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Salamun alaikum brothers and sisters,

I'm trying to build a position here. I want to know how much religious authority the Qur'an allow to people that are not Nabi or Rasul.

As far as I know the Qur'an states that the Prophet gets some authority (eg. 4:59 and 59:7, although in my opinion this is practicable only when he was alive, and its practice afterwards is hampered by lack of authenticity in hadith).

4:59 also mentioned the ulil amri, which translates into "the holders of power", i.e. government.

Now in reality there is a priestly class among Muslims, the ulamas, muftis, sheikhs, and the like. I don't believe they are ulil amri, because they don't always hold political power. But they, alive or dead, sometimes take up religious authority by issuing fatwa or holding opinions about religious issues--saying "this we call haram" and the like.

Most traditionalists believe the ulama has religious authority and must be followed. What does the Qur'an say about this?

I would like to discuss this in order to sharpen my arguments to counter those who believe humans can have religious authority.

Please focus the discussion on the subject, thank you.

Although their viewpoint is not exactly Qur'an-only, I like the idea of this website.

http://readwithmeaning.wordpress.com/

Some examples: al-Jinn




al-Mumtahina:


Yusuf:

I think this topic has not been discussed in this part of FM.

2:235 Free_Minds:
And there is no sin upon you if you openly propose marriage to these women, or you keep it between yourselves. God knows that you will be thinking of them, but do not meet them secretly, unless you have something righteous to say. And do not consummate the marriage until the required interim is reached in the Scripture. And know that God knows what is in your souls, so be aware of Him, and know that God is Forgiving, Compassionate.

The Qur'an says that about marriage proposals. Let's discuss how it diverges or converges with current practices, traditional (hadith/regional customs) or secular.

One thing I do not find is that the Qur'an does not say anything about getting families involved. Or rings and ceremonies.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE56G0EX20090717

Bombs rip through Indonesia hotels, killing eight
Fri Jul 17, 2009 3:19pm EDT  Email | Print | Share| Reprints | Single Page[-] Text

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  JAKARTA (Reuters) - Bombs ripped through two luxury hotels in the heart of Indonesia's capital on Friday, killing eight people and wounding dozens in an attack the president said would damage confidence in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.
  
  Suicide bombers struck the JW Marriott hotel and close-by Ritz-Carlton, both popular with visiting international businessmen and protected by some of the tightest security in Jakarta, as guests sat down for breakfast.
  
  While suspicion was likely to fall on the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militant group, blamed for a previous Marriott attack as well as bombings on the island of Bali in 2002 that killed 202 people, police chief Danuri said it was too early to speculate.
  
  "We are working on it. We are conducting studies at the crime scene, so we cannot rush things," he said.
  
  The group, which wants to create an Islamic state across parts of Southeast Asia, was blamed for a string of attacks until 2005, but many militants have since been arrested.
  
  A visibly upset President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, re-elected this month on the back of improved security and a healthier economy, said the bombings were the act of a terrorist group bent on damaging the country.
  
  "I am sure most of us are deeply concerned, feel very sorry and are crying silently, like the way I am feeling," he told a news conference, adding the perpetrators were "laughing and cheering with anger and hatred."
  
  "They do not have a sense of humanity and do not care about the destruction of our country, because this terror act will have a wide impact on our economy, our business climate, our tourism, our image in the world and many others."
  
  Police said the bombers had checked in to the Marriott as paying guests on Wednesday and had assembled the bombs in their room. A third bomb was found and defused in a laptop computer bag on the 18th floor.
  
  "Room 1808 had become their post since the 15th (of July)," National police chief General Bambang Hendarso Danuri told a news conference, adding two suicide bombers had been killed in the blasts.
  
  Indonesia's TVOne showed closed-circuit television footage of a man they said was the Ritz-Carlton's suspected suicide bomber. He was wearing a baseball cap and pulling a wheelie-bag through the lobby.
  
  FINANCIAL MARKETS FALL
  
  Indonesian financial markets fell after the blasts, with the rupiah down one percent before state-controlled banks stepped in to support it, traders said, and it ended at 10,200 to the dollar. Indonesian stocks fell as much as 2.7 percent before paring loses and closing down 0.6 percent.
  
  International condemnation of the bombings was swift.
  
  U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he was sure those responsible would be prosecuted and U.S. President Barack Obama, who lived in Jakarta for four years as a child after his mother married an Indonesian, called the attacks "outrageous." 
  
  "These attacks make it clear that extremists remain committed to murdering innocent men, women and children of any faith in all countries," the White House said in a statement.
  
  In New York, the target of the September 11 2001 hijacked plane attacks, authorities said extra security was mounted at major hotels as a precaution.
  
  Eight Americans were among the wounded in Jakarta and police said other casualties included citizens of Indonesia, Australia, South Korea, the Netherlands, Italy, Britain, Canada, Norway, Japan and India.
  
  Many of those hurt in the Marriot blast were attending a high-powered business breakfast organized by the consulting firm CastleAsia.
  
  Tim Mackay, chief executive of cement maker Holcim Indonesia and one of 19 executives attending, was killed.
  
  The incident prompted Britain's Manchester United soccer team to cancel the Jakarta leg of an Asian tour. A Ritz-Carlton employee said the team had been due to stay at the hotel ahead of a game in Indonesia early next week.
  
  BLOOD IN THE STREETS
  
  Witnesses said the bombings at the Marriott and the Ritz-Carlton were minutes apart and it appeared both had occurred inside the hotel restaurants during breakfast.
  
  "It was very loud, it was like thunder, it was rather continuous, and then followed by the second explosion," said Vidi Tanza, who works near the hotel.
  
  Alex Asmasoebrata was jogging near the hotels at the time of the blasts.
  
  An Australian security report on Thursday had said Jemaah Islamiah was poised to strike again. Authorities in neighboring Malaysia, where the group also has roots, said they were stepping up security at government buildings, shopping malls and hotels.
  
  The Australian Strategic Policy Institute said leadership tensions in Jemaah Islamiah and recent prison releases of its members raised the possibility that splinter groups might now seek to re-energize the movement.
  
  Sidney Jones, a Jakarta-based expert on Islamic militants at the International Crisis Group, said Jemaah Islamiah as an organization did not appear to be responsible.
  
  "It's more likely to be a splinter group than JI itself, which doesn't mean you couldn't have JI members but it's very unlikely to be JI as an organization behind this attack," said Jones.
  
  (Additional reporting by Michael Perry in Sydney, Harry Suhartono in Singapore; Writing by David Fox and Sara Webb; Editing by Nick Macfie and David Storey)
  
  

As an Indonesian, I am very sad and angry about this incident.  I hope our president would deal harsher measures to the perpetrators of these acts and their supporters, including those who lurk in our government and parliament.

http://www.reuters.com/article/artsNews/idUSL0992091620080509

Turkish Islamic author given 3-year jail sentence
Fri May 9, 2008

By Thomas Grove

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Controversial Turkish Islamic author Adnan Oktar was sentenced to three years in prison on Friday for creating an illegal organization for personal gain, state-run Anatolian news agency said.

A spokeswoman for his Science Research Foundation (BAV) confirmed to Reuters that Oktar had been sentenced but said the judge was influenced by political and religious pressure groups.

Oktar had been tried with 17 other defendants in an Istanbul court. The verdict and sentence came after a previous trial that began in 2000 after Oktar, along with 50 members of his foundation, was arrested in 1999.

In that court case, Oktar had been charged with using threats for personal benefit and creating an organization with the intent to commit a crime. The charges were dropped but another court picked them up resulting in the latest case.

Oktar planned to appeal the sentence, a BAV spokeswoman said. No further details were immediately available.

Oktar, born in 1956, is the driving force behind a richly funded movement based in Turkey that champions creationism, the belief that God literally created the world in six days as told in the Bible and the Koran.

Istanbul-based Oktar, who writes under the pen name Harun Yahya, has created waves in the past few years by sending out thousands of unsolicited texts advocating Islamic creationism to schools in several European countries.

Guys, I need your opinion.

We basically knew quite well about the rules and principles of conventional science: empiricism, falsifiability, hypothesis testing, logic, statistics, assumption of natural laws, exclusion of the supernatural, etc.  I would like to know your opinions on the relation of science in the conventional and practical sense with Qur'anic principles.  Does the Qur'an endorse the scientific method of gaining knowledge?  Are there parts of the scientific methodology that goes against verses of Qur'an?

To make the discussion more focused, here I only want to discuss the scientific methodology, not on scientists' opinions on things.  So please no Einstein pantheism or Dawkins atheism discussion here.

Let's start the discussion.  Don't forget to back up your views with verses of Qur'an if possible.

Science: Does the Qur'an endorse this method of gaining knowledge? 

This comes up in a local mailing list.  Most probably this is old news, but still interesting.  Saudi preacher Aidh al-Qarni wrote a letter to (then)President Nelson Mandela, praising Mandela for all that he had done, but suggests that Mandela would need to convert to Islam in order to attain true happiness.

Link to letter:
http://www.tdwl.net/vb/archive/index.php/t-48107.html

Quotes:

Whenever I met a group of scholars and learned men, leaders, men of letters and wisdom in the Islamic world, they expressed their wishes and desires that, 'How we wish Nelson Mandela were a Muslim!' For you exemplify and embody the real qualities of nobility and honor that Islam enjoins on its followers

Life is far too short and much too arduous. What about the life of such a great man like you? You have spent almost half of your life oppressed and imprisoned, while innocent. Truly, there is an eternal life; a life of happiness and prosperity for those who believe in Allah and follow all His Messengers.

At the end, it gives me pleasure to present to you my book entitled, 'Don't Be Sad'. I wish you would conclude, as a result, the consensus of scholars and great wise men that the true happiness is truly found in Islam, for there is no doubt.

Great President, I ask Allah the Almighty, the Lord of the Mighty Throne, that He [in His own mystical ways], opens your breast and heart to [accept] Islam, and protects you in this life and the hereafter.

Now, the question posed by the man who posted this letter was: How come such a great man like Mandela never originated in the Muslim world?  He adds the irony pointing out that al-Qarni's native Saudi Arabia produced men like Usama bin Laden instead.

On a sidenote, the book al-Qarni sent to Mandela, 'Don't Be Sad' (La Tahzan) is a bestseller here.

It is correctly pointed out that Mandela has 'Islamic' qualities without being Muslim himself.

So what do you think?  I think this has a connection with the 'Not Muslim?' thread.

Peace people,

Just realized that in some traditionalists celebrate today [17 Ramadan] as Nuzulul Qur'an, the day the Qur'an was sent down.

What I don't understand is there should be no such thing as 'the day the Qur'an was sent down'!  Even by traditionalist histories, the Qur'an is revealed in stages, obviously on different days and times.

Another contradiction, I think.

Interesting news I come across today.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10405038

New Muslim superheroes launched to rival Spider-Man, The Hulk

1.00pm Monday October 9, 2006
By Jason Szep


BOSTON - In Saudi Arabia, a gawky teenager is transformed into a hulking creature. In Paris, a historian chases legends about mystical gemstones. In South Africa, a boy discovers a sparkling rock with healing powers.

The characters are from a new genre of superheroes endowed with Muslim virtues and aimed at young Muslims in a comic book series called The 99. Launched in July, it is being billed as the world?s first superhero project drawn from Islamic culture.

Its creator, 35-year-old Naif Al-Mutawa, admits the series -- based on 99 heroes who embody the 99 attributes of God in Islam -- is tricky in a religion where attempts to personify God?s power can spark protests and even death threats.

But the U.S.-educated Al-Mutawa hopes to create a new Islamic pop culture. His Kuwait-based company is also rolling out classic US comic books -- from Archie to Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk-- to the Middle East in the Arabic language.

On Thursday he won the crucial blessing of Muslim clerics who manage a Bahrain investment bank. It approved US$25 million ($35 million) to help finance his company, Teshkeel Media Group, and pay for plans to launch an animated The 99 series for television.

"If you look at the superheroes who exist in the world today, you have two groups: the group that comes out of North America and the group that comes out of Japan," Al-Mutawa, who was born in Kuwait and spent much of his adult life in the United States, said during a visit to Boston.

"The idea of using religion as a modern-day archetype is not new -- the West has been using it for a long time. No one has really mined Islamic culture for that," he said.

The plot blends a pivotal point in Islamic history -- the sacking of Baghdad by the Mongols in the 13th century -- with a big dose of fantasy.

In the story, the wisdom, tolerance and spirituality of the Baghdad caliphate are coded in 99 gemstones as the barbarians gather at Baghdad?s gate. They are smuggled out as three prayer beads of 33 stones each and scattered around the world.

Heroes such as Jabbar the Powerful and Mumita the Destroyer must find them before the bad guys do.

"It?s a metaphor for the spreading of Islam without mentioning Islam. These comics have no mention of Islam or the prophet or prayer," Al-Mutawa told Reuters in an interview.

Al-Mutawa studied at Tufts University in Massachusetts and earned a doctorate in clinical psychology and an MBA from Columbia University in New York. His past work includes treating survivors of political torture from the 1991 Gulf War.

"It kind of left me with the hollow feeling that we don?t have any heroes in that part of the world," he said.

The idea for Muslim superheroes came as he rode a taxi in London with his sister and mother in 2003. His classmates at Columbia introduced him to writers and artists from Marvel Comics, who helped him develop his ideas.

Al-Mutawa is Marvel?s distributor in the Arab world.

Marvel artists joined his team, giving the drawings a distinctly American look with the superheroes? muscles bulging from their tights. But the similarity ends there.

Unlike the Judeo-Christian archetype of superpowerful individuals orphaned young, like Superman, heroes boast Muslim virtues ranging from faithfulness to wisdom. When combined, they express the divine.

To maintain peace with religious authorities, especially in important markets with strict Islamic laws such as Saudi Arabia, the series will likely peak with 70 heroes. Only God possesses all 99 characteristics in Islam.

Having spent childhood summers in New Hampshire, Al-Mutawa sees the project as a balance between the forces that have defined his life -- the West and Middle East -- for a new generation of Muslims heavily influenced by both cultures.

To help sell his idea, Al-Mutawa showed his financial backers a newspaper story about a Hamas supporter in the Palestinian territories who was selling a children?s book with stickers of suicide bombers as heroes.

"I took this around and said, ?look, this is what?s happening in the vacuum?," he said. "I don?t want my kids growing up like that."

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I wonder if it will be marketable here.

I'm currently thinking whether there are books [besides the Qur'an itself] about our position.  I'm sure there are, but I think we could make a list of them here.  Some kind of 'reading list' for us and others.  It could be any book that advocates the Qur'an-only way of thinking, or even traditionalist/modernist books critical to the use of non-Qur'anic sources in Islam.

As it goes, I'm in the publishing industry, so it's a possibility that I would try to get one of the books published at my place.

Any language is welcome. English, Arabic, anything.  Please help me compile the list.

Peace all,

What do you think about selling one's own organs, say, a kidney, for transplants?








...I'm toying with the idea of doing it myself.

Yes, we live in a country crisscrossed by plate junctions, hence the regular quakes.

Three earthquakes shake the southern coast of Java yesterday afternoon [local time, 18 July 2006].  Although no major cities/densely populated areas are hit this time, the quakes did generate a small tsunami that devastated small beach hotels in Pangandaran, a tourist destination, on the south coast.  Fatality count is estimated to be hundreds.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/03/28/indonesia.quake/index.html

Hi guys,

Something interesting I found.  This is a 26-episode semi-educational webcomic about the recent history of Afghanistan.  The artist is a Japanese person known as 'Timaking' and it has been translated by aficionados at the animesuki forum.  The interesting thing is, the artist portrays Afghanistan as a cute little girl named 'Afuganisu-tan' [The Japanese used the suffix '-tan' to refer to extremely cute characters].  Other countries like Pakistan, Uzbekistan and America are also represented by little girl characters.  And watch out for a special cat in the later episodes 

The history content might be questioned by some of you guys, but that is the artist's responsibility.



Here you go:
http://rapidshare.de/files/20810301/afuganisutan.zip.html 4.2MB

I guess most people know that the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority is in financial trouble.  Due to the withdrawal of Western funds and threats to banks by US and Israel, the Palestinian government cannot pay for employees' wages, and other problems.  Last I checked, Arab nations tried to help but they can't get their funds through due to refusal by threatened banks.

What do you think about this situation?

Hamas wins election

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/palestinian_election;_ylt=Amvy3SzYG35DQOgV.QtUqzOs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA2Z2szazkxBHNlYwN0bQ--

Hamas Election Victory Shocks World

By RAVI NESSMAN, Associated Press Writer

RAMALLAH, West Bank - Islamic militant Hamas' landslide victory in Palestinian elections unnerved the world Thursday, darkening prospects for Mideast peace and ending four decades of rule by the corruption-riddled     Fatah Party.

The parliamentary victory stunned even Hamas leaders, who mounted a well-organized campaign but have no experience in government. They offered to share power with President Mahmoud Abbas, the Fatah chief, who said he may go around the new government to talk peace with     Israel.

Underscoring the tensions between the secular Fatah and fundamentalist Hamas, some 3,000 supporters of the militant group marched through Ramallah and raised their party's green flag over the Palestinian parliament. Fatah supporters tried to lower the banner. The two sides fought for about 30 minutes, throwing stones and breaking windows in the building.

Abbas, who was elected last year to a four-year term as president of the     Palestinian Authority, has yet to decide how closely to work with a group that built its clout through suicide bombings. But his Fatah Party decided not to join a Hamas government, Fatah legislator Saab Erekat said.

"We will be a loyal opposition and rebuild the party," Erekat said after meeting with Abbas.

Hamas won a clear majority in Wednesday's vote, capturing 76 of the 132 seats in parliament, according to official, near-complete results released Thursday. The results of the popular vote were not announced.

Four independent candidates backed by Hamas also won seats. Fatah, which has dominated Palestinian political life since the 1960s but alienated voters because of rampant corruption, got 43 seats. The remaining went to smaller parties.

Palestinians across the Gaza Strip and West Bank greeted the election results with joy, setting off fireworks and firing rifles in the air.

But leaders across the world demanded that Hamas, which is branded a terror group by the U.S. and European Union, renounce violence and recognize Israel.

"If your platform is the destruction of Israel, it means you're not a partner in peace, and we're interested in peace," President Bush said in Washington.

Acting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Israel will not negotiate with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas members, and senior Cabinet officials held an emergency meeting to discuss the repercussions of the vote. Acting Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni asked the EU not to deal with a "terror government."

Hamas leaders immediately took to the international ? and even Israeli ? airwaves to send out a moderate message.

"Don't be afraid," Ismail Haniyeh, a Hamas leader, told the BBC.

Mahmoud Zahar, another Hamas leader, said the group would extend its year-old truce if Israel reciprocates. "If not, then I think we will have no option but to protect our people and our land," he said.

At a victory news conference late Thursday, however, Haniyeh said Hamas will "complete the liberation of other parts of Palestine." He did not say which territories he was referring to or how he would go about it.

Hamas has largely adhered to the cease-fire declared last February, while a smaller militant group, Islamic Jihad, carried out six suicide bombings against Israelis during that period.

Abbas said he remained committed to peace talks and suggested they be conducted through the Palestine Liberation Organization rather than the Palestinian Authority. That could help him sidestep a Hamas-run government in peace talks.

"I am committed to implementing the program on which you elected me a year ago," he said in a televised speech. "It is a program based on negotiations and peaceful settlement with Israel."

Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia and his Cabinet resigned to make room for a Hamas-led government.

The Islamic group quickly reached out to Abbas to try to work out a partnership, Haniyeh said, adding that he did not expect the Palestinian leader to resign.

Hamas leaders had said before the vote they would be content to be a junior partner in the next government. The group campaigned mainly on cleaning up the Palestinian Authority ? downplaying the conflict with Israel ? and Zahar said Thursday that Hamas planned to overhaul the government.

"We are going to change every aspect, as regards the economy, as regards industry, as regards agriculture, as regards social aid, as regards health, administration, education," he said.

Some experts believed the Hamas victory would force it to moderate. Others feared it would embolden the group to remake Palestinian life in keeping with its strict interpretation of Islam.

"We don't want the Palestinian people and cause to be isolated. We don't want a theocracy," said independent lawmaker Hanan Ashrawi. "Hamas promises reform, sure they will do that, I would like to see reform. But what worries me is things like legislation on education, culture, social welfare, the ramifications for peace in the future."

Hamas' victory was cheered in the Arab world, though many said they feared the group would become even more radical under pressure from its hard-line backers, Syria and Iran.

The rise of Hamas was certain to be a key issue in Israel's March 28 election.

"Today, Hamastan was formed, a representative of Iran and in the image of the Taliban," said Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of the opposition Likud Party. Labor Party politician Ami Ayalon, a former head of the Shin Bet security service, said Israel might have to change the route of its West Bank security barrier because of the Hamas victory.

Immediately upon taking power, Hamas will be confronted with an avalanche of issues, including what to do about the Palestinian security services, which are comprised of hard-core Fatah members, said Basem Ezbidi, a political science professor at the West Bank's Bir Zeit University. "It's not going to be easy for Hamas to govern these bodies," he said.

Others expected Hamas to fold its own fighters into the security forces.

Hamas' victory virtually ruled out a resumption of stalled peace efforts, and could push Israel to take further unilateral moves to set its permanent borders, following last year's Gaza pullout.

It also could jeopardize hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign donations to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority.

Speaking at a news conference, Bush did not directly answer a question about the fate of U.S. aid to the Palestinians, though he suggested Hamas' victory could have an impact. "I made it very clear that the United States does not support political parties that want to destroy our ally Israel, and that people must renounce that part of their platform," he said.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is to meet in London on Monday with U.N., Russian and European leaders as the so-called "Quartet" of would-be international peacemakers evaluates the results and tries to decide how to proceed.

Despite the rhetoric, it will be almost impossible for Israel and the Palestinians to sever ties completely. Much of their infrastructure, including water and electricity networks, is intertwined, and the vast majority of Palestinian imports pass through Israeli-controlled borders. Hamas ministers would also need Israeli permission to travel between the West Bank and Gaza.


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How would this influence things in the Middle East?