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A Religion of Logic

A Religion of Logic:

Islam

Eman M AL hajji

Academic Writing and Grammar Usage 601

Professor Nan Clarke

July 18, 2014

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A Religion of Logic

In the kingdom of Babylon, it was extraordinary that Abraham was not burned after being

thrown into a huge fire. It was also supernatural that the sea through which Moses and his

companions passed safely was divided into two, forming huge walls of water. By the power of

Moses, the walls later descended on Pharaoh and his soldiers.Another great example was Jesus

when he cured the blind and the leper and gave life to the dead. Likewise, Mohammed split the

moon into two halves by a gesture of his index finger. Many believers, on the one hand, view

these miracles as historical events with which God has supported and honored His messengers to

justify and convey their messages throughout history. On the other hand, some people argue that

the miracles of these claimers are nothing but magic to deceive people to be followers. They

assert that attracting others by using supernatural incidents is far from critical thinking.

Therefore, they claim that religions are based on emotions and far from logical. They add that

even after convincing some, religions usually find illogical ways to explain phenomena.

However, Islam is a religion of logic because of the way that it justifies its principles, promotes

knowledge and dimensions its rules with nature of human beings.

One way of determining whether or not Islam is logical is through analyzing the

approaches of justifying its beliefs. The primary principle in Islam is There is no god but God,

which means that oneness is Gods unconditionally critical and indispensable attribute. This

belief can be justified in unlimited ways, two of which are the echo of nature and the philosophy

of causes. One sensible approach is contemplating the astonishing nature. The neat complexity of

human body is a case in point illustrating the necessity of one creator. One of the most important

systems in human body is the nervous system, which controls other body systems such as the

digestive system and the immune system and regulates involuntary action such as heart beat and

breathing. Due to the commands of one leader, human body functions very competently.
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Scientifically speaking, a system can be neither accidental nor feasible with two commanders. If

this small body needs one leader, it is more appropriate to accept as true that the huge well-

organized world needs one creator. Getting deeper into knowledge makes people more aware of

what they cannot see and how they are connected with all their surroundings. The strong link

between humanity and the world unifies them to be a mirror for a bigger value, oneness of God.

A breeze blows past as a result of the waves of a beautiful beach; the leaves in the trees start

dancing. All of this is a reaction to shifts in energy. This natural scene reflects the unity of life,

which teaches people that there must be one creator. Humans can seek the truth of one God by

understanding the beauty of the natural worlds unseen order.

Another way of justifying the existence of one God is proving the impossibility of never-

ending sequences of caused causes. Looking for causes is a natural human behavior. The first

questions that come to ones mind are why am I here, and who brought me to this world?

Nowadays, in the age of modern technology, scientists are spending an enormous amount of

time, money and effort to discover the causes of natural spectacular events. They have been

arguing whether there is a first cause that commenced the world. It is irrational to say infinite

because it conflicts with what has been scientifically proven as the beginning of the world. Thus,

people should admit the fact that there is an all-powerful and sagacious being who has created

everything in the nature, a distinctive indication of His existence. Thus, with a conscious and

intrusive mind, creatures can be seen as a definite proof of Gods existence ( Beheshti &

Bahonar, 2014).

The rationality of Islam can be clearly presented by its way of promoting knowledge and

scholars. Seeking knowledge is highly appreciated in Islam. Read was the first word brought

down by God. In fact, seeking knowledge is considered to be one respected way of seeking God.
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The Quran, the holy book in Islam, also drives believers attention to think about their

surroundings by the names of the verses. One verses name is The Cow; another one is called

The Iron. This motivates believers to take a deep moment of thinking and to reflect on

themselves.

It is worthwhile to note that many inventions of our time come from studies that were

conducted by Muslim scientists, encouraged to pursue knowledge by any means. One Muslim

scientist named Jabir ibn Haiyan discovered highly significant acids such as sulphuric, nitric, and

nitromurtic, while AL-Razi set up a modern laboratory, designing and using more than twenty

instruments such as the crucible and still. Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi (780-850)

introduced the early stages of algebra, which was developed by many Muslims following him

into a form people still use today. In a darkened room, Hassan Ibn al-Haytham (965-1039)

perceived light coming through a small hole in the window shutters producing an inverted image

on the opposite wall. This early pinhole camera has led to the camera people know today. As

well, Ibn Sina, known as Avicenna, wrote a book called The Canon of Medicine, which

significantly contributed to the development of medicine. De poure, an European physician,

affirms, Medicine was absent until Hippocrates created it, dead until Galen revived it, dispersed

until Al-Razi collected it, and deficient until Avicenna completed it(n.d). Al-jaziri is another

brilliant scientist who was, in early 13th century, the first person to use a crank, which transmits

rotating motion into liner motion. The devices he invented were able to raise a huge amount of

water without anyone lifting a finger (Al-Hssni, Woodcok, & Saoud, 2007). All of these great

scientists are fruits of what Islam has cultivated. As Al-Hayani concludes in her artic, Islam

and Science: Contradiction or Concordance, Islam is a dynamic religion; It engages the

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intellect to seek knowledge that could deepen reverence and praise through an understanding of

Gods creation (2005, p. 575).

The rationality of Islam can also be seen through its rules. Islam as a complete package

consists of three aspects: divine laws, ethics and moral characters, and beliefs. Each one reflects

the other two facets. One Quranic concept points out that any deed in Islam is based on

advantages and disadvantages. Accordingly, any forbidden act in Islam points to critically

harmful impacts on human lives. Usury, for instance, is prohibited in Islam because it is

considered a gigantic trick used for economic exploitation. Everything in Islam follows judicious

reasons even if people cannot see it at the moment. God has never arbitrarily commanded people

to do something. This linking, indeed, is what makes Islam a unique religion designed to be

suitable for human nature.

Gender roles and relationships create a healthy structure of society. The differences

between men and women are respected. Women excel on some areas such as language and multi-

demand tasks while men excel on other areas such as spatial tasks. With a more advanced skill of

communication, women are expected to raise their children in an appropriate and healthy

atmosphere, cultivating the high values of Islam in their hearts. Because of a higher aptitude of

physical strengths, men are responsible to go to work and offer a good life for their families

including their wives (Zafar, 2014). Freedom and quality are also valued in Islam, as Ali ibn Abi

Talab, one of the leaders coming after the Prophet Mohammed, states, Do not be a slave of

others because Allah has created you free (n.d).

The practice of Islam has also notable constructive impacts on the economy. Zakat, a

charge on the belongings of the well-off people for distribution to the society's poor people, sets

up an appropriate relationship between capitalism and socialism. Generally speaking, capitalism

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is defined as an economic system in which the major revenues of production are privately

owned and operated, whereas socialism refers to state possession of common property. Based on

Islamic laws, the monetary benefits should neither be dominated by a particular class or mingled

only among the affluent people nor be totally under the control of the government, which, in

most cases destroys peoples creativity coming from professional competitions by limiting their

human rights of ownership. It seems that the Islamic economic system follows what is called

communism, which many believe to be the ideal economic system.

Proven by three points: the method of justifying the belief, the inspiration of seeking

knowledge and the invention of early Muslim scholars, and the reflection of the ecological rules,

the answer to the controversial question, whether Islam is a cogent religion, is unblemished.

Some still oppose that by questioning why todays Muslims have the most problems. They argue

that in the Muslim world, there is no sign for such a logical peaceful religion. They support their

point by saying that the disturbing fights within Muslim denominations, killing each other

without mercy, and the poor educational system indicate that this religion is impractical. The

reason why the ideal Islamic community does not exist today is basically because these Muslim

countries have been ignoring Islamic laws, which caused them to lose their history and their

luminosity and to perpetuate a disastrous situation.

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References
Al-Hayani, F. A. (2005). Islam and Science: Contradiction or Concordance. the Joint Publication
Board of Zygon, 575.

Al-Hssni, S. T., Woodcok, E., & Saoud, R. (2007). 1001 Inventons Muslim Heritage in Our
World. Manchester: The foundtion for Science, Technology and Civilisation.

Beheshti, S. H., & Bahonar, M. J. (2014). Philosophy Of Islam. Karachi: Islamic Seminary
Publications.

Zafar, H. (2014). Demystifying Islam : tackling the tough questions. Pennsylvania: Rowman &
Littlefield Publishers.