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Salvation in Islam (part 1 of 3): What is Salvation?
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Description: Achieve salvation through sincere worship.
By Aisha Stacey (© 2010 IslamReligion.com)
Published on 24 May 2010 - Last modified on 31 Oct 2010
Viewed: 7749 (daily average: 11) - Rating: 4.6 out of 5 - Rated by: 9
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Category: Articles
> Beliefs of Islam
> The Six Pillars of Faith and Other Islamic Beliefs
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._001.jpg) Islam teaches us that salvation is attainable through the worship of
God alone. A person must believe in God and follow His commandments. This is
the same message taught by all the Prophets including Moses and Jesus. There
is only One worthy of worship. One God, alone without partners, sons, or
daughters. Salvation and thus eternal happiness can be achieved by sincere
worship.
In addition to this Islam teaches us that human beings
are born without sin and are naturally inclined to worship God alone (without
any intermediaries). To retain this state of sinlessness humankind must only
follow God’s commandments and strive to live a righteous life. If one falls
into sin, all that is required is sincere repentance followed by seeking God’s
forgiveness. When a person sins he or she pushes themselves away from the
mercy of God, however sincere repentance brings a person back to God.
Salvation is a powerful word that the dictionary defines
as the act of preservation or deliverance from destruction, difficulty, or
evil. Theologically it is spiritual rescue from sin and its consequences.
More specifically, in Christianity it is associated with redemption and the
atonement of Jesus. Salvation in Islam is a very different concept. While it
does offer deliverance from the fires of hell, it also rejects some of the
basic principles of Christianity and states clearly that salvation is attained
only through submission to the most merciful, God.
“Those who remember God (always, and in prayers) standing,
sitting, and lying down on their sides, and think deeply about the creation of
the heavens and the earth, (saying), "Our Lord! You have not created
(all) this without purpose, glory to You! (Exalted are You above all that they
associate with You as partners). Give us salvation from the torment of the
Fire.” (Quran 3:191)
According to Christian doctrine, humankind is considered
wayward and sinful. The doctrine of original sin states that humankind is born
already tainted by the sin of Adam and therefore separated from God, and in
need of a redeemer. Islam on the other hand out rightly rejects the
Christian concept of original sin and the notion that humankind is born
sinful.
The idea that innocent babies or children are sinful
sounds completely absurd to a believer who knows that Islam is about original
forgiveness not original sin. Humankind, according to Islam is born in a state
of purity, without sin and naturally inclined to worship and praise God.
However, human beings are also given freewill and are thus capable of making
mistakes and committing sins; they are even capable of committing great evil.
Whenever a person commits a sin, he alone is responsible
for that sin. Every person is responsible for his or her own actions. Consequently,
no human being who has ever lived is responsible for the mistakes made by Adam
and Eve. God says in the Quran:
“And no bearer of burdens shall bear another’s burden.” (Quran
35:18)
Adam and Eve made a mistake, they repented sincerely,
and God in His infinite wisdom forgave them. Humankind is not doomed to be punished,
generation after generation. The sins of the father are not visited upon the
sons.
“Then they both ate of that tree, and so their private parts
appeared to them, and they began to stick on themselves the leaves from Paradise for their covering. Thus did Adam disobey his Lord, so he went astray. Then his
Lord chose him, and turned to him with forgiveness and gave him guidance.” (Quran
20:121-122)
Above all Islam teaches us that God is the most
forgiving, and will go on forgiving, repeatedly. Part of being human is
making mistakes. Sometimes the mistakes are made without deliberation or a bad
intention, but sometimes we knowingly and deliberately sin and do wrong to
others. Therefore as human beings, we are constantly in need of forgiveness.
The life of this world is fraught with trials and
tribulations, however God did not abandon humankind to theses tests. God
equipped humankind with an intellect and the ability to make choices and
decisions. God also gave us words of guidance. As our creator, He is well
aware of our nature and eager to guide us on the straight path that leads to
eternal bliss.
The Quran is God’s final revelation and it is applicable
for all of humankind; all people, all places, all times. Throughout the Quran
God continually asks us to turn to Him in repentance and ask for His forgiveness.
This is the road to salvation. This is our rescue from destruction.
“And whoever does evil or wrongs himself but afterwards seeks God's
forgiveness, he will find God Oft Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Quran 4:10)
“And O my people! Ask forgiveness of your Lord and then
repent to Him, He will send you (from the sky) abundant rain, and add strength
to your strength, so do not turn away as criminals, disbelievers in the Oneness
of God.” (Quran 11:52)
“Say: ‘O My slaves who have transgressed against themselves
(by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of God, indeed
God forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.’” (Quran
39:53)
Quran is not only a book of guidance, it is a book of
hope. In it God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness are obvious and thus
humankind is reminded not to give in to despair. No matter what sins a person
may have committed if he resolutely turns to God, seeking forgiveness his
salvation is assured.
Prophet Muhammad described sin as black spots covering
the heart. He said, “Indeed if a believer sins, a black spot covers his
heart. If he repents, stops the sin, and seeks forgiveness for it, his heart
becomes clean again. If he persists (instead of repenting), it increases until
it covers his heart…”
Salvation in Islam is not required because of the stain
of original sin. Salvation is required because humankind is imperfect and in
need of God’s forgiveness and love. In order to understand the concept of
salvation correctly we must understand other topics embedded in salvation.
These are, understanding the importance of tawheed, or the Oneness of
God, and knowing how to repent sincerely . We will discuss these topics in the
next two articles.
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Salvation in Islam (part 2 of 3): Worship and Obey God
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Description: Monotheism is the path to salvation in Islam.
By Aisha Stacey (© 2010 IslamReligion.com)
Published on 31 May 2010 - Last modified on 22 Jun 2010
Viewed: 5237 (daily average: 7) - Rating: 4 out of 5 - Rated by: 4
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Category: Articles
> Beliefs of Islam
> The Six Pillars of Faith and Other Islamic Beliefs
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_001.jpg) In part 1 of this series ‘Salvation in Islam’, we learnt
that salvation is attained by worshipping the One God. We
worship Him alone and we follow His commandments. We also learnt that Islam
does not recognise the concept of original sin, thus Muslims believe that all
people are born sin-free. In the following article we
will discuss the Christian concept of atonement, that is, Jesus dying for the
sins of humankind, and we will discover that this concept is totally rejected
by Islam. Salvation in Islam is through tawheed, monotheism.
Tawheed is an
Arabic word that means oneness, and when we talk about tawheed
in relation to God it means realising and affirming God’s oneness. It is the
belief that God is One, without partner or associate. There is no god worthy
of worship but Allah, and this is the foundation of Islam.
To profess such a belief along with the belief that
Muhammad is His messenger is what makes a person Muslim. To believe in tawheed
with certainty is what guarantees salvation.
“Say (O Muhammad): He is Allah (God), (the
Unique) One. Allah, the Eternal (Foundation). He begets not, nor was He
begotten; and there is none co-equal or comparable unto Him.” (Quran 112)
“Verily! I am Allah! None has the right
to be worshipped but I, so worship Me...” (Quran 20:14)
“He is the Originator of the heavens and the
earth. How can He have children when He has no wife? He created all things
and He is the All-Knower of everything. Such is Allah, your Lord! La ilaha
illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), the Creator of all
things. So worship Him (Alone), and He is the Trustee, Disposer of affairs,
Guardian, over all things. No vision can grasp Him, but His Grasp is over all
vision. He is the Most Subtle and Courteous, Well Acquainted with all things.”
(Quran 6:101-103)
Muslims worship God alone without any
intermediaries, He has no partners, associates, sons, daughters, or helpers.
Worship is directed solely to God, for He is the only One worthy of worship.
There is nothing greater than God.
The Christian belief that Jesus is the son
of God or God himself is in direct opposition to tawheed. The concept
of a Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is also
firmly rejected by Islam. The idea that Jesus atoned (or saved our souls) by
dying is a concept completely at loggerheads with Islamic belief.
“O people of the Scripture! Do not exceed the
limits in your religion, nor say of God anything but the
truth. The Messiah Jesus, son of Mary, was a Messenger of God and His Word,
which He bestowed on Mary and a spirit created by Him; so believe in God and
His Messengers. Say not, ‘Trinity!’ Cease; it is better for you! For God is
One God, far removed is He from every imperfection, Far
Exalted is He above having a son. To Him belongs all that is in the heavens
and all that is in the earth. And God is All Sufficient as a Disposer of
affairs.” (Quran 4:171)
The idea of Jesus dying on the cross is
central to the Christian belief. It represents the conviction that Jesus died
for the sins of humankind. In other words a person’s sins have been
‘paid’ for by Jesus, and one is free to do as he pleases, for in the end he
will attain salvation by belief in Jesus. This is absolutely rejected in Islam.
There is no need for God, or even a
Prophet of God to sacrifice himself for humankind’s sins in order to buy
forgiveness. Islam refuses this view entirely. The foundation of Islam rests
on knowing with certainty that nothing should be worshipped but God alone.
Forgiveness emanates from the One True God; so, when a person seeks
forgiveness, he must turn to God submissively with true remorse and ask for forgiveness,
promising not to repeat the sin. Then and only then will sins be forgiven by
God Almighty.
Islam teaches that Jesus did not come to
atone for the sins of humankind; rather, his purpose was to reaffirm the
message of the Prophets before him.
“.. None has the right to be worshipped but
God, the One and the Only True God…” (Quran 3:62)
The Islamic belief about Jesus’
crucifixion and death is clear. He did not die to atone for humankind’s sins.
There was a plot to crucify Jesus but it did not succeed; he did not die but
rather ascended into heaven. In the last days leading up to the Day of
Judgement, Jesus will return to this world and continue to spread the
belief in the Oneness of God. The Quran tells us that on the Day
of Judgement Jesus will deny ever asking the people to worship him instead of,
or along with God.
“And (remember) when God will say (on the Day of
Resurrection): ‘Jesus, son of Mary! Did you say unto men: Worship me and my
mother as two gods besides God?’ He will say, ‘Glory be to You! It was not for
me to say what I had no right (to say). Had I said such a thing, You would
surely have known it. You know what is in my inner‑self though I do
not know what is in Yours; truly, You, only You, are the All‑Knower of
all that is hidden (and unseen). Never did I say to them aught except what You
(God) did command me to say, Worship God, my Lord, and your Lord. And I was a
witness over them while I dwelt amongst them, but when You took me up (to
heaven), You were the Watcher over them; and You are a Witness to all things.”
(Quran 5:116-117)
God tells us in Quran that there is only
one unforgiveable sin, and that is if one dies having associated partners with God and did not repent from it before his death.
“Verily, God forgives not that partners should
be set up with Him in worship, but He forgives except that (anything else) to
whom He pleases, and whoever sets up partners with God in worship, he has
indeed invented a tremendous sin.” (Quran 4:48)
In his traditions Prophet Muhammad,
may God praise him, informed us that God said, “I am the
Self-sufficient, I am in no need of
having an associate. Thus he who does an action for someone else's sake as well
as Mine will have that action renounced by Me to him whom he associated with
Me”.
However, even the grave
sin of associating partners with God can be forgiven if
one truly turns to God, sincerely and with full repentance.
“And verily, I am indeed forgiving to him who
repents, believes (in My Oneness, and associates none in worship with Me) and
does righteous good deeds, and then remains constant in doing them (till his
death).” (Quran 20:82)
“Say to those who have disbelieved, if they
cease (from disbelief), their past will be forgiven.” (Quran 8:38)
Every human being can attain salvation by
worshipping One God. Staying connected to God and repenting from mistakes and
sins is the road to salvation. In the next article, we will talk about
conditions of repentance.
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Salvation in Islam (part 3 of 3): Repentance
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Description: Repentance marks the road to salvation.
By Aisha Stacey (© 2010 IslamReligion.com)
Published on 07 Jun 2010 - Last modified on 05 Jul 2010
Viewed: 5687 (daily average: 8) - Rating: 4.8 out of 5 - Rated by: 5
Printed: 228 - Emailed: 7 - Commented on: 0
Category: Articles
> Beliefs of Islam
> The Six Pillars of Faith and Other Islamic Beliefs
|
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_001.jpg) The road to salvation is through certain belief that
there is only One God and that He is Oft Forgiving and Most Merciful. Islam states unreservedly that there is no such concept as original sin
and that God does not require a blood sacrifice in order to forgive humankind
for their sins and transgressions.
“Say: "O My slaves who have transgressed
against themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the
Mercy of God, verily, God forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft Forgiving, Most
Merciful.” (Quran 39:53)
Making mistakes, falling short in our
obedience to God, forgetting, and committing sins are all part of the imperfect
nature of humankind. No human being is free from sin, no matter how good we
appear to be and every human being is in need of God’s forgiveness. Prophet
Muhammad, may God praise him, was keenly aware of this
when he spoke to his companions.
“By the One in Whose hand is my soul,
if you did not commit sin God would do away with you and bring people who would
commit sin then pray for forgiveness.”
“Every son of Adam sins and the best
of those who sin are those who repent.”
We are all vulnerable, we all commit sins,
and we all need to be forgiven. We have an innate need to feel close to God
and God in His infinite wisdom has made the path to forgiveness easy. Prophet
Muhammad himself experienced the sublime joy that came from feeling “right”
with his Lord. He said, “By God, I seek the forgiveness of God and I turn to
Him in repentance more than seventy times each day.”
God, the Creator knows humankind perfectly, He knows our
imperfections and our shortcomings, and thus He has prescribed repentance for
us and left the door to repentance open until the sun rises from the west (near
Judgement Day).
“And turn in repentance and in obedience with
true Faith to your Lord and submit to Him, before the torment comes upon you,
then you will not be helped.” (Quran 39:54)
“O you who believe! Turn to God with sincere
repentance! It may be that your Lord will expiate from you your sins, and admit
you into Gardens under which rivers flow (Paradise)…”(Quran 66:8)
“And all of you beg God to forgive you all, O
believers, that you may be successful.” (Quran 24:31)
Repentance is as easy as turning to God
and seeking His mercy and forgiveness. In the darkest hour or longest night,
God is waiting for all to ask of Him, and to repent to Him.
“God spreads out His hand at night to accept the
repentance of the one who sinned during the day, and He spreads out His hand by
day to accept the repentance of the one who sinned during the night, (and that
will continue) until the sun rises from the west. ”
There are no transgressions too small or
sins to big that God will not be merciful to the one who calls on Him. Prophet
Muhammad, may God praise him, told the story of a man
whose sins seemed to be too big for him to ever have hope of mercy, but God is
most wise and oft forgiving. Even those whose lives seem shattered beyond
compare and blackened by sin, find comfort.
“There was among the people who came
before you a man who killed ninety-nine people. Then he asked about the most
knowledgeable person on earth, and was directed to a hermit, so he went to him,
told him that he had killed ninety-nine people, and asked if he could be
forgiven. The hermit said, ‘No,’ so he killed him, thus completing one
hundred. Then he asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was
directed to a scholar. He told him that he had killed one hundred people, and
asked whether he could be forgiven. The scholar said, ‘Yes, what could
possibly come between you and repentance? Go to such-and-such a town, for in it
there are people who worship God. Go and worship with them, and do not go back
to your own town, for it is a bad place.” So the man set off, but when he was
halfway there, the angel of death came to him, and the angels of mercy and the
angels of wrath began to argue over him. The angels of mercy said: ‘He had
repented and was seeking God.’ The angels of wrath said: ‘He never did any good
thing.’ An angel in human form came to them, and they asked him to decide the
matter. He said, ‘Measure the distance between the two lands (his hometown and
the town he was headed for), and whichever of the two he is closest to is the
one to which he belongs.’ So they measured the distance, and found that he was
closer to the town for which he had been headed, so the angels of mercy took
him.”
In another version from the traditions of
Prophet Muhammad, may God praise him, it says, the man was
closer to the righteous town by a hand span, so he was counted among its
people.
Repentance is essential for a person to
lead a peaceful life. The reward of repentance is a good
life close to God and covered with contentment and peace of mind. However,
there are three conditions to repentance. They are, giving up the sin, feeling
regret forever having committed the sin and resolving never to go back to the sin.
If these three conditions are fulfilled with sincerity then God will forgive. If
the sin was to do with the rights of another person then there is a fourth
condition. That is to restore, if humanly possible, the rights taken away.
God’s mercy and forgiveness are so all encompassing that
He will go on forgiving. If a person is sincere, God will forgive him until the
moment that the death rattle reaches the throat.
The noted Islamic scholar Ibn Kathir said, “Surely, when
hope in continued living diminishes, the Angel of Death comes forth to collect
the soul. When the soul reaches the throat, and is gradually pulled out, at that
point there is no accepted repentance.”.
Genuine repentance marks the road to salvation.
Salvation is attained through sincere worship of God. There is no God but He,
the most powerful, the most merciful, the most forgiving.
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