Islaamic Network wrote:
Do not forget the 'Islaamic Relationships' Seminar in Rochdale THIS SUNDAY! The FIRST of these condition is KNOWLEDGE. That is, one must have the basic and general knowledge of what is meant by the shahadah. One must understand what the shahadah is affirming and what the shahadah is denying. Allaah says in the Quraan, "So know that there is no God save Allaah, and ask forgiveness for your sin" (Muhammad : 19). Similarly, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Whoever dies knowing that there is no one worthy of worship except Allaah shall enter Paradise." (Recorded by Muslim). In fact, the shahadah itself is a testimony. When one testifies to something, one must know what it is that he is testifying concerns. Obviously, a testimony about something that one does not have any knowledge about is absolutely unacceptable. Allaah says in the Quraan," Save him who bears witness unto the truth knowingly" (al-Zukhruf : 86). Now this condition probably sounds obvious; if someone said to you, "There is no God except Allaah," and then said that what he meant by Allaah was Jesus, you would immediately tell him that this shahadah is nonsense. Yet can you imagine that there is a Muslim country in the world that until recently used to have a yearly week-long celebration to "the Gods of the Sea"! All along they call themselves Muslims and they make the shahadah numerous times a day. This clearly shows that they have no idea what the meaning of their shahadah is. Do you think that this kind of shahadah will open the doors to Paradise for them? Today, there are many Muslims who wonder why we should not accept secularism. They think that there is nothing wrong with secularism! Many of these Muslims pray five times a day and utter the shahadah repeatedly. Yet they see nothing wrong with accepting a Lawgiver other than Allaah? What kind of shahadah are these people making? Prerequisites of the Declaration of Faith {Part 2}
All of us must do our best to learn at least the basics of Islaamic beliefs, the basics of what shahadah means. In this way, Allaah willing, we will be making the correct shahadah. We will be witnessing to the truth as we are supposed to be witnesses to it.
