Why Convert?

[ronniv93]

umm_Zachariah,

You could try to read through what I wrote about fitrah, since it is rather revealing if you want to understand the way Allah, SWT, gives us knowledge of Him. I don't know if you did since you did not comment that at all.

Sorry I didn't comment. There's just a lot to read and go through and I haven't gotten around to going through everything yet.

Well there is a big difference, Allah, SWT is ALL-forgiving, you forgiving your family and friends is another matter. That is forgiving between humans. Another issue.

But you know what forgiveness is, right? <b>Of course</b> it's not the equivalent of God's forgiveness; never meant to suggest otherwise. The point is: if you never experienced forgiveness, if you never gave forgiveness in life.... if you never heard or used the word, term, concept in life..... How would you understand the Quran when it says that Allah is All-Forgiving?


There must be SOME frame of reference.


What would be the point of God speaking to us and revealing Himself to mankind if a person could never understand anything He said since He's sooooo totally unlike anything else in the world?


When God communicates, He speaks to us in a way that we would understand. Otherwise, what would be the point of Him talking to us or revealing Himself if we are all unable to grasp what He's talking about?

If Allah, SWT, plants KNOWLEDGE in our hearts it does not mean we are like Him.

Well, I am certainly not here to suggest that we are on some equal (or even close to equal) footing with God. There are differences, though, it seems in how Islam understands God and human beings and the Bible's teaching on the same subject.


Another area where our faiths are very different. It happens.

The things that you call do's and don'ts and rituals, are very NECESSARY IF you want to KNOW what it is that Allah, SWT, wants you to SUBMIT to.

But they don't help you <b>KNOW</b> God personally and intimately. That's different from knowing what God expects of you.


I am married. I can know what my husband expects of me as a wife, what things matter, what things don't matter. I can know how to fulfill all of my obligations and expectations.


That alone will NEVER mean that I *KNOW* my husband.


Knowing my husband (or anyone) comes from spending time with him, talking to him, listening to him communicate back to me, fellowshipping together, etc.


Knowing the "rules of the house" will never give me an in-depth, intimate knowing of him, however.

Would you say that is what the Jews today do - that they don't KNOW?

Well, I can't speak for every Jew in the world. Some know Him, I'm sure; some don't.

Did you not say that EVERYONE KNOWS God? What makes you now say that the Jews in the time of Jesus, PHUB, did not know God?

Forgive me. Perhaps the language I used was not very clear. I was trying to say that everyone in the world can know that there IS a God; that a Creator exists.


Knowing that He exists does not mean knowing Him personally.


And notice that I didn't talk about ALL the Jews living at the time of Jesus. I specifically named a particular GROUP, that is the scribes and Pharisees... the teachers and scholars of their religion. I didn't say all Jews.


But see, these were the "scholars" of their religion, the most knowledgeable about all the laws, proper way to carry out rituals, etc. But they were not the one's who Jesus commended. Most of the time, it was the common person who just had pure, solid faith. They may have committed sins in their lives, they may have been poor, not very advanced in society, they weren't the wisest people in their religion. They simply had a pure desire to know God, love Him and display their faith in Him. Being "scholarly" alone was not impressive to Christ.


Regards