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From: mmdh@cbnewsf.cb.att.com (Mamdouh Maher)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.islam
Subject: Re: some questions...
Message-ID: <1991May24.151159.25875@wpi.WPI.EDU>
Date: 24 May 91 15:11:59 GMT
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Velu Sembugamoorthy writes:
>	Suppose somebody commits a lot of sins and Allah doest not forgive 
>him/her.  That person is doomed forever  and sent to hell? Does Quron say so 
>directly?  (Incidently thanks for the references on Islam. I am going to buy 
>them and read). 
>
  It is by the Will and Mercy of Allah (God) that we enter heaven. Allah 
forgives whom He wishes to forgive. Allah, however is Most Wise and Just, it 
is not a matter of chance whether or not a person is forgiven. If one is 
punished, it is by what one has done.

>	One of the persons who was kind enough to reply to my earlier posting
>said that Allah created Muslims.

  Allah created ALL. Muslims, non-Muslims, the earth, time, logic, physics - 
ALL.  Perhapse that person meant to say that Allah (God) is the One whom 
Muslims accept as the Creator? In any case, We are Muslims because we accept 
Allah's command and submit to it. Others may not accept it. [If Allah created 
Muslims, then Islam would be a racial religion, Islam is strongly against that
concept.]

>A child just born to Muslim parents has no knowledge, as far 
>as I know, of the prophet. So naturally the child does neither believe nor
>disbelieve in the prophet. Is the child a muslim?  Does the child 
>become a Muslim only after he/she learns  Quron?

  All people are born Muslim, and they remain as such till they choose to 
stray from the right path. That makes every one-week old a Muslim with
the rights and privileges of a Muslim (babies have no obligations,) but
sometimes in the custody of non-Muslim parents.

>If Allah has created Muslims and Allah is the only one who 
>creates, then who created non-muslims?  

  Allah.

>Is there an entity called Satan according to Islam?
>If so, who created her/him? Is Satan a person? 

  In Islam, a satan (noun, not name) is one who knowingly becomes a source of
evil, eg: An aquaintance who encourages you to try just one drink: "It's only
a small sip, come on, it will make you less inhibited" -- while knowing that
it is wrong. These are people who see merit in encouraging and doing evil.
Then there is Iblis, which is a concept closest to Satan (name). He is a
Jinn --Jinns are creatures of God who also have freedom of choice, but we know
very little about them-- and he chose to disobey Allah. He has no power on
us beyond suggesting that which is wrong. We choose to act based on desire
or based on what is right depending on the kind of person we are. The nature
of Jinn is different enought from our own that it is difficult for me to
understand how they think or work, but what I need, I know.

>Who created the ancestors of Muslims who preceded the prophet?
>Clearly they did not know the prophet? Or did they?	

  Allah sent numerous messengers, each on his nation. Muhammad was sent for
all humanity. All messengers preached Islam, none asked to be considered 
a deity. Many were killed, many were disobeyed and many were deified. They
all told their people to worship the One, the Creator. All those who
followed faithfully their messengers are Muslims. Adam was the first messenger.

  I did not put the quotations from the Qur'an, but if you have one, most
of what I said is in the second Sura - Al Baqara (The Heifer).
  
  May Allah lead you and lead us all to the Straight Path.
  
  Mamdouh Maher