What constitutes our beliefs as a\nMuslim? How well do we know our faith?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the lifetime of the eighth\nImam, the Caliph, Ma\u2019mun, summoned a written summary of Islam from Imam Reza\n(PBUH). In response, the Imam wrote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPure Islam is\nbearing witness to the oneness of the Lord, that there is no God but He. That, no other is like Him. That he is a Lord, the one and only, and\nthere is no other like Him. He is\nneedless and infinity. He has no\nbeginning and is in essence by Himself (that which exists by itself). He hears, sees, and is the ultimate owner of\npower. He is eternal. He is the knower, in that nothing is hidden\nfrom Him. He is the able, in that no\nweakness can affect Him. He is needless\nand rich in essence, in that He does not fall in need. He is just, in that no oppression comes from\nHim, and He is the creator of all. He\nhas no partner, alike, or similar, co-worker, or associate. He is the aim and desired in worship and prayer\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And that Muhammad is His servant,\nmessenger, trusty, and His chosen among His creations. He is the master and leader of the prophets\nand messengers sent from the Lord. \nSealer of the divine prophets\u2026..no other prophet will come after\nhim\u2026..and his religion will not alter, and this which Muhammad ibn Abdullah has\nbrought is all truth\u2026and bear witness to his book, which is truth, valid, and\ndear. The book which has no room for\nfalsehood\u2026and that this book (Quran), which contains all that which had been\nrevealed earlier, and is truth and valid, and which we believe in it from its\nstart to its finish, from the opening to its closing. And we believe in its verses, and that no\nother creation was able to produce anything like it (the Quran).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And that the reason behind the caravan\nof humanity and the guide after him (the Prophet of Islam) for the pious, and\nthe guide and Imam of Muslims, and the iterator of Quran, and the knower of its\nrituals; the brother, successor and the one left in charge (by the Prophet\nMuhammad Peace be Upon Him), the one whose relation to him (the Prophet Muhammad)\nis as that of Aaron to Moses. And he is\nAli ibn Abi Talib, master of the pious (PBUH), the Imam of the virtuous\u2026.the\nbest and highest of the successors, the inheritor of knowledge and that which\nall the Prophets and Messengers of Allah upon the people had acquired. And after him, Hassan and Hussein, both of\nwhom are the masters of the young in Paradise, and afterwards are Ali ibn\nHussein Zain al-Abedin, and after him Muhammad ibn Ali, the problem solver of\nthe challenges of knowledge that the Prophets had faced, and then Ja\u2019far ibn\nMuhammad al-Sadiq, the inheritor of the knowledge of the successors, and then\nMusa ibn Ja\u2019far al-Kadhim, the restrainer of anger, and then Ali ibn Musa, and\nafter him Muhammad ibn Ali and after him Ali ibn Muhammad, and then Hassan ibn\nAli, and finally the standing, the awaiting Hujjat. May Allah\u2019s peace and blessings be upon them\nall\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2026.these (men)\nare all the successors, Imams, and guiders of religion. And the earth will not remain without a\nsuccessor of God on (residing on it), and that people will not be left without\na guide in any period or day\u2026\u201d1, 2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Reference:\n\u2018Uyoon Akhbar al-Reza\u2019 by Sheikh Saduq (with minor changes))<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Roshd Website congratulates all\nMuslims, especially you dear friend, upon 11th of Dhi al-Qa’dah, the birthday\nof the holder of the knowledge of the Prophets and the manifestation of Allah\u2019s\nKindness, <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Imam Ali ibn Musa al-Reza (PBUH).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Footnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1.\u2019Uyoon Akhbar\nal-Reza, Vol. 2, pg. 121<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2.Imam Reza in\nthe continuation of his letter after elaborating about the Imams who will lead\nafter the Great Prophet, explains a part of divine jurisprudence that the\nMuslim community practices. For more\ninformation in this area you can refer to the book Uyoon akhbar al Reza.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. \nThe above selection has been taken from the Farsi\ntranslation of Uyoon Akhbar al Reza by Hamid Reza Mustafid and Ali Akbar\nGhafari.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
What constitutes our beliefs as a Muslim? How well do we know our faith? During the lifetime of the eighth Imam, the Caliph, Ma\u2019mun, summoned a written summary of Islam from Imam Reza (PBUH). In response, the Imam wrote: \u201cPure Islam is bearing witness to the oneness of the Lord, that there is no God […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28248],"tags":[22317,17745,18072,22163,18017,22318,17978,18418,22316],"class_list":["post-4530","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-occasional-letters","tag-2016-08-14","tag-beliefs","tag-god","tag-imam-reza","tag-islam","tag-lifetim","tag-lord","tag-occasion-letters","tag-pure-islam"],"yoast_head":"\n