1977-March-11

Bilalian News

The Mercy of Allah

Imam W. D. Muhammad

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2. These are Verses
Of the Wilt Book,—

3. A Guide and a Mercy 
To the Doers of Good,—

Holy Quran translation by Yusuf Ali: Sura XXI: Verse 2 & 3
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106. Verily in this (Quran) 
Is a Message for people 
Who would (truly) worship God.

107. We sent thee not, but
At a Mercy for all creatures.

Holy Quran Translation by Yusuf Ali; Sura XXI: Verses 106 &  107
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In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful; Peace and Blessings upon His Servant and His Messenger, Muhammad, forever, Amen.

There is no god but Allah; Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.

As -Salaam –Alaikum

My Dear Brothers and Sisters:
Everyday all during the day we should remember to express thanks and to praise Allah for His great blessing of truth to us in the form of the Holy Quran. It is a gift that is called by many names. The name that I choose to mention at this particular time is "mercy" because the Holy Quran is a mercy to man. The Quran itself also calls Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah forever be upon him) a
"mercy" to man.


A Truth For All Times

When we look at the lives we led before coming into the knowledge of Islam and then give some thought to the blessings that have come into our lives since we have embraced Islam, we cannot help but thank and praise Allah for Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah forever be upon him). He was a man who gave his whole heart, his whole mind, and his whole self to Almighty God Allah. In so doing, he was rewarded with the blessings of revelation because of his faith, his sincerity his uprightness, and his trustworthiness. In the Holy Quran be is referred to as a most honorable and most noble person, and his character is referred to as the mightiest and the best.

Muslims follow the completed revelation; that is, we follow the truth that was revealed to all prophets. All prophets are our prophets if they are legitimate prophets, but we have Prophet Muhammad as our ever-present prophet. This does not mean that he is present among us in flesh, but we say that his truth is "ever present" because it is not a truth for yesterday or a truth for today or a truth that predicts of another truth to come. The truth of Prophet Muhammad, which is the Holy Quran, is a truth for all times. That is why he is present with us at all times. In his mission we see the real meaning of the mission of the prophets that came before him.


Though The Polytheists Be Adverse

We should always remember to thank Allah for sending His great revelations to us generation after generation, prophet after prophet, and then completing this great truth in the mission of Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah forever be upon him). Muslims who know these things always remember to say in their prayers, "Oh, Allah, shower your choicest blessings upon Prophet Muhammad, to whom the Quran was revealed, and fulfill the promise that you gave him." That promise is that the truth of the Holy Quran shall prevail over all the falsehoods of the world, though the enemies (the idolatrists and the polytheists) may be adverse. Though they may hate it, Allah has promised us that the truth of the Holy Quran shall become the dominant truth in the world. This is the promise that Allah made to Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah forever be upon him). And I for one will not rest until I have done everything in my power to make his truth seen, heard and recognized in the world.


One Message
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150. Those who deny God
And His apostles, and (those
Who) wish to separate
God from His apostles,
Saying :  " We believe in some
But reject others " :
And (those who) wish
To take a course midway.—

151. They are in truth
(Equally) Unbelievers; 
And We have prepared 
For Unbelievers a humiliating Punishment.

152. To those who believe 
In God and His apostles 
And make no distinction 
Between any of the apostles, 
We shall soon give 
Their (due) rewards: 
For God is Oft-forgiving. 
Most Merciful.

Holy Quran translation by Yusuf Ali Sura IV: Verses 150-152
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Brothers and Sisters, we live in a good time, not a bad time. This is a favorable time because it is a time when people of various religions are dissatisfied with their past lives and they are looking for new lives. So this is the time for us to show the world that Jesus, Moses, Abraham, Prophet Muhammad and all the blessed messengers and prophets of God belong to one family or to one brotherhood. We, the Muslims, are the people who have embraced this newest message from Almighty God called "the Quran" from one of the believers in Allah's truth by the name of Prophet Muhammad. He is the one who has unified the family of prophets and has brought about agreement and harmony in their message. He has shown us beyond a shadow of a doubt that their message was one message. That message was Islam.

If we can convey this truth to others, we will bring people who think they are strangers to realize that we who say that there is one God and who accept revealed scripture are indeed one family of people whether we go by the same name or not. Whether we call ourselves Jews, Muslims, or Christians, or other names, we all belong to one family if we believe in one God and if we accept the revealed scriptures that came to prophets of God. We believe in God and we believe in revelation. We believe that men purified themselves to the degree that they were worthy to receive God's truth and God's revelation. People who believe these things share a common relationship and a common closeness. It is no need for us to be working against each other when there are so many evil doers (real devils) in the world who are going in the name of religion, in the name of atheism, or in the name of something else.


Walk With Open Eyes

All of the evil doers fit into one common lot. We, too, should recognize that we also have one common lot and we should work together as much as possible to save our lot from the evils of the sneaking, scheming, whispering Satan. Satan has the ability to put on colors just like you put on clothes. He can put on the "colors" of ideologies and philosophies just like you put on clothes; he can put on the "colors" of racial identities just like you put on clothes; and he can put on the "colors" of religious or spiritual identities just like you put on clothes. When we realize this truth, we walk with our eyes open and we work with our eyes open. We can accomplish something worthwhile for Allah, for Prophet Muhammad's divine mission, and for the truly blessed community of Muslims in the world today.


Make Peace
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10. The Believers are but
A single Brotherhood:
So make peace and
Reconciliation between your
Two (contending) brothers;
And fear God, that ye
May receive Mercy.

Holy Quran translation by Yusuf Ali: Sura XLIX: Verse 10
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The above verse says that surely believers are but a single brotherhood. As brothers, we cannot have family divisions, class distinctions, inferiority and superiority complexes, or divided interests among us. We must have single mindedness for Allah's sake and for the sake of fulfilling the mission of Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah forever be upon him). The same verse also says that the believers should make peace. We are to make peace by righteous deeds; by honest, open, and sincere efforts; and by plain, upright efforts. This is the way we make peace. If you want to correct confusion and hatred among yourselves, you can bring the community into peace again by using the power that each of us have. That power is the power to do good among your brothers and sisters and to fear God with a consciousness of His great gifts, of His great favors, and of His great blessings to you. You must also be conscious of the duty and the responsibility that you have to God. We have to act decently; that is, we have to respond in a decent way to God Who has given us so much. When you remember to respond in a decent and an honorable way, we say that you are a person who fears God.


Fear of God

If you tremble in your heart fearing a physical destruction or a physical punishment, yet you go on committing sins and evils without a conscience in your life, we do not say that you are a person who has the "fear of God." In Islam, the fear of God is a conscious and constant recognition of God's presence. The Muslim is ever mindful that God is with him at all times and he is never hidden from God. This is the proper fear. The Muslim is constantly aware that God is rewarding him by giving him gifts at all times. God never stops giving of His gifts. The Muslim knows that he must show thanks to God. In doing this, he is worthy to be called one of the God fearing. If a person does not have the right feelings in his heart or if it is not really his nature, he is not worthy to be called "God-fearing" no matter how much praise he shouts in the name of Jesus or in the name of Moses or in the name of Muhammad or in the name of some other prophet. If he is not showing in his conscious acts in his life that he has a fear of God and that be has recognition of God's presence in his life at all times, he cannot truly be called a God-fearing person no matter how many praises he shouts to God. He is a deceived person. We should fear Allah that we may receive his mercy.


The Greatest Among You
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13. O mankind ! We created 
You from a single (pair) 
Of a male and a female, 
And made you into 
Nations and tribes, that 
Ye may know each other 
(Not that ye may despise 
(Each other). Verily 
The most honoured of you 
In the sight of God 
Is (he who it) the most 
Righteous of you. 
And God has full knowledge 
And is well acquainted 
(With all things).

Holy Quran Translation by Yusuf Ali: Sura XLIX Verse 13
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When we look at someone whom we think is "the greatest," it may be because he is born of the flesh of a great man or of a great woman. It may be because be has come into great wealth, because he has great knowledge, or because he shows a great amount of piety or holiness. But the above verse in the Holy Quran gives us the real test of greatness. It says that the greatest among you is be who is the most righteous. It is the one who is most conscious of the presence of God in his obedience to fulfill what God asks of him. The biggest one or the greatest one among us can be anyone of us. God is the One Who justly sets the criteria (the rule for weighing). If it were left to man to set the criteria for measuring greatness, I am sure that his rules would really interfere with nature. But nature has a mysterious way of bringing men to the top who are worthy. As the Book (Bible) says, "The Lord acts in mysterious ways..." God has given us the true and clear guidance that enables us to distinguish who is worthy of us giving them the highest respect among us. Remember, "Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted with all things."

Thank you for honoring us with your time to read these few words.
Your brother, 
W.D. Muhammad
