Gray

Right or wrong. One or zero. Halal or haram. Often, I am told that in Islam there is a distinct line crossing between those two. It is clearly defined in the Qur’an what is halal(allowed) and what is haram(forbidden) and nothing in between. This statement sure gives the critics a chance to say that Islam is an extreme religion. So, is it true? Quoting from Mr. Lex Luthor of Smallville from episode 'Aqua': “Only the naïve view the world as black and white”. Is there a gray area?

Islam is a beautiful religion and it offers a lot of tolerance. I hate to think that the Muslim are the extremist so this question has been bugging me for days. Since we are approaching the Month of Ramadhan, I’ve received quite a few emails regarding the fasting month. One of which, when I read yesterday just hit me. I wasn’t wrong! Islam is indeed a religion that is full of tolerance. Of course there can be gray areas. In fact it has too many tolerance I don’t even know which one to pick. I guess I’ll choose the basics, the 5 times prayer.

Yes, it is an obligation to pray five times a day and it is considered a sin if you missed one prayer. Sounds difficult? Not really! You don’t have to go to a place of worship for the prayer. It only needs a clean place and off you go (subject to some conditions and rules)! And if you are traveling, you may combine two prayers at one time (subject to some conditions and rules). If you are sick, you can pray sitting down, and if you can’t even sit, you can pray lying on your back. And if you cannot move a muscle, you can still pray using your eyes (all are subject to some conditions and rules). For those who are considered as insane, they are excused from doing the prayer.

Those were one of the many tolerances that Islam has. Don’t forget that when a person converted to Islam, he is considered as clean as the newborn baby, free from his previous sins, given that he has sincerely and wholeheartedly repents on his sins. So, Mr Luthor, I guess I have to agree with you on this. There is in fact a gray area in between!


p/s I googled for a quote from Al-Qur'an while I was writing this. Couldn't find what I was looking for but I stumbled into many interesting forums.. some issues can be quite provocative.. freedom of speech? yes! but don't believe everything blindly.. confirmation from the scholars are still needed.. I am keeping an open mind though.. I have always love a healthy discussions!