Ask Me Anything: Muslim Edition

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It was never addressed in the Koran or the hadiths, and anything that isn’t expressly encouraged or forbidden is thought to be a matter for rational jurisprudence and individual conscience. The only thing about contraception that is explicitly wrong is choosing to have surgical interference for contraceptive reasons since it interferes with the normal working of the body. For the same reason, a lot of Muslims won’t take contraceptive pills as contraception because it interferes with natural hormonal regulation, although it’s permissible to take them for other medical reasons.

This is the verse that most people point to in regards to what the proper attitude towards contraceptive should be:
Say, “Come, I will recite what your Lord has prohibited to you. [He commands] that you not associate anything with Him, and to parents, good treatment, and do not kill your children out of poverty; We will provide for you and them. And do not approach immoralities - what is apparent of them and what is concealed. And do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden [to be killed] except by [legal] right. This has He instructed you that you may use reason.” Surah Al-An’am 6:151
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So, we’re supposed to trust God and not choose not to have children out of fear, but at the same time we can choose to be judicial in family planning.
 
Oh yes, the practice of immoral, evil behavior with the perceived backing of religious authority, what could be more convenient?
 
The month of Ramadhan [is that] in which was revealed the Qur’an, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it; and whoever is ill or on a journey - then an equal number of other days. Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship and [wants] for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that [to] which He has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful. - Al-Baqarah 2:185
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Ramadan commemorates the month when the Koran was revealed. It’s supposed to be a period of growing closer to God. You can look at it a little bit like Lent. We fast from sun up to sun down as a means of reminding us to focus our attention on God. The hunger of your body is supposed to remind you of the hunger you should have for God and for virtuous behavior. But it’s also a period of celebration, because it commemorates a time when Allah drew near to us through the revelation of the scriptures to the Prophet (peace be upon him). It’s a way of putting your money where your mouth is, in terms of doing something challenging. Also, Ramadan family meals after sunset are fun and we usually fix our favorite foods to make having to go without during the day easier, so it’s not all fasting and being holy.
 
No question, but I just wanted to add my voice to those thanking you for creating this thread. I’ve learned a lot already.
 
First let me say welcome… I, like you believe in building bridges’ I don’t have any questions, I just want others to see that we are all brothers and sisters. We should pray forand look after one another, no matter what our religion.
 
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One thing I have been wondering about for awhile is whether monetary debt is a sin in Islam. I have seen some Muslims claim that it is (and that dying with debt can keep someone out of Jannah), while I have seen other Muslims claim that it is not a sin at all. Which of these is true?
 
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Sufism is really interesting, actually. A lot of Islamic thought has focused on rational law, and Sufism has focused more in the experiential, mystical heart of Islamic belief. I find it hard to understand a lot of Sufi teachings, but I’ve tried whirling meditating and found it really helpful. It’s really a shame how Sufis are treated in some parts of the Middle East and how some people are unwilling to make a distinction between worship and veneration where the Sufi saints are concerned. I’ve never met a Sufi that wasn’t friendly and peaceful.
 
So what reasoning is used to allow contraception or coitus interruptus? Catholic use of reason has shown it to be immoral as it conflicts with natural law. Why do most imams (I realize Islam doesn’t have one unified position or a single authority, so this is probably not true of all imams) agree with its usage, then?
 
Debt is not explicitly a sin in Islam, although it is said to encourage sin because in the course of debt a person may feel compelled to lie or make promises they cannot keep. It’s thought that a person may not enter Paradise until their debts are repaid, but Islamic law tries very hard to make sure that rarely happens. People are not encouraged to take debts unless it’s out of sincere necessity, and Muslims pay zakat for the poor in part to try and make sure that people have their basic needs met without needing to resort to debt. Muslims are also prohibited from committing usury in money lending in order to prevent unethical lending behavior. Usury is a definite and serious sin as opposed to simply being in debt. Muslim lenders are advised to make any arrangements that will allow a debtor to pay off their debt and to forgive debts whenever possible. Debts that persist after death must be settled by the person’s estate for inheritance can be dispersed. Ideally, no one should die with debt, because there are so many rules in place to prevent that from happening.
 
No standard reasoning exists, because it’s entirely an individual decision. It doesn’t conflict with Islamic law, so we’re allowed to use our best judgement as to whether what we’re doing is in line with the will of Allah in our own situation. For most people, it’s a matter of what they’re hoping to avoid or gain by doing so. So, for instance a young couple may choose to wait to have a child until they’re properly set up, or they may choose to have one child and then wait awhile to have others, or they may choose to just see what happens. The only thing improper or against what we view as the will of God is to make a decision out of fear or selfishness.
 
shazirah said:
As-salamu alaykum! I have a feeling this is going to be like drinking from a firehose, but Inshallah we’ll all learn something from the experience. 🙂 I like to build bridges whenever I can and I think talking to a real live member of a group that seems scary to some people is a good way to do that.
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Thank you and welcome to the Forum. Appreciate your contribution here.

May involve in the thread, maybe later.
 
The Catholic viewpoint is not so different from what you write. Deciding not to have a child for a while is fine - what is not fine in catholic thinking are certain actions to give effect to that decision.
 
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I put your question to my grandfather as a scholar to see what he had to say on the subject. The Christian concept of natural law as self-evident natural morality, i.e. everyone just sort of knowing that something is right, differs from the Islamic concept of natural law. The closest corollary is Istislah, which is a way of deciding the right thing to do in situations where there is no clear divinely instituted law through the scripture. In Sunni jurisprudence, one conducts Istislah by considering the five “goods”, which are religion, life, reason, offspring, and property. If a course of action contradicts religious practice or results in religious coercion, endangers human life, is contrary to objective reason, endangers the family unit, or results in the destruction or misuse of property, then it’s not a good idea. So, in regards to natural methods of contraception, one could argue through istislah that there is no religious prescription against it, if engaged in properly it does not endanger human life, there are certain sound reasons for conducting it, and it does not endanger property. The only concern then is whether your specific course of action benefits the stability and continuity of your family. In cases where people choose never to have children, clearly that violates the good of the family. However, delaying or spacing children or choosing not to have more children due to the mother’s health can be beneficial to the family.

So, that how at least one imam reasons it.
 
Islam accepts the Old Testament Prophets and Jesus as a Prophet. What books are Muslims allowed to read from the Bible? Is there an accepted listing of Old testament books that you are allowed to read? What writings about Jesus are you allowed to Read?
 
Wa alaikum as salam warahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.

Welcome Ya ukhti! What brings you to a predominantly Catholic forum? 🙂 Alhamdulilah. Either way I hope you stick around inshallah. ❤️
 
Technically, uneducated Muslims are prohibited or at least heavily discouraged from reading the Torah or the Bible because while Muslims believe that the Torah, the Gospel, and the Psalms were all given from Allah, the current state of them within Christianity and Judaism is believed to be corrupted. So, since the Koran is considered a pure version of the revelation of Allah and since it would be difficult for many Muslims without proper religious education to parse out what is corruption and what is truth in the Torah and the Gospels, it’s better for them not to read those books. Some schools of thoughts hold that it’s permissible to read them in the course of learning history or learning about what other people believe, just not a Islamic truth.
 
Thank you! 😃 I’m doing some research, as my brother wants to convert and I realized that I only know a cursory bit about Catholicism. I want to understand what it is he believes and learning a new thing doesn’t hurt. So, I’ll probably be around for a little while.
 
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