Islam
Questions & Answers"Who are the Muslims?" One billion people from a vast range of races, nationalities and cultures across the globe--from the southern Philippines to Nigeria--are united by their common Islamic faith. About 18% live in the Arab world; the world's largest Muslim community is in Indonesia; substantial parts of Asia and most of Africa are Muslim, while significant minorities are to be found in the Soviet Union, China, North and South America, and Europe. "What do Muslims believe?" Muslims believe in One, Unique, Incomparable God; in the Angels created by Him; in the prophets through whom His revelations were brought to mankind; in the Day of Judgment and individual accountability for actions; in God's complete authority over human destiny and in life after death. Muslims believe in a chain of prophets starting with Adam and including Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Job, Moses, Aaron, David, Solomon, Elias, Jonah, John the Baptist, and Jesus, peace be upon them. But God's final message to man, a reconfirmation of the eternal message and a summing-up of all that has gone before was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) through Gabriel. "How does someone become a Muslim?" Simply by saying 'There is no god apart from God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God.' By this declaration the believer announces his or her faith in all God's messengers, and the scriptures they brought. "Why does Islam often seem strange?" Islam may seem exotic or even extreme in the modern world. Perhaps this is because religion does not dominate everyday life in the West today, whereas Muslims have religion always uppermost in their minds, and make no division between secular and sacred. They believe that the Divine Law, the Shari'a, should be taken very seriously, which is why issues related to religion are still so important. "Do Islam and Christianity have different origins?" No. Together with Judaism, they go back to the prophet and patriarch Abraham, and their three prophets are directly descended from his sons--Muhammad (SAW) from the eldest, Ishmael, and Moses and Jesus, peace be upon them, from Isaac. Abraham established the settlement which today is the city of Makkah, and built the Ka'ba towards which all Muslims turn when they pray. "What do Muslims think about Jesus?" Muslims respect and revere Jesus (SAW) and await his Second Coming. They consider him one of the greatest of God's messengers to mankind. A Muslim never refers to him simply as 'Jesus', but always adds the phrase 'upon him be peace'. The Quran confirms his virgin birth (a chapter of the Quran is entitled 'Mary'), and Mary is considered the purest woman in all creation. The Quran describes the Annunciation as follows: 'Behold!' the Angel said, 'God has chosen you, and purified you, and chosen you above the women of all nations. O Mary, God gives you good news of a word from Him, whose name shall be the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, honored in this world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near to God. He shall speak to the people from his cradle and in maturity, and shall be of the righteous.' She said: 'O my Lord! How shall I have a son when no man has touched me?' He said: 'Even so; God creates what He will. When He decrees a thing He says to it, "Be!" and it is.' (Quran, 3.42-7)
A BRIEF HISTORYIslam is the world's second-largest religion, after Christianity, and was founded by the prophet Muhammad based on revelation from Allah through the angel Gabriel in the 7th century AD. These revelations took place over a 22-year period in the cities of Mecca and Medina in today's Saudi Arabia. Muslims believe that they are part of a single religious tradition that includes Judaism and Christianity. They fully recognize Abraham, Moses, Jesus, the Virgin Mary and other pre-Islamic figures as part of that single tradition. Islam literally means "to submit or obey." Muslims believe that they submit to a set of divinely revealed laws upon which social and moral codes that govern everyday life are established. One of every five people is Muslim. Although Islam began in Arabia, more than half the world's 1.2 billion Muslims live in South and Southeast Asia. The most populous Muslim countries are Indonesia, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Nigeria. Only a quarter of all Muslims live in the Middle East. In Europe, Muslims rank as the second-largest religious group in Belgium, France and Germany and the largest in Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina. More than 6 million Muslims live in the U.S., where Islam is the fastest-growing religion. Muslim-Christian DialogueFor the Muslim, constructive dialogue is not only permitted it is commendable. In the Qur'an we read, "Say, 'O people of the book' (a term which particularly refers to Jews and Christians) 'come to comman terms as between us and you: that we worship none but Allah (God); that we associate no partners with Him (in His powers and divine attributes); that we erect not from among ourselves lords and patrons other than Allah.' If then they turn back say you 'Bear witness that we are Muslims.' (Bowing) to the will of God." (al-i-Imran;3:64). The methodology of that dialogue is also explained in the Qur'an; "Invite (all) to the way of your Lord with wisdom and beautiful exhortation, and argue with them in ways that are best." (al-Nahl; 16:125) A prerequisite for any constructive dialogue is that both communities should not learn about each other through sources that are unsympathetic, critical, or even hostile: they should rather try to formulate an honest idea as to how the other faith is seen in its own authentic scriptures and as practiced by those who are truly committed to it. This need is even more significant in the case of the Muslim-Christian dialogue. The average Christian has heard of or has read about Islam mostly through writers who have had colonial or missionary motives, which might have given a certain slant to their interpretation of Islam to the western mind. While I admit that my own practice of Islam is far from perfect, I at least speak from the vantage point of someone who wants to think of himself as a committed, practicing Muslim.
Jamal Badawi |
Jesus (SAW) was born miraculously through the same power which had brought Adam (SAW) into being without a father: Truly, the likeness of Jesus with God is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, and then said to him, 'Be!' and he was. (3.59) During his prophetic mission Jesus (SAW) performed many miracles. The Quran tells us that he said: 'I have come to you with a sign from your Lord: I make for you out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, and breathe into it and it becomes a bird by God's leave. And I heal the blind, and the lepers, and I raise the dead by God's leave.' (3.49) Neither Muhammad (SAW) nor Jesus (SAW) came to change the basic doctrine of the belief in One God, brought by earlier prophets, but to confirm and renew it. In the Quran Jesus (SAW) is reported as saying that he came: 'To attest the law which was before me. And to make lawful to you paff of what was forbidden you; I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear God and obey Me.' (3:5O) The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) said: 'Whoever believes there is no god but God, alone without partner, that Muhammad (SAW) is His messenger, that Jesus is the servant and messenger of God, His word breathed into Mary and a spirit emanating from Him, and that Paradise and Hell are true, shall be received by God into Heaven.' (Hadith from Bukhari)
Sheik Hamza YusufI was born in the U.S.A. to a Catholic father and a Greek Orthodox mother, neither practising their faith. I was raised with eclectic ideas about God and religion, and baptised into the Orthodox Church of the Greek Diocese in the States. I became a Muslim at the age of 17, and studied in the U.A.E. and then later in Algeria, Madina (with private scholars for several months), and finally in West Africa with the noble Sheikh Murabit al-Hajj. I then returned to America and studied at college taking two degrees, and began teaching at the Santa Clara Masjid, Arabic and lessons in some of the traditional Islamic teachings. I do not use the noble title of Imam as this is reserved for the great scholars and not students like myself. Hamza Yusuf - August 1996
Imam Siraj Wahaj"You walk and you see prostitutes and you feel nothing! You see drug addicts and you feel nothing!... You see the people going to Hell and you feel nothing!! Something is wrong!! You can't change things unless you first change what's [in your heart]!!"
Jamal Badawi
The One true God is a
reflection of the unique concept
that Islam associates with God.
To a Muslim, Allah is the
Almighty, Creator and Sustainer
of the universe, Who is similar
to nothing and nothing is
comparable to Him. The
Prophet Muhammad was asked by his contemporaries about Allah;
the answer came directly from God Himself in the form of a short
chapter of the Quran, which is considered the essence of the unity or
the motto of monotheism. This is chapter 112 which reads:
Women in Al-IslamContrary to widespread erroneous belief, Contrary to widespread negative stereotyping, and Contrary to regrettable practices in some Islamic societies where anti-Islamic culture traditions have won over Islamic teachings and where women are subdued (and men even more so) This information has been written with the objective of briefing you on the true Islamic teachings regarding women laid down by the Quran and prophet Mohammad over 14 centuries ago. Islam declared women and men equal. Islam condemned pre-Islamic practices degrading and oppressing women. The same injunctions and prohibitions of Islam equally apply to both sexes. Islam gave woman the right of inheritance and the right of individual independent ownership unhampered by father, husband, brother, son or anyone else. Islam gave women the right to accept or reject a marriage proposal free from pressure, and by mutual agreement to specify in the marriage contract that she has the right to divorce (if she misses that option she has the right to seek court divorce if she deems the marriage to have failed beyond repair). Islam does not require woman to change her name at marriage. Islam protects the family and condemns the betrayal of marital fidelity. It recognizes only one type of family: husband and wife united by authentic marriage contract. "HEAVEN IS AT THE FEET OF MOTHERS", is a basic Islamic teaching. "THE BEST OF YOU ARE THE KINDEST TO THEIR WIVES AND I AM YOUR BEST TO MINE", is a teaching by prophet Mohammad. Islam enjoins sounds morality in thinking, behavior and appearance. Dress fashions and social patterns that reduce woman to a sex object and exploit her as such are not acceptable to Islam. The observance of chastity and moral standards is equally demanded by Islam from both men and women. "WOMEN ARE THE SIBLINGS OF MEN", is a saying of prophet Mohammad.
Eid MubarakEid means "a recurring happiness or festivity". There are two Eids: Eid-ul-Fitr celebrated on 1 Shawwal of the Islamic calendar following the month of fasting Ramadan, and Eid-ul-Adha, celebrated on the 10th of Dhul-Hijra of the Islamic calendar, following the course of hajj (pilgimage to Mecca). The Eids are days of thanksgiving and rejoicing of every Muslim, as well as for the community of Muslims as a whole. While the Eids are occations for joy and happiness, they are certainly not occasions for frivolity, over-eating or the pursuit of pleasure. The joy which we feel on Eid is the spiritual joy of fulfilment - fulfilment of God's command of discipline, piety and collective worship. Each of the Eid days begins with prayer (salat) and is spent in alms-giving, visiting friends and relatives and exchanging greetings and gifts. The spirit of Eid is the spirit of peace and forgiveness, for at these times one should forget all grudges and ill-feelings toward one's fellow men if he or she has not already done so. On Eid one makes a fresh start in his relations with others in a brotherly spirit. Abu Sa'id al-Khudri reported that the Prophet Muhammad, upon whom be peace, said: "Whoever fasts the month of Ramadan, obeying all of its limitations and guarding himself against what is forbidden, has in fact atoned for any sins he committed before it." Ahmad and Baihaqi related this hadith with a good chain. Fiqh us-Sunnah
For more information please contact: Islamic Center of Southern California 434 S. Vermont Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90020 (213) 382 - 9200 |
Christianity
What ever happened to the Mills family?Well Rev. Jesse Mills now lives in Florida, Jeffrey & Anita Mills live in Texas while Ronny, Kathi and Eric have Christian ministries right here in California.
Ronny Mills
Ronny's CD release
One of Gospel's distinguished tenors has done it again! This powerful CD, featuring Ronny's smash hit single-Draw Me Nearer, will be a keepsake for many years to come. Be sure to get your copy today!
The incomparable Ronny Mills is known for his incredible, silky-smooth vocal abilities. For more than twenty years, he has captivated audiences everywhere with his unique style of music. Because of his commitment to excellence and attention to detail, others have called on him to work on their projects.
He has produced recordings for and worked with several Gospel recording artists: Emmit Powell and the Gospel Elites, Alfreda Mitchell, Inspirational Catholic Gospel Choir, Modavador G N Companee, Frank Calvin, Kathi Mills, Yolanda Schufford, Brandi Lynn Randon, and David Decuir of Decuir Digital Studios-Richmond, CA. Take time to enjoy music produced/co-produced by Ronny Mills!
Dinner @ Kathi's place
The title of her long awaited CD "I've Gotta Rejoice" speaks right to the message that has come from her heart for so many years. Currently Kathi is working on another CD which will be a continuation of her dedication to fine Gospel Music.
Kathi Mills was one of the top 10 finalists for The Gospel Fest for WVKO The Light Radio Station in Columbus, Ohio, 2001.
She sang background vocals for Judith McAllister and Tramaine Hawkins-Stephens for the E. C. Reems International Ministries 2001 Convention.
Kathi sang background vocals for Kim Burrell at the Juneteenth Festival at Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco, CA, 2001.
She sang background vocals for Karen Clark-Sheards at the Juneteenth Festival at the Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA, 1999.
She sang for the National Day of Prayer at the Civic Center in Oakland, California in 1999.
She sang background vocals for Pastor Shirley Caesar and Prophetess Juanita Bynum at Center of Hope Community Church's 30th Year Anniversary, 1998.
The Bay Area Gospel Academy Awards, 1998, nominated her for best female gospel soloist.
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