I ask you to not belittle nor attack any of your brothers and sisters because of what they preach. I ask you to avoid swearing. I ask you to control your anger. I ask you to approach people in a peaceful manner. I ask you to not discredit the intellect of any of your brothers and sisters because God only knows what is in the hearts of His servants. I ask you to leave aside what does not concern you. Finally, I ask you to pay attention to every single words in the following verse:
But as for those who strive hard in Our cause – We shall most certainly guide them onto paths that lead unto Us: for, behold, God is indeed with the doers of good. (29:69)
There is no unique way to reach Islam and I want you to respect that. If someone found Islam through a speaker who preached peace but whose speech demonstrated an affiliation with a specific party then leave him alone; his personal experience will ultimately shape his understanding of the religion. Also, do not dictate lessons from what you have lived for everyone is fighting different battles. Thank you.
I couldn’t agree with this more. People that find it easy to be disparaging towards others have a selective memory. Recently I’ve often been reminded of how I behaved earlier in life. I recall some of the grave errors of judgement on my part, and I recall indulging in actions that make me cringe with shame at the thought of it. Reading this, and again watching the usual drivel on Tumblr about whose sect is more correct and whose sheikhs are more authentic, it reminds me that such sentiments are indicative of arrogance and elitism and has nothing to do with sincere advice.
Sincere advice cannot be based on insults, dismissiveness, or condescension. The only exception I would make to this rule would be the use of arrogance against one who is arrogant. And then also, assuming that a measured and humble approach didn’t work in the first place.
The point is simple, if you believe you’re sinless, and if you believe that your iman and your knowledge is pristinely pure, then go ahead and treat others as if you’re superior. But if you’re true to yourself, and sincere in your interactions, you’ll quickly realise that taking such a harsh and abrupt tone with anyone under the self-deception of hating for the sake of Allah is in fact making a mockery of what Allah has commanded of us, let alone making a mockery of the Sunnah that we profess to be upholding.
The internet is certainly not a place I turn to for Islamic inspiration blindly…there are very few blogs that have a deliberate Islamic focus that I would consider as a reasonable source for obtaining some advice or comfort about my journey as a Muslim. The vast majority are unfortunately disappointing examples of bad da’wah.