Salaam Armbandk.

With your appreciation of God and our relationship with Him, with your understanding of the message of Jesus and Muhammad (i.e. Qur?an) you are probably better off in terms of faith and understanding than many people in the mainstream ?Islam?. The rituals of the ?Muslims? which includes, daily salaat rituals and Ramadan fasting, ?minimum? jakaat standards and recommendation for visit and hujj of Mecca, sacrifice of domestic animals, prohibition on pork, intoxication, gambling and divination ? are all prescribed so that the community can have a standard ?operating procedure? on how to rehears / recall / remember Allah / God in everyday life. This is not a ?mandatory? framework which God demands from us. In other words these are all means to an end not the end in itself. The end goal for being a ?muslim ? is to have faith in God, to have faith in the last day and to act righteously.

If you are convinced that Qur?an is the word of God, it makes all the sense that you give the Islamic rituals a try ? because at least the legacy of these rituals stretch back to the messenger who brought the message of Qur?an. And as a practicing Muslim I can share with you my assessment that indeed these rituals are helpful (if performed sincerely). In that case a ?formal conversion? makes sense. But be rest assured, you can be a perfect muslim by also following the teaching of Jesus (as long as you do not get astray with the veiled polytheism that you have come to recognize) ? because fundamentally there is no difference between the messengers ? they all taught the same message. The challenge with the conversion bit though is that ? as soon as you get in touch with mainstream ?Islamic? clergy they will try to sell to you sectorial ideologies like - ?Muhammad is the Greatest Messenger?, ?He invalidated all previous Messengers?, ?If one doesn?t perform ritual one will go to hell?, ?if you recite shahada immediately all sins are forgiven? ? all these non-sense which starkly contradict the teaching of Qur?an. Because like any other so called ?mainstream religions? the vast majority of the clergy of Islam are also obsessed with over-ritualification of the religion, over glorification of the messenger and their own line of teachers and most importantly monopolization of the faith so that their political and economic interests are protected.

Since you have already recognized the corruption of the clergy in one religion, I have confidence on you that you can avoid the similar trap set out by the ?Islamic? clergy. So, my recommendation for you is that you go through the formal ?conversion? to take benefit of the ?Islamic lifestyle?. And the best tool in fighting the corruption is of course the Qur?an ? if you can stick to its message strongly. However, always have faith in your God. The God who created this universe, the God who brought you to this universe and given you your own personal conscience, judgment and sense of right and wrong is the true God. Do not mend your path to worship an external alien God from a book (even Qur?an). If you decide to accept the Qur?an as the word of God it should only be because it calls you to your God. Let me share with you a few of my favorite verses from Qur?an in this regard. This section is particularly relevant for those who are seeking a way towards the message of Qur?an.

As for the homosexuality is concerned ? you are much more knowledgeable on the topic than I am, so I?d refrain from giving you any suggestion on that matter. Have faith in God and seek his guidance, In sha Allah you?ll be led aright.

May Allah guide us all to the straight route.

Regards,
Arman

Thank you for your comment. I especially like the verses you quoted.

Walikum Salaam,

Homosexuality is always going to be a contentious issue, but should not effect ones own beliefs. Yes, the Quran outlines sodomy as a sin, sodomy is not defined by one particular sexuality. It does however, have the issue that for a male-male relationship it presents a dilemma in the event of need of physical and/or emotional gratification between two people. It is not something that I, as someone who has only had heterosexual relationships although believing I would be "ok" being in love with another man is able to comprehend from my own current experiences. All I can say is that there is nothing specifically against people who don't fit the heterosexual norm in the Quran, belief in God is belief in God and if you choose to define yourself as a Muslim, Quranist, or a God fearing person then you can do so whether you are straight or gay.

The concept of throwing homosexuals off cliffs is actually a fairly modern one, dating from Sudanese rebellions against the British in the 19th century, and before that had little tract in the Muslim world. There has even been Caliphs of past days which it was generally known about their escapades with other men without the need of removing them from power or their palaces.

My honest belief is that 'religion' should be basic, it does not need to be defined by ever increasing rules of acceptability, or liberalisation. Remembering God is the first element, doing good for others is the second, keeping oneself from evil is the third. That does not mean that we can't be really complicated people! I have found myself labelling myself a Quranist/God alone for awhile now, but I'm extremely political both as a British Nationalist and as theological Islamist; the idea of a political Islamic state does not scare me, but at the same time don't honestly believe the UK (or the US) would be the target of such a creation nor do I promote it as such.

Thank you for offering your view point. I appreciate all that have commented and messaged me.

Salaam,

I?m coming to this forum from a strange place. Sorry if this is a bit jumbled and unorganized or too long for you to read. If this should be in a different section please tell me, and I'll try to move it.

I guess the best place to start is with my story. I was raised in a fairly conservative christian household in the American South. I do not regret being a Christian, and the teachings of Jesus Christ (who I now recognize as a prophet and not the son of God) helped to ground me in morality and love all people.

It was around the time of High School (Age 14-18 years) that I fell from faith. I was convinced that there was no god, that all this and life was for nothing. It was around this time I also became depressed (I was, years later, diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder). I was disillusioned (and in some ways still am) with life in general. Through the years (and even recently) I have struggled with suicide, coming close many times.

The last month I have been depressed. Not severely, just general disillusionment. I have for a while now studied Middle Eastern culture, more specifically politics, in university. I am currently working on a degree in Political Science with a minor in Middle Eastern Studies (through the King Fahd Center for Middle Eastern Studies) at the University of Arkansas, USA. With these studies of course comes the study of Islam. Now, when I first began my journey into the Muslim world I was a staunch Atheist, but I?ve lately been rethinking this.

I?ve been studying Islam fiercely the last month and have begun to feel a change, a yearning in my heart. It?s almost as if someone is pulling me by a string, guiding me through my research into Islam. This is the strangest, almost indescribable feeling I?ve ever felt. It?s refreshing, like I?ve plunged into cold water on a hot summer day. I?ve begun reading the Quran, and in a month will begin an intensive course on Arabic for this semester and the semesters to come. As well, I am taking a class on the study of Islam. I look forward to eventually being able to read the Quran in its original language, although that will probably be some time from now.

I have always felt that there has to be some source to the Universe, but have never known. I now feel like it is unknowable, and that the only explanation in my eyes is an all knowing, all creating God. I feel like I believe that the Quran could be the true word of such a god. These feelings are scary to me because they have been so sudden, growing stronger every day. I feel like I?m a dam about to burst.

It was three days ago that I think I felt the hand of God in my life, in my soul. I was watching a documentary on the practice of Islam, and it reached a point where the subject was prayer. The man what was demonstrating began with several utterances of ?Allahu Akbar?. He spoke it with such sincerity, such conviction that I began to weep tears of joy and felt like an empty part of me was being filled. This has brought into me more conviction to study Islam and the Quran.

Now, one of my biggest issues with Christianity is how the majority of the Christian New Testament came from Christ?s followers years after the events and teachings occurred. I have also been leery of the fact that over the years the New Testament has been tampered with by the Catholic church and others. Along with this I believe that the Christian teaching of the Holy Trinity is nothing but veiled polytheism.

I now face the struggle over the significance of the Hadith. From what I understand they are teachings or stories of the Prophet told by the companions of The Prophet. I found this a little disconcerting as I fear that the Hadith also have the problems that I see in the Gospels and other teachings such as those in Romans, Corinthians, etc.

One of my biggest struggles so far is reconciling what could be my new beliefs with my sexuality. I have for some time known that I was homosexual and have for years tried to correct myself through therapy (both self administered and otherwise) to no avail. The hardest part of studying the Hadith and various forms of Sharia has been seeing the condemnation of what I have finally accepted as a natural part of me. I?m currently in a committed relationship with a man that I love more than anything besides God. We have been contemplating marriage now that it is legal in our country. In my view any love between consenting adults must be beautiful in the eyes of God regardless of the sexes (y?all may disagree).

But then I discovered the the school of thought that is Quranism. When I read about it I was elated! A sect of Islam that views the Quran as the first and final word of god, a sect that rejects the Hadith. I have felt nothing but joy in my current readings of the Quran, and I can?t imagine that the Hadith would be necessary for the proper worship of God. If the Prophet Muhammed was able to channel fully the word of God then the Hadith must be redundant and possibly contradictory to the Quran. I recognize that they give context to the Quran and can be important for historical study however.

I now have so many questions. I recognize that there is only one God, and from my studies Muhammad must be his Prophet. Does this make me a Muslim? Do I need witnesses should I decide to formally accept Islam as my religion? Does my acceptance of my sexuality prohibit me from becoming one? And if not, how do I learn the important the more nuanced parts of Islam? I understand to some degree the Quranist view of prayer (three times daily, sunrise, midday, sunset right?), but how exactly should I? I also worry about persecution both in my own family and other Muslims if I choose to go through with accepting Quranism as the correct school of thought. Anyone have advice for that?

Anyone have any commentary or advice? Who here is a Quranist (if anyone)? I appreciate you reading this squabble. Hopefully this all makes sense.