Protecting Faith In The Age of Denigrating Faith

By Kaniz Fatma, New Age Islam 12 July 2023 For A Muslim, Islam Is The Greatest Gift And Most Valuable Blessing Main Points 1. Each Muslim is responsible for protecting his or her faith. 2. Muslims should not be hopeless about their sins; they must repent and seek forgiveness while holding on to their faith. 3. The Prophet's companions safeguarded their faith at a very trying time. ----- Islam is the greatest gift and most precious possession in the world for a Muslim. It is necessary for both worldly and eternal success. This faith relates to honour and glory on the earth, as well as comfort and tranquilly in eternal life in the Hereafter and freedom from unfathomable punishment. The Quran and Hadith make it clear that those who died with their faith intact and upheld Islamic beliefs are successful. According to Islamic studies, Muslims who have committed major sins shouldn't feel hopeless about them because, despite the fact that they may briefly inhabit hell, they will eventually be let out and allowed to reach heaven, where they will spend all of eternity. However, Allah will pardon their faults if they repent in this world. As a result, one should never compromise their beliefs. Muslims should be concerned about protecting their faith and beliefs and hold on to it no matter what the circumstances, whether they are favourable or unfavourable, happy or unhappy, poor or in good health. Allah commanded His servants to live and die in line with their beliefs in the Holy Qur'an. “O believers! Be mindful of Allah in the way He deserves, and do not die except in a state of being Muslims” (3:102) Allah is in charge of everything, including life and death, honour and shame, wealth and poverty. The belief that Allah is the only God should guide all of our actions. A Muslim must live by this belief and die by it. In order to protect a small blessing, we guard and care for it day and night. Even if our slippers have no status or value, we care about them when going to the mosque or anywhere else. We also secure our home and automobile. Can you imagine how much a Muslim needs to care about and consider his faith when there is so much concern about such an unimportant matter in the world? The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) has informed about some temptations in various hadiths and has warned the Muslims to protect their faith from them. Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Hasten to good deeds before being overtaken by tribulations that are like parts of the dark night. A man would be a believer in the morning and turn to a disbeliever in the evening, or he would be a believer in the evening and turn to a disbeliever in the morning. He sells his religion for worldly gain.” (Sahih Muslim) This Hadith encourages performing good deeds prior to being forcibly stopped from doing so. There will be trials that are as dark as night, and no one will be able to see the light of the truth through them. As a result, one will change from a believer to a nonbeliever as the hours of the day and night change, selling his religion in exchange for anything materialistic, such as money, power, women, or another benefit. Some will begin to attribute their sicknesses, food shortages, and other issues to God, and they'll say things that will cause others to lose faith. Others will become dissatisfied with their Lord and their religion as a result of the many challenges. People will treat their faith with such carelessness that its importance will vanish from their hearts. It appears that the Prophet (peace be upon him) has instructed his Ummah to maintain their faith in all circumstances, to put up with some difficulty in this life, and of course to keep the Hereafter in mind. This is a key time for them to remain alert and watchful. Faith is unbeatable. The treasure of faith is more important than everything in this world. Even the treasure of Qarun cannot compete with the treasure in the form of the faith of Islam. Although it is certain that the temptations and situations that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) forewarned about must have happened in the past and will happen in the future as well, it can be said with certainty given the current circumstances that this era is also a real example of them, and this Hadith fits perfectly with the current situation. Some imaginary officials believe that Muslims and Islam are losing ground. Some ruffians are actively working to eradicate Muslims, mistreat them, demean them, and remove their links to Islamic values. False concept propagandists want Muslims to forget their identity and their faith in order to deprive them of it and future generations. There are seemingly continual attempts to destroy Muslims and Islam. The protection of Muslims' nationality, trade, employment, economy, wealth, and honour is a problem. The biggest issue facing Muslim religious people is how to safeguard both their own and future generations' religious beliefs. If we desire to leave this world with faith, live a better and happier life beyond death, and be able to confront our Lord and loving Master (peace be upon him), we must decide to defend our religion and the faith of our children at any costs. For faith, we are willing to forgo life, fortune, honour, and a thousand other benefits of this world, but we will not permit faith to be exchanged. We must be aware that the Prophet's companions safeguarded their faith at a very trying time. They had to endure harsh and unfriendly weather while being persecuted and subjected to a mound of suffering that made them sob. They remained steadfast in their beliefs and gave up everything, and when they arrived in Madinah, they were still persecuted. Until their last breath, they upheld Islamic principles. These are the most prosperous and fortunate individuals, for whom Allah revealed Paradise in the Quran. Saints, Sufis, and righteous people still praise and recount how the holy companions had a high position and a firm belief. Their faith was untarnished by terrible treatment or excruciating suffering, so no amount of worldly avarice or power here could shake it. I wish we had taken some advice from them on how to guard our beliefs. ----- Kaniz Fatma is a classic Islamic scholar and a regular columnist for New Age Islam. 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