Really interesting thoughts on not needing anyone to officiate the ceremony and not needing witnesses. I guess the ceremonies are there to make it a more special occassion. Good points made on dowries and divorce. On this issue-do you think a dowry has a place in modern society? I'll tell you my story as an example when I got married the dowry became a big issue at the nikah. The imam explained it didn't matter how much the groom wrote down in the contract as it's more symbolic these days. Of course when it came to the divorce, and the divorce got messy, at no point was in considered appropriate to bring up the dowry and hence it was never paid. So in modern society and in cases where couples are financially independent should it still be considered an integral part of marriage? What else makes a marriage?

Many thanks to you all for taking the time to read and reply to my post. I can see what you mean about the term Quranist - i'm sorry if I caused offence. I wish i could delete it from the title of my post now! Please bear with me it's a steep learning curve! It is re-assuring to read there are different types and I do not have to conform. Thanks for your advice and for making me feel welcome - I look forward to taking part in the discussions!

I enjoyed reading your post. What a small world! I know Taj and attend the meco classes but missed the events you mentioned. It's a shame I missed your lecture! Do you attend meco events annually? Thanks for sharing.

Thank you for the replies to my posts and for sharing your thoughts with me. I've had an interesting couple of days here but having read the recent and archived posts i'm sorry to say I don't think I fit in here. I always have and always will rely on the Quran as my sole source of guidance. I believe the Holy Book is complete and it has been delivered once by the prophet and messenger Muhammad pbuh. I struggle with the concept that new messengers now exist and they can retrospectively take credit for verses already written. This isn't a belief that I share. As I rely on the Quran alone, I think following other books and interpretations, including Rashad's, goes entirely against the concept and principle of relying on the Quran alone. It is for the same reason I do not follow ahadeeth. I think that any numerical patterns that may or may not exist can only further prove the miracle of the Quran and not the counting system employed to analyse it. Whilst i'm a strong believer in 'each to their own' I feel alien to the discussions here on everyday people being messengers. It's this bit that makes it feel like we a practicing entirely different religions, despite following the Quran alone - and this troubles me. I fully respect the various beliefs held here. Please do not think that because I do not share them that I do not respect them I do, just like we all respect other faiths. Anyway, I thought I would share with you my reasons for leaving. I have enjoyed starting to get to know you and really like the idea of finding like-minded people. I seem to be in the wrong forum and it's best that I bid you farewell now. Best wishes, Tulip.

Taking it back to basics, cultural traditions and civil law aside, what makes two people married in the eyes of God? In Western society where unmarried couples are faithful and are in serious long-term relationships and their respective friends and family know they are together and God of course can bear witness that they are together, could they be regarded as married religiously? Or are they considered fornicators? If 'marriage' comprises mutual consent, commitment, witnesses and notification of friends and family what fundamentally separates the above scenario from a marriage? I'd like to clarify that i'm not referring to the celebratory side to a marriage ie wedding. I'd be interested you hear your views on this. I know it may be controversial but I thought I would open it up for debate...

Hi everyone i'm new here and I think might be a Quranist but i'm not sure! Perhaps you would be kind enough to help? I was brought up as a sunni muslim by a strict sunni mother and a liberal sunni father. My father always advised me from a young age not to consult any books on Islam except for the Quran as he said they are all opinion-based. He also taught me the difference between tradition and religion. Having taken my father's advice, I only ever consulted the Quran and grew up happy with my faith and believing that men and women were created equal. In my adult life I found my beliefs as a muslim woman, taken purely from the Quran, conflicted with traditionanal views on muslim women. I was made to feel like a bad muslim by peers for what they call feminist beliefs and they made me feel so alien to my faith that I started to wonder whether I had the right one. I joined an educational group and through them studied the problems with Hadeeths, which explained the discrepencies and this put my mind at rest. Now my problem is taking the next step. I learned of Quranism recently over the net so excuse my ignorance but are there different types? For example, I don't want to follow Dr Rashads school of thought but I don't know whether you can be Quranist and ignore his theory on the code? I've also read somewhere that stating the shahada with Mohammad's name pbuh could be construed as making partners with God? Is this a part of the Quranist belief? Apart from those minor areas of confusion I think my beliefs are completley in line with those of a Quranist. The next step for me is learning more and trying to shake off years of sunni habits, practice and upbringing through my mother's influence. Has anyone else been through this? How did the family react? Are there any support groups in the uk where I could meet others and learn more? Thanks in advance.