Ali Ataie – The Word Infidel in Islam Kafir Literally Means a Farmer Who Covers Up
AI: Summary ©
The speaker discusses the importance of being careful when using the term "offensive" in the Bible. The definition of an "offensive" is not just a legal distinction, but also a physical distinction. The definition is not a personal guarantee, but rather a combination of factors that contribute to one's behavior. The speaker warns against being too optimistic or too optimistic when using "offensive" in the Bible.
AI: Summary ©
So the word in Arabic is and
literally means a farmer.
What does that have to do with farm
what does infidelity have to do with farming?
You see, the farmer takes a seed and
covers it over.
Alright. He hides it.
So the Quran describes
a true kafir,
a true
infidel or a non believer.
It says,
Do not clothe the truth with falsehood nor
distort the truth while you have knowledge of
the truth.
Right? While you have knowledge of the truth.
So someone who's a cat we have to
be very careful as Muslims when we throw
terminology around.
Right? Use the word haram, this is forbidden,
this person's a kafar, so on and so
forth.
You see that the difference between someone who's
a kafar as a legal distinction
or a state distinction in a Muslim country,
either Muslim or you're not. Right? That's in
the legal sense. But the faith sense,
that's ultimately only known by Allah
That's known by God. So many of our
theologians the dominant opinion amongst our theologians is
not so much black and white.
Right? I use Imam Khazadi again as my,
kind of, my model, as my kind of
core theologian,
who says that in order for infidelity to
be established,
a a person must have, must be
4 criteria.
He says a person must be an adult.
They must have sound intellect.
They must have sound senses,
you know, sight and hearing.
And the prophetic summons reach that person in
a good form,
and then they reject it. A prophetic summons,
either from Jesus or Moses or Mohammed, peace
be upon, all of them. Right? So for
example,
what if you were born in Nottingham
in the 4th century,
and
all you know about is well, I guess
it would be after that, because
Christianity didn't come until a little bit later.
But anyway, let's say 11th century. And all
you know about Muslims is there are infidels
who have taken the holy land, and they're
slaughtering babies in the streets of Jerusalem, and
that's all you know about Muslims.
And many Muslim theologians will say, well, the
prophetic summons, the true essence of the prophetic
message, did not reach that person in a
good form. So you cannot call people.
Right? We have to be very, very careful.
The Muslim does not have a personal guarantee
of paradise.
I've been condemned to * many times by
people of different religions, by the way. Many
I'd say, you're going to *. You know
that about me? I know for certain. You
know, burn in *. Really?
Wow. That's amazing. Judge not lest ye be
judged.
Right?
It's John.
So we don't have a personal guarantee. The
Quran, the prophet, peace be upon him,
said Whoever
witnesses to that declaration of faith will enter
paradise. It doesn't say,
Adi
from San Ramon
is going to go to Jannah. I don't
have a personal guarantee. Because when you have
personal guarantees,
then what happens? We start to act irresponsibly.
I have 2 girls. I tell one of
my girls,
if you're good, we're gonna go to Disneyland
in December.
Oh, yes.
We didn't get it. So she tries. She
strives. But if I tell the other one,
I say,
we're gonna go to Disneyland and do do
whatever you want. You have that guarantee. Go
do whatever you want. Then probably she'll feel
a little lax on her. So we don't
have a personal guarantee. So the prophet, peace
be upon him, he said, be between hope
and faith. Wear the 2 sandals of hope
and faith. Don't be so hopeful in god
that you start to delude yourself and become
judgmental.
And don't be so,
no. I'm sorry. Open faith. Hope and what's
the other word? Fear. Yeah. Fear. Open fear.
And don't be so fearful of God
that you start going into despair.
The Quran says in an imperative,
you are not allowed to despair of the
mercy of God. It is as haram. It
is as forbidden as eating pork and drinking
alcohol and committing pilferi.
To be in despair, oh, how can God
forgive me? I'm a terrible person. God forgives.
God forgives. If you make teshuva, you make
tovah, there's a beautiful happy the prophet, peace
be upon him. After one of the military
expeditions, there was, you know, there was a
battle, and this woman was running around frantic.
She had lost her infant son. Little toddler
could barely crawl around. Right? And,
and this was in front of the some
of the companions.
And then the prophets and then the woman,
she saw her son. She picked him up
and started to hug him and breastfeed him.
And the prophet said, do you see that
woman?
And they said, yes. And the prophet said,
can you imagine
that she would take her child and throw
him in a fire?
Can you imagine
her doing that? And they said, Allah, by
God, no. And the prophet said, Allah
God is more merciful to his servants than
this woman is to her son. God is
more merciful. Rahma. Right? Doctor Ijaz, he said,
These are God's attributes in the Quran. He
is Rahman and Rahim, the most merciful. The
root word here is,
which is a Hebrew word also, which means
the womb of a mother
where the fetus is enclosed.
There's a beautiful analogy here. God is more
merciful to his servants than the purest type
of love on earth, which is the love
of a mother for her son. I think
I've exhausted the times,
but again, it's not black and white. It's
not.
We're not allowed to judge. Right? But be
careful we throw these terms around. God is
the ultimate judge.