The human traits God created in us, such as weakness, anxiety, stinginess, impatience, ingratitude, anger and arrogance, and how the Quran calls believers to overcome them through trust, charity, patience, appreciation and forgiveness. The issue also gives the Ramadan 1997 to 1998 dates, reports on the Tucson interfaith Thanksgiving service with a Hindu story likened to 18:60 to 82, and urges looking for the good in hardship.
We are human beings; we accepted the responsibility
when we came to this earth. That means that we have certain characteristics,
certain attributes placed into human beings by God. When He created us,
He created all of our human traits. We are by nature selfish, stingy,
unappreciative, impatient, arrogant, egotistical and angry.
Since God created us with these characteristics, is it then okay to display
those traits? Can we just say that God meant for us to be this way? Certainly
not. The idol worshipers say,
“Had God willed, we would not worship any idols
besides Him, nor would our parents. Nor would we prohibit anything besides
His prohibitions.” Those before them have done the same thing. (6:148,
16:35)
We know that if we commit idol worship we will have no excuse when we
face God. Thus, we cannot blame God and fall back on the excuse that it’s
God’s will that we are the way we are. We need to look in the Quran
to find out what God considers acceptable behavior.
We are created weak and anxious. But God repeatedly says that believers
have neither fear nor grief. We need to learn to trust God. As long as
we strive to be submitters God will protect us,
both in this life and the hereafter. So when
we feel afraid or anxious, whether over a test tomorrow or a life-threatening
situation, we need to turn to God and implore Him for relief and know
that He will respond.
We are selfish and stingy by nature. God places great importance on charity.
He says that He specifies His mercy for those who give the obligatory
charity. We have a natural tendency to want to hang onto what we have,
but an important thing to remember is that everything we have is a gift
from God. It’s not really ours to begin with. So we need to be generous
and helpful and considerate of others. These are traits praised by God.
Those who overcome their natural stinginess are the successful
ones. (59:9)
You cannot attain righteousness until you give to charity
from the possessions you love. Whatever you give to charity, God is fully
aware thereof. (3:92)
Page 2
Traits of Believers
Those who give to charity night and day, secretly
and publicly, receive their recompense from their Lord; they will
have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve. (2:274)
Impatience is a very common human tendency. We want everything
immediately; we don’t want to wait. But God cautions us to
develop patience. The phrase “be patient” occurs in
the Quran 19 times. Clearly it’s something we need to observe,
and that means we will have to work hard to overcome our natural
inclination.
You shall resort to patience—and your patience
is attainable only with God's help. (16:127)
How we can be unappreciative of all God has given us is a mystery.
But we are. We can never encompass all the blessings from God; we
can never be appreciative enough. But we have to try. We have to
know that everything we receive, everything we attain, everything
in the heavens and the earth is a gift from God. And God’s
generosity is so great that He tells us if we show appreciation
He will give us even more.
The more you thank Me, the more I give you. (14:7)
You shall be appreciative of God. Whoever is appreciative
is appreciative for his own good. (31:12)
Anger is an emotion that causes great
difficulty. Any time a person feels wronged, he or she feels a need
to get angry and get even. In Sura 42, God tells us how to react
when we face what we consider an injustice. We must use our judgment
depending on the circumstance, because God gives us the right to
avenge a true injustice, but clearly patience and forgiveness are
the preferred responses:
They avoid gross sins and vice, and when angered
they forgive. When gross injustice befalls them, they stand up for
their rights. Although the just requital for an injustice is an
equivalent retribution, those who pardon and maintain righteousness
are rewarded by God. He does not love the unjust. Certainly, those
who stand up for their rights, when injustice befalls them, are
not committing any error. Resorting to patience and forgiveness
reflects a true strength of character. (42:37, 39-41,43)
And God is the one who cools our temper (94:1) and prevents us
from carrying our anger to extremes. (48:24-25) God does not love
the aggressors. (2:190)
Arrogance is a trait discouraged by God. It was the cause of Satan’s
downfall and is a strong human failing.
Absolutely, God knows everything they conceal and
everything they declare. He does not love those who are arrogant.
(16:23)
We are reminded that all things come from God so we have no reason
to be proud or smug.
Those who boast about
their works, and wish to be praised for something they have not
really done, should not think that they can evade the retribution.
They have incurred a painful retribution. (3:188)
Thus, you should not grieve over anything you miss,
nor be proud of anything He has bestowed upon you. God does not
love those who are boastful, proud. (57:23)
All of these negative traits are part of the test of being human.
God has told us that He created us this way. That means that we
will experience fear and impatience and anger. God knows that. Losing
your temper or having a selfish moment is human. It’s inevitable
and understandable. But we shouldn’t be satisfied with that
behavior. We should strive to attain the characteristics that God
reveals as traits of the believers. And when we fail, we need to
repent and try harder. The more we try the more God supports us
and the closer we come to being a righteous submitter.
You should eagerly race towards forgiveness from
your Lord and a Paradise whose width encompasses the heavens and
the earth; it awaits the righteous, who give to charity during the
good times, as well as the bad times. They are suppressors of anger,
and pardoners of the people. God loves the charitable. (3:133-4)
You shall advocate righteousness and forbid evil
and remain steadfast in the face of adversity. These are the most
honorable traits. (31:17)
Lydia Kelley
Ramadan
The Month of Fasting
Dec 30, 1997 — Jan 28, 1998
O you who believe, fasting is decreed for you, as
it was decreed for those before you, that you may attain salvation.
(2:183)
Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed,
providing guidance for the people, clear teachings, and the statute
book. Those of you who witness this month shall fast therein....
(2:185)
The new moon timings to determine the month of Ramadan are as follow:
Dec 29, 1997 at 16:57 GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
Jan 28, 1998 at 06:01 GMT
Therefore, the first day of Ramadan is Dec 30, 1997, and the last
day of Ramadan is Jan 28, 1998.
Page 3
Masjid Tucson Activities
THANKSGIVING SERVICE
The annual Interfaith Thanksgiving service
was held this year at the Unitarian Universalist Church. It was
a wonderfully diverse representation with participation by Tibetan
Buddhists, Zen Buddhists, Jews, Christians, Baha’i, Sufi,
Hindu, Yaqui Indian, Mayan and Submitters. Emily Elkadi read verses
she had selected from the Quran which touched on our diversity and
similarity and our need to be appreciative of God’s blessings.
In spite of the differences of language, culture, costume and ritual,
it was amazing how familiar the basic message was. I would like
to relate the story told by the Hindu representative, Ramesh Sharma.
He first offered an ancient prayer which basically asked God to
remove from us all negative ideas and desires and to grant us the
things that are good for us, even if we don’t like them.
You may dislike something which is good for you and
you may like something which is bad for you. God knows while you
do not know. (2:216)
Mr. Sharma said that this story was a true narration from ancient
India. The prince of a community was approached by people of the
town complaining about the spiritual minister. The priest was always
saying: “This is the best that God could give you.”
Whether it was a good harvest or a death in the family, the priest
said the same thing: “This is the best from God.” The
prince told the minister that he needed to be more sympathetic,
but the priest insisted that whatever happened was for the best
and he would continue to say so. One
day the prince, his entourage and the priest went on a hunting trip
into the deep jungle. Soon the prince and the minister got separated
from the rest and became hopelessly lost. The minister said, “This
is the best thing from God.” The prince was furious with this
attitude and warned the priest not to say that again. Shortly, there
was an accident and the prince lost his little finger. Again, the
minister said, “This is the best thing from God.” The
prince screamed, “That’s it; you’re fired!”
The minister simply said, “That is the best thing from God.”
Angrily, the prince went his own way.
He became more and more lost deeper in the jungle. Suddenly he
encountered a remote tribe that was celebrating an annual ritual.
Each year at this time, they sent a party into the jungle and the
first living thing they located they brought back to their village
to sacrifice. This time the prince was the first thing they met.
They bundled him off to the village and despite his fearful protests
they cleaned him up in preparation for the sacrifice. But before
they could carry it out, their high priest examined the prince and
announced that they could not sacrifice him because he was not complete—he
was missing his little finger. Instantly, the prince understood
why his minister had said that losing his finger was the best thing
God could do.
They let the prince go and even helped him find his way home. When
he got there he went right to the priest’s
house. The priest had found his way
home days ago and was simply relaxing at home. The prince told him
what had happened and said, “Now I know why losing my finger
was a good thing from God. But why did you also say that my firing
you was the best thing from God?”
The priest answered, “If you hadn't fired me I would still
have been with you and when the villagers couldn’t use you
for the sacrifice they would have turned to me.”
All we have to do is read 18:60-82 in the Quran to find exactly
the same kind of story. We learn that there is always a good reason
for everything, even if we don’t know that reason. Nothing
happens except in accordance with God’s will. It’s an
important reminder for us.
The Thanksgiving service is a chance for people from many different
religious backgrounds to come together in appreciation of God’s
many blessings and to offer thanks for those blessings. As Submitters,
we need to remember to take opportunities every day, as often as
we can, to thank God and strive to be more appreciative.
If you count God's blessings you cannot possibly
encompass them. God is Forgiver, Most Merciful. (16:18)
...You shall be appreciative of God. Whoever is appreciative
is appreciative for his own good. As for those who turn unappreciative,
God is no need, Praiseworthy. (31:12)
The Arabic word of Submission is Islam. Scriptural Islam, Submission,
is not a religion of terrorism or compulsion or bigotry. It is a religion
of submission to God alone, and therefore, a religion of great tolerance
and compassion. Islam strongly supports the civil rights of all people,
whatever gender, race or creed.
During the past fourteen centuries, traditions, customs, and myths have
crept into the religion of Islam (Submission). Gradually, they have become
dogma or ritual, to such an extent that anyone who questions them in the
light of the Quran finds himself or herself regarded as a dangerous innovator
and heretic.
Islam (Submission) today is like a precious jewel that is buried under
piles upon piles of man-made innovations. Our aim is to purge these innovations
by upholding the Scripture and nothing but the Scripture alone, and present
the jewel of true Submission to the world.
Keep up with history in the making. Subscribe to the Submitters Perspective
now. Send your comments and contributions to ICS/Masjid Tucson, PO Box
43476, Tucson, AZ 85733.
Life is full of surprises. Some are good and
some are bad. But the one thing that is certain is that God is in charge
of everything. For example, say you lost your job and you are wondering
how could this happen to you? Well, what you may not have thought of is
that God may have done that because there is something better in store
for you.
When you ask something from God and you say, God willing (inshallah),
it doesn’t mean that you are necessarily going to get it. You will
only get it if God sends His blessings along with it so that it is a good
thing for you to have.
Looking for the good in the bad is hard because the first thing that
always comes up in one’s mind is all the negatives. We never realize
until much later that the bad led to good. Let’s take another example.
Let’s say you’re thinking about buying a car but then you
say what if I won’t have the money to pay for it later? There again
you must put your trust in God for He will always provide for you and
you should never worry about it.
Of course, you have to make sure that you are doing your part of the
equation—you have to put the effort in working to make money and
God will make sure you are paid by keeping you healthy and able to work.
So, remember to always look for the good
in something instead of the bad and remember
also that God is in charge of everything.
Fatimah Gorin
[ Ed.’s note: This article has been reprinted
from “The Elite,” a newsletter for the youth and young at
heart. If you’d like to subscribe to The Elite, you can contact
them at
4 Baldwin Court,
San Rafael, CA 94901]
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Who Are We?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ICS, the International Community of Submitters, is a group of like minded
individuals who have come together to worship God, and only God. We follow
the religion of Adam, Noah and Abraham. It was the religion of Moses and
Jesus and Muhammad. It was the religion of all of the prophets and messengers.
All of them were Submitters to God, and God alone.
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