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Stepping into a new world
Leaving madrasah was something I was reluctant to do, but it has certainly taught me a lot. Alhamdulillah.
For one thing, now it has truly dawned on me that we Muslims have the most important responsibility of explaining to others accurately about our faith; what we believe in and what we practice. Now it's not about answering questions by scribbling answers on pieces of paper - it's about crafting answers to spontaneous questions (that come out of nowhere!) which might sound simple, but after giving thought to it, leaves you speechless for awhile.
Nowadays I interact more with non-Muslims, so sometimes when I engage in conversations with them, they ask me questions regarding Islam. Why must you wear the 'tudung'? Why do you pray five times a day? Is that truly neccessary? They ask all these open-ended questions which demand explanations that need to be 15 minutes long before they are satisfied. It would be so easy if I could just go: "Allah kan dah berfirman......" But this is not my madrasah, my comfort zone; and I'm not speaking to tudung-clad (or songkok-clad for that matter) individuals.
I can choose to make this sound like a simple task if I want to - but the fact is, it's quite a difficult situation to be in. Some of them pose questions out of sheer curiosity, others ask because they seem to have a genuine interest in the religion, but the worst part is that there are some who throw questions in order to make Islam sound like a religion which oppresses mankind. [ =( ]
Yes - we pride of Singapore's multi-religious society, but is it permissible for us to do so when we ourselves don't even have a deep understanding of our own religion? Without that, we fail to become good ambassadors of Islam, who should have the ability to clear all the misconceptions regarding this beautiful religion of ours. To be honest... I myself feel that I am lacking in many ways, as a Muslim.
We often hear people say: "If we hold on to the Quraan and Sunnah, our Ummah will triumph!". Indeed, that is so true. But unfortunately, it is easier said than done. I'm already saddened by the thought. The knowledge regarding our religion is infinite... imagine - the Quraan itself is already slightly more than 600 pages, and the sahabah narrated thousands of hadiths from the Prophet s.a.w. which explain to us Allah's words. The ulama' themselves also have added their own elaborations on each issue. I'm sure that there are still many many things hitherto unknown to us. Yet we're not even able to practise the little knowledge that we have. [ =( ]
But
InsyaAllah we will try our best. To truly understand Islam, and to do whatever that Allah has ordered us to do. May He accept our ibadah, and bestow us with all His blessings. Amin. =)
Leaving madrasah was something I was reluctant to do, but it has certainly taught me a lot. Alhamdulillah.
For one thing, now it has truly dawned on me that we Muslims have the most important responsibility of explaining to others accurately about our faith; what we believe in and what we practice. Now it's not about answering questions by scribbling answers on pieces of paper - it's about crafting answers to spontaneous questions (that come out of nowhere!) which might sound simple, but after giving thought to it, leaves you speechless for awhile.
Nowadays I interact more with non-Muslims, so sometimes when I engage in conversations with them, they ask me questions regarding Islam. Why must you wear the 'tudung'? Why do you pray five times a day? Is that truly neccessary? They ask all these open-ended questions which demand explanations that need to be 15 minutes long before they are satisfied. It would be so easy if I could just go: "Allah kan dah berfirman......" But this is not my madrasah, my comfort zone; and I'm not speaking to tudung-clad (or songkok-clad for that matter) individuals.
I can choose to make this sound like a simple task if I want to - but the fact is, it's quite a difficult situation to be in. Some of them pose questions out of sheer curiosity, others ask because they seem to have a genuine interest in the religion, but the worst part is that there are some who throw questions in order to make Islam sound like a religion which oppresses mankind. [ =( ]
Yes - we pride of Singapore's multi-religious society, but is it permissible for us to do so when we ourselves don't even have a deep understanding of our own religion? Without that, we fail to become good ambassadors of Islam, who should have the ability to clear all the misconceptions regarding this beautiful religion of ours. To be honest... I myself feel that I am lacking in many ways, as a Muslim.
We often hear people say: "If we hold on to the Quraan and Sunnah, our Ummah will triumph!". Indeed, that is so true. But unfortunately, it is easier said than done. I'm already saddened by the thought. The knowledge regarding our religion is infinite... imagine - the Quraan itself is already slightly more than 600 pages, and the sahabah narrated thousands of hadiths from the Prophet s.a.w. which explain to us Allah's words. The ulama' themselves also have added their own elaborations on each issue. I'm sure that there are still many many things hitherto unknown to us. Yet we're not even able to practise the little knowledge that we have. [ =( ]
But
InsyaAllah we will try our best. To truly understand Islam, and to do whatever that Allah has ordered us to do. May He accept our ibadah, and bestow us with all His blessings. Amin. =)
