Per Allah’s commands in His Qur’an, we should not follow sects.

• Behold, the only [true] religion in the sight of God is [man’s] self-surrender unto Him; and those who were vouchsafed revelation aforetime took, out of mutual jealousy, to divergent views [on this point] only after knowledge [thereof] had come unto them. But as for him who denies the truth of God’s messages – behold, God is swift in reckoning!
  – al-Imran 3:19
  
• And hold firmly to the rope of Allah and do not be divided. Remember Allah’s favour upon you when you were enemies, then He united your hearts, so you—by His grace—became brothers. And you were at the brink of a fiery pit and He saved you from it. This is how Allah makes His revelations clear to you, so that you may be ˹rightly˺ guided.
  – al-Imran 3:103
  
• And be not like those who have drawn apart from one another and have taken to conflicting views after all evidence of the truth has come unto them: for these it is for whom tremendous suffering is in store
  – al-Imran 3:105
  
• VERILY, as for those who have broken the unity of their faith and have become sects – thou hast nothing to do with them. Behold, their case rests with God: and in time He will make them understand what they were doing.
  – al-An`am 6:159
  
• [For, thou art the bearer of a divine writ] such as We have bestowed from on high upon those who afterwards] broke it up into parts,
  – al-Hijr 15:90
  
• [or] among those who have broken the unity of their faith and have become sects, each group delighting in but what they themselves hold [by way of tenets].
  – ar-Rum 30:32
  
• In matters of faith, He has ordained for you that which He had enjoined upon Noah – and into which We gave thee [O Muhammad] insight through revelation as well as that which We had enjoined upon Abraham, and Moses, and Jesus: Steadfastly uphold the [true] faith, and do not break up your unity therein. [And even though] that [unity of faith] to which thou callest them appears oppressive to those who are wont to ascribe to other beings or forces a share in His divinity, God draws unto Himself everyone who is willing, and guides unto Himself everyone who turns unto Him.
  – ash_Shura 42:13
  
• And [as for the followers of earlier revelation,] they broke up their unity, out of mutual jealousy, only after they had come to know [the truth]. And had it not been for a decree that had already gone forth from thy Sustainer, [postponing all decision] until a term set [by Him], all would indeed have been decided between them [from the outset]. As it is, behold, they who have inherited their divine writ from those who preceded them are [now] in grave doubt, amounting to suspicion, about what it portends.
  – ash-Shura 42:14
  

According to these Qur’anic verses, our Creator commands believers to maintain religious unity and avoid breaking into competing sects or denominations. The verses above emphasize that the true religion is simply submitting to our Creator’s will, and that throughout history—from the time of Noah through Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad—He has consistently called people to one unified faith.

The Qur’an warns that religious divisions arise not from ignorance, but from jealousy and ego even after people have received clear knowledge of the truth. Believers are instructed to “hold firmly to the rope of Allah and do not be divided,” remembering how He united them when they were once enemies.

The Qur’an makes clear that those who create religious sects and delight in their particular interpretations, rather than seeking unity in essential faith, will answer to their Creator for fragmenting what was meant to be whole.

The repeated message is that sectarianism contradicts the fundamental Islamic principle of submitting together to one God.

(we are continuing to recover articles from the pre-WordPress site; this is one.)

Please join IslamAwakened in congratulating Dr. Aisha Musa on her new website

Arabic & Islamic Studies

Researcher. Writer. Thinker. Teacher

https://www.draymusa.com

(we are continuing to recover articles from the pre-WordPress site; this is one.)

Let me give you the general picture: I am white, ‘middle class’, and well past a half-century in age.

I went through all the typical white-middle-class nonsense.  I worked for the big corporation.  I climbed up the ranks.  I started as a computer operator, went through the promotions.  Systems tech.  Programmer.  Systems programmer.  Manager over a tech support department.  And so on.

House in the fancy suburb, bought my wife a Volvo, all that kind of thing.

Eventually I went out freelance, independent computer work.  Owned my own company.

Hit my 40’s, got divorced, chased women, drank a lot, chased more women, did drugs, did more drugs.

Did the wrong drug. Found myself spending much more effort trying to do cocaine than trying to do the work my Creator gave me the talent for.

Found myself eventually in jail, of course.

But our Creator is merciful.  He had His plan.

That jail, a state jail, was more than a county lock-up, but less than the stereotypical “Hollywood ” prison.  No riots, no tear gas, no beatings

(well… I did see two incidents, but let’s not digress).

But the company in jail is not the most righteous, even for a junior criminal like me.  I certainly don’t recommend it as a vacation spot for anyone… for one thing the help is really rude. 😉

Anyway, I had noticed that there was one group in there that DIDN’T seem to be out to prove themselves tougher, who weren’t busy trying to run one scheme or another, who seemed to be *unshackled* by the dark environment we were in.

That group, you might guess, was the black Muslims. And even that, I later learned, was an assumption on my part. Some of the brothers were Black Muslims (Nation of Islam) I would later learn, but most were Muslims associated with Mosques that (generally) joined W. Dean Mohammad when he led the bulk of the old N.O.I. away from Louis Farrakhan and his bunch and back to orthodox Islam.

This was good, and one of the signs of Allah’s planning.  Because one day one of my black cellmates was in the same visiting area with his family when I was visited by my wife.

My wife at that time was an African American.  And word of this got back to the rest of the inmates in my area.  Naturally some of the bigoted whites thereafter treated me with disdain; no loss as they were not the sort I associated with.  But on the other side of the race line my own aloof attitude had (unknown to me) been interpreted as prejudice by some of my non-white cellmates.

Suddenly it was seen that that wasn’t my stance.

Getting to the point, this all led to my being invited to an Islamic learning session. (Here in the U.S. prisons have to accommodate the faiths of the inmates, within limits) 

A chance to get out of the block for a couple of hours?  (And some curiousity?) 

I went.
And then one of the brothers with a good voice called the adzan.

It was like nothing I can explain. The Southern Baptists talk about being ‘born again’… Brothers, sisters: is that the right word!

I cried like a baby.  There in the middle of a room full of felons. Tears streaming down my face.

Not one of them ever mentioned that to me. To the best of my knowledge it was never mentioned outside of that room (and stories like that spread faster than fire in there).

I had $110,000 in a retirement account when all of this started.

When I got out of jail I had $4,000 left in the bank, and a felony conviction.

I had lost $106,000 but I had gained Islam. I would pay twice that without blinking.

I do not need anyone else’s affirmation of my Islam, I have received that from the ONE who matters!

By the way, for anyone who wants to verify, the legal facts I related above are a matter of public record in the State of Texas. The events all happened in the year 2000.

Oh, that $4,000? Just as it was running out, I ran into an old boss (who knew my troubles) in Wal-mart.  He hired me two days later.

Alhamdulallah once again!

This account is not for my own fame or aggrandizement but for the sake of Allah. If any good comes out of this story all the credit is due Him; only the mistakes are my own.
Note: ANYONE who has a similar struggle, please visit Millati Islami for support.

G. Waleed Kavalec

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“O my Lord! bestow wisdom on me,
and join me with the righteous;” 
 — Quran, al-Shuara 26:83

There is a video interview of the above story here: 
  https://www.facebook.com/meriikahaani/videos/t.618860864/1226351340725126/ 
In my opinion br. Rehan Allahwala has taken it a bit “over the top” but that is his way.
My life has changed since that video, my beard is smaller, my Islam remains, as Allah wills.

You may also want to visit our FaceBook page here
 https://www.facebook.com/IslamAwakened/

Moral transgression costs a heavy price—indeed, an exceedingly heavy one. Yet this price is not rendered in material currency, but rather in the coin of psychological anguish, emotional turmoil, and spiritual desolation. Our Creator did not establish arbitrary DOs and DON’Ts merely to test human compliance. Rather, He revealed fundamental principles for righteous living. His disapproval of falsehood, theft, betrayal, covetousness, murder, envy, sexual transgression, and arrogance stems from the reality that such behaviors corrupt both the individual who commits them and the social fabric surrounding them—ultimately destroying one’s own moral integrity and relationships with others.

Consider how these transgressions unfold in everyday life:

• A single lie requires ten more lies to maintain it, creating a web of deception that traps the liar in constant anxiety.
  
• Theft breeds suspicion and fear throughout communities, making neighbors distrust one another.
  
• Envy corrodes the heart from within, robbing us of gratitude for our own blessings while fixating on what others possess.

Each transgression creates expanding circles of harm, like stones thrown into still water.

Every act that the Qur’an identifies as transgression represents something from which our Creator seeks to shield us. His ultimate purpose is to guide humanity toward love, tranquility, divine grace, and harmony—both in our relationship with Him and within the entirety of His creation. Moral transgression constitutes our willful rejection of this divine guidance, pursued in service of our own ephemeral and misguided desires.

The wisdom embedded in divine guidance resembles that of a skilled physician who warns against behaviors that damage health. What might appear restrictive is actually protective—boundaries designed not to limit our joy, but to preserve our well-being and guide us toward authentic fulfillment. When we transgress these boundaries, we often discover too late that we have wounded ourselves more deeply than anyone else.

: A Qur’anic Exploration of Oneness, Creation, and the Journey of the Soul

Tawḥīd is the foundation of all truth—the absolute certainty that Allah alone is the Creator of all things, the Sustainer of the heavens and the earth, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting, without partner, likeness, or rival. All creation belongs to Him, and to Him alone all existence shall ultimately return.

Allah is not confined by space, time, or causality. He is neither form nor matter, neither male nor female. He is Al-Ḥayy (the Ever-Living), Al-Qayyūm (the Self-Sustaining), the Absolute, the Necessary Being (al-Wājib al-Wujūd), beyond imagination and comparison. As the Qur’an declares:
“There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” (Q 42:11)

The cosmos is not God, nor a fragment of Him. Rather, it is His creation and a collection of signs (āyāt) pointing toward Him. The human being contains signs that reflect the wider cosmos, the one begins to glimpse the knowledge of one’s Lord.

Al-Ghazālī reminds us that the heart, when polished by dhikr, reflects Divine light like a mirror reflects the sun.[1]

Life and what we call death are not adversaries; they are phases of a Divine decree. Everything in creation flows within this order, not by its own will, but by the command of Allah alone: “Allah is the Creator of all things, and He is, over all things, Disposer of affairs.” (Q 39:62) Nothing possesses independent existence. No star shines, no atom vibrates, no cell divides except by Allah’s decree.

The dualities that human intellect perceives—light and darkness, expansion and contraction, attraction and repulsion—are not rival powers. They are created patterns reflecting Divine Wisdom and order expressed in time and space. Ibn Taymiyyah emphasized that no force acts independently: all causes and effects are bound to Allah’s continuous will and power.[2]

Modern science often speaks in the language of duality—wave versus particle, energy versus mass, positive versus negative. These are useful descriptions but not ultimate truths. Electricity and magnetism are not eternal parents birthing one another; they are both created, both sustained, both governed. To ascribe power to these forces as if they act by themselves is to mistake the sign for the Sign-Giver: “They have taken gods besides Allah who create nothing, while they themselves are created.” (Q 22:73)

Gravity does not pull—Allah commands. The sun does not shine by itself—Allah sustains its flame. Nothing collides randomly—every flutter of an atom is under His decree.

Death is not annihilation, but transition: “Every soul will taste death. Then to Us you will be returned.” (Q 29:57) Modern physics notes that energy is not destroyed but transformed; revelation elevates this truth further—the soul does not vanish, it endures by Allah’s will. The body dissolves into dust, but the soul—breathed into man from Allah’s command—returns to its Origin: “They ask you about the soul. Say: The soul is of the command of my Lord.” (Q 17:85)

Man is not a body possessing a soul, but a soul entrusted with a body. The soul was created before worldly birth, bore witness to the primordial covenant—“Am I not your Lord? They said, Yes, indeed” (Q 7:172)—and will persist after death until it is returned to its Creator. Ibn Kathīr explains that this verse establishes the testimony of every human soul before its earthly existence, affirming Allah’s Lordship upon them.[3]

Time itself is a creation. Allah is not in time; time is in Allah’s creation. The past, present, and future exist simultaneously in His knowledge: “With Him are the keys of the unseen… Not a leaf falls but He knows it.” (Q 6:59)

The universe operates by a law of balance—al-Mīzān: “And We have set up the balance so that you may not transgress the measure.” (Q 55:7–8) From galaxies to atoms, from the orbit of stars to the symmetry of a flower, balance reflects Divine precision. Sacred geometry and natural harmonies—the Golden Ratio, Fibonacci spirals, fractals—are not self-emerging laws but signs of Al-Khāliq, the Creator: “Indeed, We have created everything in due proportion and measure.” (Q 54:49)

The human soul carries within it the fitrah—the primordial disposition toward truth. The Qur’an affirms: “Truly, it is not the eyes that are blind, but the hearts in the chests.” (Q 22:46) Knowledge is not merely acquired from outside but awakened from within. Intuition, conscience, and the inner light are all traces of this Divine signs within. Al-Ghazālī describes true knowledge as the unveiling (kashf) of this light when the heart is purified from heedlessness Such unveiling does not replace revelation. [4]

This life is not a meaningless accident. You are not a random assembly of molecules. You are a soul, sent into a body, tasked with worship and awakening, destined to return. “Every day He is in [yet another] glorious task.” (Q 55:29)

All creation glorifies Allah in ways unseen: “The seven heavens and the earth and whatever is in them glorify Him; and there is nothing that does not glorify Him with praise, but you do not understand their glorification.” (Q 17:44) Classical commentators like al-Rāzī explain that this tasbīḥ is real, each creation in its own mode, though hidden from human perception.[5] What science perceives as vibration or resonance is, in truth, a created mode of remembrance. This does not mean atoms have consciousness like humans, but that Allah has commanded every particle with a glorification befitting it.

The journey of the soul is to pierce the veils of multiplicity and behold Allah’s Oneness—to see that all opposites are signs of His wisdom, to awaken to the Light behind the forms: “We will show them Our signs in the horizons and within themselves until it becomes clear to them that it is the Truth.” (Q 41:53)

Notes & References
[1] Al-Ghazālī, Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn, Book 21.
[2] Ibn Taymiyyah, Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā, vol. 8.
[3] Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿAẓīm, commentary on Q 7:172.
[4] Al-Ghazālī, al-Munqidh min al-Ḍalāl.
[5] Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī, Tafsīr al-Kabīr, commentary on Q 17:44.

Human consciousness cannot be reduced to the activity of matter alone, nor can the human being be dismissed as nothing more than a temporary arrangement of cells destined to vanish into nothingness at death. The Islamic worldview, rooted in Tawḥīd — the absolute Oneness of Allah — provides a more coherent, rational, and comprehensive understanding of human existence, consciousness, and destiny. Science, no doubt, is a powerful tool for uncovering the mechanisms of the physical world, but its success in describing material processes does not justify the metaphysical leap into materialism, the belief that reality is exhausted by matter. This leap is an assumption, not a conclusion of evidence. To take materialism as the ultimate truth is to confuse the method of studying signs with the reality those signs point toward, mistaking the map for the territory.

Even at the heart of modern neuroscience, the problem of consciousness remains unsolved. Science can trace correlations between brain activity and mental states, but correlation is not causation, and it cannot explain why subjective awareness — the “what it is like” to be — accompanies those physical processes. This gap is not an illusion but a profound limitation of materialist accounts. The Qur’an itself affirms this mystery when it says: “They ask you about the Spirit. Say: The Spirit is from the command of my Lord, and you have been given of knowledge only a little” (17:85). The reality of the rūḥ, the soul breathed into man by Allah, provides a metaphysical foundation that science alone cannot supply. Consciousness, identity, and free will are intelligible only when understood as gifts rooted in the Divine command, not reducible to neurons firing blindly in a purposeless cosmos.

The persistence of the self across the radical changes of the body is also a sign. Our cells, our very matter, are constantly replaced, yet the “I” remains. This enduring identity is not explained by shifting atoms but by the continuity of the soul, which carries moral responsibility and agency. Without the soul, notions of accountability, freedom of choice, and justice collapse into the determinism of physics. But Allah declares: “That every soul may be recompensed for what it earned, and they will not be wronged” (45:22). The Qur’an grounds human dignity in this accountability, which presupposes more than material processes: it presupposes a soul.

Moreover, the very existence of meaning, information, values, and morality defies reduction to brute matter. Syntax can be described materially, but semantics, intentionality, and value require transcendence. Within Tawḥīd, this is no mystery: meaning is grounded in the Divine Word, and human beings are created with fiṭrah, an innate orientation toward truth, morality, and worship. “So set your face to the religion as a ḥanīf — the fiṭrah of Allah upon which He created mankind” (30:30). This explains why humanity across cultures universally seeks purpose, values, and ultimate truth.

The distinction between contingency and necessity provides further clarity. The cosmos itself is contingent; it could have not existed. Its laws, its matter, and its conscious beings are dependent realities. To posit an eternal, impersonal material substrate as the explanation is to relocate, not solve, the problem. Islam resolves this by grounding existence in al-Wājib al-Wujūd, the Necessary Being, Allah — self-subsistent, absolute, and eternal. Within this metaphysical system, the soul is not magical fantasy but a created and purposeful reality, intelligible as part of the Divine design and destined to return to its Creator. “Indeed we belong to Allah, and to Him we shall return” (2:156).

Even empirical observations point to dimensions beyond reductionist materialism. Reports of near-death experiences, cases of cognition seemingly independent of normal brain function, and the striking universality of moral intuitions across humanity all serve as reminders that human reality is more profound than chemistry and biology. The Qur’an directs us to these signs: “We will show them Our signs in the horizons and within themselves until it becomes clear to them that it is the Truth” (41:53). Denial of these realities is not intellectual humility, but a premature closure of inquiry.

The accusation that belief in the soul is mere wishful thinking ignores the fact that materialism itself is a metaphysical stance equally requiring justification. To claim “there is no soul, only matter” is not neutral science but philosophy. Both claims must be defended, and the Islamic position, far from being grounded in fear of death, is based on the recognition of order, purpose, meaning, and responsibility woven into existence. The Qur’an diagnoses the true reason for denial: “Rather, they deny the Hereafter” (30:16).

Thus, the truly humble scholar admits the limits of human knowledge and does not dismiss centuries of reflection by prophets, sages, and philosophers as mere denial of mortality. Allah reminds us: “Of knowledge, you have been given but little” (17:85). Arrogance before this mystery is the mark not of reason but of pride. The Qur’an consistently condemns this attitude, as with Iblīs who refused to acknowledge a truth greater than his pride.

Rejecting the soul because one dislikes the idea of accountability or fears death is not philosophy but psychology. Accepting the soul, by contrast, is to acknowledge the reality of consciousness, identity, freedom, meaning, and contingency, all of which demand more than matter for their explanation. It is to recognize that man is not merely dust, but dust into which Allah breathed His spirit, ennobling him and making him responsible. In the light of Tawḥīd, the soul is not superstition but the very center of what makes us human, a sign of the Divine, and the bearer of our eternal destiny.

: A Qur’anic Exploration of the Highest Form of Consciousness

In contemporary spiritual discussions, especially those influenced by psychology and Eastern traditions, the concept of “being present in the Now” or Mindfulness is often described as the secret of power. It is argued that when the mind ceases its wandering—away from regrets of the past and anxieties of the future—and rests fully in the present moment, one touches peace, focus, and even a form of awakening.

This idea has undeniable benefits for mental health and well-being. Yet from the perspective of the Qur’an and Islamic spirituality, we must ask: Is the ultimate secret of power truly just presence in the Now? Or is it something greater—the awareness of God, the Infinite Being who created both time and the moment?

The Qur’an consistently points us to a reality far beyond mere “mindfulness.” It calls us to Taqwa—God-consciousness—an awareness that not only encompasses the present moment but transcends it by connecting us to the Eternal.

1. The Appeal and Limits of Mindfulness

The practice of Mindfulness as taught in modern psychology and spirituality emphasizes anchoring attention in the present—through breathing, sensations, or the immediate environment. The benefit is clear: when attention is freed from the endless cycle of past and future thoughts, the mind feels clarity and calm.

But this state remains fundamentally self-referential. The individual becomes aware of their inner processes, their breath, their body, their immediate sensations—but not necessarily of anything beyond themselves. It produces tranquility, but this tranquility is fragile. It depends on the discipline of practice and can vanish as soon as external stress intrudes.

In other words, mindfulness treats the symptoms of distraction, but does not address the metaphysical hunger of the soul.

2. The Qur’anic Perspective: Presence with God

The Qur’an invites us to a form of presence infinitely greater: the awareness of God (Allah), the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of all existence.

“And He is with you wherever you are.”
(Qur’an 57:4)

This verse presents a paradigm-shift. The human being is never merely “in the moment”; the human being is always already in the presence of God. What is required is not simply mindfulness, but God-consciousness (Taqwa)—the act of remembering, sensing, and responding to that Divine Presence.

The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ captured this reality in one of the most profound hadiths of all spirituality:

“That you worship Allah as though you see Him, and if you cannot see Him, then indeed He sees you.”
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim)

This is not just presence in the Now; it is presence with the Eternal. It is not simply about silencing thoughts but about orienting thought, feeling, and action toward the Infinite.

3. Why Awareness of God is the Strongest Presence

The Qur’an presents Taqwa as the key to strength, liberation, and clarity in life:

“And whoever is mindful of Allah, He will make for him a way out, and will provide for him from where he does not expect.”
(Qur’an 65:2–3)

Here, the fruit of God-consciousness is not merely inner peace, but concrete transformation: escape from difficulty, provision beyond calculation, and alignment with Divine Wisdom.

Mindfulness may calm the mind, but only God-consciousness reshapes destiny.

This is because:

• Mindfulness connects you to your breath.
• God-consciousness connects you to the One who grants you breath.
• Mindfulness frees you from mental chatter.
• God-consciousness frees you from illusion itself, anchoring you in truth.

4. Fitrah: The Human Nature That Seeks the Infinite

Human beings are created with an innate nature—the Fitrah—that yearns for the Absolute. This is why presence without God always feels incomplete. A person may experience calm in mindfulness, but an existential restlessness lingers, because the soul was not created to be satisfied with the self; it was created to be satisfied with the Creator.

“So set your face towards the religion, inclining to truth. [Adhere to] the fitrah of Allah upon which He has created people.”
(Qur’an 30:30)

When a human being awakens to God-consciousness, they see the world with new eyes: every moment is no longer empty time, but a mirror of Divine Reality. The “Now” becomes a sacred sign. This is the true presence.

5. The Language of Modern Spirituality vs. Qur’anic Reality

Secular or non-theistic spirituality often speaks of:

• Transcendence of Thought
• Consciousness Beyond Thought
• Enlightenment

These concepts attempt to describe states where the human mind transcends its ordinary limits. But they often stop short of pointing to the Source of existence itself. They remain descriptive of psychological states, not metaphysical realities.

By contrast, the Qur’an speaks of Taqwa (mindfulness of God), Ihsan (excellence through awareness of His presence), Khushu‘ (humble attentiveness to Him). These are not mere psychological conditions; they are existential orientations toward the Infinite. They do not just transcend thought—they transcend creation by connecting directly to the Creator.

“Indeed, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest.”
(Qur’an 13:28)

This is the Qur’anic definition of true “enlightenment.”

6. The Real Secret of the Now

Thus we arrive at the decisive comparison:

• Presence in the Now may grant momentary clarity.
• Presence with God grants eternal clarity.
• Mindfulness offers self-mastery.
• Taqwa offers alignment with Divine mastery.
• Mindfulness ends in the self.
• God-consciousness opens into the Infinite.

The Now is powerful not because it is the Now, but because it is the arena in which God reveals Himself to you.

As the Qur’an reminds us:

“We will show them Our signs in the horizons and within themselves until it becomes clear to them that it is the Truth.”
(Qur’an 41:53)

Conclusion

Mindfulness teaches us to “be present in the moment.” But the Qur’an calls us to something greater: be present with Allah in the moment.

This is not only the highest form of consciousness but the essence of human existence. To live with Taqwa is to transform the fleeting Now into a doorway to eternity.

Modern spirituality calls this Consciousness Beyond Thought or Enlightenment. The Qur’an names it more beautifully: Taqwa, Ihsan, and Dhikr Allah—God-consciousness, excellence through His presence, and remembrance of Him.

And this is not just the secret of psychological strength. It is the secret of existence itself.

The concept of “abrogation” (naskh) is arguably one of the biggest obstacles to a fully peaceful and coherent understanding of the Qur’an.

▲ In short, here’s why this is a major obstacle:

It allows for selective quoting: extremist groups or hard-line preachers often say, “Don’t quote the peaceful verses; they’ve been abrogated.” That opens the door to a one-sided, militant theology.

▲ How the concept of abrogation enables extremist violence:

The concept of abrogation (naskh) is itself a highly debated issue among scholars. There is no unified consensus. While some claim fewer than ten verses are abrogated, others raise the number to over 500. Shockingly, some assert that verse 9:5 alone abrogates more than 100 peaceful Meccan verses. Even more troubling is the claim by certain scholars that Hadith can override or abrogate Qur’anic verses—a view that fundamentally challenges the Qur’an’s authority.

▲ What typically are the verses that they abrogate?

ISIS and similar extremist ideologues often declare that the following verses have been abrogated:

• 2:256 – “…There is no compulsion in religion…”
• 2:190—”Fight in the way of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress. Indeed, Allah does not like transgressors.”
• 22:39 – “Permission [to fight] has been given to those who are being oppressed…”
• 60:8 – “Allah does not forbid you from being kind and just to those who have not fought you…”

They claim that all these verses have been overridden by verses like;

• 9:5 – “When the sacred months are over, fight the idolaters wherever you find them, lie in ambush for them, arrest and besiege them. However, if they repent, perform the prayer, and pay Zakat, then let them go. Allah is Most Forgiving and Kind.”
• 9:29 – “Fight those who believe not in God and in the Last Day, and who do not forbid what God and His Messenger have forbidden, and who follow not the Religion of Truth among those who were given the Book, till they pay the jizyah with a willing hand, being humbled.”

But here’s the riddle. If you think that verses 2:256, 2:190, 22:39, and 60:8 are not abrogated, you would believe that in verses 9:5 and 9:29 god instructs us only to fight back in self-defense. However, if you feel that verses 2:256, 2:190, 22:39, and 60:8 are nullified, then verses 9:5 and 9:29 give the message of aggressive wars—Muslims are commanded to fight for colonial expansion and mass conversion.

So, the doctrine of abrogation (naskh) has become a theological weapon. Groups like ISIS have employed this concept to invalidate core Qur’anic principles of justice, peace, and restraint, thereby legitimizing horrific crimes under the guise of “religion.”

One must know that this interpretation is not rooted in the Qur’an itself, which consistently emphasizes justice, mercy, and ethical warfare. Nowhere does the Qur’an say that verse 9:5 cancels earlier peaceful commands—it’s context-specific, relating to specific hostile groups who broke treaties and attacked the Muslims first.

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▲ The Real-World Consequences

Because of this concept of abrogation, ISIS has been able to justify atrocities like:

• Aggressive warfare
• Forced conversions and extermination campaigns, i.e., atrocities against the Yazidis and Christians
• Kidnapping and systematic rape of Yazidi women, branding them “spoils of war”

Claiming sexual slavery is religiously sanctioned by referring to a twisted reading of verses involving “what your right hands possess” (ma malakat aymanukum)

A 12-year-old Yazidi girl recounted how her ISIS captor would pray before and after raping her, claiming it was allowed by “religious texts.”

ISIS fighters told survivors that enslaving non-Muslim women and using them sexually was “permissible in Islam” because the peaceful verses had been abrogated.

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▲ Abrogation as a theological shortcut to brutality

This shows how the weaponization of abrogation enables a theology where mercy is erased, justice is distorted, and violence becomes a virtue.

As long as extremists can declare peaceful Qur’anic teachings as “abrogated,” any act of barbarity can be passed off as religiously justified.

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▲ A call for ethical reclamation

If Muslims want to counter extremist narratives, a critical re-evaluation of abrogation is necessary:

The Qur’an presents itself as coherent and free of contradiction (4:82).

• So, ethical verses cannot be cancelled by the so-called aggressive ones
• Verses 2:106 and 16:101 require careful reexamination and consideration

You can read my response in this regard by clicking the link below:

Rezaul Haque’s answer to Can you explain the concept of abrogated and abrogating verses in the Quran?

We hear a great deal today about a “war,” “conflict,” or “clash” between Islam and Christianity. The topic is so prominent in the media that many people assume that there is something irreconcilable between these two approaches to God. It is not surprising, then, that so many Christians of good will have concluded that Islam and Christianity are fundamentally incompatible. Yet, if, by “Christianity,” we mean “that which Jesus Christ (pbuh) meant to convey to his hearers,” I believe that these people of good will are mistaken when they tell us that Islam is incompatible with Christianity.

What’s more, I believe we can now prove that the historically oldest Gospel verses reflecting the reported sayings of Jesus (pbuh) are entirely compatible with Islam.

A WAVE OF CONVERSIONS

If you are a Christian, the idea that Jesus (pbuh) practiced the same faith that today’s news broadcasts hold responsible for so many of the world’s problems may seem far-fetched to you. It seemed far-fetched to me when I first encountered it, before I consulted the Gospels closely. Yet you should know that many, many contemporary Christians have reached life-changing personal conclusions about the Gospel message and its relation to Islam.

“There is compelling anecdotal evidence of a surge in conversions to Islam since September 11, not just in Britain, but across Europe and America. One Dutch Islamic centre claims a tenfold increase, while the New Muslims Project, based in Leicester and run by a former Irish Roman Catholic housewife, reports a steady stream of new converts.”  (London Times, January 7, 2002.)

MAINSTREAM MEDIA IGNORES US

The Western news media only rarely shares the stories of these individual converts to Islam with the world at large, but I strongly suspect that most of these people — if they are like me — found themselves, at the end of the day, concerned about the consequences of calling Jesus (pbuh) “Lord” without obeying his instructions … found themselves far more concerned about that, in fact, than about any media coverage of geopolitical issues.

This kind of concern causes people to change their lives.

THE CHALLENGE OF Q

Speaking personally, I changed my own life because I could not ignore the implications of the authentic, stand-alone Gospel passages that today’s most accomplished (non-Muslim!) scholars believe to be of the earliest date available.

These sayings, which form a reconstructed text known as Q, can all be found in the New Testament. They are almost certainly the closest we will ever be able to come to an authentic oral tradition reflecting the actual sayings of Jesus (pbuh).

Q CONFIRMS ISLAM

If you are new to Q, you should know what the best New Testament scholars now know, namely that today’s scholarship identifies certain Gospel passages as not only instructive, but historically more relevant than other passages. This scholarship has led to some fascinating discussions among scholars (and a comparatively few lay readers).

I believe the Q verses tend to confirm Islam’s depiction of Jesus (pbuh) as a human Prophet with a Divine mandate essentially indistinguishable from that of Muhammad (pbuh).

A HUMAN PROPHET

I did not develop the theory of Q. It has been around for years. “Traditionalist” Christian clergy and theologians are generally hostile to it. They claim that students of Q are somehow eager to diminish the status of Jesus (pbuh). Actually, we are eager to learn what  he is most likely to have actually said.

Q represents a major challenge for contemporary Christianity, not least because it strongly suggests that Islam’s picture of Jesus (pbuh) is historically correct. The fact that Q essentially confirms Islam’s image of Jesus (pbuh) as a distinctly human Prophet has not, I think, been widely noticed by today’s Christians. And it must be. Because a careful review of the scriptures demonstrates that Jesus (pbuh) is in fact calling his people to Islam.

JESUS (PBUH) BROUGHT ME TO ISLAM!

I came to Islam, alhamdulillah, after three decades of restless dissatisfaction with conventionial Christianity. Although I’ve read a lot of conversion stories since I embraced Islam in March of 2003, I haven’t found many that cited the Gospels as a point of entry to the Holy Qur’an. This is how it was for me.

I was drawn to the Gospels at a young age — eleven — and I read them compulsively on my own, despite the fact that I did not live in a Christian household. I soon learned to keep religious matters to myself. 
 
EARLY QUESTIONS

For most of my adolescence I studied the Christian scriptures on my own. I still have the red King James Bible I bought as a child; my own handwritten note on the front page proclaims June 26, 1974, as the date I accepted Jesus (pbuh) as my personal savior.
 
When I say I read the scriptures compulsively, I mean that I was drawn to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John like a magnet. There are plenty of notes and highlightings in that old Bible of mine in Psalms, in Ecclesiastes, in Proverbs — but most of the notes and underlinings are in the Gospels. But I sensed, even at an early age, that there were some internal problems with the texts I loved so dearly. 
  
WHO TAMPERED WITH THE GOSPELS?
 
I can clearly remember reading the account in the 22nd chapter of Luke where Jesus (pbuh) withdrew from the disciples, prayed, and returned to find them fast asleep. Who, I wondered, could have possibly observed him praying … and then related the incident so that it eventually could be included in the Gospel of Luke? There’s another passage in the Gospels where Jesus (pbuh) supposedly includes the words “let him who reads understand” in one of his spoken discourses, which seemed odd to me. And there was yet another spot where the New Testament author assured first-century Christians that their generation would see the second coming of the Messiah — a passage I found difficult to square with modern Christian doctrine. These and other queries about the New Testament arose while I was still quite young, certainly before I was fifteen. Had someone manipulated the Gospels? If so, who? And why? 

I “filed” my questions for later, and decided that the real problem was that I was not part of a vigorous Christian faith community.

CATHOLIC 

At eighteen, I headed East for college and entered the Roman Catholic Church. In college, I met a beautiful and compassionate Catholic girl who was to become the great love and support of my life; she was not particularly religious, but she appreciated how important these matters were to me, and so she supported me in my beliefs. I do a great injustice to her seemingly limitless resources of strength, support, and love by compressing the beginning of our relationship into a few sentences here.
 
AN ENCOUNTER WITH A PRIEST

I asked the campus priest — a sweet and pious man — about some of the Gospel material that had given me trouble, but he became uncomfortable and changed the subject. On another occasion, I remember telling him that I was focusing closely on the Gospel of John because that Gospel was (as I thought then) a first-person account of the events in question.

Again, he stammered and changed the subject and did not want to discuss the merits of one Gospel over another; he simply insisted that all four were important and that I should study all of them. This was a telling conversation, and a fateful one, as it turned out.

CHRISTIANITY? OR PAULISM? 

Now, this is not my life story, but rather my reversion account, so I’m going to fast-forward over a lot of important events. That sweet campus priest eventually married my girlfriend and me, and we settled in suburban Massachusetts. We each moved ahead professionally and became grownups. We had three beautiful children. And I kept reading and rereading the Bible. I was drawn, as ever, to the sayings about the lamp and the eye, the Prodigal Son, the Beatitudes, the importance of prayer, and so many others — but I had steadily more serious intellectual problems with the surrounding “architecture” of the New Testament, particularly with the Apostle Paul. The fact that Paul never seemed to build a theological argument around anything that Jesus (pbuh) actually said was a big, big problem for me.
 
In the mid-1990s, my wife and I both became deeply disenchanted with the Catholic Church, in part because of a truly terrible priest who gave very little attention to the spiritual needs of his community. We later learned that he had been covering up for a child abuser! 
 
PROTESTANT
 
I found it necessary to immerse myself in a faith community. I joined, and became active in, the local Protestant denomination, a Congregational Church. 
 
So I led Sunday School classes for children, and briefly taught a Gospel class on the Parables for the adults. In the Sunday School classes for the kids I stayed right with the curriculum I had been given; but in the adult class, I tried to challenge the participants to confront certain parables directly, without filtering everything through the Apostle Paul.We had interesting discussions, but I sensed some resistance, and I didn’t try to teach an adult class again. My wife eventually joined my church. (She is a member there today.)
 
By this point, I had become deeply affected by the apparent intersection of the Christian mystic tradition and that of the Sufis and the Zen Buddhists. And I had even written on such matters. But there seemed to be no one at my church who shared my zeal for these issues. 
 
 
FOCUSING ON THE GOSPEL SAYINGS
 
In particular, I was interested in the research being done that indicated that the oldest strata of the Gospels reflected an extremely early oral source known as Q, and that each of the individual sayings of Jesus (pbuh) needed to be evaluated on its own merits, and not as part of the narrative material that surrounded it.

This is because that narrrative material was added many years later.

AN EYEWITNESS ACCOUNT?

In fact, the more I researched this subject, the more I found myself thinking of that conversation about the Gospel of John with my priest.I realized that what he had been unwilling or unable to tell me was that the author(s) of the Gospel of John had been lying. This was manifestly not an eyewitness account, though it claimed to be.
 
I was in a strange situation. I was certainly enjoying the fellowship of the Christians at my church, who were all committed and prayerful people. Being part of a religious community was important to me. Yet I had deep intellectual misgivings about the supposed historicity of the Gospel narratives. What’s more, I was, increasingly, getting a different message from the Gospel sayings of Jesus (pbuh) than that which my fellow Christians were apparently getting. 
 
WRESTING WITH THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY

The more I looked at these sayings, the more impossible it became for me to reconcile the notion of the Trinity with that which seemed most authentic to me in the Gospels. I found myself face-to-face with some very difficult questions. 
 

• Where in the Gospels did Jesus use the word “Trinity”?
• If Jesus (pbuh) was God, as the doctrine of the Trinity claims, why did he worship God?
• AND — if Jesus (pbuh) was God, why in the world would he say something like the following?
   
  “Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God.” (Mark 10:18)
   
  Did he somehow forget that he himself was God when he said this?
   
  (A side note — I had a discussion with a woman who assured me that this passage was not really in the Gospels, and who refused to believe that it appeared there until I gave her the chapter and verse number and she looked it up for herself!)
   

THE HOLY QUR’AN
 
In November of 2002, I began to read a translation of the Qur’an.
 
I had never read an English translation of the entire text of the Qur’an before. I had only read summaries of the Qur’an written by non-Muslims.(And very misleading summaries at that.) 
 
Words do not adequately describe the extraordinary effect that this book had on me. Suffice to say that the very same magnetism that had drawn me to the Gospels at the age of eleven was present in a new and deeply imperative form. This book was telling me, just as I could tell Jesus (pbuh) had been telling me, about matters of ultimate concern.

AUTHORITATIVE GUIDANCE

The Qur’an was offering authoritative guidance and compelling responses to the questions I had been asking for years about the Gospels.

“It is not (possible) for any human being to whom God has given the Book and Wisdom and Prophethood to say to the people: ‘Be my worshippers rather than God’s.’ On the contrary, (he would say): ‘Be devoted worshippers of your Lord, because you are teaching the Book, and you are studying it.’ Nor would he order you to take angels and Prophets for lords. Would he order you to disbelieve after you have submitted to God’s will?” (Qur’an 3:79-80)

The Qur’an drew me to its message because it so powerfully confirmed the sayings of Jesus (pbuh) that I felt in my heart had to be authentic. Something had been changed in the Gospels, and that something, I knew in my heart, had been left intact in the text of the Qur’an. 

STARTLING PARALLELS

Below, you will find just a few examples of the parallels that made my heart pliant to the worship of Allah (swt). Each Gospel verse comes from the reconstructed text known as Q — a text that today’s scholars believe represents the earliest surviving strata of the teachings of the Messiah. Note how close this material is to the Qur’anic message.

Q AGREES WITH QUR’AN ON TAWHEED (MONOTHEISM) 

In Q, Jesus (pbuh) endorses, in no uncertain terms, a rigorous monotheism.

“Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, ‘Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.’ (Luke 4:8)

Compare:

“Children of Adam, did We not command you not to worship Satan? He was your sworn enemy. Did We not command you to worship Me, and tell you that this is the straight path?” (Holy Qur’an 36:60-61)

Q AGREES WITH QUR’AN ON AQABA (THE UPHILL PATH) 

Q identifies a Right Path that is often difficult, a path that unbelievers will choose not to follow.

“Enter ye in through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there are who go in there. Narrow is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)

Compare:

“The worldly life is made to seem attractive to the disbelievers who scoff at the faithful, but the pious, in the life hereafter, will have a position far above them.” (Holy Qur’an 2:212)

“Would that you knew what the uphill path is! It is the setting free of a slave or, in a day of famine, the feeding of an orphaned relative and a downtrodden destitute person, (so that he would join) the believers who cooperate with others in patience and kindness.” (Holy Qur’an 90:12-17)

Q AGREES WITH QUR’AN ON TAQWA (FEAR OF GOD) 

Q warns us to fear only the judgment of God.

“And I say unto you, my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear. Fear Him, which after He hath killed, hath the power to cast into Hell. Yea, I say unto you, fear Him!” (Luke 12:4-5)

Compare:

“To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. God’s retribution is severe. Should you then have fear of anyone other than God?” (Holy Qur’an 16:52)

Q AGREES WITH QUR’AN ON THE TRAPS OF DUNYA (EARTHLY LIFE) 

In Q, Jesus (pbuh) warns humanity plainly that earthly advantages and pleasures should not be the goal of our lives:

“Woe unto you that are rich! For you have received your consolation. Woe unto you who are full! You shall be hungry. Woe unto you who laugh now! You shall weep and mourn.” (Luke 6:24)

Compare:

“The desire to have increase of worldly gains has preoccupied you so much (that you have neglected the obligation of remembering God) — until you come to your graves! You shall know. You shall certainly know (about the consequences of your deeds.) You will certainly have the knowledge of your deeds beyond all doubt. You will be shown hell, and you will see it with your own eyes. Then, on that day, you shall be questioned about the bounties (of God). (102:1-8)

Q WARNS MANKIND NOT TO ASSUME ENTRY TO HEAVEN IS ASSURED!

Consider also the following chilling words from the Messiah, which should (!) make every heart humble, choke off all forms of arrogance in spiritual matters, and quiet every attack upon a fellow monotheist:

“And I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But those who believe they own the kingdom of heaven shall be cast out into the outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 8:11-12)

Obviously, this is an important teaching for all people of good will to bear in mind … and to etch upon the memory.

Q SAYS NOTHING OF CRUCIFIXION OR SACRIFICE!

You have seen how the historically earliest verses — the Q verses — parallel the major teachings of the Qur’an. Also worthy of mention is the fact that Q teaches nothing whatsoever of the Crucifixion, of the sacrificial nature of the mission of Jesus (pbuh) … an intriguing omission indeed!

We are left then with an amazing early Gospel — a Gospel that (non-Muslim) scholars believe is historically closest to Jesus (pbuh) — a Gospel that has the following characteristics:

• Agreement with the Qur’an’s uncompromising message of God’s Oneness.
• Agreement with the Qur’an’s message of an afterlife of salvation or hellfire … based on our earthly deeds.
• Agreement with the Qur’an’s warning not to be misled by dunya — the attractions and pleasures of worldly life.

AND …

• A complete ABSENCE of any reference to Christ’s death on the cross, resurrection, or sacrifice for humanity!

This is the Gospel that today’s most advanced non-Muslim scholars have identified for us … and this Gospel is pointing us, if only we will listen to it, in precisely the same direction as the Qur’an!

MY DEAR CHRISTIAN BROTHERS AND SISTERS — I BEG YOU TO ASK YOURSELVES PRAYERFULLY, TO SEEK ALMIGHTY GOD’S GUIDANCE ON THIS QUESTION: CAN THIS POSSIBLY BE A COINCIDENCE?

SHARE THE WORD!

I became a Muslim on March 20, 2003. It became obvious to me that I had to share this message with as many thoughtful Christians as I could. I wrote a book of Dawah to share with open-minded students of the Gospels.   There are many, many more parallels between the oldest words of Jesus (pbuh) and the Holy Qur’an; I discuss them at length in my book Beyond Mere Christianity.

Please share this book’s message  with the Christians in your life!

A BOOK FOR THOUGHTFUL CHRISTIANS

I wrote Beyond Mere Christianity to help people reach an informed conclusion about the true nature of the mission of Jesus (pbuh). Because media coverage of Islam in the West is so unremittingly hostile, I decided to rely primarily on the words of Jesus (pbuh), appealing only rarely to the Holy Qur’an. To the degree that they realize that the oldest Gospel verses accurately mirror the teachings of Islam, thoughtful Christians may, Godwilling, become more curious about the teachings of the Qur’an.

Reasonable people may disagree on the age and authenticity of the Q sayings of Jesus (pbuh) that I appeal to in Beyond Mere Christianity. All followers of Jesus (pbuh) must agree, though, that the words in Q cited in this book also appear in the Gospels found in every Bible and are binding on every Christian. For those who insist on the importance of following Jesus (pbuh), surely that is enough.

What you have read here is a brief summary of why I believe Jesus (pbuh) was a Muslim. To learn more about the recent New Testament scholarly breakthroughs that support this point, please read my book.

I would love to hear from you. I hope you will e-mail me.