The Muslim Student Association @ UConn

By Idris Tawfiq*

When our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) finally entered Makkah at the head of a Muslim army, he entered the holy Ka`bah and destroyed the idols inside, which had been worshiped by the pagans for centuries. In doing so, he put an end, once and for all, to idol worshiping. As Muslims, at least five times a day, we declare that there is no god but Allah. To be precise, we profess that there is no deity, no created being that is worthy of worship except Allah.

Words, though, are very easy to say. We could train a parrot to say as much. In trying to live as good Muslims, submitting our whole lives to the will of Almighty Allah, we should always strive to mean with our whole heart what we say with our lips. And therein lies the problem. How many of us really submit every fiber of our being to Allah's will? How many of us find our total happiness with Him alone? How many of us have destroyed all the idols in our lives that keep us from living as good Muslims?

In this highly recommended lecture, Sh. Yasir Qadhi* criticizes stereotypical responses to questions often asked about the role of women in Islam and similar secondary and tertiary aspects of Islam. He explains why he thinks that trying to impress non-Muslims with Islam could not, in most cases, lead to them accepting Islam. He lists the reasons why he thinks such responses are defeatist and fruitless. His methodology is to responsd to such attacks on Islam by expalining the real reasons why Muslims beleive things should be the way they are in Islam.
http://www.emanrush.com /broadcasting.htm

*Yasir Qadhi

A View of the Earth (c) Reuters

Source: IslamOnline By Shehnaz Toorawa **
Allah tells us in numerous verses of the Qur'an that He has created everything on Earth —animals, rain, plants, oceans, stars, the sun, and the moon — for the benefit of humans. With these favors comes the role of khalifah, or guardianship. The Qur'an tells us,

[He it is Who hath placed you as viceroys of the earth and hath exalted some of you in rank above others, that He may try you by (the test of) that which He hath given you. Lo! Thy Lord is swift in prosecution, and Lo! He verily is Forgiving, Merciful.] (Al-An`am 6:165)

Today the planet is in a mess. Deforestation, desertification, water pollution, air pollution, soil erosion, extinction of species, and the dwindling of resources indicate that humans are not fulfilling their role of khalifah adequately. What can we do to fulfill our responsibility to protect the Earth? The following list includes seven small, but effective steps each of us can take to begin the process:

The first ten days are a great blessing from Allah to His servants, which is appreciated properly by the righteous persons. It is the Muslim’s duty to appreciate this blessing and seize the opportunity, by devoting these ten days to paying more attention to striving hard in worship. Among His blessings to His servants, Allah has given us many ways in which to do good and worship Him, so that the Muslim may be constantly active and consistent in his worship of his Lord.