ISLAM FOR BEGINNERS BRS 107.pdf - CUEA

We wonder whether Shari'a has ever been successfully applied in history. Nevertheless,Muhammad is quoted in al-Athar as having said, "Do not enforce your own ethics on yourchildren; they have been created for a time other than yours." If this pronouncement is validwith children who are hardly three decades apart from their parents, how much more it mustbe accurate to those who live several centuries apart from their ancestors. 137. Relevance of such informationPeople who are aware of Shar`ia and its subsequent issues ask, what could be done?Perhaps our response in this paper will not bring out the importance of the matter at hand, sowe rely on Jesus especially in what his reassuring Word expressed in the parable of thesower in Lk8,4-l5. The sower comes out to sow the seed that will be the bread from whichpeople live. Everybody depends on the activities of the sower and the product of the land.However, there are many dangers opposed to the seed growing: the unworkable stonyground, the weeds, and the bad weather. Everything seems to condemn the sower's work.We are the new sowers of the Gospel, we are the sower of the Word of today that could helppeople to grow, practice justice and establish peace in the world. I know that Muslims have adifferent perspective as the identity of Christ is concerned but they still consider Him as agreat prophet whose life was without reproach. Thus, they can still listen to him and uprootthe weeds that prevent Shar`ia to fit into the protecting laws of the modern world.It is, therefore, time to think again of our work in the world of today. On one hand, majority ofMuslims believe that Shar`ia sets a straight path toward God and purifies the human race. Onthe other hand, Shar`ia questions our minds and our lives as we live in a society, which ismore pluralistic than ever. Shari`a should challenge our Christian faith and beliefs, particularlyas we meet the Muslims with whom we ought to built our world and make it a better place.Christians should know and know quite well that they could challenge the Muslims if theycould live an outstanding moral life; this could force Muslims to re-consider theimplementation of Shari`a. We have to examine ourselves and see how far our justice,obedience, moral life, religious life and interrelationship have gone. The Muslims observe andmaybe realize that Christian morality is not even the commendable way of life that couldshape this world; so they continue wrinkling on Shari`a as the better option. As we sow, let us13 Cf. Http://wvvw.light-of-l(le.com/eng/answer/a4990efill.htmFrederic N. Mvumbi,OP Page 52 of 85