XPost: soc.support.fat-acceptance, aus.politics, sac.politics   
   XPost: alt.atheism   
   From: mohammud@heroin-dealers.usa   
      
   SOME people are unaware of the importance and value Islam places   
   upon women. Women who do not know this reality, as well as all   
   people with insufficient knowledge of the Qur'an, try to protect   
   their rights by working within their worldview, which follows   
   the logic of unbelief.   
      
   A Muslim woman believes in Allah with a true heart, submits   
   completely to Him, is aware that there is no other deity, that   
   He is the Lord of every being and thing, and that He is All-   
   Powerful. Therefore, she fears and respects only Him and seeks   
   to win only His good pleasure.   
      
   She worships only Him, accepts only Him as her closest friend,   
   and seeks only His help. She also knows that only He can direct   
   good and bad toward her, and so lives in the full knowledge that   
   she is dependent on Him. She knows that He keeps her alive,   
   provides and cares for her, and protects and guards her. For   
   these reasons, she has no expectations of other people.   
      
   She believes in Allah without the slightest doubt in her heart   
   for her whole life, never losing heart or belief regardless of   
   the circumstances.   
      
   She knows how to be grateful and content with her closeness to   
   Him both when her life is good and when she is undergoing   
   difficulties. She is in a state of constant submission, certain   
   of our Lord's love, compassion, forgiveness and providence.   
      
   When she encounters a problem, she knows that Allah has provided   
   a solution in the Qur'an, and that what matters most is her   
   continued sincere love, submission, and trust in Allah. She is   
   certain of Allah's promise that He creates everything according   
   to His justice and with wisdom and goodness.   
      
   Even if her problems seem to go on forever, she never surrenders   
   to hopelessness or worries when His help will come. Content with   
   what He has sent her way, she maintains her patience and   
   submission, knowing that something good will come out of it. She   
   remembers what the Qur'an says about those who abandon their   
   belief in such times. In addition, she recites "My Lord is with   
   me and will guide me" (Qur’an, 42:62), just as the Prophets did   
   when faced with hardship. Throughout her life, her profound   
   faith enables her to see Allah's compassion, closeness, love,   
   help, and friendship at all times.   
      
   Allah created men and women for a purpose and revealed their   
   responsibilities in the Qur'an. Men and women are required to   
   lead the moral life prescribed by Allah, worship and serve Him,   
   and to win His pleasure. They are required to tell people who   
   are far from the happy and contented life about following the   
   Qur'an's teachings and to make a genuine effort to help them   
   draw closer to Allah's pleasure, mercy, and Paradise.   
      
   Some unbelieving women consider strength and willpower to be   
   male characteristics, out of the mistaken belief that only men   
   have to show strength and determination for themselves, as well   
   as for the women in their charge, in the face of adversity.   
      
   Thus, they consider it to be in their best interest to surrender   
   to men's intellect, willpower and strength. Especially when   
   encountering trouble and difficulty, they lose whatever little   
   strength and willpower they have and panic, and thus give   
   themselves up to irrational and confused behavior.   
      
   This pale and weak personality leads unbelieving women to pay   
   too much attention to what other people think about them. Often,   
   they knowingly do something wrong just to impress others or to   
   win a respectable place among them. Likewise, if they are   
   criticized, they feel belittled and disliked, and so feel   
   devastated. Not understanding that what matters is their value   
   in Allah's Presence, they only seek the approval of people and   
   end up being upset and distraught, thinking that all they ever   
   do is a waste. As a result, they become depressed and lose their   
   strength, willpower, and courage.   
      
   But Muslim women never stagger because of people's criticism.   
   Given that they measure themselves by the yardstick of the   
   Qur'an, which spells out clearly what is right and what is   
   wrong, they strive to live up to the Qur'anic morality. If they   
   are criticized for doing so, they become even more determined   
   and stronger in their pursuit of His good pleasure, which is the   
   highest goal to pursue. Believing that only the Qur'an's   
   morality gives them any value in this world and the next, they   
   do not care what other people think of them.   
      
   The only solution is the Qur'an, which provides the easiest, as   
   well as the most content and beautiful path, by which to live.   
   The only path that can lead toward righteousness is His path,   
   for only it leads to goodness and prosperity. Allah reveals that   
   the Qur'an brings people honor and dignity, and that all who   
   abide by its values and follow this righteous path will find   
   success in everything they undertake.   
      
   All true and lasting solutions to false ideas about women are   
   found in the Qur'an. Islam, which was revealed to guide humanity   
   to salvation, genuinely values women. Many verses protect women   
   and their rights, for the Qur'an eliminated the prevalent   
   misguided stereotypes of women and gave them a respectable   
   position in society. Our Lord teaches that superiority in His   
   Presence is based not on gender, but rather on one's fear and   
   respect of Allah, faith, good character, devotion, and   
   dedication to Him.   
      
   Allah has revealed the steps that women need to take to ensure   
   their protection and respect within society, and for them to   
   find the love and dignity that they deserve. All of these   
   measures benefit women and seek to prevent damage to their   
   interests or any form of oppression and unnecessary stress.   
      
   — The writer has authored more than 300 books translated in 73   
   languages on politics,   
   religion and science.   
      
   http://www.arabnews.com/islam-perspective/news/858541   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)