format_quote Originally Posted by georgiabruce
Thank you so much brother!
Your post really sparked some hope for me. My next concerns are studying Islam.
Where do I begin?
I can't respond back in PMs because i am a limited member so here is my answer.
Sister, the most important beliefs in Islam are these
- Belief in Allah, The Only God (this is Tawheed)
- Belief in the Angels
- Belief in Holy Books (Taurat (the book of Jews), Gospel/Injeel (which christians know as Bible) and Holy Quran) - We do believe in these books that they were from Allah but they become altered and modified by humans because Allah didn't promise to protect them and they were for a certain period of time/an era until the Last Messenger Mohammad (peace be upon him) came. Holy Quran is a revelation from Allah and Allah has promised its protection since its message is for eternity so it can never be altered and will serve as the last book of guidance.
- Belief in the Prophets (this includes Prophet Adam (peace be upon him), Noah, Moses and all the other prophets mentioned in Holy Quran (peace be upon them all) and Prophet Jesus (Peace be upon him), we consider him to be a Prophet and a man. And Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) as the last Messenger.
- Belief in the Day of Judgement (Afterlife, hell and heaven)
- Belief in God's predestination (Fate)
The five pillars of Islam are
Shahada: Faith
Salat : Prayer ( teaching how to do it is beyond the scope of this reply. You should learn this and pray as soon as you are able)
Zakat : Charity (if you're not rich and you're young too so it doesn't apply to you yet)
Swam : Fasting (in month of ramadan which was in June, won't be until next year)
Hajj : Pilgramage to Mecca (if you can afford it, doesn't concern you now )
These are easy enough and i believe you already believe in some of them. The next step that you need and is a guarantee from Allah that you will never be misguided if you do that is reading the Holy Quran with understanding. Allah says in Holy Quran (interpretation of meaning)
And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided. And remember the favor of Allah upon you - when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you became, by His favor, brothers. And you were on the edge of a pit of the Fire, and He saved you from it. Thus does Allah make clear to you His verses that you may be guided.
-Surah Al-Imran - Verse 103
Reciting in Arabic is best and even if you don't understand it, you are still rewarded good deeds just for reciting it. But you can read it in a language you understand, it will never have the same effect if you read its translation or interpretation though because it's done by human. When you read it in Arabic even if you don't understand it, you can feel an effect - i don't know how to describe it - because it's the word of our Lord Allah.
I don't know if you can recite in arabic so it might be challenging so you can begin with reading it in your language while you try to learn arabic reading. But when you do read the translation, make sure you read the Tafsir which gives historical background and context of why and when a particular verse was revealed upon Mohammad (PBUH). Every Ayat (verse) in Holy Quran has so much context and deeper meaning that you can not understand it and can become confused. I recommend this site quran.com - you can choose translations in your language, tafsir etc. if you can not grab a local copy of Holy Quran.
My post is getting lengthy so i will end with the most important message that you should remember. Islam is an easy religion so at any point, things become difficult or you can not do something just remember this. Resort to your Imaan(belief) i.e belief in Allah and Last Messenger Prophet (PBUH) and ask for Allah's forgiveness and help with sincerity. And He will forgive your sins, i am not saying this, it would be a big claim from me and i dare not say anything about Islam from my own opinions but Allah says in Holy Quran about His Mercy and Forgiveness!. InshaAllah, He has guided you this far, the rest of the journey is easier.
It would have been easier to explain this in real life so if you can find some Muslim, that will be best but if you can't, i'll try my best to explain.
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M.I.A. Brother, be kind to her. She is a new muslim and as she explained her situation, she must be going through a difficult time so we must help her. At age 16, i was a confused teen, SubhanAllah, she is seeking truth and is so smart at a young age than i have been, i can't imagine how difficult her situation must be - to be a new muslim at such a young age. So convey the message of Allah in a way that He has guided us to.