Who are the Muslims?

Who are the Muslims?

One and a half billion people (more than one fifth of the world's population) from a vast range of nationalities and cultures across the globe - from the southern Philippines to the western coast of Africa - are united by the common Islamic faith. Of these, about 15-18 percent live in the Arab world. The world's largest Muslim community is in Indonesia, and substantial parts of Asia and much of Africa are Muslim, while significant minorities are to be found in what used to be called the Soviet Union, as well as China, North and South America, Europe and Oceania. For Muslims, Islam is both a religion and a complete way of life.

What do Muslims believe?

Muslims believe in one, unique, incomparable God, in the angels created by Him, in the prophets through whom His revelations were brought to mankind, in the Day of judgement and individual accountability for actions, in God's complete authority over human destiny, and in life after death.

Islam teaches that human diversity is a sign of the richness of God's mercy. God has willed that human beings compete with each other in righteousness in order to test who is the best in deeds, and this is the reason for the creation of the universe. God alone is the judge of human righteousness, and it is God alone who rewards and punishes in this life and in the Hereafter.

God (whose name is "Allah" swt in Arabic) is the creator and sustainer of this universe, Since man cannot know his Creator through the physical senses, God has revealed Himself through a series of messengers or prophets. We are familiar with some of them through earlier scriptures such as the Torah and the [Injeel] Gospel. Every people on earth was at some time sent a messenger from God, but with the passing of generations men tended to deviate from the true religion, often replacing it with alien ideas and practices. Each prophet was sent to reform his people and turn them back to the worship of God alone. The last of these prophets was Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), through whom God's message was completed. God promised that this final message would be preserved for all mankind. And the words revealed by God through the Angel Gabriel (pbuh) to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) have indeed been passed down to us in their original Arabic text, unchanged since the time of revelation. This scripture is called the Qur'an.

The essence of God's message through all of the prophets was:

"O mankind, worship God. You have no other deity but Him."[Qur'an: Surah al-A'raf 7:59, 65, 73, 85; Surah Hud 11:50, 61, 84; and Surah al-Muminun 23:23, 32].

Nothing is worthy of worship except Him who created you - not stone idols or fire, not heavenly bodies such as the sun and moon, not animals, not angels, and not other men (including prophets) - for all of these are His creations.

Allah (swt) says in the Qur'an Sourate N°2 The Cow (al-Baqqara) verse n° 285'THE APOSTLE ( Muhammad ), and the believers with him, believe in what has been bestowed upon him from on high by his Sustainer: they all believe in God, and His angels, and His revelations, and His apostles, making no distinction between any of His apostles; and they say: "We have heard, and we pay heed. Grant us Thy forgiveness, O our Sustainer, for with Thee is all journeys' end!'

God is one. His unity is evident in the order, arrangement and symmetry of the universe. He is all-knowing and all- powerful. He is completely just and merciful. God has revealed certain names and descriptions of Himself so that we may have a limited understanding of His qualities and therefore love, and at the same time, fear Him.

This universe was not formed by chance, nor is it left to chance. God created it for a purpose and subjected it to physical laws for an appointed period of time. Man was created for a purpose as well - to serve God on earth and live according to His law. This is the essence of Islam, , a word which means literally: submission to the will of God. It is God alone (who created us and knows us better than we know ourselves) who has the right to govern our lives. And His law means justice for all people regardless of nationality, color or social status. Human beings are judged only on the basis of righteousness.

Man has been given a free will and has been left the choice of whether or not he will follow the way of God. Furthermore, he has been given a mind with which he is able to reason and choose wisely. One may, by his own efforts, gain knowledge that enables him to recognize the evidence of God in His creation. By contemplation one may weigh, measure and learn from all situations. And finally, because the human mind and experience is limited, God has revealed the guidance we need through prophets.

After making available the information necessary for one to choose His way, God informs us in the Qur'an that after passing through a temporary stage of death man will bear the consequences of his choice in a greater life to come. Every individual is personally responsible for his own deeds - both good and evil. No one else can carry the burden of his sins.

On the other hand, God is always prepared to accept and forgive any servant who has gone astray and then repents and turns back to Him. The compensation for evil will be exact justice, but the compensation for good will be much greater - complete satisfaction and happiness.

This last message revealed by God to mankind through Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is the final and complete religion and legal code for mankind. Just as a new revised law supersedes and invalidates what came before it, Islam now nullifies all former religions on earth. It corrects the deviations that had crept into religion previously, in the realm of both belief and practice. The text of the Qur'an has been preserved by God in order that humanity may no longer have an excuse to deviate and that there may always be men who keep the true religion.

The final prophet sent by the Creator to mankind was an example to be followed and obeyed. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) patterned his life on the teachings of the Qur'an, which were revealed to him by God. True Muslims try to follow this noble example. A high moral standard is clearly the goal of Islam. It is the duty of every Muslim to learn and put into practice all that he can of his religion in order to earn the pleasure of God before returning to Him.

Muslims have two distinct advantages to help them in the practice of Islam as their way of life:

The sacred scripture, the Qur'an, which was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in the seventh century, still remains authentic in its original Arabic text. This language is used and understood by millions of people in the world today. The Qur'an contains God's guidance in teachings and commandments, which are valid for all times and places and which encompass all spheres of human life.

The example of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) lives on as well. There is a complete and authentic record showing how he exemplified the teachings and commandments of God and elaborated the principles laid down in the Qur'an - all in order to provide sure guidance for their interpretation and application for all later times and societies.

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