Who is The Creator?

Dr. Jaafar Shiekh Idris

Can It Be Matter?

A very popular question among atheists is, ‘Granted that the existence of temporal things necessitates the existence of an eternal cause, why should that cause be the God of religion? Why can’t matter be eternal and be therefore in no need of an eternal creator?’ I shall argue, on an Islamic basis but at the same time also on a rational basis, that the attribute of eternity entails other attributes, which matter does not and cannot have, and cannot, in view of this, play the role of the original and ultimate cause of temporal things. Muslim theologians say that eternity of existence logically implies everlastingness. This is true because, if something is eternal then it does not depend for its existence on anything outside itself. If this is so then it can never pass away, because only those things pass away that lose some of the external conditions on which they depend for their existence. If the ultimate cause of temporal things is eternal and everlasting, it must of necessity be self-sufficient, qayyoom and ghanee.

Can there be more than one such creator? The Quran tells us that this is impossible;
“God never had a child, nor have there been any gods beside him. [Had there been any], each of them would have appropriated to himself what he created, and some would have overcome others.”1

This Quranic argument was paraphrased by some Muslims theologians in a way somewhat like the following: The assumption that there are gods beside the one true God leads to false consequences and must therefore be false. If there is more than one god, then (a) if every detail of everything in the world was the result of the action of one of the gods, it cannot at the same time be the result of the action of another god. But if (b) some things in the world were created by some gods, and others by other gods, then each god would rule independently over what he created, which means that nothing in his world can even in principle, be influenced by anything outside it. But this contradicts the observed unity and interdependence of the world. And if that is impossible, then (c) some gods will overcome others, but if that happens then the ones who are vanquished cannot be true gods. There can, therefore, be no more than one creator.

How does this creator create? Since He is self-sufficient, He cannot be said to depend on anything outside Himself in any actions, and cannot therefore be said to produce His effects the way natural causes do. But if He is not a natural cause, He must be a volitional agent. And since intention implies knowledge, and knowledge and intention imply life, he must be a living being. Since He is an eternal and everlasting being, all His attributes must reflect this quality; thus He must be not only knowing, but all-knowing, not only powerful, but all-powerful, etc.

Since no matter in any form can answer to these attributes, and since all these attributes are implied by the two attributes of eternity and everlastingness, no form of matter can be either eternal or everlasting, and thus no matter of any form can play the role of that ultimate cause. This much of the attributes that an eternal and everlasting creator must have is enough, I suppose, to show that it cannot be matter.

But this conclusion can be further confirmed by what modern science tells us about the nature of matter.
Why Should He Be The God Of Islam?

Some might say, ‘Granted that this god is a personal and living God, and that He has the attributes which you mentioned, why should He be the God of Islam and not, say the Christian or Jewish God?’ The God of Islam is the God of all true prophets of God from Adam down to Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. But it is a basic claim of the religion with which Muhammad came that previous religions (including Christianity and Judaism) have not been kept in their pristine form which those prophets advocated, but have been tampered with and distorted. The only religion whose book has taken upon itself to be preserved from any such distortions is the religion of the last of God’s prophets, namely Muhammad (peace be upon him). This is not to say that everything in those religions is false or bad. No! There is much in them that is good and true; it is only those elements in them that contradict Islam which must be false or bad. But even if they were to be purged of everything that is not in consonance with Islam, they would still be less perfect than Islam is, especially in their conceptions of God, therefore unsuitable for being universal religions.

Having said this, let me give one example of a non-Islamic religious belief which the Quran considers to be a stupendous blasphemy against God, namely that He has children. At the time of the Prophet, some Arabs believed that the angels were the daughters of God, while some Christians believed that Jesus was the son of God, and some Jews believed that Ezra was the son of God. Just as the Quran gave arguments for the impossibility of there being any gods besides the one true God, it also gave elaborate arguments to show the impossibility of Him having a child, whether male or female. If the Creator is one and self-sufficient, then He is also unique, ahad, “Nothing is like Him.”2 But if so then, “He neither begets nor is He begotten.”3 “How can He have a child if He has no consort, and if He created everything?”4 The Quran is here saying that the claim that God has children contradicts the facts (acknowledged by those who make this claim) that He is the Creator of everything, that He is self-sufficient, and that He has no spouse. Now if He is the creator of everything, this necessarily includes the one who is claimed to be His child. But if this is created by Him, it cannot be His child; it has to be one of His creations. One does not create one’s child; one begets it. If it is insisted that the child is actually begotten and not created by God, this will entail the following false consequences:

1. The begotten child must be of the same nature as its father, in which case God will not be unique or one.
2. God will not be the creator of everything.
3. God will have to have a spouse, who must of course be of the same nature as He is, otherwise they cannot beget anything.
4. But in that case the number of beings who are of the same nature as God will be raised to three.
5. If the child is begotten then it cannot be eternal, i.e. it cannot be of the same nature as the father.
6. It must therefore be temporal; but in that case it has to have a creator. But if the God who is its father cannot at the same time be its creator, then there must be its creator, then there must be another creator besides that God the father; but in that case, this other creator will be the one true creator because it was through his power that the first one was able to beget its son. This will raise the number of gods to four.

No wonder than that the Quran said about those who claimed that Allah has a child,
“You have indeed come with something most monstrous, of which the skies almost burst, the earth split asunder, and the mountains fall down in utter ruin. All this because of their attributing a child to Allah."

Messiah

1. Islam

The Qur'an states Jesus is the Messiah,[Qur'an 3:45] and Muslims believe Jesus is alive in Heaven and will return to Earth to defeat the Dajjal, or Antichrist.[citation needed]

A hadith in Abu Dawud (Sunnan Abu Dawud 37:4310) says:

"Narrated Abu Hurayrah: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: There is no prophet between me and him, that is, Jesus (peace be upon him). He will descend (to the earth). When you see him, recognise him: a man of medium height, reddish hair, wearing two light yellow garments, looking as if drops were falling down from his head though it will not be wet. He will fight for the cause of Islam. He will break the cross, kill swine, and abolish jizyah. God will perish all religions except Islam. He will destroy the Antichrist and will live on the earth for forty years and then he will die. The Muslims will pray behind him."

Shia Muslims believe al-Mahdi will arrive first, and after him, Jesus. Jesus will proclaim that the true leader is al-Mahdi. A war, literally Jihad (Jihade Asghar) will be fought - the Dajjal (evil) against al-Mahdi and Jesus (good). This war will mark the approach of the coming of the Last Day. After Jesus slays al-Dajjāl at the Gate of Lud, Muslims believe he will marry, die, and be buried in the Masjid al Nabawi. During his life, he will have revealed that Islam is the last word of God.[citation needed]

A hadith in Sahih Bukhari (4:55:658) says:

"How will you be when the son of Mary descends amongst you and your Imam is from amongst you."

A very few scholars outside of Orthodox Islam reject all the quotes (Hadith) attributed to Muhammad that mention the second return of Jesus, the Dajjal and Imam Mahdi, believing that they have no Qur'anic basis. These scholars believe that the verb mutawwafika in verse [Qur'an 3:55] implies that God caused the bodily death of Jesus, thus (3:55) should read as "O Jesus, I terminate your life, raise you to Me." Others disagree with the implication of termination of Jesus’ life (for example Yusuf Ali’s translation reads: “O Jesus! I will take thee and raise thee to Myself”). Verses [Qur'an 4:157] imply that Jesus was not killed physically but it appeared as such in some other sense; Verse [Qur'an 19:33] implies that Jesus will die someday. The vast majority of Muslims, and the unified opinion of Orthodox Islam since Islam's coming, maintain that the bodily death of Jesus will happen after his second coming.[citation needed]

Many classical commentators such as Ibn Kathir, At-Tabari, al-Qurtubi, Suyuti, al-Undlusi (Bahr al-Muhit), Abu al-Fadl al-Alusi (Ruh al-Maani) clearly mention that verse [Qur'an 43:61] of the Qur'an refers to the descent of Jesus before the Day of Resurrection, indicating that Jesus would be the Sign that the Hour is close.

"And (Jesus) shall be a Sign (for the coming of) the Hour (of Judgment): therefore have no doubt about the (Hour)..." ([Qur'an 43:61]

Those that reject the second coming of Jesus argue that the knowledge of the Hour is only with God, and that the Hour will come suddenly. They maintain that if the second coming of Jesus were true, whenever it happens, billions of people would then be certain the Hour is about to come. The response given to this is that signs that the Last Hour is near have been foretold and given, including that of the second coming of Jesus, as signs indicating the Last Hour is near. They will not clarify when it is to come in any specific sense, and hence do not reveal it.

2. Judaism

Main articles: Jewish messianism and Jewish eschatology
See also: Judaism's view of Jesus

The concept of the messiah is neither common nor unified in the Tanakh. The term is used in the Hebrew Bible to describe Israelite priests, prophets, and kings who were anointed with oil in consecration to their respective offices. For example, Cyrus the Great, the king of Persia, is referred to as "God's anointed" (Messiah) in the Bible.

"The Hebrew word for “Messiah” is “Moshiach” The literal and proper translation of this word is “anointed,” which refers to a ritual of anointing and consecrating someone or something with oil. (I Samuel 10:1-2) It is used throughout the Jewish Bible in reference to a wide variety of individuals and objects; for example, a Jewish king (I Kings 1:39), Jewish priests (Leviticus 4:3), prophets (Isaiah 61:1), the Jewish Temple and its utensils (Exodus 40:9-11), unleavened bread (Numbers 6:15), and a non-Jewish king (Cyrus king of Persia, Isaiah 45:1)."[5]

The Tanakh contains a number (the number is debated) of prophecies concerning a future descendant of King David who will be anointed as the Jewish people's new leader (moshiach)[6].

Jews believe that Daniel (Hebrew: דָּנִיֵּאל, or Daniyyel) was a prophet and gave an indication of when the Messiah, the prince mashiyach nagiyd, would come.(Daniel 9:25-26) Daniel's prophecies refer to him as a descendant of King David who will rebuild the nation of Israel, destroy the wicked, and ultimately judge the whole world.

The Hebrew word for messiah translates to "anointed". [7] Reform Jews believe there have been many messiahs—all the anointed kings and priests, including David, Solomon, Aaron, and Saul. Saul, the first king, is designated the "Anointed of the Lord".[8]

When speaking of the Messiah of the future, modern Jews speak of two potential messiahs: Moshiach ben Yossef (Messiah son of Joseph) and Moshiach ben David (Messiah son of David)[9] The Hebrew ben can mean either son or descendant. In this sense it can also mean "in the manner of," i.e., there will be a "suffering servant" messiah in the manner of Joseph, son of Israel/Jacob, and a different messiah in the manner of King David.

A common modern rabbinic interpretation is that there is a potential messiah in every generation. The Talmud, which often uses stories to make a moral point (aggadah), tells of a highly respected rabbi who found the Messiah at the gates of Rome and asked him, "When will you finally come?" He was quite surprised when he was told, "Today." Overjoyed and full of anticipation, the man waited all day. The next day he returned, disappointed and puzzled, and asked, "You said messiah would come 'today' but he didn't come! What happened?" The Messiah replied, "Scripture says, 'Today, 'if you will but hearken to His voice.'" (Psalm 95:7)

Orthodox Judaism and Conservative Judaism believe in a unique future physical messiah who will usher in the messianic age of war before peace to the world.

Reform Judaism and Reconstructionist Judaism teach both the belief in a messiah or messiahs, or that there will be a time of peace (Messianic Era), etc. They believe such time will be the result of human efforts at tikkun olam (repair of the world) through working on social justice, not from one man alone.

"Choice is the underlying reason the Reform Movement gave up the need for and belief in a single messiah who would one day bring judgment, and perhaps salvation, to the world. The fact that God imbues us with free choice mitigates the need for a messianic figure."

Muhammad’s Biography : The Conditions of Arabia Prior to Prophecy

Arabia in that period was divided into three areas of influence. The north lived under the shadow of two great empires, the Christian Byzantium and the Zoroastrian Persia, empires in perpetual war so evenly matched that neither could achieve definitive victory over the other. In the shadows of these powers lived the Arabs of the northern region with divided and shifting allegiances.

The south was the land of the Arabian perfumes, called by the Romans ‘Arabia Felix.’ (present day Yemen and Southern Saudi Arabia) It was desirable property. The conversion of the Ethiopian ruler, the Negus, to Christianity had brought his country into alliance with Byzantium, and it was with Byzantine approval that the Ethiopians took possession of this fertile territory early in the sixth century. Before their ruin at the hands of a ruthless conqueror, however, the southerners had opened up the deserts of central Arabia to trade, introducing a measure of organization into the life of the Bedouin who served as guides for their caravans and establishing trading-posts in the oases.

If the symbol of these sedentary people was the frankincense tree, that of the arid zone was the date-palm; on one hand the luxury of perfume, on the other necessary food. No one could have regarded the Hejaz -’where no bird sings and no grass grows’ - according to a southern poet - as desirable property. The tribes of the Hejaz had never experienced either conquest or oppression; they had never been obliged to say ‘Sir’ to any man.

Poverty was their protection, but it is doubtful whether they felt poor. To feel poor one must envy the rich, and they envied no one. Their wealth was in their freedom, in their honor, in their noble ancestry, and in the pliant instrument of the only art they knew, the art of poetry. All that we would now call ‘culture’ was concentrated in this one medium. Their poetry would glorify courage and freedom, praise the friend and mock the adversary, extol the bravery of the fellow tribesmen and the beauty of women, in poems chanted at the fireside or in the infiniteness of the desert under the vast blue sky, bearing witness to the grandeur of this little human creature forever traveling across the barren spaces of the earth.

For the Bedouin the word was as powerful as the sword. When hostile tribes met for trial in battle it was usual for each side to put up its finest poet to praise the courage and nobility of his own people and heap contempt upon the ignoble foe. Such battles, in which combat between rival champions was a major feature, were more a sport of honor than warfare as we now understand the term; affairs of tumult, boasting and display, with much fewer casualties than those produced by modern warfare. They served a clear economic purpose through the distribution of booty, and for the victor to press his advantage too far would have been contrary to the concept of honor. When one side or the other acknowledged defeat the dead on both sides were counted and the victors would pay blood-money - in effect reparations - to the vanquished, so that the relative strength of the tribes was maintained in healthy balance. The contrast between this and the practices of civilized warfare is striking.

However, Mecca was, and remains, important for an altogether different reason. For here lies the Kaaba, the first House’ ever set up for humanity to worship their only God. The ancient Kaaba had long been the center of this little world. More than 1,000 years before Solomon built the temple in Jerusalem, his ancestor, Abraham, aided by Ishmael, his elder son, raised its walls on ancient foundations. A certain Qusayy, chieftain of the powerful tribe of Quraysh, had established a permanent settlement there. This was the city of Mecca (or ‘Bakka’). Close by the Kaaba ran the well of Zam Zam. Its origin, too, goes back to Abraham’s time. It was this well which saved the life of the infant Ishmael. As the Bible says:

“And God heard the voice of the boy; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her: ‘What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Arise, lift up the boy, and hold him in your hand; for I will make him a great nation. And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the boy a drink. And God was with the boy; and he grew and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.” (Genesis 21:17-20)

Or, as the Psalmist sings:

“As they pass through the dry Valley of Baca, it becomes a place of springs; the early rain fills it with pools.” (Psalms 84:6)

The circumstances of the time favored the development of Mecca as a major commercial center. The wars between Persia and Byzantium had closed the more northerly trading routes between east and west, while the influence and prosperity of southern Arabia had been destroyed by the Ethiopians. Moreover, the city’s prestige was enhanced by its role as a centre of pilgrimage, as was that of Quraysh as custodians of the Kaaba, enjoying the best of both worlds. The combination of nobility – the Arab descent from Abraham through Ishmael - with wealth and spiritual authority gave them grounds for believing that their splendor, compared with that of any other people on earth, was as the splendor of the sun compared with the twinkling of the stars.

But the distance of time from the great patriarchs and prophets as well as their isolation in the arid deserts of the peninsula had given rise to idolatry. Having faith in the intercession of lesser gods with the Supreme Being in their rites if worship, they held the belief that their deities possessed the power to carry their prayers to the Supreme God. Every region and clan, indeed every house, had a separate little ‘god’ of its own. Three hundred and sixty idols had been installed within the Kaaba and its courtyard - the house built by Abraham for the worship of the One and only God. The Arabs actually paid divine honors not merely to sculptured idols but venerated everything supernatural. They believed that the angels were daughters of God. Drunkenness and gambling were rife. Female infanticide was common where newborn girls were buried alive.

The Prophecies of Muhammad

One of the ways in which a person proves his prophethood is honesty, whether it be in regards to incidents in the past, in their everyday life, or things to come in the future. In addition to the Quran, there are many sayings of Prophet Muhammad which contain prophecies he made in his lifetime dealing with near and distant future. Some of them have come true, others await fulfillment. Hudhaifah, a disciple of Prophet Muhammad, tells us:

“The Prophet once delivered a speech in front of us wherein he mentioned everything [all the signs] that would happen till the Final Hour without leaving anything. Some of us remembered it and some forgot it. After that speech, I used to see events taking place which were referred to in that speech, but I had forgotten them before their occurrence. Then I would recognize such events as a man recognizes another man who has been absent and then sees and recognizes him.” (Saheeh Al-Bukhari)

There are at least 160 known and confirmed prophecies of Prophet Muhammad which were fulfilled in his lifetime and the first generation after him.[1] We will mention some here.

(1) Preceding the Battle of Badr, the first and decisive confrontation with pagan Meccans in the second year of migration from Mecca in 623 CE, Prophet Muhammad foretold the precise spot every pagan Meccan soldier would fall. Those who witnessed the battle saw the prophecy come true with their own eyes.[2]

(2) Prophet Muhammad prophesized the Battle of the Confederates (al-Ahzab) would be the last invasion the tribe of Quraish (the pagan Meccans) would launch against the Muslims. It was fought in the fifth year of migration, 626 CE and was the last military conflict between the two sides. All Meccans embraced Islam after a few years.[3]

(3) The Prophet informed his daughter, Fatima, that she would be the first member of his family to die after him. There are two prophecies in one: Fatima will outlive her father; Fatima will be the first member of his household to die after him. Both were fulfilled.[4]

(4) The Prophet Muhammad prophesized Jerusalem would be conquered after his death.[5] The prophecy was fulfilled when, according to Encyclopedia Britannica: “In 638 the Muslim Caliph, Umar I, entered Jerusalem.”[6]

(5) The Prophet Muhammad prophesized the conquest of Persia.[7] It was conquered by Umar’s commander, Sa’ad bin Abi Waqqas. In the words of Encyclopedia Britannica:

“…raids into Sasanian territory were quickly taken up by Muhammad’s Caliphs, or deputies, at Medina - Abu Bakr and Umar ibn al-Khattab… an Arab victory at Al-Qadisiyyah in 636/637 was followed by the sack of the Sasanian winter capital at Ctesiphon on the Tigris. The Battle of Nahavand in 642 completed the Sasanids’ vanquishment.”[8]

(6) The Prophet Muhammad prophesized the conquest of Egypt.[9] In the words of Encyclopedia Britannica:

“Amr… undertook the invasion in 639 with a small army of some 4,000 men (later reinforced). With what seems astonishing speed the Byzantine forces were routed and had withdrawn from Egypt by 642… Various explanations have been given for the speed with which the conquest was achieved.”[10]

(7) The Prophet foretold confrontation with the Turks.[11] The first conflict took place in the caliphate of Umar in 22 AH.[12]

(8) The Prophet foretold the first maritime battle to be undertaken by Muslims would be witnessed by Umm Haram, the first woman to participate in a naval expedition. He also prophesied the first assault on Constantinople.[13]

The first maritime battle in Muslim history was in 28 AH in the rule of Mu’awiya. It was witnessed by Umm Haram as foretold by Prophet Muhammad, and Yazid ibn Mu’awiya led the first attack on Constantinople in 52 AH.[14]

(9) The prophecy that Rome, Persia, and Yemen will be conquered was made during the Battle of Confederates in 626 CE,[15] under extreme circumstances, as is described by the Quran:

“[Remember] when they came at you from above you and from below you, and when eyes shifted [in fear], and hearts reached the throats and you assumed about God [various] assumptions. There, the believers were tested and shaken with a severe shaking. And [remember] when the hypocrites and those in whose hearts is disease said, ‘God and His Messenger did not promise us except delusion.’” (Quran 33:10-12)

(10) Prophet Muhammad prophesized an imposter claiming to speak in the name of God would be killed at the hands of a righteous man in Muhammad’s lifetime.[16] Al-Aswad al-Ansi, an imposter prophet in Yemen, was killed in the Prophet’s lifetime by Fayruz al-Daylami.[17]

There are at least an additional 28 prophecies pertaining to the end times which are awaiting fulfillment.

Indeed these well-documented prophecies are clear proofs of the Prophethood of Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him. There is no possible way that the Prophet could have knowledge of these incidents except if it were inspired by God Himself, all in order to further prove the authenticity of the Muhammad, that he was not an imposter, but rather a Prophet raised by God to deliver humanity from Hellfire.

http://www.islamreligion.com/articles/379/

My Motto

I have motto like this,”Do The Best. What can you can do best?”. That is my motto. I try to do something as good as possible, and don’t ever do the something only half. That is not you. I am sure with I do the best thing, I will get the satisfied result. Although that is the bad result according by other people, but that’s my result my selft. When I lose with my friend. I am not hopeless, but of course I feel disappointed with my self. From there I try to seek my fault.

Why I can lose with my friend. And when I find the solution I will try again to compete with my friend. When I lose again I will try again, again, and again. Not all loosing is bad for us. Because be a looser will make the motivation for. And this is a good chance. This is a choosing for me, I want to be looser forever or I will be the winner. If I want be winner, so I must do the best thing, and don’t forget. Trying isn’t all. We must always remember to God. And pray to Him so that I am given the best by Him. It’s like in surat al-fatihah ayat 6 : show to us the straight way. And after i try as good as possible, and pray to God. Finally i give all the result to God. If I success, I will give thanks to Him and all of people that I know, and if i fail, I won’t sad. Maybe God most know what’s the best for me. And don’t be sad, always try to do the best…… and it’s like Mr. Obama said,”Yes, We Can!!”. Thank you……….