In this second of a three-part series, we examine the common misconceptions about Islam amongst non-Muslims and more importantly, Muslims themselves.
2️⃣2️⃣Many Muslims like to refer to some hadith of the prophet Muhammad as the best hadith.
However, did you know that God says that the best hadith is His own hadith, which is the Quran itself? 39:23
2️⃣3️⃣ Some Muslims think that they are automatically Mu’mins (believers).
However, did you know that Muslims and Mu’mins are two different categories of people? The word “Muslim” in English is “Submitter”. In the context of Islam, it means anyone who submits to the one true God. The word “Mu’min” means “Believer”. In the conext of Islam, a Mu’min is only someone who believes in God, his angels, all of His Books (e.g. Torah, Injil, Quran), and all of his messengers (e.g. Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad) and they consider all messengers to be equal. 49:14 2:285
2️⃣4️⃣ Many Muslims think that they correctly follow the Quran.
However, did you know that many Muslims actually abandon the Qur’an? 25:30 This is possibly due to the fact that they take the hadith as Islamic law even though God forbids that. They read the Quran in Arabic throughout their lives yet they don’t understand Arabic.
2️⃣5️⃣ Many Muslims believe that the shahadah (testimony) to become a Muslim requires testifying that there is only one God and that Muhammad is God’s messenger.
However, did you know that the shahadah in the Quran only contains testimony that there is only one God? There is no mention of Muhammad whatsoever. 3:18. This makes sense since Islam existed way before Muhammad was even born.
2️⃣6️⃣ Many Muslims think that paying zakah began with Muhammad.
However, did you know that prophets Abraham, Lot, Isaac and Jacob 21:69-73, the people of prophet Ishmael 2:40-43, Jews 2:40-43, and prophet Jesus 19:31 all paid zakah?
2️⃣7️⃣ Many Muslims believe that fasting began with Muhammad.
However, did you know that fasting began before Muhammad? 2:183
2️⃣8️⃣ Many Muslims think that the hadith is Islamic law.
However, did you know that the Quran forbids any hadith after the Quran to be taken as Islamic law? 6:114 45:6 68:36-38
2️⃣9️⃣ Many Muslims think that they need to read various tafsir books to understand the Quran.
However, did you know that the Quran itself is its best tafsir? 25:33
3️⃣0️⃣ Many Muslims like to use the hadith to judge on Islamic matters.
However, did you know that judging by anything besides the Quran makes you a disbeliever (kafir)? 5:44
3️⃣1️⃣ Many Muslims believe that they must follow both the Quran and the supposed hadith of prophet Muhammad.
However, did you know that Muhammad himself only followed the Quran? 10:15 46:9 6:50 7:203.
3️⃣2️⃣ Many Muslims believe that every word that came out of Muhammad’s mouth was a revelation from God which therefore justifies the use of the hadith as Islamic law.
However, did you know that God questioned Muhammad when he forbade something which God Himself never forbade which, in effect, proves that not everything Muhammad said came from God? 66:1
3️⃣3️⃣ Many Muslims believe the supposed hadith of the prophet Muhammad support the Quran.
However, did you know that many hadith directly contradict the Quran? In Sahih al-Bukhari 1629 we read:
“Narrated `Abdullah: I heard the Prophet (ﷺ) forbidding the offering of prayers at the time of sunrise and sunset.”
How is it possible that God instructs people to pray at sunset (maghrib) whereas Muhammad forbids it?
Following are some other examples.
https://sunnah.com/bukhari/10/91
https://sunnah.com/bukhari/67/126
https://sunnah.com/bukhari/59/127
https://sunnah.com/bukhari/67/7
https://sunnah.com/bukhari/67/54
3️⃣4️⃣ Many Muslims believe that some hadith are acceptable and some hadith are not acceptable.
As a result, they pick and choose which hadith they want to follow for Islamic law and guidance.
However, did you know that God specifically forbids this? 68:36-38.
3️⃣5️⃣ Many Muslims believe that simply following the beliefs and practices of the majority, for example, majority Muslim belief, is the right thing to do.
However, did you know that the Quran states that following the majority will mislead you? 6:116
3️⃣6️⃣ Many Muslims believe that blindly obeying leaders, such as Islamic leaders, and their beliefs without seeing proof is the right thing to do.
However, did you know that doing that will mislead you? 33:67
3️⃣7️⃣ Many Muslims think that they only have to believe in the Quran and they don’t have to believe in the Torah and injil
However, did you know that in order to be a mu’min (believer), one must believe in all books 2:285
3️⃣8️⃣ Many Muslims believe that since verse 4:59 instructs them to obey Muhammad, they believe that means they should follow the hadith.
However, did you know that in the Quran God also instructs believers to “obey” the authorities contemporaneous to Muhammad 4:59 and to obey other messengers 4:64 which should lead you to believe that obeying Muhammad doesn’t mean take his hadith as Islamic law?
3️⃣9️⃣ Many Muslims believe that Muhammad guided and warned people using his day-to-day hadith.
However, did you know that the Quran states that Muhammad only guides and warns with the Quran? 50:45 6:19
4️⃣0️⃣ Some Muslims argue that some verses in the Quran are unclear and therefore, the hadith is required to clarify these unclear verses.
However, did you know that God intentionally made some verses unclear as a test for people who may intentionally misinterpret them? 3:7
4️⃣1️⃣ Many Muslims like to adamantly say something is halal or haram without even seeing proof of their claims.
However, did you know that prohibiting what is halal and vice versa is itself forbidden? 16:116 5:87
4️⃣2️⃣ Many Muslims believe that Arabic is a holy language because the Quran is in Arabic.
However, did you know that The Quran is in Arabic only because Muhammad and his people spoke Arabic? 42:7 41:44
Allah only sends messengers to people who speak the language of their people. 14:4
The Torah and the Injil are also books from Allah and Muslims must believe in them 2:285
yet they were not written in Arabic.
The message that Allah sent to all messengers is the same 41:43 which means that, since other messengers spoke different languages, then Arabic could not be a uniquely holy language.
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