KINDNESS AND GOOD MANNERS ARE THE BEST FORMS OF ISLAMIC DA’WAH

KINDNESS AND GOOD MANNERS ARE THE BEST FORMS OF DA’WAH

by Syarif Hidayat

      In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Allah SWT says in Al Qur'an: "When you are greeted with a greeting, greet in return with what is better than it, or (at least) return it equally. Certainly, Allâh is Ever a Careful Account Taker of all things." (Al Qur'an, Surah An-Nisa, Verse 86)

        Islam is a beautiful religion, full of wisdom and harmony.   If this wonderful religion is followed properly then a typical Muslim would only be a great example to follow.

       You might believe this or not! But good manners are the best form of Da’wah. If we ask ourselves, what if a person was walking around calling people to Islam and to worship the one true God yet he have no manners at all, will anyone follow him? Or even listen tohim? The answer must be No, for sure.

NEW MUSLIMS: TALK LESS AND LISTEN MORE!

New Muslims: Talk less and listen more

by Lauren Booth

Who can ever forget the overwhelming feeling of taking shahadah?
Wherever it happens – at a friend’s house, down the phone, in an imam’s office or at the center of a vast Masjid on Jummah, it is a heart-thrilling, experience.
Immediately after you testify to the Oneness of God and that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is His final Prophet, you are squished by your new sisters (or brothers if you are male).
Tears in eyes, your new family thrust phone numbers and email addresses at you, pledging with heartfelt intensity to ‘be there’ when you go through ‘tests’ about which, at that moment, you may have no idea.

ISLAMIC THINKING: THE MIRACLE OF POSITIVE THINKING

POSITIVE THINKING IN ISLAM: THE MIRACLE OF POSITIVE THINKING

 by Syarif Hidayat

Combating Negative Thinking

     The excellent Productive Muslim.com site has an article on combating negative thinking. Here are the quotes from the article:

"To be a productive, dynamic muslim,it is extremely important that we inculcate a mindset of positivity. A mindset of positivity leads to proactivity and eventually leads to creating a productive life. If the mindset of positivity is missing, and we are negative and self loathing, and have no hope, do you ever think we would have the enthusiasm to do things and be productive?

One of the greatest secrets to being a productive person is letting go your negative self-talk and switching to positivity. Behind that door of negativity, there is a brighter, happier, productive life waiting for you."

THE ECONOMIC CHALLENGE FOR THE MUSLIM UMMAH

The economic challenge for the ummah

by IlmGate

[Condensed from a talk by Justice Mufti Taqi Usmani, delivered at the International Conference of the World Muslim Congress.]

        The nineteenth century was a century of political oppression whereby the powerful Western nations enslaved most of the Asian and African nations including a large number of Muslim countries. The present century, which is nearing its end, has witnessed the gradual independence of these countries from Western imperialism. However, despite our apparent success in achieving the goal of political liberty, we could not succeed in acquiring independence on intellectual, economic and strategic levels. 
      That is why Muslim Ummah could not yet reap the fruits of its political freedom.
Now the Muslim world is looking toward the coming century with hope that it will bring for it total independence in the real sense so the Muslims may find their due place among the nations of the world and may be free to live according to the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet, Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

DO YOU KNOW HOW TO ENGAGE WITH AL QUR'AN?

Do you know how to engage with the Quran?

by: Basma Abdelgafar

        There is something that has been bothering me for quite some time now and it is the realization that so many Muslims (especially youth) are not engaging with the Quran as they should be.
Instead of reading and trying to understand it many people feel that the Quran is too complex, too long, too repetitive, too sacred, scary, even dangerous and so avoid the exercise altogether.
Some have even been cautioned by others about reading it and trying to form their own understandings. This should certainly not be the case.
         I will tell you at the outset that I am not an Islamic scholar, nor have I formally studied the Quranic sciences but that is not a pre-requisite for reading and engaging with the Quran and benefiting from it, as I shall demonstrate below.

Seeking Allah in the Midlands

by: Hasan Suroor

Of the thousands of white Britons embracing Islam every year, most are thought to be professionally successful, independent-minded women, says a study

       Arguably, Islam has more than a mere perception problem over how it treats its women. Even after allowing for stereotyping (the image of a burqa-clad woman walking two paces behind her husband is a crude caricature of the modern Muslim woman), the fact is that Muslim women are more vulnerable to misogyny and cultural prejudices of their menfolk than women of any other faith. The more “Islamic” a society, the fewer individual freedoms its women enjoy.

MIXED SITUATION OF ISLAM AND MUSLIMS IN EUROPE

MIXED SITUATION OF ISLAM IN EUROPE: ON THE RISE IN BRITAIN, RISING ISLAMOPHOBIA IN FRANCE AND TERRORIZED BY GREEK NEO-NAZIS  IN ATHENS

by Syarif Hidayat

         Islam is the fastest growing religion in the West. Nevertheless, the West has many stereotypes and misconceptions about Islam that are due to: the media, Prejudice, and Ignorance. Islam is often looked upon as a "extremist", "terrorist", or "fundamental" religion. Many people hate Islam and do not want to acknowledge its true teachings.

         In many cases, the media’s reports about Islam are incorrect due to ignorance. This is one of the reasons why the West often hates Islam.  In contrast to what many Westerners think of Islam, Islam is a peaceful religion, which does not promote any injustice or crime. Stereotypes about Islam are not new to Western culture. Problems can be traced back 1400 years. At that time, Islam and Christianity were involved in the Crusades in the 1100’s and in the Ottoman and Moorish control in Europe. Islam spread quickly to the West, and started to threaten the position of the Christian Church and the ruling class.

When Halal becomes Haram, more Taqwa is needed

by Ahmed Kilani & Ali Cabban
(MuslimVillage.com)

      MuslimVillage.com has spent the past week investigating the Halal chicken controversy that has left many from Sydney’s Muslim community in a state of confusion, some even no longer eating chicken.
      After numerous meetings and interviews with representatives from Fresh Poultry, Taqwa Halal Certification (Taqwa), Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC) Halal Certification and Red Lea Chickens, we present what we have discovered to be the facts.
     We pray that our findings will end the confusion and restore some certainty for the entire community. We believe that Taqwa, Fresh Poultry and AFIC Halal are all sincere in their endeavours. However, due to a lack of foresight, some errors of judgment, issues of trust and a lack of professional expertise, unnecessary doubt has been cast upon the status of Halal chicken produced both by Fresh Poultry and Red Lea.
     As MuslimVillage.com reported last week in the article “Claims of supplying non Halal chicken denied“, the current controversy was started when Taqwa Halal Certification made a public announcement on May 4 2013 via social media, sms and email asking the community to avoid eating any products from Fresh Poultry, the only Muslim owned Halal hand slaughtered chicken slaughterhouse and wholesaler/retailer in Australia.

THE CONVERSION OF MONGOLS TO ISLAM: THE POWER OF DA’WAH

The conversion of the Mongols: The power of Da’wah

by Allamah Abu ‘l-Hasan ‘Ali al-Nadwi

       Islam was about to be submerged in the whirlpool of the Mongol ardor of slaughter and destruction, as several Muslim writers had then expressed the fear, wiping it out of existence, but Islam suddenly began to capture the hearts of the savage Tartars. The preachers of Islam thus accomplished a task which the swordarm of the faith had failed to perform, by carrying the message of Islam to the barbaric hordes of heathen Mongols.

THE WORD “ISLAM” HAS A TWO-FOLD MEANING: PEACE, AND SUBMISSION TO GOD

 by  Syarif Hidayat

Understanding Islam: The word Islam has a two-fold meaning: submission and peace

     The word ISLAM has a two-fold meaning: peace, and submission to God. This submission requires a fully conscious and willing effort to submit to the one Almighty God. One must consciously and conscientiously give oneself to the service of Allah. This means to act on what Allah enjoins all of us to do (in the Qurân) and what His beloved Prophet, Muhammad (saw) encouraged us to do in his Sunnah (his lifestyle and sayings personifying the Qurân).
       Once we humble ourselves, rid ourselves of our egoism and submit totally to Allah, and to Him exclusively, in faith and in action, we will surely feel peace in our hearts. Establishing peace in our hearts will bring about peace in our external conduct as well.

MALAYSIAN MUSLIMS LEAD ISLAMIC WELLBEING INDEX

Malaysian Muslims lead wellbeing index

by Daud Batchelor

ACHIEVEMENT: The country has achieved commendable balance between religious observance and social development, says Daud Batchelor.

 IT has always been a big question: “Which Muslims in what Muslim country are closer to achieving the ideal of Islamic wellbeing”? Whose country is doing better at applying Islamic values?

A newly formulated rating index, the Islamic Index of Wellbeing (IIW), suggests that Muslims in Malaysia lead the Muslim countries surveyed in Islamic wellbeing, just ahead of their Indonesian cousins.

THE US MUSLIM CONVERTS: "WE ARE NOT BRAINWASHED!!!"

US Muslim Converts: We’re Not Brainwashed!!!

NEW YORK – As the news revealed that Boston suspect widowed wife was an American convert to Islam, stereotypes and misconceptions have been reignited about US women who have chosen Islam, portraying them as brainwashed and submissive who sacrificed their American life to satisfy their husbands.

“The moment you put on a hijab, people assume that you’ve forfeited your free will,” Lauren Schreiber, who favors traditional Islamic dress, told NBC News on Friday, April 26.
Schreiber, who became a Muslim in 2010, expected to hear comments being brainwashed after the media revealed that 24-year-old Katherine Russell, a New England doctor’s daughter, was married to Boston dead suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev.

OUR DAUGHTERS ARE A BLESSING, NOT A BURDEN!!

OUR DAUGHTERS ARE A BLESSING, NOT A BURDEN!!

by: Jamiat.org.za

Children are no doubt a great gift from Almighty Allah to all parents. Parents must think of their children as such treasures that all the wealth and material resources are worthless as when compared to one’s children. We, as parents, should thank and be grateful to Almighty Allah for blessing us with children whether they are boys or girls.

Today, it is quite disheartening to see that some parents rejoice when the newborn child is a male and show their dissatisfaction when the child is a female. But, this should not be the attitude. Islam does not condone this type of behavior, as such was the manner of the parents in the time of ignorance.

ISLAM'S UNIVERSALITY

Islam’s Universality

Islam’s universality: All people who believe in One True God without partners and submit themselves to Him are called Muslims

The message of Islam is the continuation of the clear and profound message of pure monotheism revealed by God throughout history to all of His prophets in every place on earth. Allah had sent us prophets who all taught the same religion: {“He (Allah) has ordained for you the same religion (Islam) which He ordained for Noah, and that which We revealed to you (Muhammad), and that which We ordained for Abraham, Moses, and Jesus”} (Qur’an 42:13).

Anyone, born in any place, and at any period of time, can become a Muslim because Islam is what the prophets had been teaching ever since the time of Adam. All people who followed one of the many prophets, who believe in One True God without partners, and submit themselves to Him are called Muslims – a person who submits his will to the will of God according to the teachings of the prophets.

THE ART OF CALLING TO ISLAM

THE ART OF CALLING TO ISLAM

by Ali Gomaa

       It is the destiny of all world religions along history to be plagued with a group of fanatics who are blinded with their immature zealotry to advocate for their religion yet they lack all the necessary qualifications such as solid authentic knowledge, intellectual discernment, sound logic and refined manners which are keys to open up hearts and souls. Prophet Muhammad’s correspondents with world kings are true embodiment of the art of calling to Islam.
      The message of Islam was universal by nature and was not confined to the borders of the Arabian Peninsula or restricted to Arabs. It was in fact a message encompassing the whole world as God says in the Quran, “Blessed is He who sent down the Criterion upon His Servant that he may be to the worlds a warner “ (25:1)
      After the reconciliation of al Hudaybiyah, the Prophet sent letters and correspondents to the non Arab kings of neighboring countries with the Persian and Roman empires topping the list. The Prophet had sent a book carried by the messenger Dehia ibn Khalifa al Kalbi to Heraclius the Roman Emperor and the message reads: