5. Believes in the last day of Judgment, acknowledging that this world will end someday, and that the dead will rise to stand for their final and fair trial. People with good records will be generously rewarded and warmly welcomed to the heaven of Allah, and those with bad records will be punished and cast into Hell. 6. Believes in Fate, whether good or bad, which Allah, measured and ordained for all creatures according to his previous knowledge, and as deemed suitable by his wisdom. And in the timeless knowledge of Allah, and in His power to plan and execute His plans, nothing could happen in His Kingdom against His will. His knowledge and power which are always in action command over His creation. He is wise and merciful, and whatever he does must have a meaningful purpose. If this is established in our minds and hearts, we should accept with good faith all that He does, although we may fail to understand it fully, or think it is bad. Faith without action and practice is a dead end as far as Islam is concerned, for faith by nature is very sensitive and can be most influential. When it is out of practice or out of use, it quickly loses its liveliness and motivational power. THERE ARE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM (THE ACTION) 1. Shahada (Testimony): To bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah (The Creator), and that Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him) is His messenger, with the Prophethood of Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him) essentially professed to oblige the Muslims to follow his exemplary life as a model. 2. Salah (Prayer): Daily prayers are offered five times a day as a duty towards Allah. They strengthen and enliven the belief in Allah and inspire man to a higher morality. They purify the heart and prevent temptation towards wrong-doings and evil things. They are: - Fajr (The Dawn prayer) - Duhr (The noon prayer) - Asr (The afternoon prayer) - Maghrib (The sunset prayer) - Isha (The evening prayer). 3. Zakah (Charity): The literal and simple meaning of Zakah is purity, while its technical meaning designates the annual amount in kind or cash that a Muslim with means must distribute among the rightful beneficiaries from his yearly net savings at 2.5%. But the religious and spiritual significance of Zakah is much deeper and more valuable than its Humanitarian, and socio-political value. 4. Sawm (Fasting): The Muslims during the month of Ramadan do not only abstain from food, drink and sexual intercourse from dawn to sunset but they are also required to abstain from evil intentions and desires throughout the whole months of the year in general, and during the month of Ramadan in particular. It teaches love, sincerity, and devotion, and develops a sound social conscience, patience, selflessness, and will power as well. 5. Hajj (Pilgrimage to Makkah): It is to be performed once in a lifetime, so long as one can afford it financially and physically, and it is the largest annual convention of faith where Muslims meet to know one another, study their common affairs and promote their general welfare without prejudice or bias as to one’s color, race, nationality as well as status in life. After all, everyone is equal in the face of Allah, and so hajj therefore demonstrates in effect the universality of Islam and the brotherhood and equality of Muslims. The Stranger... A few months before I was born, my dad met a stranger who was new to our small town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer, and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me into the world a few months later. As I grew up I never questioned his place in our family. In my young mind, each member had a special niche. My brother, Bilal, five years my senior, was my example. Fatimah, my younger sister, gave me an opportunity to play ‘big brother’ and develop the art of teasing. My parents were complementary instructors- Mom taught me to love the word of Allah, and Dad taught me to obey it. But the stranger was our storyteller. He could weave the most fascinating tales. Adventures, mysteries, and comedies were daily conversations. He could hold our whole family spell-bound for hours each evening. If I wanted to know about politics, history, or science, he knew it. He knew about the past, understood the present, and seemingly could predict the future. The pictures he could draw were so life like that I would often laugh or cry as I watched. He was like a friend to the whole family. He took Dad, Bilal and me to our first major league baseball game. He was always encouraging us to see the movies and he even made arrangements to introduce us to several movie stars. The stranger was an incessant talker. Dad didn’t seem to mind - but sometimes Mom would quietly get up - while the rest of us were enthralled with one of his stories of faraway places - go to her room, read her Quran and pray. I wonder now if she ever prayed that the stranger would leave. You see, my dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions. But this stranger never felt obligation to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our house - not from us, from our friends, or adults. Our longtime visitor, however, used occasional four letter words that turned my ears and made Dad squirm. To my knowledge the stranger was never confronted. My dad was a teetotaler who didn’t permit alcohol in his home - as good Muslims should. But the stranger felt like we needed exposure and enlightened us to other ways of life. He offered us, cigarettes, beer, and other alcoholic beverages often. He talked freely (probably much too freely) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing. I know now that the stranger influenced my early concepts of the man-woman relationship. As I look back, I believe it was the grace of Allah that the stranger did not influence us more. Time after time he opposed the values of my parents. Yet he was seldom rebuked and never asked to leave. More than thirty years have passed since the stranger moved in with the young family on Wangee Road. He is not nearly so intriguing to my Dad as he was in those early years. But if I were to walk into my parents’ den today, you would still see him sitting over in a corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures... His name you ask? We called him TV.
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