"Whosoever does evil or wrongs himself, and then seeks forgiveness of God, he will find God Forgiving, Merciful."
Quran 4:110
Here is another passage from al-Nisa, usually rendered "Women," the lengthy and very important 4th surah. I suppose all religions have similar messages of hope and forgiveness, and, if they didn't, what would be their point? However, I still felt moved to include this passage because there is still this popular perception that Islam is a terribly angry and vindictive faith. Instead, in Islam God is consider to be so essentially forgiving and merciful that he is Forgiving and Merciful, meaning that these are such fundamental concepts that they cannot be separated from the divine. Why would we worship, and for that matter even perceive, of a god and cruelly judged everyone of our actions? Yes, in the end what you say and do and think matter, and they matter because they impact the rest of the planet and its inhabitants, but does that equate with god moving a divine abacus back and forth in reply to every thing we do? As I've pointed out many times I associate God with the quiet stillness, the undeniable beauty, the inherent kindness and compassion, that is at the heart of all things, and forgiveness and mercy both reflect that essence but would also act as a magnet for those who practice those attributes.
Quran 4:110
Here is another passage from al-Nisa, usually rendered "Women," the lengthy and very important 4th surah. I suppose all religions have similar messages of hope and forgiveness, and, if they didn't, what would be their point? However, I still felt moved to include this passage because there is still this popular perception that Islam is a terribly angry and vindictive faith. Instead, in Islam God is consider to be so essentially forgiving and merciful that he is Forgiving and Merciful, meaning that these are such fundamental concepts that they cannot be separated from the divine. Why would we worship, and for that matter even perceive, of a god and cruelly judged everyone of our actions? Yes, in the end what you say and do and think matter, and they matter because they impact the rest of the planet and its inhabitants, but does that equate with god moving a divine abacus back and forth in reply to every thing we do? As I've pointed out many times I associate God with the quiet stillness, the undeniable beauty, the inherent kindness and compassion, that is at the heart of all things, and forgiveness and mercy both reflect that essence but would also act as a magnet for those who practice those attributes.
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