Hi, I'm new here. Just wanted to post my thoughts on some issues. It saddens me to see how many muslims nowadays put far too much faith in the quran, which although *may* be god's word, is still in man's handwriting.
I've been doing some reading up on the net, and I discovered that the teachings in the quran were revealed to the prophet over a period of 23 years. The prophet then communicated these teachings to his followers, of which the more learned ones then put into writing, which is a simplification of how the quran as we know it came about.
I'm not here to dispute the prophet's teachings. However, am I right to say that there is no historical record of the prophet actually mentioning the book itself? Am I also right to assume that the prophet did not verify the written contents of the quran (as a result of either never having seen it or simply because of the fact that he is illiterate, as we muslims are so proud of claiming)? Because the teachings in the quran were revealed over such a long period, and the prophet was old and physically weak towards the end, it is entirely possible that these teachings were only put into writing after the prophet's death. Perhaps even decades after his passing.
And since the angel Gabriel passed these teachings only to the prophet, there can be no way of knowing that the entire quran is not full of mistakes and misinterpretations, in the same way that any student with even the best teacher will still make plenty of mistakes. Yes I am challenging the word of revered Islamic scholars, but only because of my faith in Islam.
However, such a debate is not productive, since we can never know the answer. The moral that I'm trying to impart is that we muslims SHOULD NOT worship the quran, because we only worship the one true God. We should not take whatever teachings in the quran as the final truth, simply because we would then by shutting our ears to any new message that God wishes to impart.
The prophet's teachings are god's invaluable lessons for a civilization long before our time. Who are we to say that God does not have a new message for the people of today? We need to move forward. We do not need to depend on quran, religious councils, imams, mosques, clerics, or scholars to tell us what Islam is about. God has the power to communicate directly to us, if only we are willing to listen! If you think that you are less worthy of god's teachings compared to religious scholars, remember that God Himself saw a poor illiterate peasant fit to pass on His teachings. Perhaps this is why there has been no other Prophet yet - because when the millions of muslims are praying, the communication is one-way, everyone speaks and nobody listens.
Also, God has different roles for all of us to play. Some of us are chosen to be doctors, some scientists, some farmers and some to be fools. We should not let anyone impose upon us his personal view of religion, because God may have a different message for him (we simply are unable to know). Remember that the next time someone (even someone of a respected position) tells you to do something in the name of God, yet deep down in your heart you believe such an act is wrong. Because that small voice inside your heart may very well be His voice.
To conclude: you need not even listen to me. Listen to Him.
I've been doing some reading up on the net, and I discovered that the teachings in the quran were revealed to the prophet over a period of 23 years. The prophet then communicated these teachings to his followers, of which the more learned ones then put into writing, which is a simplification of how the quran as we know it came about.
I'm not here to dispute the prophet's teachings. However, am I right to say that there is no historical record of the prophet actually mentioning the book itself? Am I also right to assume that the prophet did not verify the written contents of the quran (as a result of either never having seen it or simply because of the fact that he is illiterate, as we muslims are so proud of claiming)? Because the teachings in the quran were revealed over such a long period, and the prophet was old and physically weak towards the end, it is entirely possible that these teachings were only put into writing after the prophet's death. Perhaps even decades after his passing.
And since the angel Gabriel passed these teachings only to the prophet, there can be no way of knowing that the entire quran is not full of mistakes and misinterpretations, in the same way that any student with even the best teacher will still make plenty of mistakes. Yes I am challenging the word of revered Islamic scholars, but only because of my faith in Islam.
However, such a debate is not productive, since we can never know the answer. The moral that I'm trying to impart is that we muslims SHOULD NOT worship the quran, because we only worship the one true God. We should not take whatever teachings in the quran as the final truth, simply because we would then by shutting our ears to any new message that God wishes to impart.
The prophet's teachings are god's invaluable lessons for a civilization long before our time. Who are we to say that God does not have a new message for the people of today? We need to move forward. We do not need to depend on quran, religious councils, imams, mosques, clerics, or scholars to tell us what Islam is about. God has the power to communicate directly to us, if only we are willing to listen! If you think that you are less worthy of god's teachings compared to religious scholars, remember that God Himself saw a poor illiterate peasant fit to pass on His teachings. Perhaps this is why there has been no other Prophet yet - because when the millions of muslims are praying, the communication is one-way, everyone speaks and nobody listens.
Also, God has different roles for all of us to play. Some of us are chosen to be doctors, some scientists, some farmers and some to be fools. We should not let anyone impose upon us his personal view of religion, because God may have a different message for him (we simply are unable to know). Remember that the next time someone (even someone of a respected position) tells you to do something in the name of God, yet deep down in your heart you believe such an act is wrong. Because that small voice inside your heart may very well be His voice.
To conclude: you need not even listen to me. Listen to Him.
