LET’S TRY TO REASON THINGS
OUT:
WHAT ARE THE CRITERIA OF THE TRUE SCRIPTURES
The conclusion is yours.
Here are some thoughts:
As every religion upholds
its scriptures, it is only reasonable to wonder; which scriptures are
the true scriptures?
While it is not a surprise
that each and every one of them assures us that they have the true
scriptures, will it make sense that all of them are right? Especially, when
we consider the simple fact that some of them hold beliefs that are opposing to
each other, some of these differences in beliefs cannot be ignored. It is
unimaginable that God will consider everybody who upheld any of these beliefs
to be simply… right.
Should one consider any
scripture to be the true ones because his father, mother or somebody has
always told him so? Certainly that may work if we are still kids. However, one
finds it impossible to believe that with our free will, and with the tool to
recognize God with -our minds, that later we would be asked questions such as:
what did our parents believe?
Will the great number of
people holding a certain belief mean that they are always right? History proved
to us many times that this is not necessarily the case. You probably know some
examples yourself.
Having faith in somebody or
something is different from having a blind faith. Blind faith
does not even work when we buy a gallon of milk. Typically, we would not have
blind faith in any gallon of milk; we check the date to make sure that it is
still good. If we have just one doubt, like if the date on
it is good, but it looks like this gallon has been opened. If its color is not
right or the milk inside looks lumpy, we will want -for sure- another gallon of
milk. This is only common sense, logic and a natural thing to do. If we
typically don’t bet the price of a gallon of milk blindly, could we
-really- offer to bet our eternity?
Some of us hold a belief
just because; "This is just what I believe". Please remember,
there are many of us who hold beliefs -sometimes with no proofs- that are
realistically unacceptable, like of the superiority of a certain color or a
race, could all of those who uphold "This is just what I believe"
be right?
"This is just what I
believe" is irrelevant before any judge in any court here on
earth if it is not what the law says. Just think of a traffic
violation ticket, could anyone tell the Judge: "But, what I believed
was…"
Would "This is just
what I believe" really work before God?
Trying to be objective,
every religion is based solely on its own teachings or its own scriptures.
If the scriptures prove to have been revealed from a higher authority than the
Messenger himself, and if we are confident that they were delivered only
through or by the authority of that Messenger, then every thing they
-the scriptures- teach is true. On the otther hand, if the scriptures talk
negatively about God or we doubt as to whom exactly they were delivered
through, should we accept any scriptures without knowing to whom exactly
they were revealed? If somebody came later and freely edited or modified
them, should we still consider such modified scriptures to be the
authentic ones?
If we use the same careful
nature we use when buying a gallon of milk, by avoiding that which has
doubts, we should have no problem identifying the true authentic scriptures
from the inauthentic ones.
What should we look for in
any scriptures to identify the true ones?
Here are some suggestions for the criteria
of the true scriptures. I'm sure you can add some more to the list, please check for yourself
to see if the Quran -or any other scriptures- will qualify for it:
1.
A
very realistic characteristic to the true revelation is that its origin and
integrity are traceable; remain untouchable, non-revisable or unchangeable
by anybody after the Messenger who received them.
2.
The Messenger himself has put the scriptures together and arranged them as
instructed by God, not somebody else (or many others) who freely
decided to do so on their own later.
3.
The
originals match exactly what we have today, no more and no less than the
"Authentic originals".
4.
Because
the true scriptures are from the Maker and the One with all the Knowledge, they
should have abundance of scientific proofs that He has revealed them, not
the Messenger himself.
5.
Acknowledges man's mind and his ability of reasoning, and encourages him to use
them not to ignore them or stop him from thinking, as in the case of making one
believe with a blind faith.
6.
Its
teachings are rational and they are about both the body and the soul. In order
for the teachings to be meaningful, following them cannot be worthless,
but rewarding in both this world and in the next.
7.
Acknowledges the community's and the individual's rights. For the community by
setting standards and guidelines -that are meaningful- for the
community’s benefits. And for individuals by recognizing both men and women's
rights. Otherwise, some individual’s rights -women’s for example- will be lost.
8.
Brings answers and solutions that work in the real world not in an
imaginary one.
9.
Teaches individual accountability, otherwise, one who believes in it would also
believe he/she can do right or wrong as long as he is not responsible for his
own actions.
10.
Finally,
teaches that only God grants forgiveness not anyone else.
Dear friend:
Translations that are
available in your local public library and bookstores testify that no matter
where in the whole wide world we may go, in whichever language, or even when,
in time, there has always been only one Quran. Which has 114 chapters with the
same number of verses each, with traceable hand written originals.
The Quran has abundance of
proofs -scientific and otherwise- that it had to have come from the Maker and
the Knower of all things as stated in this verse (25:6):
"Say: (The Quran) was
sent down by Him who knows the mystery (that is) in the Heavens and the
Earth."
The teachings about going to
Heaven, doing good and forbidding evil, agree with our given nature and can
only better any person and any community. Avoiding them however, by saying for
example that they are O.K but you don't even have to follow them, can -and do-
cause serious corruption to any community.
Having to follow them
whenever there is a choice means an agreement that they are the "Way to
Heaven".
The Quran provides answers
to even more questions than what we have seen so far, it does not teach blind
faith, rather, it encourages our ability of reasoning so that we may accept God
with conviction and devotion
How much careful one must be
about his choice for the eternity? Could we just have blind faith?
Should we accept any scriptures? Which scriptures have proofs that the
Maker and the Knower of all things have revealed them? Which scriptures were
put together and arranged by the Messenger himself not by somebody else
later? Which scriptures match exactly the "authentic
originals", no more or less?
Finally, we pray for you:
"May your intellectual journey towards the
truth be a pleasant one… Ameen".
E-mail us: introducingislam@yahoo.com