Hi GlorytoGod,

Islam really dont have that many rules from other religions and ways of life really; it may seem that way to some, but here are basically the rules that we follow:

We pray five times a day; wash each time before we pray if we dont have the previous wash intact that is.

One month in a year, we fast for the whole month from dawn to sunset; during the fasting we refrain from food and drink and sexual intercourse.

Only those who have reached a level of moderate wealth or more are to give two and a half percent of their wealth in charity once a year to the poor; this obligatory charity is not an obligation on the poor people.

And whoever can make their way there, i.e, whoever can financially afford it and have the physical ability, have to perform the pilgrimage rites in makkah only once in a lifetime

The other obligatory 'rule' is that we have to believe and profess that there is no God except Allah and Muhammad [saw] in Allah's Messenger, but this is more of a belief then any rule that we have to practically carry out.

I think it is the above five obligations of Islam that differentiates a Muslim from a non-Muslim, but amongst them five, people of other religions will also have the 'believing in the creed' obligation and they will be stressed to give in charity too [the obligation of giving in charity can be understood if we look at it from the perspective that charity is desperately needed for the poor to maintain a livelihood], so rule wise, in comparison to other religions, there's really only three which we have that other religions may not stress and these are the five daily prayers, pilgrimage to Makkah and fasting for a whole month in a year, but these three rules are verry benifical and fair to be obligations on us, given that the pilgrimage one comes with a fair condition, and we keep ourselves spiritually nourished and safe from sins and give our due to God by performing the five daily prayers and fasting for one month in a year; after all Allah is to give us a great prize in return for our efforts, which is the eternal garden of paradise and surely that should take some effort on our part to earn?.

Also, in these rules [and all rules in Islam] lies a verry good wisdom in them that nourishes our souls spiritually and gets us even closer to God and instills sincere devotion to Gods will in our hearts, for when a person obeys God on Gods terms, that is sincerely obeying God and making true sacrifice for Him, but when He worships God as he feels like it or as he desires, then there is an element of personal desire in that and it lacks the nature of true sacrifice.


Regarding every other rule in Islam, they will be things which every other major religions will have too, such as unclean or harmfull food and drink will be prohibbited for us and we should live good ethical and moral lives, keeping away from sin, criminality and vice, and maintain good buisness, social ethics and conduct.

If the situation and climate is right, then Shariah Law is enjoined on us too, but every religion and no-religions have to abide by a law; even Christianity says to abide by the law of the land and the only difference in Islam is that, rather then God leave it up to the whims, biases, subjectivity etc, etc, of the people to make up their own laws, God has revealed the type of laws for us that should be implemented as the law of the land [and some He has left to us, but these 'some' have to follow ethical, moral and just guidleines too] and if we consider how contradictory and problematic man-made laws could be, then it is easily understandable of how God would want to reveal the perfect law rather then leave this verry important aspect of our lives to the desires of whoever finds themselves in power.

When I was a Christian, I could of said the same thing.

+ I find that Christianity provides conditions of peace and comfort for me.
+ Christianity teaches me valuable moral values that guide my life.
+ Christianity attached so much importance to education and seeking knowledge.
+ In Christianity, people are equal, no matter your race or social status.

__________________
"I fully comprehended the power of the human mind at the exact moment I came to the realization that I'm totally insane and have no idea what I'm talking about."

All the false religions have prophets, holy books, and they are all based on faith. The true religion Islam has the same things. So, why did Allah choose to make Islam appear like a false religion? In other words, why doesn't Allah do a better job than the false gods at spreading his message to the ends of the Earth and do something like make everyone born with the Qur'an in their minds?

I found this verse.

Quran-18:86: Until, when he reached the setting of the Sun, he found it set in a spring of murky water; near it he found a people; We said "O Zul-qarnain ! Thou hast authority either to punish them, or to treat them with kindness."

Where is this spring of murky water that the Sun sets in? I would love to see it!

__________________
"I fully comprehended the power of the human mind at the exact moment I came to the realization that I'm totally insane and have no idea what I'm talking about."

Verry good question schizo to which there is a verry good answer to which I'm not likely to fulfill but here's my try anyway:

The religion of God was allways sent to the people via prophets and revelations which were the 'holy books'; if one thinks about it, then they should see that this is the most comon sense and likely way for God to send His Message and guidance to the people, thus as Gods religion has these and allways had these neccassary aspects to it, thus the Abrahimic dispensations that went astray [Christians and Jews] did so by distorting their holy books [the text or interpretation of it] and this is why they continue to have the concept of 'Prophets' and 'holy books' in their religions; other man-made religions use such concepts as the idea of it has been around from the begining of mans life on earth and as that is a common sense way for God to communicate His message to the people; it is on us to use our intellect to discern the true religion from the man made one's; with sincerity and supplication to God, that shouldn't be too hard to do, God willing

For everyone to be born with the Quran in their minds will make the 'test' far too easy; infact there will be no meaning to this life being a test anymore for an essential part of it is to recognise Allah from His clear signs via our intellect and His guidance via the same methodolgy; it is said that when one of the major signs of the last Day appears [the sun rising from the West], then no-one's declaration of faith or penitence will be accepted no more...and I think this may be because, then it will be far too obvious and an essential part of the test will be diminished, rendering it over; the fitrah [the innate nature of man inclined towards recognising Allah and Truth] is enough for the good people to be rightly guided.


This verse has been discussed and explained in the following link:

The Sun Setting In Muddy Waters

peace

So, If Allah made it obvious that he exists and clearly tells us all his will then it would make the test to easy? Allah doesn't want it to be easy for us to pass his test, so he chose to fail our test of a god by writing a book like a man? This makes no sense to me. The point of sending a message is to communicate and everyone tries to communicate the best they can to make sure their message is clearly understood. Allah choose a very ineffective human method of sending his message to all four corners of the Earth. I am typing this message to you instead of telling you this telepathically because I'm incapable of doing so. If I had the ability to telepathically talk to you I wouldn't be typing this. Allah does have the ability to talk to everyone telepathically but instead he chose to communicate with us by a book at a time when books were the best method people had to spread a message. Why doesn't he do better than Man? He is doing such a bad job at communicating with us that we are not even sure if he is the one that sent the message.

Ok, so Allah meant that it appeared that the Sun goes into mud. Just like the Qur'an only appears to be made up by men?

__________________
"I fully comprehended the power of the human mind at the exact moment I came to the realization that I'm totally insane and have no idea what I'm talking about."

Except there is no Arabic word here in this verse that says it 'appeared' so. The words clearly say that he saw it set in a a dark and murky pool of water. The only way one could think it appeared so and didnt actually happen is if one assumes that the text is metaphorical not literal. Let me explain it this way, if science had discovered that the sun actually did set in a dark and murky pool of water then these guys would correctly be arguing that the exact same words/ text in the Quran confirmed that Allah knew where the sun sets, before it was known.

__________________
UU:
I am a Unitarian Universalist.

J2a1*:
I belong to the J2a1* tribe (haplogroup subclade). The descendants of this tribe form the largest group in the general Jewish population, Samaritan population of Israel and the Bene Israel of India. They are also found among Kurds and other northern populations of the Fertile Crescent, as well as among the coastal populations in Europe along the mediterranean.

I agree. What I don't understand is if they have faith why do they have to interpret the Quran based on science? If I was a believer I would say that the Sun does set in a pool of water and that science is wrong.

__________________
"I fully comprehended the power of the human mind at the exact moment I came to the realization that I'm totally insane and have no idea what I'm talking about."

I agree. Either that or admit that the Quran is allegorical and not a scientific text.

__________________
UU:
I am a Unitarian Universalist.

J2a1*:
I belong to the J2a1* tribe (haplogroup subclade). The descendants of this tribe form the largest group in the general Jewish population, Samaritan population of Israel and the Bene Israel of India. They are also found among Kurds and other northern populations of the Fertile Crescent, as well as among the coastal populations in Europe along the mediterranean.

Schizo, according to the radical orthodoxy in Islam, I would probably be considered a heretic, so I do not know if you want me to answer your question. I am a Unitarian like most Jews and Muslims, regard Muhammad as the last prophet and the Quran as scripture of God. However, keep in mind that many Muslims in the Islamic world are like me, considered heretics by the orthodoxy. Main reasons for why I believe in Islam:

1. My family considers itself a patrilineal descendant of Caliph Ali and the prophet's daughter Fatimah thru their son Hussain. Ali was a patrilineal cousin and foster brother of the prophet- the prophet being an orphan and brought up by Ali's father -the prophet's uncle. We have a family tree that goes back to these people. My family legend claims we migrated to a certain region of the Islamic world and have lived in that town for over 800 years now, and were responsible for introducing Islam to the local population. The Islamic rulers, Kings and Sultans etc have granted us titles, lands during this time. My grandmother's family considers itself the descendant of Caliph Abu Bakr. So I think it is natural for me to have a cultural affiliation with this religion rather than Judaism and Christianity etc.


2. My spiritual understanding of Islam has to do with where the Bible says a man such as Muhammad would come when he came and did what the Bible says he was suppose to do with an accuracy that I believe only God or time travelers could have known and described to the prophets of the Bible. This might be wishful thinking on my part, but this is my reading of history and the Bible and i have satisfied myself. I do not expect others to believe it, because I maybe deluded. i.e. schizo. & retarded My faith allows me to believe I will have a place where I can be reunited with my ancestors and children after I die. Most Muslim do believe that Muhammad was promised in the Bible, but do not bother to figure out exactly where.

__________________
UU:
I am a Unitarian Universalist.

J2a1*:
I belong to the J2a1* tribe (haplogroup subclade). The descendants of this tribe form the largest group in the general Jewish population, Samaritan population of Israel and the Bene Israel of India. They are also found among Kurds and other northern populations of the Fertile Crescent, as well as among the coastal populations in Europe along the mediterranean.

I don't mind you being a heretic. So, I don't mind you answering my questions.

I understand that you have a cultural affiliation with Islam because of your ancestry, upbringing, and that it has influenced your beliefs. What if your ancestors were Buddhists? Would you still be a Muslim?

I don't know which prophesies you speak of but I'm willing to bet my soul that if you listed all the prophesies and their fulfillments you will find that the prophesies are more vague than their fulfillments. For me to believe a prophesy it must have no vagueness at all. I should be able to read the prophesy and have a clear understanding of what will happen in the future. I highly doubt your religion or any religion has true prophesy because if they did everyone would believe it because it would be obvious that it came from God. I try to be open minded, so if you like, you can share these prophesies and I'll tell you what I think.

__________________
"I fully comprehended the power of the human mind at the exact moment I came to the realization that I'm totally insane and have no idea what I'm talking about."