interested in islam ..... what next .. part 3

Asalamu alikum

The Invalidators of Islam

You should know, dear Muslim brother, that Allah made it obligatory upon all His slaves to enter Islam and hold on to it, and warned them against following other than Islam. He also sent His Prophet Muhammad to call mankind to it. Allah has informed us in the Qur’aan that guided are those who follow the teachings of Islam, and misguided are those who reject them. He warned us in many Verses against the causes of apostasy and all forms of Shirk and disbelief Religious scholars have mentioned that there are a number of invalidators that are bound to take one out of the fold of Islam. For the sake of attaining salvation in the Hereafter, I have briefly cited in the following pages, with some explanation, the ten most critical of these invalidators so that you will avoid them and make others aware of them.

1 . To associate others with Allah in worship.

The Qur’aan says:

"Allah forgives not (the sin of) setting up partners with Him in worship, but He forgives whom He pleases other sins than this." (Soorah 4: 1

"Whoever sets up partners with Allah in worship, Allah will forbid him Paradise, and the Fire will be his abode. For the wrongdoers there are no helpers." (Soorah 5:72)

Forms of worship include calling upon the dead, seeking their assistance, offering sacrifices to them, and taking vows in their names.

2. To set up intermediaries between oneself and Allah, seeking their intercession and putting absolute trust in them. Those who do so are unanimously considered disbelievers.

3. Not to accuse polytheists and those who commit Shirk or disbelief, to be in doubt as to their being disbelievers, or to approve of their beliefs.

4. To believe that the Prophet's guidance is not complete or perfect or that other people's ruling and judgment is better than his. Those who prefer the rule of false gods are blatant

5 . Those who hate anything that the Prophet came with are also disbelievers even if they act upon them. The Qur’aan says:

"That is because they hate that which Allah sent down, so He has made their deeds fruitless." (Soorah 47:9)

6. Those who ridicule anything that Islam came with, such as punishment and reward in the Hereafter, are disbelievers. The Qur’aan says:

"Say: 'Was it at Allah, and His Signs, and His Messenger, that you were mocking? Make no excuse; you have rejected Faith after you had accepted it." (9:65,66)

7. Magic in all its forms, including turning someone away from somebody that he or she loves, and making someone love someone or something he or she does not normally like. Whoever practices magic or approves of it is a disbeliever, as evidenced by the Qur’aanic Verse that says:

"But neither of these (two angels) taught anyone (such things) without saying, We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)." (Soorah 2:102)

8. To take the disbelievers for friends, give them support and assistance against the Muslims is an act of disbelief. The Qur’aan says:

"And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them. Verily Allah guides not a people unjust." (Soorah 5:51)

9. Those who believe that it is in their power or authority to forsake the law of Islam are disbelievers. The Qur’aan says:

"And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers." (Soorah 3:85)

10. To turn away from Islam and to stubbornly refuse to learn its teachings or act upon them. The Qur’aan says:

"And who does more wrong than he who is reminded of the Signs of his Lord, then he turns away there from? Verily from those who transgress We shall exact (due) retribution." (Soorah 32:22)

In all of these invalidators, there is no difference between one who does them jokingly, seriously, or in fear, except for one who is compelled against his will. All of these matters are most dangerous and most of them are occurring (amongst the Muslims). Therefore, it is necessary for the Muslim to beware of them and fear for himself concerning them. The fourth point mentioned above also includes those who believe that man-made laws are better than the Islamic Law, that the Islamic Law is not suitable to be implemented in the present century, that Islam is the reason behind Muslims' backwardness in some spheres of life, or that it is not applicable in other spheres of life apart from regulating one' s life with one's Lord. This point also includes those who believe that cutting off the thief's hand is a backward law that should not be implemented in the present-day society. It also includes those who believe that it is permissible to dispense with the Islamic Law in matters relating to the social life and the boundary limits for the lawful and the unlawful even if they do not believe that other laws are not better than the Islamic Law. For this means that they have made lawful what Allah had already made unlawful. Whoever makes lawful what Allah has declared unlawful, things that are known in religion by necessity such as adultery, drinking alcohol, usury and ruling with other than Allah's Law, is a disbeliever with the unanimous agreement of all Muslim scholars. We seek Allah's refuge from His painful chastisement as well as from those things that cause His wrath. Allah's Peace and Blessing be upon His Messenger, his pure family and noble Companions.

Summery
It is easy to become a Muslim. All a person has to do is declare   
  Shahadah can be declared as follows:

“ASH-HADU ANLA ELAHA ILLA-ALLAH WA ASH-HADU ANNA MOHAMMADAN RASUL-ALLAH”.

The English translation is:

"I bear witness that there is no deity worthy to be worshipped but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger."
We have to consider that when we declare from our hearts, "there is no god worthy to be worshipped but Allah." It implies on our part of love, devotion, faith and obedience to the rules of Islamic legislation which are legally binding on all Muslims. It is a requirement of "there is no god worthy to be worshipped but Allah," to love for the sake of Allah and to reject for the sake of Allah. This is the finest anchor of belief which make material the meaning of "AL-WALA" and "AL-BARA". It means that a Muslim should love and be loyal to his Muslim brothers. He should, as a practice, dissociate himself completely from the practices of unbelievers and refuse to be influenced by them, both in worldly and religious matters.
When one truly believes that Islam is the true religion of God and that "there is no god worthy to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is His servant and Messenger." Then he or she should declare the shahadah right away. He or she  should not hesitate.
We are given a certain lifespan. We do not know when that life span will end. It may end this very minute even. Therefore a person should say the shahadah and then work on becoming  the best Muslim he or she can be.
Some of you will find some aspects of Islam difficult at first. For instance some new Muslim sisters find it difficult to wear Hijab at first. However with time they have eventually grown in their faith and are now wearing the full Islamic dress and encouraging even sisters born into Muslim families to wear full Islamic dress. Some were vegetarian before they became Muslim. Eating meat seemed impossible to them. Now after a few years they have started to even eat meat. Please do not worry about any barriers you may have. become Muslims and you will see those barriers crashing down as you grow in your religion.