Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Atheist too: ‘People-of-Faith’. All are BELIEVERS
Of all these ‘People-of-Faith’, who holds the keys? Can they all?
I previously wrote and published an article titled: ‘Is God Watching You?’, (I’ll put a link to that article at end of this one), and I got several interesting responses.
Here are extracts from two of them:
1: The first response I got was from Maktab Ul-Islam who mentioned his own article: ‘Why Islam?’ (I’ll also link that one at end of this article of mine).
In his ‘Why Islam?’ article, Maktab says:
“The decision to follow ANY religious faith, including Islam, is a deeply personal and complex one” … and he provided a detailed list of nine common reasons why Muslims choose to embrace Islam.
Here’s a summary (of Maktab’s common reasons for embracing Islam):
1. Spiritual Beliefs: Many people find a sense of purpose … a connection to the divine through the teachings of the Quran and the Prophet Muhammad
2. Monotheism: For those who are attracted to monotheistic beliefs, Islam provides an uncompromising monotheistic framework; a one-ness of God.
3. Guidance for Life: Islam offers a framework for living a righteous and ethical life … personal conduct, relationships, morality, and social justice.
4. Community and Belonging: Being part of a religious community can provide a sense of belonging and support.
5. Seeking Answers: Some people turn to Islam in a quest for answers to life’s fundamental questions (e.g purpose of existence, afterlife, good and evil).
6. Intellectual Appeal: Some people find the intellectual depth of Islamic philosophy, theology, and jurisprudence to be intellectually stimulating.
7. Seeking Peace and Tranquility: The emphasis on prayer, mindfulness, seeking inner peace through God, leads to a deeper sense of life’s purpose.
8. Social Justice and Ethics: Islam places a strong emphasis on social justice, compassion, and helping those in need.
9. Conversion through Personal Experience: Some people have personal experiences or encounters that lead them to embrace Islam.
I responded to Maktab by saying:
“Thank you Maktab, for this well-constructed argument for Islam. I can see why you choose to follow this religion (and I wouldn’t want you to change your mind), but as follower of Jesus myself, I do believe that your nine points (common reasons for choosing Islam) can equally be applied to Christianity … and probably to many other religions as well.
I note that the Quran does honor Jesus, and whilst I am not asking you to do the same, I would hope that you too might recognize a fellow-in-faith” … Fred
I also added: “Mahatma Gandhi … was neither a Muslim nor a Christian, yet he said”:
“Real Religion Transcends All Religions. Religion should pervade every one of our actions. Here religion does not mean sectarianism. It means a belief in ordered moral government of the universe. It is not less real because it is unseen. This religion transcends Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, etc. It does not supersede them. It harmonizes them and gives them reality”. … Mahatma Gandhi
Maktab sent a beautiful reply to my response message to him, saying:
“As a Muslim I honor Jesus, love him and look forward to his return to this earth” … Maktab Ul-Islam
Now that is magnanimity! … I love you Maktab
2: The second response I received to my ‘Is God Watching You?’ article was from Marcus aka Gregory Maidman, in which he made a request that I should read his own article: ‘Lets Talk about Atheists and other Believers’. (As with the others, I’ll put a link to that article at the end of this article of mine).
I read Marcus’ article (as I hope you will too), and it ends with a beautiful challenge to all free-thinkers … offering quite a challenge to us all. Marcus said:
“I hope any member of ANY religion who reads my story may take away that you can form your own understanding of God and possibly stay a member of your religion … only fundamentalists would care that you’ve formed your alternate view”.
and he added:
“I hope any atheist reading this will take away that there IS an alternative, PROBABLY SEVERAL ALTERNATIVES, to believing in nothing, without offending logic and critical thinking, and without implicating superstition.”
Can’t argue with that Marcus. Well-said. And for me? Well, as I am a man respectful of all faiths, and a follower of Jesus ... I seem to ‘fit the bill’ !
Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Atheist too: ALL are BELIEVERS
The promised links to the other articles mentioned:
Is God Watching You? … If You Think So, What Will You Do? … by Fred
Why Islam? … by Maktab
Lets Talk about Atheists and other Believers … by Marcus
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Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Atheist too: All are BELIEVERS written by Fred: writer on Medium ******* © Fred Ogden 2024 ******* Email: [email protected]
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