Islam is just a religion like any other religion

[Saifullah]

We are told by the Quran to respect other peoples faith and not to make fun of their Gods. TRUE

But does that mean we accept their religion being equal as ours? Does it mean all religions are the same. That is something unrelated.

[Roshina]

It is very very very clear you have not studied religions. Sorry to say. The people don't claim superiority the books do.

Sister, I think you are a nice person but you are totally misguided.

And that's perfectly fine with me, since it's your opinion about me and not necessarily a fact. I'm willing to live with it peacefully.

[MeemWawMeemNoon]

I've never said that you are a Muslim because you were born Muslim. I said, instead, that most people follow the religion they were born into, and others grow to learn about a certain religion (or religions) to accept or reject them. You may fall into the latter category of people -- those who accept or reject a certain belief system after studying it.

Nonetheless, that doesn't take away the fact that all religions hold equal importance and deserve equal respect and tolerance. You can be a Muslim and reject Hinduism and all other non-Islamic religions while STILL believing that all other religions have the same right to exist that Islam does.

This is pretty much the most simple way I can put it in. If you STILL don't grasp this, then ... well, maybe you'll understand it with time.

Please don't insult me. I am much much much older than you. My specialization is Islamic Shariah and Comparative Study of Religions.

You are have no clue what you are saying.

What you are claiming that holds no ground.

The fact that you are a Muslim is proof enough you are a living contradiction to what you are preaching.

[Roshina]

But does that mean we accept their religion being equal as ours? Does it mean all religions are the same. That is something unrelated.

Umm... Saifullah bro, I suggest you read some of our posts in this thread. NO one has said that all religions are the same.

I've said over and over that they're equal (in value, in merit; e.g., they all deserve equal respect from all people, and no one religion deserves more respect or tolerance than others, so long as no violence is involved), BUT in order to be equal, they don't have to be the same.

[MeemWawMeemNoon]

We are told by the Quran to respect other peoples faith and not to make fun of their Gods. TRUE

But does that mean we accept their religion being equal as ours? Does it mean all religions are the same. That is something unrelated.

This has to be the summary of everything we have been talking about.

Beautiful said. Masha Allah.

[MeemWawMeemNoon]

Qrratagai jaana,

The fact that you are a Muslim proves that religion are not the same nor are they equal.

[Roshina]

Please don't insult me. I am much much much older than you. My specialization is Islamic Shariah and Comparative Study of Religions.

You are have no clue what you are saying.

You are claiming that holds no ground.

The fact that you are a Muslim is proof enough you are a living contradiction to what you are preaching.

I'm sorry you feel insulted. That was not my intention.

I meant that you'll eventually realize (hopefully) that all religions deserve equal respect, etc. You can believe your religion is correct, that's fine, and I'm not against that. You believe that obviously when you follow it; but that doesn't make all the other religions any less important than your own.

And you're studying Islam, but so am I, bro! I deal with, among other things, Islamic law (mostly focusing on non-Muslims' and minorities' rights in Islam) and classical and contemporary interpretations of Islam. These two are my main specializations within Islamic Studies.

[Saifullah]

Qrat...why are you confusing issues??

On a table you have two glasses one full till the top with water...the other full with poison till the top...you can say look both are equal they are full till the top...but what it contains is the question!

Now religions are called religions...whether it islam, judaism or christianity.....you can say they are 'similar' in that all of these are called religions, all of them are beliefs...thats obvious, that isnt rocket science, which is why it doesnt even need a debate.

But what is the belief of Chrisitianity...what is the content? That is what is nonsense and can easily be refuted by a person with a brain. I dont promote being born a muslim, you have to work to become a true muslim, you have to understand why are we a muslim. I accept that.

Respecting religions has nothing to do with it being equal. We do not have to consider christianity as equals to Islam, however we can still respect it by not swearing at their Gods and not just arguing with them by insults, but through discussion.

I respect other religions but i definately believe those religions to be inferior to Islam, which is why i am a muslim...How can religions without any substance be treated on the same level as Islam which is perfect...? You cannot relate respect to what you are claiming, try to understand that

[spogmai shaglay]

Qrratugai... u clearly stated that all religions are not same..(correct me if i am wrong)....and u also mentioned that all religions are equal.....

all religions are not same agreeed but whether all religions are equal or not is a perception of an individual....the statement could be correct if u are talking about secularism,

also it can be said that all religions should be seen as equal in terms of tolerance, respect, etc....which u see them as...

but just giving a statement that all religion are equal will 100% be misinterpreted....

perception of equality here is in terms of respect to be given to all religions...which u give is what i have come to understand.....am i right????

i think its just wrong choice of words or rather its not put correctly.......used which is making it more complicated to understand each other's views...

(i also agree to the fact the Qrratugai has got a far greater command on english language than i do)

and talking about comparing Islam and other religions interms of aspects of morality and equality is a different story all togther...Idol worship is just one aspect where Islam and Hinduism or any other religion differ... there are many many more aspects which make them different and i too agree that it makes Islam religion superior to any other religion...

[MeemWawMeemNoon]

I'm sorry you feel insulted. That was not my intention.

I meant that you'll eventually realize (hopefully) that all religions deserve equal respect, etc. You can believe your religion is correct, that's fine, and I'm not against that. You believe that obviously when you follow it; but that doesn't make all the other religions any less important than your own.

And you're studying Islam, but so am I, bro! I deal with, among other things, Islamic law (mostly focusing on non-Muslims' and minorities' rights in Islam) and classical and contemporary interpretations of Islam. These two are my main specializations within Islamic Studies.

My beloved sister,

what you are not grasping is that I am not the one to insult other religions. You should know me by now that I am in fore-front of defending anyone. However, to claim that all religions hold the same value in right out wrong. The Quran rejects this concept.

Sister, the fact that you call yourself a Muslim is clear proof that religions are not equal. If religions were equal then you should not call yourself a Muslim. You can't pick and choose and call yourself a Muslim. You should call yourself something different. A Muslim is one who says:

La ilaha illallahu muhammadur rasuluallah.

This means that you follow everything Allah says in the Quran and the sunnah of Hadhrat Muhammad (saw).

The fact that you call yourself a Muslim is enough proof that you do not believe in what you are preaching. Otherwise, you would not call yourself a Muslim.

Let us put it this way: I would take you more seriously if you stopped calling yourself a Muslim. This would prove to me that you do believe that ALL religions are equal.

[Roshina]

Qrratagai jaana,

The fact that you are a Muslim proves that religion are not the same nor are they equal.

~sighs~ Good God, we're going around in circles and going nowhere. This is a headache.

Equal in what? Equal to each other? If so, one doens't have to be a genius to know that that's not true; it's a big lie.

But by equal, I've said over and over and am clearly not tired of repeating it, I mean that ALL religions are of equal value and merit; ALL deserve equal respect and equal right to existence and appreciation and tolerance and so forth.

If one can't realize the above statement, it'll just have to take time. Because, in all honesty, I find this discussion as nugatory as it could get (since people are saying the same thing, giving the same claim over and over without proving it) -- especially when I've a ton of other, more important things to be doing right now than to be talking to people who believe that just because Islam is the correct religion, it means all other religions don't have equal right to exist or be appreciated or respected. --> This is the definition of "equal" that I've given in every post so far.

All newcomers are requested to read the thread before asking more questions because everyone's ssaying the same thing (i.e., equal = sameness).

[Saifullah]

Qratugai seems to be equating respect to meaning all things are equal. Just because i tolerate others, respect their right to believe in what they want (surah al kafirun) and dont insult their religion/God, does not in any way mean all religions are equal.

[Saifullah]

Islam is just a religion like any other is the title of this topic. That in itself is such a vague statement. I think you need to be more simple and less poetic...

[MeemWawMeemNoon]

Qratugai seems to be equating respect to meaning all things are equal. Just because i tolerate others, respect their right to believe in what they want (surah al kafirun) and dont insult their religion/God, does not in any way mean all religions are equal.

I agree with you. I think this is what she is doing. Well, at least by the end we will see for Qrratagai is not keeping one stance though.

[MeemWawMeemNoon]

~sighs~ Good God, we're going around in circles and going nowhere. This is a headache.

Equal in what? Equal to each other? If so, one doens't have to be a genius to know that that's not true; it's a big lie.

But by equal, I've said over and over and am clearly not tired of repeating it, I mean that ALL religions are of equal value and merit; ALL deserve equal respect and equal right to existence and appreciation and tolerance and so forth.

If one can't realize the above statement, it'll just have to take time. Because, in all honesty, I find this discussion as nugatory as it could get (since people are saying the same thing, giving the same claim over and over without proving it) -- especially when I've a ton of other, more important things to be doing right now than to be talking to people who believe that just because Islam is the correct religion, it means all other religions don't have equal right to exist or be appreciated or respected. --> This is the definition of "equal" that I've given in every post so far.

All newcomers are requested to read the thread before asking more questions because everyone's ssaying the same thing (i.e., equal = sameness).

Respect is one thing, which by the way ONLY Islam teaches towards other religions; to be equal, though, is a different issue. They are not the same.