We believe in God's
divinity; that is he is the Lord, the Creator, the Sovereign,
and the Manager of all affairs.
We believe in God's
godship; that is, He is the true God and every other so-called
deity is false.
We believe in His
names and attributes, that is He has the most magnificent names
and the sublime perfect attributes.
We believe in His
oneness in all of this, that is, He has no associate in His divinity,
His godship, His names, or His attributes. God says in the Qur'an:
"He is the Lord of the heavens and the Earth and all that is in
between them, so worship Him and be patient in His worship; do
you know any equal to Him?" (19:65).
We believe that
He is "God there is no god but He, the Living, the Everlasting.
Slumber does not seize Him, neither sleep; to Him belongs all
that is in the heavens and the Earth. Who is there that shall
intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is
before them and what is behind them, and they do not encompass
anything of His knowledge except what He wills. His throne extends
over the heavens and the Earth, the preservation of them does
not burden Him; He is the High, the Great" (2:255).
We believe that
"He is God, there is no god but He, the Knower of the Unseen and
the Visible. He is the Most Gracious, Most Merciful. He is God,
there is no god but He, the King, the Holy One, the Source of
Peace, the Keeper of Faith, the Guardian, the Almighty, the Subduer,
the Sublime. Glory be to God above what they associate with Him.
He is God, the Creator, the Maker, the Shaper. His are the most
beautiful Names. All that is in the heavens and the Earth glorifies
Him. He is the Almighty, the Wise" (59:22-4). We believe that
to Him belongs the Kingdom of the Heavens and the Earth: "He creates
what He pleases. He gives, to whom He wills, females, and He gives,
to whom He wills, males, or He couples them, males and females;
and He makes whom He wills barren. Surely, He is the Knowing,
the Powerful" (42:49-50).
We believe that
"there is nothing whatever like unto Him, He is the All-hearing,
the All-seeing. To Him belongs the keys of the Heavens and the
Earth. He enlarges and restricts provisions to whom He wills.
Surely He has knowledge of everything" (42:11-12).
We believe that
"there is no creature that moves on the Earth but its provision
depends on God. He knows its dwelling and its resting place. All
is recorded in a clear book" (11:6).
We believe that
"with Him are the keys of the unseen; none knows them but He.
He knows what is in land and sea; not a leaf falls, but He knows
it. Not a grain in the deep darkness of the Earth, not a thing
green or dry but it is in a clear Book" (6 :5 9 ).
We believe that
"God alone has the knowledge of the Hour, sends down rain, and
knows what is in the wombs. No soul knows what it shall earn tomorrow,
and no soul knows in what land it shall die. Surely, God is All-knowing,
All-aware" (31:34).
We believe that
God speaks whatever He pleases whenever He pleases: "And God spoke
to Moses directly" (4:164); "And when Moses came at Our appointed
place, and his Lord spoke to him" (7:143 ); "We called to him
from the right side of the Mount (Sinai), and We brought him near
in communion" (19:52).
We believe that
"if the ocean became ink for the words of my Lord, the ocean would
be finished before the words of my Lord came to an end" (18:109);
"And if all the trees that are in the earth were pens, and the
ocean (were ink), with seven oceans swelling it therefore, the
words of God would not be exhausted. Surely, God is Mighty, Wise"
(31 :27).
We believe that
God's words are the most truthful in conveying information, the
most just in ruling, and the fairest in conversation. He said:
"The word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and justice"
(6:115); "And who is more truthful in his word than God?" (4:87).
We believe that
the Qur'an is God's word. He literally spoke it to Gabriel, who
conveyed it to the Prophet, peace be upon him: "Say (O Muhammad)
'the Holy Spirit has brought it down from your Lord in truth"'
(16:102); "Truly it is the revelation of the Lord of the world
brought down upon your heart by the Faithful Spirit so that you
may be one of the warners, in a clear Arabic tongue" (26:192-95).
We believe that
God is well above His creatures in His Person and His Attributes,
because He says: "He is the High, the Great" (2:22); "He is Supreme
over His servants, and He is the Wise, the All-aware" (6:18).
We believe that
He "created the Heavens and the Earth in six days, then He settled
Himself on the throne; He manages everything" (10:3).
We believe that
He is with His creatures while He is still on His throne. He knows
their conditions, hears their sayings, sees their deeds, and manages
their affairs. He provides for the poor and the broken.
He gives sovereignty
to whom He pleases and takes away sovereignty from whom He pleases;
He exalts whom He wills and He abases whom He wills. In His hand
is all good and He is powerful over everything. Whoever possesses
these qualities is literally with His creatures even if He is
literally above them on His throne. "There is nothing whatsoever
like unto Him; He is the All-hearing, the All-seeing" (42: 11).
We do not say,
as do the Incarnationists among the Jahomites and others, that
God is living with His creatures on Earth. We consider whoever
says this a non-believer or one who has strayed, for he attributed
to God that which does not become Him of defects.
We believe in what
His Messenger told us, that He descends to the near sky before
the last third of every night and says: "Who prays to Me and I
will answer his prayers. Who asks Me and I will give him. Who
asks My forgiveness and I will forgive him." (Bukhari and Muslim).
We believe that
He will come on the Day of Judgment to judge among His people
because He said: "No indeed! When the Earth is crushed to powder,
and your Lord comes down with the angels in rows after rows, and
Hell is brought out that day. On that day man will remember, but
what will remembrance avail him?" (89:21-23).
We believe that
he is the Doer of what He wills.
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