he created the heavens without getting tired. I was shocked by the need to say this point, as it is known that God Almighty does not get tired. Eventually, when I started my conversations with non-Muslims, I knew that Christians believe that when God created the heavens and the earth, He rested. They would always ask me why Muslims do not consider Sunday to be a holy day, and I say because God does not get tired to rest. Surprisingly, they laugh and say: yes, you are right.





 Monotheism is the way of salvation:


It is very wrong to introduce Islam by saying: Islam means to believe in One God, and just stop there. We must explain and give more depth. Islam means to believe in One God, who is the Creator, and directly connect with Him. Nothing is like Him. He does not come to earth in any animal form or human form; He has no image known to humans. Our minds can only imagine objects, people and situations based on past experiences and memories. God is beyond our perception and cannot be comprehended.





Whenever we sin, we repent to Him directly. When we have a problem, we ask Him to solve the problem instantly. When we feel blessed, we must thank Him directly. We must give these details because the faith in One God already exists in many religions.





Speaking of the faith of the disbelievers of Quraish (the tribe of Prophet Muhammad) for example, the disbelievers of Quraish believed in One God because when they were asked about worshipping the idols, they said they worship idols to make them closer to Allah. So, the problem in their case was not with Tawheed Al Rububeyya, which is to believe in One God. The problem was with Tawheed Al Ebada, which is to have a direct connection with the Creator.





Is not to God that sincere faith is due? As for those who take guardians besides Him, “We only worship them that they may bring us nearer to God.” God will judge between them regarding their differences. God does not guide the lying blasphemer.[10]





 Conclusion:


We conclude that what permitted calamities is God’s Will. God’s Will is related to absolute wisdom, and absolute wisdom is related to absolute good, as there is no absolute evil in existence. Atheism appeared because of the differences between religions which are represented in the means used to communicate with the Creator, directly or through the taking of mediators (saints, priests, idols, or prophets).





If all religions left calling to mediators and went directly to the Creator, humanity would be united and their hearts upright, and be guided to the truth. Just as everyone agrees in praying towards the Creator directly without a partner or mediator when calamities or adversities occur, so it was necessary to invite everyone in good and bad times to worship the Lord of the Worlds. As the Holy Qur’an stated:





Say, ‘O People of the Scripture, come to a word that is equitable between us and you - that we will not worship except Allah and not associate anything with Him and not take one another as lords instead of Allah.’ But if they turn away, then say, ‘Bear witness that we are Muslims [submitting to Him].’ [11]


 



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