We often hear people promote the idea of more than four thousand religions existing in the world today.
It is also often questioned: How can we discern the true and valid religion among the others?
Let’s start the journey!!
Once, a Spanish man succeeded in defrauding a woman out of 300,000 Euros, after convincing her that he was the incarnate creator and that she should deposit her money in the “Bank of Heaven”.
The Spanish man continued to communicate with the elderly woman through phone calls for over ten years, during which he convinced her that he was “God” and asked her to deposit her money in the “Bank of Heaven” instead of “the banks of this world.”
The Spanish man claimed that the “Bank of Heaven” was inside a store in the city of Lyon, and he asked her to enter the store and open a small drawer to put her money inside. The woman did so, and she continued visiting the store for years depositing her money until she went bankrupt. Despite her bankruptcy, the fraudster was still not satisfied. He called her and convinced her to take loans from banks, and she actually took out loans and deposited them in that small drawer.
This story reminded me of the answer of a Hindu visitor, when I asked her about her extreme fear when I discussed the true concept of God with her.
She said:
I am afraid to discuss the issue with you because you might be a god yourself. You have a lot of knowledge. God can come in the form of human or maybe an animal to teach us a particular lesson; perhaps He showed up in your form.
Then I had mixed feelings between laughter, sadness towards her way of thinking, and astonishment at the state of mind people have reached nowadays.
I told her:
How strange is this! I can’t imagine my father or my husband in the form of an animal or any other creature. How can you accept this image for God, the Creator?
And the stories continue!!
Mithras in the Zoroastrian religion: This religion was the dominant faith during the Roman Empire before the appearance of Christ, and Mithras is the incarnate god who was worshiped in Persia. Who is this god?
Hundreds of years before the appearance of Christ, upon the birth of Mithras, three wise men visited the newborn “Mithra” and brought with them gifts and gold jewelry, presenting them to the mother of the newborn as a blessing for his coming into the world. His birthday was the twenty-fifth of December, the same day that was later called the birthday of the sun god. According to historians of the Zoroastrian religion, Mithras died on the cross, and days before his death he attended dinner with twelve of his close followers, and that dinner was called the Last Supper. As for his twelve followers, they represent the twelve zodiac signs in the solar system! After Mithra’s death on the cross, his body was placed in a rock coffin.
Krishna in India: The incarnate god. He was born of a virgin (Devaki). His birth was in a cave, and he illuminated the cave with his radiant light. The cowboys celebrated the day of his birth, as the stars had foretold the time of his arrival. The Indian king (Kansa) ordered the slaughter of hundreds of children born on the night of Krishna’s birth in an attempt to eliminate him, but he did not succeed, as Krishna survived. Krishna traveled widely and performed many miracles. Krishna died on the cross, but he descended to hell, then rose again on the third day and ascended to heaven!
Osis in Egypt: The incarnate god, (he came to fulfill the law)! He was called (Crest), which means the chosen one. He was born from the virgin womb (Isis-Miri) on December 25. His birth was announced by the stars, and three wise men attended his birth. He was baptized in the Arutana River by Anup the Baptizer. He died on the cross between two thieves in the month of March, then rose from the dead. His suffering, death and birth are celebrated every year by his followers. Among his titles are (the Word of Truth, the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Truth, the Light).
Worship of Rajneesh: The incarnate god. Rajneesh moved to Bombay in 1970 and opened a center for meditation and enlightenment there with the help of wealthy people in India. He changed his name from Guru Rajneesh to Bhagwan Rajneesh, meaning Lord Rajneesh, and began presenting his philosophy. Twenty-one countries in the world refused to receive him. When he died, it was written on his grave that he was god. He entered the world in 1931 and left in 1990.
Baha’u’llah: The incarnate god. In the middle of the nineteenth century, Baha’u’llah was chosen by the Creator, according to some beliefs, to deliver a new message to humanity. Most importantly, Al-Baha is the one who created everything. They believe in incarnation, union, reincarnation, and the immortality of beings, and that reward and punishment are for souls only.
Worship of Messi: Fans of the Argentine football star Lionel Messi call him “Dios”, which means “God” in Spanish. However, the Pope of the Vatican had another opinion.
In an interview with the Spanish TV channel La Sexta, Pope Francis praised the player from his country, Argentina, but said that he should not be described as God.
The Argentine government has decided to issue a postage stamp with Messi’s image, and if the next stage aims to make a statue of him, it could result in a new religion that calls for the worship of Lionel Messi. A similar situation occurred in ancient civilisations when they glorified people to the point, they eventually worshipped the statues of those individuals. This is reminiscent with the people of God’s Prophet Noah; peace be upon him.
The Worship of Maradona: The Church of Maradona is a satirical religious church. It was founded in the city of Rosario, Argentina, after the Argentine soccer player Diego Maradona, who is considered by some to be an earthly image of God or even God Himself.
It was established by Maradona fans on October 30, 1998, which is the player’s birthday. As a result, thousands of church members celebrate “Maradona Christmas” or Maradona’s birthday every year in his church in Rosario, similar to how Christians celebrate Christ’s birthday in the Church of the Nativity in Jerusalem.
The Worship of Ali bin Abi Talib: According to certain beliefs, Ali bin Abi Talib, the Prophet Muhammad’s son in-law and his cousin, is considered the manifestation of God on earth. Some even believe he is the creator of the heavens and the earth. Thus, it is the last of the divine manifestations, but it is not the only one.
According to these beliefs, this Holy Trinity has manifested itself many times in the past.
I remember a conversation I had with a Scot who converted to Norseism and worshiped twelve gods, all of them were seen as images of the Creator. This man told me about this religion which I had heard about for the first time.
The worship of the god Thor: The incarnate son of God. The Asatru sect is the controlling force of the universe that is in the sky and incarnated in humans. Old Norse stories and all their gods, such as Odin and Loki, were brought to Iceland by Norwegian farmers in the Viking Age, when they colonized the island in search of new pastures. The inhabitants of the island continued to worship these gods until the year 1000, after which the country converted to Christianity under pressure from the kings of Norway.
The influence was mutual between Christianity and the northern religion. We find, for example, a great similarity between the belief of the god Odin, whom the northerners worshiped, and the story of the crucifixion of Jesus.
In the Gospels, the story says that Christ was the embodiment of God, and he sacrificed himself and was willing to die crucified on a tree, that the Roman soldiers struck him in the side with a spear, and refused to give him water to drink, and that he died and then returned to life victorious over death after he descended – during the period of his death – To hell and saved the cursed souls trapped in it, until the end of the known story.
As for the religion of the Northerners, there is a story about their chief god, Odin, who sacrificed himself as an offering, for himself, by striking himself in the side with a spear while he was hanging upside down by his feet on the great tree of the world. He remained in this state between life and death for 9 days in order to He eventually attains the “secret wisdom” that stems from the root of the giant tree. And to learn letters and magic spells that give him great abilities.
The difference between the true religion and human interpretations:
It is enough that we visit India, for example, and say between the crowds, God the Creator is One. They would then reply in harmony, yes, God is One. And this is really what is written in their books.
But they disagree, fight, could even slaughter each other, over one point which is: The form and shape that the Creator comes through to earth. For instance, the Christian Indian says: God is one, but He is incarnated in the trinity (the father, the son and the holy spirit). The Hindu Indian says: God comes in the form of an animal, a human, an idol or the Hindu trinity.
If we think carefully, we would find that all problems and differences between religious sects and religions exist because of the intermediaries that humans place between themselves and their Creator.
For instance, Catholic and Protestants sects, Hindu sects, and others all disagree about how to communicate with the Creator, but not on the concept that the Creator Himself exists.
If they all worship the Creator directly, they would be united.
Even atheists or Buddhists who revere Buddha would unintentionally pray to the Power in heavens whenever they encounter a difficult situation.
Also, science recently spoke about a super-intelligent force that initiated the (Big Bang) leading to the existence of the universe. This is what the believers refer to as the Creator.
There is no dispute about the existence of the Creator of the universe, whether one likes it or not. But there is disagreement over the concept of incarnation.
The argument made by believers in the concept of incarnation – despite its contradiction with reason and common sense – is that the Creator is capable of anything.
- Logic dictates that the cause of the existence of creatures is distinct from the creatures and the universe themselves, and that the Creator must be wise and has created them with purpose.
- Logic dictates that the Creator does not become a part of the creation, just as a manufacturer does not become the product they make; for example, the phone maker is not a phone and is not embodied in its creation, which is the phone.
- Logic dictates that direct communication with the Creator is the most sensible means.
In reality, the Creator does not do everything that He is capable of, as incarnation is not appropriate and impossible considering how it contradicts His attributes. The concept of incarnation implies weakness, need, poverty, humiliation, and contradiction.
The idea is not about what the Creator can do, but about what the Creator’s nature is. The incarnation is an illogical argument. The Creator will not exist and not exist at the same time. He will not be God and man at the same time. He will not be omnipotent and weak at the same time.
Not knowing the Lord of the Worlds leads to misconceptions about Him, such as being embodied in three hypostases or represented in a human being’s flesh.
Distorting God’s true concept in the Old Testament not only confused people’s minds and put them at loss, but also caused them to resort to atheism and distract them from religion.
The Torah, which God Almighty revealed to Moses, peace be upon him, affirmed that God is the One and the Only, Eternal, Merciful, exalted is the Creator of every defect or deficiency. However, in the Old Testament (the distorted Torah), there are claims made about specific attributes that do not befit God’s Majesty, such as forgetting, lack of knowledge, fear, and tiredness, Glory be to Him.
It has been conclusively proved that people have an inherent need to sanctify specific symbols. It has also been proven that Islam is distinct from other religions, both in terms of its perspectives on worldly life and its treatments of groups and individuals, and its beliefs about the afterlife. No progress or materialistic civilisation can fill the void of religiosity, which has always been and continues to be an innate need for all.
Islam says there is no deity worthy of worship except the Creator, whose attributes are beyond the attributes of human beings. God does not beget nor was He begotten, and He does not incarnate in human or animal form. This faith frees Human beings from any other worship. The doctrine of the incarnation is the basis of paganism, because when people believe in the embodiment of the Creator in any of His creatures, so, anything can be worshipped.
It is essential for a person to have faith in a deity, whether it is belief in the true God or in any false deity. They may refer to this deity as ‘God’ or by any other name. This ‘god’ could be a tree, a star in the sky, a woman, his boss at work, a scientific theory, or even their own identity, Nevertheless, it is necessary to believe in something that they follow and sanctify, shaping their way of life, and they may even be willing to sacrifice for it. This is what we call worship. Worshiping the true God frees a person from slavery to others.
The Creator should be the only God in every human life.
The essence of a humans’ task lies in their rationality, which distinguishes them from animals in order to differentiate between right and wrong in every step of their life.
The word “Allah” means the one and only true God, Who Has no partner in His kingdom and no son. He is the Creator.
What is religion?
Religion is the system of life that a person is keen to follow during their journey. Is it driven by their whims and desires, as is often the case with an atheist? Is it influenced by society and the religious practices of fathers and grandfathers, customs, traditions, trends and social media? Or is it rooted in the divine system, as found in monotheistic religions?
The true religion of the Creator entails:
- Belief in the Creator of the universe.
- Recognising Him as the One and Only God who does not manifest on Earth in the form of a human being or an animal. He is the One who created Adam without a father or a mother, and created Christ without a father, as He is the sole Creator and does not give birth.
- Human beings must abandon the worship of idols and the doctrine of the Trinity, and refrain from resorting to mediators such as priests, and saints. They have to stop resorting to graves and resorting to the Prophet of God Muhammad or any member of his family, or resorting to any of God’s prophets asking for help.
- Humans must believe in all the prophets of God from Adam to Muhammad, including Jesus Christ and Moses, may blessings and peace be upon them all.
- Humans must have faith in the Day of Judgment where human beings will be held accountable for their deeds.
This is the absolute truth that people must surrender to, and no matter how much Islam is opposed, it will continue to emerge, strengthen and spread because it embodies the truth, and nothing supersedes the truth.
Why are there so many religions when there is only one true religion?
During my discussion with a diverse group of people from various nationalities, cultures, and religious backgrounds, I was talking about monotheism, the attributes of Divine Beauty and Majesty, and the importance of worshipping the Creator without intermediaries. At that point, someone from the group interrupted me with a question.
He asked: Who is greater, Christ or Muhammad?
I responded: Are you asking about a comparison between deities or between messengers? If it’s a comparison between gods, then there is only One God (the Creator), and both Christ and Muhammed are messengers. However, when it comes to comparing one messenger to another, we do not differentiate among God’s messengers.
The Creator has said:
The Messenger has believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord and [so have] the believers. All of them have believed in God and His angels and His books and His messengers, [saying], “We make no distinction between any of His messengers.” And they say, “We hear and we obey. [We seek] Your forgiveness, our Lord, and to you is the [final] destination.
I later realised that such questions arise from the veneration of someone other than the Creator. When we attempt to prove that Jesus Christ is superior to Prophet Muhammed, for example, or vice versa, it implies that it would be more fitting for the Creator to incarnate in one of them and become the Savior of mankind. This is the situation in our world today, and it is the reason for the diversity of religions, sects, beliefs, and differences.
Why Religión?
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