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Margaret Marcus, Ex-Jew, USA (part 4 of 5)
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Description: Margaret continues to discuss how the Quran had impacted her life, and her views about Jews and Arab relations.
By Margaret Marcus
- Published on 16 Jan 2006 - Last modified on 15 May 2007
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Category: Articles
> Stories of New Muslims
> Women
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Although I did find the Hereafter mentioned in
the New Testament, compared with that of the Holy Quran, it is vague and
ambiguous. I found no answer to the question of death in Orthodox Judaism, for
the Talmud preaches that even the worst life is better than death. My parents’
philosophy was that one must avoid contemplating the thought of death and just
enjoy, as best one can, the pleasures life has to offer at the moment. According
to them, the purpose of life is enjoyment and pleasure achieved through
self-expression of one’s talents, the love of family, the congenial company of
friends combined with the comfortable living and indulgence in the variety of
amusements that affluent America makes available in such abundance. They
deliberately cultivated this superficial approach to life as if it were the
guarantee for their continued happiness and good-fortune. Through bitter
experience I discovered that self-indulgence leads only to misery, and that
nothing great or even worthwhile is ever accomplished without struggle through
adversity and self-sacrifice. From my earliest childhood, I have always wanted
to accomplish important and significant things. Above all else, before my
death, I wanted the assurance that I have not wasted life in sinful deeds or
worthless pursuits. All my life I have been intensely serious-minded. I have
always detested the frivolity which is the dominant characteristic of
contemporary culture. My father once disturbed me with his unsettling
conviction that there is nothing of permanent value because everything in this
modern age accept the present trends inevitable and adjust ourselves to them. I,
however, was thirsty to attain something that would endure forever. It was
from the Holy Quran where I learned that this aspiration was possible. No good
deed for the sake of seeking the pleasure of God is ever wasted or lost. Even
if the person concerned never achieves any worldly recognition, his reward is
certain in the Hereafter. Conversely, the Quran tells us that those who are
guided by no moral considerations other than expediency or social conformity,
and crave the freedom to do as they please, no matter how much worldly success
and prosperity they attain or how keenly they are able to relish the short span
of their earthly life, they will be doomed as the losers on Judgment Day. Islam
teaches us that in order to devote our exclusive attention to fulfilling our
duties to God and to our fellow-beings, we must abandon all vain and useless
activities which distract us from this end. These teachings of the Holy Quran,
made even more explicit by Hadith, were thoroughly compatible with my
temperament.
Q: What is your opinion of the Arabs after you became
a Muslim?
A: As the years passed, the realization
gradually dawned upon me that it was not the Arabs who made Islam great but
rather Islam had made the Arabs great. Were it not for the Holy Prophet
Muhammad, the Arabs would be an obscure people today. And were it not for the
Holy Quran, the Arabic language would be equally insignificant, if not extinct.
Q: Did you see any similarities between Judaism and
Islam?
A: The kinship between Judaism and Islam is even
stronger than Islam and Christianity. Both Judaism and Islam share in common
the same uncompromising monotheism, the crucial importance of strict obedience
to Divine Law as proof of our submission to and love of the Creator, the
rejection of the priesthood, celibacy and monasticism and the striking
similarity of the Hebrew and Arabic language.
In Judaism, religion is so confused with
nationalism, one can scarcely distinguish between the two. The name “Judaism”
is derived from Judah - a tribe. A Jew is a member of the tribe of Judah. Even the name of this religion connotes no universal spiritual message. A Jew is
not a Jew by virtue of his belief in the unity of God, but merely because he
happened to be born of Jewish parentage. Should he become an outspoken
atheist, he is no less “Jewish” in the eyes of his fellow Jews.
Such a thorough corruption with nationalism has
spiritually impoverished this religion in all its aspects. God is not the God
of all mankind, but the God of Israel. The scriptures are not God’s revelation
to the entire human race, but primarily a Jewish history book. David and
Solomon (peace be upon them) are not full-fledged prophets of God but merely
Jewish kings. With the single exception of Yom Kippur (the Jewish Day of
Atonement), the holidays and festivals celebrated by Jews, such as Hanukkah,
Purim and Pesach, are of far greater national than religious significance.
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| Parts of This Article |
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Margaret Marcus, Ex-Jew, USA (part 1 of 5)
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Margaret Marcus, Ex-Jew, USA (part 2 of 5)
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Margaret Marcus, Ex-Jew, USA (part 3 of 5)
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Margaret Marcus, Ex-Jew, USA (part 4 of 5) |
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Margaret Marcus, Ex-Jew, USA (part 5 of 5)
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View all parts together
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