On religion and rationalism<\/p>\n
In reference to the letter Religion and rationalism by Agus
\nUtoro, published in The Jakarta Post on May 21, I would like to
\nshare my views.<\/p>\n
By performing our religious obligations, we are rewarded many
\npahala, or gains, by Allah. Some of these gains can be realized
\nand benefit us in our daily lives, others are \"invisible\".
\nInvisible means we will be rewarded with those gains on the Day
\nof Judgment, when all believers will be answerable for their
\ndeeds.<\/p>\n
Gains of shalat, or prayer, puasa, or fasting, and performing
\nthe haj are the same way. Some we can benefit in our daily lives,
\nwhile other gains are kept with Allah for the Resurrection.<\/p>\n
Now, I will try to explain some of those gains that we can
\nbenefit from here in this world, which Agus Utoro might be
\ninterested in learning about. Shalat teaches us equality,
\npunctuality, cleanliness and many more things. Equality in the
\nsense that when we pray together, we do not care about the race
\nor the color of people, and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with each
\nother without discriminating between rich or poor. Which means
\nall humans are equal before Allah and should be treated by fellow
\nhumans in the same way.<\/p>\n
Puasa teaches us patience and self-control. Abstaining from
\nall sorts of regular activities such as eating and drinking
\nrequires lots of patience and self-control. I am quite sure many
\npeople could quit their bad habits and addictions by
\nbenefiting from the month of Ramadhan, as many have already done.<\/p>\n
The haj pilgrimage teaches us international brotherhood and
\nlove. Haj spreads the message of peace to all nations of the
\nworld. On these days Muslims gather together peacefully from all
\nparts of the world.<\/p>\n
In the matter of saying prayers together in Arabic and a
\ntranslated language, there is the fear that over time someone
\nwill say, \"What's wrong in saying prayers in translation only?\"<\/p>\n
This way, slowly, we will go away from the original. We all
\nknow a translation cannot be 100 percent the same as the
\noriginal. But as long as understanding the meaning is concerned,
\nMuslims are encouraged to learn the meaning. There is nothing
\nwrong with that.<\/p>\n
FAZAL-E-MUJEEB, Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/on-religion-and-rationalism-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }