The dilemma of homosexuality

2011/08/14

14th day of Ramadhan 1432 (2011)

The discussion on same-sex marriage issue has been heating up recently. As controversial as it is, it is real and needs serious attention. The first country to pass the permissibility on same-sex marriage is the Netherlands in 2001. And after that, many countries started following.

Homosexuality itself has been present from ancient times. In fact, it is well described in the sacred texts of all monotheistic traditions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), which described the story of the Prophet Luth (Lot), peace be upon him, and his people. The people of Luth were homosexuals, and they eventually got punished after still lingering with their severe homosexual acts after receiving endless reminders from the Prophet.

The act of homosexuality itself is a sin and clearly forbidden in all three traditions. And we believe that it being forbidden is nothing else but as a protection from the evil that it can bring. As that is the purpose of sacred law, to protect human beings from the evil they have in themselves which they don’t fully understand.

Homosexuals on the other hand, are human beings that also have the right for respect and dignity. In fact, many of them realize that their tendency is not natural and are struggling to get rid of it. Many of them tried a normal marriage in order to cure the tendency that they had. Some succeeded and some didn’t.

We have to realize that in most of the cases, homosexuals are products of the diseased society that we live in. The act itself is wrong and completely forbidden in all of the monotheistic faiths, but it doesn’t mean that we should reject the people who are inflicted by it from our societies. Several Muslim scholars say that the society should help them in their struggle to get rid or suppress their unnatural tendency, rather than condemning them and belittling them as human beings.

May God protect us and our family from the serious tribulations of the times that we live in.

Being just in measuring the balance

2011/08/13

13th day of Ramadhan 1432 (2011)

In ancient times, when supermarkets did not exist, weighing was a central / important aspect in business transactions. This is especially true when it came to food. A certain amount of money was given for a certain weight of food.

However, there came times where people would commit injustice and cheat people into paying for lesser than what they should have received. For example, they would say that their merchandise is 10kg, while in truth they only weighed 9.8kg.

The cheating got so severe, that it became one of the main central themes of the messages brought by the Prophets and Messengers (peace be upon them). One of them was Prophet Syu’aib (peace be upon him). As with many prophets, when he delivered the message to his people, out of rebellion, they did not want to put the effort to try to comprehend or think about the message that was given. Eventually, the people were punished and put as an example for future generations.

Nowadays, although not that explicit, there is still injustice in the business deals that we experience. Whether it’s by hidden expenses, covered up truths about what is sold, a price that way exceeds the real price of the unit, etc. This cheating can also take form as bad service, going home early from work (while getting the full amount of pay), etc.

Being unjust in business transactions were one the causes of the decline in ancient communities. Thus we should also be aware of our conducts and do our best to be just in all our affairs.