“My thoughts on the issues of religious belief butting in on a way of life are simple. Read through your texts and go back to your basics. What makes a person a Muslim?
To be a Muslim, all you need to do is say the syahadah, fast during Ramadhan, pray five times a day, pay the fitrah tithe and go for Haj if you are able. So tell me, dearest fellow Muslims, where exactly is this straight/gay dilemma in the basics of being a Muslim? As far back as 1994, Sisters in Islam was decrying that no punishment was meted out under hudud law for homosexuality. And since you all love to quote the Quran, here’s one you missed:
Al-Ahzab, verse 58:
And those who annoy believing men and women undeservedly bear (on themselves) a calumny and a glaring sin.”
He is not wrong when he said to be a Muslim, all you need to do is say the syahadah, fast during Ramadhan, pray five times a day, pay the fitrah tithe and go for Haj if you are able. I said he’s not wrong but I don’t think he’s totally right either. Why do I say that?
First, I suggest he look up the definition of zakat fitrah vis-à-vis zakat. They are two different things, with different conditions and criteria.
Secondly, saying the syahadah is not merely an oral or verbal act. It requires one to fully appreciate, understand and accept what it means by professing there is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger.
Professing the syahadah means fully believing in Allah as the one and only God. Fully believing in Allah includes believing in his words (Al Quran) and adhering to his laws (Shariah). Fully believing in Allah also means obeying all of his commands.
Islam is not a mere collection of physical acts or words. Performing the Haj every other year doesn’t make one more Muslim than someone who has only been on the pilgrimage once. Fasting is not just about abstaining from eating between dawn and dusk and paying RM7.00 to the amil every Ramadhan doesn’t absolve one’s zakat obligation.
On homosexuality, the Quran has this to say:
We also sent Lut : He said to his people : "Do ye commit lewdness such as no people in creation (ever) committed before you? For ye practice your lusts on men in preference to women: ye are indeed a people transgressing beyond bounds." Qur'an 7:80-81
"Of all the creatures in the world, will ye approach males, And leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your mates? Nay, ye are a people transgressing (all limits)!" Qur'an 26:165-166
Why didn’t Hafidz quote those two verses?
Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi of the ISNA said: “Homosexuality is a moral disorder. It is a moral disease, a sin and corruption... No person is born homosexual, just like no one is born a thief, a liar or murderer. People acquire these evil habits due to a lack of proper guidance and education.”
I said it once and I’ll say it again; there is no such thing as a Muslim gay. Just like there is no such thing as a vegetarian tiger or a stir-fried sushi.
It is interesting that he quoted 33:58 without highlighting “believing men and women”. Having disobeyed the decree on homosexuality (7:80-81 and 26:165-66), can a gay person be considered believing men?
Homosexual is not a habit.
ReplyDeleteHomosexual is not like theft, lying and murdering.
Homosexual is a trait that I was born into.