Welcome to Islam, - Trial and error: punctual equilibrium

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:-> Neo-Darwinists propound improbable new scenarios in their efforts to keep Darwinism alive Most of the scientists who believe in evolution accept the neo-Darwinist theory of slow, gradual evolution. In recent decades, however, a different model has been proposed. Called “punctuated equilibrium”, this model rejects the Darwinist idea of a cumulative, step-by-step evolution and holds that evolution took place instead in big, discontinuous “jumps”. The first vociferous defenders of this notion appeared at the beginning of the 1970s CE. Two American paleontologists, Niles Eldredge and Stephen Nay Gould, were well aware that the claims of the neo-Darwinist theory were absolutely refuted by fossil records. Fossils proved that living organisms did not originate by gradual evolution, but appeared suddenly and fully-formed. Neo-Darwinists were living with the fond hope -- they still do -- that the lost transitional forms would one day be found. Realising that this hope was groundless, Eldredge and Gould were nevertheless unable to abandon their evolutionary dogma, so they put forward a new model: punctuated equilibrium. This is the claim that evolution did not take place as a result of minor variations but rather in sudden and great changes. This model was nothing but a model for fantasies. For instance, European paleontologist O.H. Shindewolf, who led the way for Eldredge and Gould, claimed that the first bird came out of a reptile egg as a “gross mutation”, that is, as a result of a huge “accident” that took place in the genetic structure. According to the same theory, some land-dwelling animals could have turned into giant whales having undergone a sudden and comprehensive transformation. These claims, totally contradicting all the rules of genetics, biophysics and biochemistry are about as scientific as the fairy tales about frogs turning into princes! Nevertheless, being distressed by the ``crisis that the neo-Darwinist assertion was in'', some evolutionist paleontologists embraced this theory, which had the distinction of being even more bizarre than neo-Darwinism itself. The only purpose of this model was to provide an explanation for the unexplained gaps in fossil records that the neo-Darwinist model could not explain. However, it is hardly rational to attempt to explain the fossil gap in the evolution of birds with a claim that “a bird popped all of a sudden out of a reptile egg”, because by the evolutionists’ own admission, the evolution of one species to another requires a great and advantageous change in genetic information. However, no mutation whatsoever improves the genetic information or adds new information to it. Thus the “gross mutations” imagined by the punctuated equilibrium model would only cause “gross”, that is “great” reductions and impairments in the genetic information. Moreover, the model of “punctuated equilibrium” collapses from the very first step by its inability to address the question of the origin of life, which is also the question that refutes the neo-Darwinist model from the outset. Since not even a single protein can have originated by chance, the debate over whether organisms made up of trillions of those proteins have undergone a “punctuated” or “gradual” evolution is senseless. In spite of this, the model that comes to mind when “evolution” is discussed today is still neo-Darwinism, we must first examine the neo-Darwinist model and then look at the fossil record to test this model. After that, we will dwell upon the question of the origin of life, which invalidates both the neo-Darwinist model and all other evolutionist models such as “evolution by leaps”. Before doing so, it may be useful to remind the reader that the reality we will be confronting at every stage is that the evolutionary scenario is a fairytale, a great deceit totally at variance with all scientific facts and evidence. It is a scenario that has been used to deceive the world for the past 140 years. Thanks to the latest scientific discoveries, its continued defence has at last become impossible. The Quran states that Allaah will show us His signs, in the world around us and within ourselves, at which the people of understanding will have increased faith. Unlike what evolutionist scientists would have us believe, Allaah has not created the world in vain, it has a specific purpose and underlying design. In spite of misleading obscurantist agendas, it is our duty to unravel the truth and expose falsehood.

- PUBLISHERNajimudeeN M

Welcome to Islam, - The Concept of Morals in Islam

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:-> Morals in Islam are the set of principles and guidelines that govern human conduct according to the divine revelation. This is so that man's life will be regulated in a way that perfectly achieves the goal behind his existence in this world. Thus, the Islamic system of morality is characterized by two distinctive facets: firstly, it has a divine nature, which means that it follows the will of Allaah The Almighty. Secondly, it coincides with our innate nature, which indicates that human beings exert an effort and play a role in practically determining that system, in part. This code of ethics aims at realizing a good life for mankind. It constitutes the best mode of behavior and manner of dealing with the self, Allaah The Almighty and society as a whole. In the Islamic moral system, the practical and theoretical aspects are integrated, as it is not only a part of Islam, but its essence and spirit, which comprises all its aspects. Thus, generally speaking, Islam is founded on its moral principles, which are the crux of the divinely revealed Messages. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:“Verily, I was sent to perfect good manners.”]Ahmad[ Hence, the underlying reason of the message of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is to correct morals and spread all that is good. Furthermore, the goal of all divine Messages is similarly a moral one, for religion, itself, is ]possessing[ good manners. Allaah The Almighty and His Messenger, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, connected faith and etiquette, because of its significance. When he, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was asked about the best among the believers in terms of faith, he replied,“]He is[ the one who has the best manners among them.”]At-Tabaraani[ In fact, Islam considered faith as righteousness, as Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:}Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but ]true[ righteousness is ]in[ one who believes in Allaah , the Last Day, the angels, the Book and the prophets...{]Quran 2: 177[ And,“righteousness is having good manners”, as the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said. ]Muslim[ Therefore, righteousness encompasses all virtuous actions; it may also be defined as a comprehensive name for all forms of goodness. Since there is a relation between morals and faith, so, too are morals and worship linked. That is because worship is, in essence, a moral spirit, because it is a fulfillment of divine obligations. This is much more evident in relation to transactions, which constitute another aspect of the Islamic Sharee‘ah. Accordingly, we notice that all aspects of Islam are interconnected through a moral code for the attainment of a principled goal. Thus, ethics represent the core of Islam and its legislative system is an entity that embodies it. Conducts are of two kinds: the good, which is demonstrated by polite and virtuous manners, which result in noble words and deeds, according to reason and Sharee‘ah; and the bad, which presents in discourteousness and vice, and results in, what are logically and Islamically, evil speech and actions. It is only the former, then, which constitute the best means that enable people to win the love of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and attain closeness to him on the Day of Resurrection, as he, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:“The most beloved among you to me and the nearest to me on the Day of Resurrection are those who have the best manners.”]At-Tirmithi[ Morals in Islam are not based on, nor shaped by, doctrinal theories, personal interests or environmental factors. Rather, they flow from the spring of faith, whose light shines the soul and is reflected inside out. They are not independent virtues; instead, they represent rings linked together within a single chain. Consequently, the creed of a Muslim is ]steeped in[ morality and his Sharee’ah is morals; if he or she disconnects any of these chains, it will result in a violation of his or her faith. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:“When an adulterer commits illegal sexual intercourse, he is not a believer during ]that time[. And, when someone drinks alcohol, he is not a believer at the time of his drinking. And, when a thief steals, he is not a believer when he robs.”]Al-Bukhaari[ Similarly, he, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was asked, “Does the believer tell lies?” He replied in the negative and then recited the Saying of Allaah The Almighty )what means(:}They only invent falsehood who do not believe in the verses of Allaah, and it is those who are the liars.{]Quran 16: 105[ Good manners are the proof of Islam and its practical representation. The stronger the faith is, the sounder one’s manners. Therefore, morals are not forms of luxury that one can dispense with, because of changes in one's environment. They are not like a garment that a person wears when it is in style and then discards by the next season. Rather, they are as firm as the orbits in which planets move; they do not alter with the course of time, because they represent man’s Fitrah )natural inclination to truth(. Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(,}]Adhere to[ the Fitrah of Allaah upon which He has Created ]all[ people. No change should there be in the creation of Allaah.{]Quran 30:30[

- PUBLISHERNajimudeeN M

General Articles, - The Prophets, Messengers sent by Allah, are the true source of democracy

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:-> Liberty, an important component of human life and one that greatly enhances its quality, is only possible when the idea of democracy prevails. Because democracy is a form of government under which everyone enjoys social justice, equality, rights and freedoms, it is a blessing that Almighty Allah has revealed to His servants in the Divine Books by way of the prophets. A climate of liberty, love, compassion and justice, in which everyone can live freely and speak their own minds and live together in peace, is commanded in all the Divine Books. That is why ancient Greece, regarded as the birthplace of democracy, or Europe, regarded as the center of democracy today, learned about it from the true faiths. However, the most highly developed form of democracy will come with the global dominion of Islamic moral values. Some people who are unacquainted with Islamic moral values, or have only just begun learning about it, may harbor false opinions and prejudices about it because they have turned to incorrect sources of information. These people fall prey to an error of thinking, despite the fact that it is completelyuntrue, that Islam will restrict their living space, obstruct their freedoms, control their thoughts and put limitations on art and science. The truth is that Islam is a faith that provides for freedom of worship and expression, places rights of all kinds under protection and offers people true liberty. In the Qur’an, verse 41 of Surah Yunus, “If they deny you, say, ‘ I have my actions and you have your actions. You are not responsible for what I do and I am not responsible for what you do’ ,” is one of those verses in which Almighty Allah enjoins democracy for His servants. In this verse Allah clearly reveals the importance of everyone enjoying freedom of ideas and belief, free of any pressure or compulsion. All the Conditions of Democracy Can Only Be Met When People Live by Islamic Moral Values 1-SOCIAL JUSTICE: Almighty Allah Commands Social Justice and Sharing Social justice is one of the basic principles of democracy in true democracies. People learned social justice from the Prophet Noah (pbuh) and the Prophet Abraham (pbuh). According to religious sources, when the Ark came to dry land after the flood, the Prophet Noah (pbuh) boiled together the small quantities of remaining chickpeas, lentils, raisins, figs, wheat and the like to make a kind of sweet broth. Everyone on the Ark then ate it together. That is social justice, because by this example Prophet Noah (pbuh) teaches everyone equality, solidarity and generosity and the importance of distributing food to all: As revealed in verse 69 of Surah Hud, “Our messengers brought the good news to Abraham. They said, ‘Peace!’ and he too said, ‘Peace!’ and brought in a roasted calf without delay” the Prophet Abraham (pbuh) immediately killed a calf when guests arrived and had it prepared for them to eat. Almighty Allah notes that by offering food to people whom he had never met, the Prophet Abraham (pbuh) was behaving in the best way, and wisely stresses the importance of feeding the poor and of social justice. 2-EQUALITY: Almighty Allah Reveals in the Qur’an That No Race Is Superior to Any Other As Almighty Allah reveals in one verse of the Qur’an, superiority lies in piety alone. In this verse Allah tells us: Mankind! We created you from a male and female, and made you into peoples and tribes so that you might come to know each other. The noblest among you in Allah’s Sight is the one with the most piety. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware. (Surat al-Hujurat, 13) Our Prophet (saas) expresses this truth commanded by Allah as follows in the hadiths: "You are sons of Adam, and Adam came from dust. Let the people cease to boast about their ancestors." (Sunan Abu Dawud, Book 41, Number 5097) "These genealogies of yours are not a reason to revile anyone. You are all children of Adam. No one has any superiority over another except in religion and taqwa (godliness)." (Ahmad, 158/4) During his final sermon, the Prophet (saas) called on Muslims in these terms: "There is no superiority for an Arab over a non-Arab and for a non-Arab over an Arab; nor for white over the black nor for the black over the white except in piety. Verily the noblest among you is he who is the most pious." (The Prophet Muhammad's Last Sermon; http://www.stanford.ed u/~jamila/Sermon.html) 3-JUSTICE: Almighty Allah Commands Justice Allah issues this commandment to believers in the Qur’an: “... You who have faith! Be upholders of justice, bearing witness for Allah alone, even against yourselves or your parents and relatives. Whether they are rich or poor, Allah is well able to look after them. Do not follow your own desires and deviate from the truth. If you twist or turn away, Allah is aware of what you do.” (Surat al-Nisa’, 135) The commands that our Prophet (saas) issued among Muslims and his just and affectionate attitude toward people of different religions, languages, races and tribes, as well as the way he treated everyone equally, making no distinction between rich and poor as Allah revealed in the Qur’an, represents an excellent example of the conception of democracy. In one verse, Allah tells our Prophet (saas): They are people who listen to lies and consume ill-gotten gains. If they come to you, you can either judge between them or turn away from them. If you turn away from them, they cannot harm you in any way. But if you do judge, judge between them justly. Allah loves the just. (Surat al-Ma’ida, 42) Our Prophet (saas) adhered to Allah’s commandment, even among difficult people, and never made any concessions on justice. As revealed, he always said, “My Lord has commanded justice...” (Surat al-A’raf, 29), thus serving as a role model for all times. Democracy Will Come about When People Are Living by the Moral Values Commanded by Allah As we have seen, in the essence of Islam, there is intellectual freedom, freedom of faith and expression. Some people assume that democracy entered the history of humanity with the ancient Greeks. However, it is Allah Who teaches democracy to people. From the time of the Prophet Adam (pbuh), all prophets have been the genuine representatives of intellectual freedom and respect to views. The essence of all the primary concepts – freedom of justice, not putting any pressure upon anyone, treating everyone as a first class citizens, respecting and trusting people, not judging anyone due to his views- which are associated with democracy are present in the morality of religion. Throughout history, people have learned these concepts from the righteous religions revealed by Allah and witnessed its most beautiful examples during the times when people lived by the righteous religions. When we look at the times when people were oppressed due to their opinions and their different ideologies, members of various religions were humiliated, while the arts, science and architecture died out; times when people lost their joy in living and almost turned into robots, or when book burnings, murders, massacres, genocides became widespread, we see the influence of irreligious, atheist ideologies or those who misinterpreted religious morality with a radical mindset by distancing it from its essence. Once Allah’s righteous religion is lived in the form it is commanded by Allah, the true justice, democracy, respect and love, that people have been longing for, can be experienced. Very soon, democracy, brotherhood, love, friendship and peace will, by Allah’s leave, dominate the world and people will experience the joy, bliss and abundance of faith as much as they can. As one can clearly see from the signs of the verses, hadiths of our Prophet (saas) and words of great Islamic scholars, the time in which we live is the End Times. The difficult and troublesome days of the End Times will, in this century, come to end with the Prophet Jesus’ (pbuh) and Hazrat Mahdi’s (pbuh) being instrumental, and the world will enter a brand new, bright era. Communicating the Oneness and Unity of Allah in the most beautiful and wise manner, and introducing people to Islam as described in the Qur’an and lived in Age of Felicity lays a very important foundation for the bright days that we will attain in the near future. Our wish is that Allah will also render this article instrumental in attaining the beauties in question. We sincerely hope that the days when we see “people entering Allah’s religion in droves” come at once. Allah reveals these glad tidings as follows in the Qur’an: When Allah’s help and victory have arrived and you have seen people entering Allah’s religion in droves, then glorify your Lord’s praise and ask His forgiveness. He is the Ever-Returning. (Surat an-Nasr, 1-3) Freedom Is Important in Islam, and Compulsion and Pressure Are Prohibited Every Muslim, as a requisite of the morality of the Qur’an, is responsible for showing people the true path, enjoining the good and forbidding that which is evil. But this never means to oblige others to think, live, act and dress like oneself. A Muslim shows the truth and leaves the choice to the person himself. This is the commandment Allah informs us in the Qur’an in the verse, “There is no compulsion in the religion...” (Surat al-Baqara: 256). In line with Almighty Allah’s commandment, our Prophet (saas) made a contract with the Christians of Najran, who lived in the south of Arabia. This makes it clear that Islam is the true source of freedom of thought and belief in democracies. The contract included the following article: “The lives of the people of Najran and its surrounding area, their religion, their land, property, cattle and those of them who are present or absent, their messengers and their places of worship are under the protection of Allah and guardianship of His Prophet.” (The Pact of Najran, Article 6, http://www.islamicreso urces.com /Pact_of_Najran.htm.) The Compact of Medina, signed by the Muslim immigrants from Mecca, the indigenous Muslims of Medina, the Christians and the Jews of Medina is one of the finest examples of the conception of democracy in Islam. As a result of this constitution, which established justice between communities with differing beliefs and ensured the protection of their various interests, long years of enmity were brought to an end. One of the most outstanding features of the treaty is the freedom of belief it established. The relevant article reads: “The Jews of Banu 'Awf are one nation with the Muslims; the Jews have their religion and the Muslims have theirs…” (The Constitution of Madina, http://www.islamic- study.org/jews-prophet- p.-2.htm) Article 16 of the treaty reads: "The Jew who follows us is surely entitled to our support and the same equal rights as any one of us. He shall not be wronged nor his enemy be assisted.” (The Constitution of Madina, http://www.islamic- study.org/jews-prophet- p.-2.htm) The Prophet’s (saas) companions remained true to that article in the treaty, even after his death, and even practiced it with regard to Berbers, Buddhists, Brahmans and people of other beliefs. Like all the other prophets, many events took place during the course of Rasulullah’s (saas) prophethood that manifested his conception of democracy. Peoples of various races, religions, languages and tribes lived together in the lands in which our Prophet (saas) lived. It was not easy for these communities to live together in peace and harmony and for those who wished to create strife to be neutralized. One group could be angered and attack another as the result of the slightest word or action. But our Prophet’s (saas) conception of justice, his just rule, represented a source of peace and security for these communities as much as for Muslims. During the Age of Felicity, everyone on the Arabian Peninsula, Christians, Jews, pagans and everyone, without distinction, was treated justly. In line with Almighty Allah’s commandment, “there is no compulsion in the religion...” our Prophet (saas) told everyone of true religious moral values but left the final decision up to them.

- PUBLISHERNajimudeeN M