They declared me a Kafir(disbeliever)

This is dedicated to those sheiks, scholars, imams and blind followers that considers me a kafir(disbeliever).
  
It is narrated that the Prophet Mohammed pbuh said:

"who calls another muslim a "kafir" then the sayer is the one who is "kafir" 
من كفر مسلما فقد كفر


"Whoever says to his brother: 'O disbeliever,' it becomes true of one of the two." It is narrated in إِذَا كَفَّرَ الرَّجُلُ أَخَاهُ فَقَد بَاءَ بِهَا أَحَدُهُمَا
al-Bukhari and Muslim. 

Why do mere humans have the audacity to declare such a thing upon me. Well its no secret I am outspoken about questions/doubts pertaining to "some" hadith(prophetic narrations).

According to these individuals to be Muslim you need to believe in Allah swt but put his words aside and only put weight into hadith attributed to Prophet Mohammed pbuh, following them blindly without any questioning at all. 

My response to this type of ideology I will derive from the Holy Quran 

"...O people of the Book, let us come to a common understanding between us and between you; that 1) we serve none except God, and 2) that we do not set up anything with Him, and 3) that none of us takes each other as patrons besides God...." (Qur'an 3:64)

So as a Muslim I choose to not set up anything with Allah swt, but they still insist I must associate the hadith with Allah swt.

"It is not righteousness that you turn your faces towards east or west;but it is righteousness to believe in Allah and the Last Day, and the Angels,the Book and the Messengers." (Qur'an 2:177)

Insha Allah I believe wholeheartedly in the above commandments which Allah swt considers as righteous belief.

The shahada/declaration of faith one proclaims is " I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and Mohammed is his messenger." After one declares his Islam=submission to Allah swt alone and confirms belief in the messenger this new "Muslim" then has to perform the five pillars of Islam to for fill his/hers Islamic obligations. The pillars of Islam are as follows

1) Shahada: Testifying to God's One-ness

 2) Salat: Prayer.

 3) Zakat: Giving charity.

4) Sawm: Fast

 5) Hajj: Pilgrimage.

Once an individual makes the pillars apart of their every day life they are to be considered as Muslims 100%. If one does not commit to these pillars. We can remind those failing in this area in the most POLITE way that until they reestablish these mandatory(fard) practices simultaneously that they take the risk of dying a non Muslim.  

You see I have never claimed to reject the sunnah or even reject hadith in its entirety. But there are some clear contradictions that I felt are worthy of questioning and which caused me to have some doubts.

Allah swt says :

Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? If it had been from any other than Allah , they would have found within it much contradiction.( Qu'ran 4:82)

 The Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said: “Leave that which makes you doubt for that which does not make you doubt. Verily, truth is tranquillity and falsehood is doubt.”

[Sunan al-Tirmidhi and Sunan al-Nasaai – Hadith Sahih]

From this verse we know that the opposite is true, when something has errors and contradictions then we can say with certainty, it is not from Allah swt. For example although the Bible may contain partial truths we can not give it Allah swt divinity or deny its errors and contradictions. Similarly if the Bible had not contained errors and contradictions, it would have remained the unadulterated word of Allah swt.

 In the Holy Quran Allah swt documented punishment for conviction of adultery;

The adulterer and the adulteress, scourge ye each one of them (with) a hundred stripes. And let not pity for the twain withhold you from obedience to Allah, if ye believe in Allah and the Last Day. And let a party of believers witness their punishment. (Qu'ran 2:42)

The hadith on the other hand claims;

Volume 8, Book 82, Number 816:
Narrated Ibn 'Abbas:
'Umar said, "I am afraid that after a long time has passed, people may say, "We do not find the Verses of the Rajam (stoning to death) in the Holy Book," and consequently they may go astray by leaving an obligation that Allah has revealed. Lo! I confirm that the penalty of Rajam be inflicted on him who commits illegal sexual intercourse, if he is already married and the crime is proved by witnesses or pregnancy or confession." Sufyan added, "I have memorized this narration in this way." 'Umar added, "Surely Allah's Apostle carried out the penalty of Rajam, and so did we after him." 

The hadith above not only mandates an additional ruling to Allah swt punishment for adultery. It also insinuates that there is a missing verse in the Quran which now also implicates that Allah swt was insufficient in carrying out his promise to Muslims in the preservation and protection of the Holy Quran stugfur Allah. "Verily, We , it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'an) and surely, We will guard it (from corruption)." (Qur'an 15:9)  

I do not want to hear all the explanations and conjecture attempting to reconcile these severe contradictions because the simple answer is if Allah swt wanted stoning to death as punishment for adultery he would have preserved it in his book."And the word of your Lord has been completed with truth and justice; there is no changing His words. He is the Hearer, the Knower." (Qu'ran 6:115)

These are some among many other hadiths which I as a believer find hard to over look.  And I find it more difficult to believe that if someone asked such questions why any sincere sheik, imam, scholar or opposing Muslim could not attempt to answer without resorting to slandering us as an infidels.

 Why, is it always those that are quick to fire the word  kafir against those questioning  authenticity/reliability of a certain hadith, to be very neglectful when it comes to the Holy Quran? Are they trying to tell me that hadith is a holy revelation of Allah swt? Or do they believe hadith supersede the Quran?

If one were to accept their creed as being the true path to Allah swt. One is forced to depend upon hadith collectors(humans) to have not made a single mistake. Bukhari whom was among the first that collected hadith from all over the world and collected approximately 700,000 narrations 200 years after the death of the Prophet Mohammed pbuh. 

If we today were to use technology to simply book keep so many documents even if we had an army of dedicated workers and the best software to collate them, for certain errors would still have been found and made. Now the subject of filtering them perfectly is another daunting task for a single human to undertake. We would again have to put our entire faith and rest it in the collectors hands which in its self is the opposite to what it means to be Muslims. As Muslims we should only rely upon Allah swt alone.

“Depend upon Allah, if you are indeed believers.”Al-Quran 5:23

“The believers are o­nly those who when Allah is mentioned, their hearts shudder with fear.”Al-Quran 8:2

“O Prophet! Sufficient for you is Allah and [for] those who follow you among the believers.”Al-Quran 8:64

“And whosoever depends upon Allah, then He is sufficient for him.”Al-Quran 65:3

- See more at: http://www.iisna.com/articles/tawheed/depend-upon-allah-if-you-are-indeed-believers/#sthash.7Uyxw12y.dpuf

Allah swt says:
“And He provides for him from (sources) he never could imagine. And if any one puts his trust in Allah, sufficient is (Allah) for him. For Allah will surely accomplish his purpose: verily, for all things has Allah appointed a due proportion.”[65:3]

“Depend upon Allah, if you are indeed believers.”Al-Quran 5:23 - See more at: http://www.iisna.com/articles/tawheed/depend-upon-allah-if-you-are-indeed-believers/#sthash.7Uyxw12y.dpuf

“Depend upon Allah, if you are indeed believers.”Al-Quran 5:23 - See more at: http://www.iisna.com/articles/tawheed/depend-upon-allah-if-you-are-indeed-believers/#sthash.7Uyxw12y.dpuf

“Depend upon Allah, if you are indeed believers.”Al-Quran 5:23 - See more at: http://www.iisna.com/articles/tawheed/depend-upon-allah-if-you-are-indeed-believers/#sthash.7Uyxw12y.dpuf

“Depend upon Allah, if you are indeed believers.”Al-Quran 5:23

“The believers are o­nly those who when Allah is mentioned, their hearts shudder with fear.”Al-Quran 8:2

“O Prophet! Sufficient for you is Allah and [for] those who follow you among the believers.”Al-Quran 8:64

“And whosoever depends upon Allah, then He is sufficient for him.”Al-Quran 65:3

- See more at: http://www.iisna.com/articles/tawheed/depend-upon-allah-if-you-are-indeed-believers/#sthash.7Uyxw12y.dpuf

Another thing they call me is a "Quranist". This is among the most disturbing label given to me even more so then the term kafir. This term is thrown in an derogatory way, as they attempt to belittle not only those that uphold the Quran with a strong hand but they have used the name of Allah swt's Holy BOOK to degenerate others with it. How dare they even try to dishonor Allah swt book in such a demeaning way. It is so outrageous it seriously feels like they are throwing the Quran at my head and saying here have your Quran your nothing but a filthy kafir.

"Shall I seek OTHER THAN GOD as a source of law, when He has revealed THIS BOOK FULLY DETAILED? ....The word of your Lord is COMPLETE, in truth and justice. Nothing shall abrogate His words; He is the hearer, the omniscient. Yet, if you obey the majority of people, they will take you away from the path of God. That is because they follow CONJECTURE, and they fail to think." (Quran6:114-116)

While they charge me for doubting the works of man and I charge them back with doubting the words of the Glorious Quran. Since they put so much president towards the hadith I wanted to bring to their attention this hadith which contrast with the above verse 6:114-116 so they can begin to at least practice what they preach.

He said: Another book next to the book of Allah? We said: It is what we hear from you. He said: Then write the book of Allah, uphold the book of Allah, no other books but the book of Allah, uphold the book of Allah." (Musnad Ahmad, Number 10611)

Conclusion

100% CLEAR PROOF NIQAB IS NOT FROM ISLAM AND IS NOT TO REPRESENT MUSLIM WOMEN

The niqab a new pillar in Islam.

Only some consider it as being a fard (Farḍ (Arabic: فرض‎) or farīḍah (فريضة) is an Islamic term which denotes a religious duty commanded by Allah swt (God). While the majority of scholars consider it a wajib (واجب) which still means obligatory). These terms being applied to niqab sets the niqab up as the highest of standards in which one should aspire to reach if they were trying to attain the acceptance and getting closer to Allah swt. 

Not only do these implications stem far from the truth it also leaves the vast majority of Muslim women that choose not to cover the face as being spiritually or religiously incompetent and hence are committing sin by disclosing their face. 

When one commits minor sins (usually non fard) this does not necessarily mean they have fallen out of being a Muslim (apostasy). But when anyone claims a commandment is ordained by Allah swt as being a fard. Then not practicing in it would technically speaking take you out of the fold of Islam. In so many words we the non niqabis have yet reached the higher standards of what it means to be real Muslims. Some niqabis may argue that this is never their intention while this maybe true in some cases but this can only mean that the niqabis them self do not understand what they do. Because if they were sincere and wanted to genuinely please Allah swt any practice they "choose" to do should not only benefit Muslims as a whole but be a benefit the rest of mankind. For example: Paying zakat(charity a fard) which in turn works towards relieving poverty throughout the world.

Lets get back to is it a fard or even wajib? As we have established above is that for something to be a fard or even wajib it would have to be mandated directly by Allah swt through his revelations in the Holy Quran.

Surah (verse) An Nisa 33:59

  Muhsin Khan

O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (veils) all over their bodies (i.e.screen themselves completely except the eyes or one eye to see the way). That will be better, that they should be known (as free respectable women) so as not to be annoyed. And Allah is Ever OftForgiving, Most Merciful. 

The translation from Muhsin Khan does more then translate words from the verse. He inserts in brackets his own commentary which misleads the reader into thinking that the words exists in the actual Arabic quranic text. Not only does he interpolate that the verse translates to cover either one eye or both eyes. He also mistranslates the word jalabib(outer garments or cloaks) and translates it instead as veils to imply it as being a head cover.

 The word head cover is never referred to as Jalabib or quiet interesting enough is never referred to as hijab(barrier) in the Holy Quran. The term which is used throughout the Quran which defines a head cover is khimar (الخمار) This is proof that both article of clothing are distinct from each other. One covering the hair/head and the other covering the body(lower part of the kneck) 

For any stern believer in Islam this would be considered an outrage that any human on the face of the planet has attempted to blatantly change or insert different words into Allah swt revelations. Its nothing short of blasphemous. But in saying this the reader is also responsible to verify any claims, translations or propagation of any sort when it comes to the commandments of Allah swt.

Surah Al-Isra` 17:36

You shall not accept any information, unless you verify it for yourself. I have given you the hearing, the eyesight, and the brain, and you are responsible for using them.

Lets investigate another verse which is commonly sited as support for niqab. 

Surah Al Ahzab 33:53-54    

Sahih International 

O you who have believed, do not enter the houses of the Prophet except when you are permitted for a meal, without awaiting its readiness. But when you are invited, then enter; and when you have eaten, disperse without seeking to remain for conversation. Indeed, that [behavior] was troubling the Prophet, and he is shy of [dismissing] you. But Allah is not shy of the truth. And when you ask [his wives] for something, ask them from behind a partition. That is purer for your hearts and their hearts. And it is not [conceivable or lawful] for you to harm the Messenger of Allah or to marry his wives after him, ever. Indeed, that would be in the sight of Allah an enormity.

The presumption that is often made from the above verse is that the prophet's wives need to cover their faces. It is additionally considering that they are examples for regular Muslim women, all believing women should also cover their faces / wear niqab.

It is necessary to set up some very apparent factors regarding the verse which an individual hearing those that want to promote niqab fail to see. Where exactly does it inform the prophet's spouses to cover their faces?

1) In the above verse, no where is a face veil discussed - it claims - "When you (i.e. the believing men) ask his spouses for something, do so from behind a barrier".

2) The verse directed to the believing men, and not the Prophet's partners i.e. "You who believe ..." (provided the context it is dealing with men).

Consequently, it commands believing men to ask (the prophet's wives) from behind a barrier.

Just how did this materialise to imply a niqab for the Prophets wives and believing women?  For argument's sake lets consider the claims that it is in fact a niqab being described, who is commanded to wear it? Because the verse reads "When you (i.e. the believing men) ask for something, doing this from behind an barrier" addressing the believing men, for that reason, then it is males who should put on niqab as opposed to women having to wear it! 

Further more I find it odd that Islam came to not only elevate the status of women but also to lift the Judeo-Christian concept which blames Eve for Adams sin. So how is the niqab representative of Islamic fundamental principal that no one shares the burden of other people's sins. 

 Surah 1.164

Say: "Am I, then, to seek after someone other than God as Lord when He is the Lord of everything?" Every soul earns only to its own account; and no soul, as bearer of burden, bears and is made to bear the burden of another. Then, to your Lord is the return of all of you, and He will then make you understand (the truth) concerning all that on which you have differed.

Another glaring opponent of niqab is Sitna Mariam her self. The mother of Yeshua(aka Jesus). Was the most pious women to have walked the earth. There are no historical accounts of her ever covering her face. Does this mean she displeased Allah swt by not doing what is fard or wajib? or have niqabis exceeded her in religion and piety?

In saying all this if niqab never came from Allah swt direct commandments, and the mother of all believers never wore such garment then where did it come from? 

Upon digging up lots of information I found that the niqab originated from the ancient Greeks and it was a common practice of those whom lived in the time of Alexandra the not so great who consider him self some what of an earthly God stugfur Allah. Not only are you wearing a garment that is not found anywhere in Islam your emulating mushrekeen (polytheist) that our entire doctrine warns us about repeatedly. 

Also during my research I stumbled across information that some Jews had also adopted this paganistic custom, as the true Jewish adherents of the Torah out casted them and labeled them as "Epikoros" ( which denotes one who denies that God communicates with humans through prophecy, or one who denies the prophecy of Moses, or one who denies God's knowledge of the affairs of humans)   

Epikoros is the Hebrew name of the Greek philosopher  Epicurus, who is also a pagan but goes even further then believing in other Gods but challenges Allah swt beneficence and omnipotent characteristics. 

He quotes ;

Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able?
Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing?
Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing?
Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing?
Then why call him God?

Now the commonly used response niqabis use to support their decision in wearing niqab is that they wish to get closer to Allah swt. How will Allah swt want you closer to him when your looking more like the enemies of Allah swt emulating their customs and  less like momeneen (believers).  To permit the celebration of halloween would be conflict to Islamic teaching so why on earth have we Muslims allowed a paganistic custom and tradition to be the representation of our deen?

Above is a statue from the Ancient Greeks.

I am no scholar but i have some good things to say.

Every time I talk about Islam I am flooded with adversity in such a way. Thrown at me is "Don't speak until you wear the hijab (head cover)" " What qualifications do you have" "Where do you get your Islam" "Which scholars teach you Islam""What rights do you have to talk about Islam""We don't respect women that don't wear hijab" These are some of the more polite responses I get when I attempt to spread the knowledge I gained from  studying the fundamentals of Islam.

It is true, I hold no diploma, no bachelor and no degree in Islamic studies. But does this really mean i am unqualified to discuss important relevant contemporary topics about Islam? 

Since I was 15 years old I have been studying Islam. I am now 35 years of age. That's 20 years of hard long hours of work and so I ask, is it really fair to dismiss me because I did not pay my way towards attaining accreditation? Or simply because I do not cover my hair?

In general I have never been a fan of institutionalised confined educational facilities. For me personally at times I found classrooms to have restricted my thoughts and imagination.  And I do not believe that board regconised certification is the sole precursor in which determines ones ability towards subject comprehension or skill . It would be like saying all hairdressers are brilliant at what they do because they hold a national vocational qualification. Many of us women can attest to this is just not the case. How many hairdressers have cut our hair too short, or dyed it the wrong colour, or styled it badly. This simple example can give an idea of what I am trying to say.

Of course without a recgonised qualification it would be difficult or virtually impossible to attain a career in what ever course one wishes to take. But what if like me I did not wish to be employed or paid for things I love doing and very passionate about. I do how ever have vested interest in my interests of studying Islam and talking about valuable aspects of Islam. My main intention is a sincere attempt to understanding what Allah swt wanted from his servants and to share things I have learned along the way. I do not want to be considered a scholar, I do not seek financial gain and I do not seek peoples approval or acceptance. This is proven that many of my opinions are in conflict with mainstream muslims. If I was after attention or acceptance then I would just go with the flow and follow the heard this is the easy way. But that's not how Allah swt created me so its unlikely that I change. 

As I grow and as my understanding evolves my greatest desired outcome would be if I helped anyone understand the beauty and simplicity of Islam. Lets face it as an Ummah collectively we are doing something or somethings wrong or how else could we be in such a humiliated state?

Do I really need to be a scholar or appointed by any kind of man made rulership in order to have my say? Again I do not believe this is the case. Allah swt did not choose from scholars, leaders, rulers etc to be messengers of the day. 

Lets take our beloved Prophet Mohammad PBUH for example. It is historical fact that he was illiterate. Please do not  think I am saying that I am a messenger may God forbid. But from this we can learn a lesson that Allah swt does not judge people by social status or certification/qualifications,  earned from social institutions. Rather by their intentions and desire to do good in the world. So why would we not do the same?

Our Prophet Mohammad PBUH, was a women liberator, child protector, tree huger, animal lover, war hater, justice advocator the list can go on and on. This is why Allah swt loved him to the point of granting him protection and prophet hood. If our purpose as Muslims is to worship Allah swt and gain his approval and love then we must attempt to emulate the Prophet PBUH in this road that he has paved. 

Some scholars are insisting that if we grow beards, if we cover our face, if we listen to blindly to what they have to say that this is the way to emulate the prophets and gain closeness to Allah swt. But if it were true then we would have not been so unsuccessful as an Ummah as we are today.