Part 16

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unseen aspect. Young children, in particular, may not completely comprehend something that is invisible, but they begin to imagine in their minds. At this age they also trust what their parents tell them, so there is usually little uncertainty. There may be questions and curiosity, but acceptance comes naturally. We must be certain to convey to them that we may not be able to see angels, but we believe in them because of the many verses of Qur’an and the hadiths of the Prophet (s). Part of faith is to believe in things even though we cannot see them with our own eyes, and revelation has been preserved to prove their existence beyond a shadow of a doubt.

For true connection to the angels and fulfilment of this aspect of eeman, children must develop a deep love for them, knowing that angels are obedient and submissive servants of Allah. As we have a special affection for the believers in this world due to their closeness to Allah, we must also love the angels for the same reason. The angels themselves have a fondness and loyalty to the genuine believers: they pray to Allah for them, ask for their forgiveness, and support them in this life and the hereafter.

Children must come to appreciate that the angels are part of Allah’s plan and organization in the universe and they are intricately interwoven into their lives. There is great benefit from this belief in that it brings comfort to the heart and soul, guides to superior actions, and provides the strength to be devout and faithful. It helps one to recognize the majesty of Allah as reflected in the creation of the angels. It increases one’s gratefulness to Allah, to know that He fashioned these creatures to support, protect, and benefit the believers. They bring light, peace, and tranquillity and remove worry, grief, and despair. Angels are truly another of the wonderful and

* amazing blessings of Allah.

Chapter 8 The Prophets and Messengers

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Belief in the Prophets and Messengers

Belief in prophets and messengers is another of the fundamental principles of Muslims and a component of eeman. Regarding the prophets, Allah (4g) mentions,

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Allah sent a warner to each nation throughout human history, which means that the number of prophets that have come to carry out Allah’s mission must be in the hundreds, if not more.

' The twelve uibes of Israel descended from Jacob

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€.. And there was no nation but that there had passed within it a

Twenty-five prophets and messengers are mentioned by name in the Qur’an: Adam, Idrees (Enoch), Nooh (Noah), Hood, Salih, Loot (Lot), Ibraheem (Abraham), Isma‘eel (Ishmael), Is-haq (Isaac), Ya‘qoob (Jacob), Yoosuf (Joseph), Shu‘ayb, Haroon (Aaron), Moosa (Moses), Dawood (David), Sulayman (Solomon), Ayyoob (Job), Dhul-Kifl (Ezekiel), Yoonus (Jonah), Ilyas (Elias), Al-Yas‘a (Elisha), Zakariyah (Zachariah), Yahy4 (John), ‘Eesa (Jesus), and Muhammad, peace be upon them all.

If a person does not believe in Allah’s prophets and messengers, he or she becomes a disbeliever. Allah (4g) says,

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Indeed, those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers and wish

to discriminate between Allah and His messengers and say: We

believe in some and disbelieve in others and wish to adopt a way in

between— Those are the disbelievers, truly...) (Quran 4: 150-151)

To disbelieve in even one prophet is equated with disbelieving in all of them. This is due to the fact that to deny the prophets and messengers is to reject their teachings, which is equated with denial of the source of the teachings, the Creator. This leads to failure to achieve the true servitude to Allah that has been enjoined upon humans.

As human beings, we need the messengers and their teachings

" in order to reform our hearts, enlighten our souls, and guide our minds. We need the messengers in order to give direction to our lives, to connect us to life and to the Creator of life. The scholar Ibn alQayyim, explaining the need that people have for the messengers and

114 The Prophets and Messengers

Hence we know that above all else, people need to know about the Messenger and the message he brought, to believe what he told us and to obey what he enjoined upon us, because there is no way to attain happiness and success, either in this world or in the hereafter, except at the hands of the messengers. There is no way to know about good and evil in detail except through them. No one can attain the pleasure of Allah at all except through following their teachings. Good words, deeds and attitudes can only be attained through their guidance and the teachings they brought. They are the standard example: attitudes, manners and actions are to be measured against their words and attitudes. Following them makes the people of misguidance stand out. So our need for them is greater than the body’s need for the soul, or the need of the eye for light, or the soul’s need for its life. Whatever need or necessity you may think of, a person’s need for the messengers is many times greater... Because a person’s happiness in this world and in the hereafter is connected to the guidance of the Prophet (:24), then each person who is sincere with himself and who wants to attain salvation and happiness has to know enough about his (the Prophet’s) teachings, biography and way to ensure that he is not one of those who are ignorant of him so that he be included among his followers and his party.

One aspect of belief in the prophets is to accept that they all called to one religion — the religion of Islam. Allah (#¢) says,

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2 From Zéd al-Ma‘ad by Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, summarized in Al-Ashgar, U. S. (2002), The Messengers and the Messages in the Light of the Qur’an and Sunnah, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: international Islamic Publishing House, pp. 55-56

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Indeed, the religion according to Allah is Islam...) (Quran 3: 19)

There are several verses that illustrate the fact that all prophets were Muslim. Noah (‘Alayhi as-salém — Peace be upon him) said,

With reference to Abraham (3%), Allah (4g) tells us,

When his Lord said to him: Submit, he said: I have submitted [in

Islam] to the Lord of the worlds.} (Quran 2: 131)

{And Moses said: O my people, if you have believed in Allah, then

rely upon Him, if you should be Muslims [submitting to Him].}

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The disciples [of Jesus] said: We are supporters for Allah. We have believed in Allah and testify that we are Muslims [submitting to

In essence, ‘Islam’ or ‘submission’ was a common word spoken by Allah’s prophets from ancient times until now.

The final prophet and messenger is Muhammad (#8). He is the Seal of the Prophets, as there will be no other prophet after him.

116 The Prophets and Messengers

4... but [he is] the Messenger of Allah and the seal [last] of the

While other prophets were sent to specific nations or groups . and for particular eras in human history, Prophet Muhammad (3) was the only prophet sent to all of humankind until the end of time. The sacred Book, the Qur’an, given to Prophet Muhammad (3) will be preserved until the Day of Judgment.

Connecting children to the Prophets and Messengers

As children are connected to angels through storytelling, the same can be utilized in respect to the prophets. There are many authenticated stories from Qur’an and the Hadith regarding the prophets, as well as an abundance of children’s books on these stories. Learning can also be made fun by the use of games, computer programs, and so forth. Children should regularly be exposed to this

>A sound hadith narrated by Ahmad, Al-Tirmidhi and Tbn Majah * Muslim and Al-Tirmidhi

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information and be taught to love the prophets, and in particular, Prophet Muhammad (4). Children should understand that prophets are a mercy to humankind, for they bring the message of Allah and Islam to the people. They are special individuals who were chosen by Allah for this noble mission. They provide the most excellent example of how to live in this life and are the ideal role models for our children.

Children will listen with excitement and curiosity to the story of Noah (3) and the great flood, the story of Abraham (3) and how he was thrown into the fire for breaking the idols, the story of Moses (aa) and how he was saved from Pharaoh and his soldiers, the story of Jonah (32%) in the stomach of the whale, the story of Joseph (2) and his eventual reunion with his family, the story of Jesus (4) and his miraculous birth, and so many other narratives that are all the more fascinating because the Qur’an has documented them and attested to their truth.