Islam critiqued is no coding genius; sharia is a rigid code of law?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

Contrary to Islamophobic rant and media, there is no such thing as "Islamic law" insofar as there exists list of rules that are fixed and immutable. Even among issues on which there is temporary ijma'/consensus the classical hanbali and shafi'i jurists reject the notion that the doors of ijtihad are closed. The hanafi jurists practiced ijtihad to resolve legal issues in the Ottoman era. In more recent times, even the most prominent advocate of salafism (return to the pristine origins of Islam), who is none other than Muhammad ibn abd al Wahhab, was a staunch anti-taqleed (immitation of previous scholars), advocating the return to the Quran and hadith rather than relying on a centuries long inherited corpus of laws from medieval times.

The Quran is not Deuteronomy or Leviticus and their fixed, eternal immutable laws that will be reinstaured at the end of times. As a side note this negates the Christian notion of 10 "commandements" open to interpretation.

Jesus doesnt even quote from those "commandements" when asked which is the most important. The reason for that is that these 10 things arent even laws but classifications which the 613 immutable laws fall under. To reconcile Jesus' and his early followers' stance with Paul's and theirs as regards to Jewish laws, Christians today attempt word acrobatics to equate on one hand, "the Law of the Lord" with the so called "Ten Commandments", and on the other hand, the  "moral laws" or the "Law of Moses" with the now obsolete "ceremonial law" (ie the remaining 603 laws of the Torah).

However what these Christians want to classify as "ceremonial law", the obsolete 603 mosaic laws according to Paul, is called "the Law of the Lord" many times Ex13:7-9,1Chron16:40,2Chron31:3-4 as well as in Nehemiah8:1,8,14 -in conjonction with Lev23:33-36-. Not only that but the "Law of Moses" and the "Law of the Lord" are used to refer to the same books.

Even Jesus in Matt12:5 refers to the ceremonial law as "the Law" because he considered the Mosaic Law to be one inseparable unit. He equated what Christians call Moses' "ceremonial law" with "the law of the Lord" numerous times Luke2:22-24,39. When he was asked which of the commandments was the greatest he quoted two commandments neither of which were from the so-called "Ten Commandments" Matt22:34-40 but from what Christians want to differentiate as Moses' "ceremonial law" Deut6:5,Lev19:18. It is obvious that the Bible never even once makes any distinction in terms of the Law between the moral (which Christians want to be so-called 10 commandements) and the ceremonial. On the contrary the 613 laws are always viewed as one unit.

For example Deut4:44-45 speaking of "the law", ie all 613 laws not just the so called 10 commandements. Same thing for Josh8:34-35,1Kings 2:3,Micah4:2,Lev18:5,24:22,Deut4:1,5,8,6:25,31:12-13,2Kings17:3,21:8, 23:25,1Chron16:40,Ezra7:6,Ps78:5,119:1,55,108,137,174,147:20,Prov31:4-5, Isa5:24,Jere18:18,Lam2:9,Ezek7:26,Hosea4:6,Amos2:4,Hab1:4, Zeph3:4,Zech7:12,Mal2:9,Mk15:31,Jn1:17,Acts13:39,Gal3:10,Eph2:14-15,1Tim1:7-8,Titus3:9,Heb10:28,James2:10.

Even the word "law" (Torah in Hebrew and Nomos in the Greek) when applied to the entire corpus of laws of the Torah is always singular even though it contains 613 separate commandments. Finally, Deut27 curses the one who does not live by the divine law. Yet we have Paul in places like Gal3:10 painting it as a curse which Jesus' death now retrospectively freed the world from. But the world in the first place isnt even concerned by this law, only the Jews were, and still are, concerned by it. This negative, completely misconstrued view of the mosaic law is of course in disregards of statements such as Deut30:10-14 where the entire Law is said to be at anyone's reach, of Ps119:1 stating that

"Praiseworthy are those whose way is perfect, who walk with the law of the Lord"

and Job37:23 which does not expect people to be perfectly righteous in Torah observance. In fact even the NT contains similar statements, as in Lk1:6 where John's parents are upright in God's sight, observing all commandements blamelessly. This is the way of God and is reflected not only in the earlier revelations, but down to the Quran as well

2:220"And had God so willed, He would indeed have imposed on you hardships which you would not have been able to bear, but behold, God is almighty, wise".

The sharia/law of God is and has always been intended to be simple and straightforward, adapted to man's nature, extreme circumstances and exceptions, and above all it is the means by which one is spiritually purified 2:185,5:6,22:78. Whenever the religion became complicated, it was either because of man-made additions to it, or as a punishement.

Far from being a "curse", the Law revealed at Sinai is in fact something previous prophets "loved" and praised, thanked God for, as reflected throughout most of the Psalms and more particularily ch119.

Today's Christians pick and choose which laws are still aplicable to them while all of them, including the so-called 10 laws, were revealed at Sinai. But being non-Jews, they are not obliged to follow the Law in the first place, yet still declare that Jesus' sacrifice is the only thing that saved them from it (the law that God Himself obliged). Being that God is the source of the very laws they condemn, the "mercy" of Jesus "fulfilling" the law by "breaking" it, came after the generations upon generations of oppression by that very same God's demand that His law be upheld and fulfilled.

With all that was in mind, we now proceed with the issue of alleged codification of the sharia.

Islam critiqued waits patiently for the resurrection; what happens in barzakh?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

The believers, in their graves, will be questioned as regards their previous faith. While on earth their inner reality was hidden from view, in the grave they will be incapable of lying and their true self will become apparent. Depending on the answer, the grave will then instantly turn into a pleasant or punishing place until the resurrection. 

Muslims in the Quran and the prophetic traditions, are taught to never feel complacent as regards their righteousness and what will be their condition in the Hereafter. So when the prophet informed the public of that notion of being tested in the graves, people were frightened. Some enemies of the Muslims used that occasion to insinuate things that were not intended by the prophet. A Jewess quickly came to Aisha, who was unaware of the prophet's statement, telling her that 

'You will be tested in your graves.' The Messenger of Allah got upset and said: 'Rather the Jews will be tested."' 

The testing maliciously intended here was one of punishment, which will not happen to the righteous believers, rather to those like the Jews contemporaries of a prophet and disbelievers in him. In another version of the hadith, Aisha told the prophet how she understood their statement 

'O Messenger of Allah, two of the old Jewish women of Al-Madinah said that the people of the graves are tormented in their graves.' He said: 'They spoke the truth. They are tormented in a manner that all the animals can hear". 

As a side note, the immediate response of the prophet to Aisha's question shows that the inspiration in regards to the intermediary world of barzakh had occured to him prior to the Jewess coming to Aisha. However the prophet did not confirm the Jewess' generalization 

"A few nights later, the Messenger of Allah said: 'It has been revealed to me that you will be tested in your graves."' 'Aishah said; "Afterward I heard the Messenger of Allah seeking refuge with Allah from the torment of the grave".

Countless verses explain that punishment begins at the moment of death to those burdenned with major worldly sins left unrepented for. But as stated earlier, the Quran teaches both the prophet and all believers, no matter their level of faith and righteousness to never be complacent and secure of God's threats, even if these threats arent necessarily directed at them and, this includes the grave which is a place that could potentially be unpleasant to anyone.

Fear of God, awareness of the seriousness of His threats avoids one from falling into self-complacency, makes one feel obliged at all times to act upon Divine Commands and regard the righteous good deeds as insignificant in the face of divine perfection 7:99,70:24-8. This state of mind further frees one from any tinge of idolatry as it makes one aware that no protector ultimately exists outside of Allah 

6:14,51,70,17:111"Praise to Allah, who has not taken a son and has had no partner in [His] dominion and has no [need of a] protector out of weakness; and glorify Him with [great] glorification" 33:17"Say, "Who is it that can protect you from Allah if He intends for you an ill or intends for you a mercy?" And they will not find for themselves besides Allah any protector or any helper".

Fear however can never be the sole constituent of belief, it must be balanced with 2 other elements; hope 12:87 and love for God

32:16"call upon their Sustainer in fear and in hope"  

21:90"These people exerted their utmost in righteous deeds and called upon Us with love and fear and they remained humble before Us".

From a philosophical viewpoint, fear,  whether in the natural or spiritual world, is an asset without which survival is impossible. But it must be balanced and controlled or else it leads to stagnation and even death. As is taught to us by the Creator, spiritually, fear must be balanced with love and trust.

The correct attitude is to never fall into either extreme, becoming self-complacent or hopeless of God's mercy. This upright perspective leads one to continuously strive to increase safety/iman in Allah. 

This balanced attitude is reflected in the saying of the prophet 

“If the believer knew what was with Allah of punishment, no one would hope for Paradise; and if the disbeliever knew what was with Allah of Mercy, no one would despair of attaining Paradise".

Elsewhere the Quran describes the successful as those who "hope" to meet their Lord and "hope" for His forgiveness 2:218,18:110. This is a sign of humility, when even within the same verse, those people are reassured that Allah is surely forgiving and merciful, they still keep in mind that salvation is ultimately in God's hands

2:218"Surely those who believed and those who fled (their home) and strove hard in the way of Allah these hope for the mercy of Allah and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful".

The believer in those concepts, the one who knows what God demands of Him and what not, what His Sustainer loves in His servant and what not, continuously toils in the path of truth, without pride and self content. Contrary to the scripturally indefensible concept of an unconditionally loving God, which leads to conceit and self-righteousness, the one striving to meet God's explicit criteria of approval, constantly remains God-conscious. He remains humble, never thinking he is beyond reproach, fearing the seriousness of God's threats as well as hoping for His mercy, until he meets his Creator.

39:23"Allah has sent down the best statement: a consistent Book wherein is reiteration. The skins shiver therefrom of those who fear their Lord; then their skins and their hearts relax at the remembrance of Allah. That is the guidance of Allah by which He guides whom He wills".

The Love is evident in the word IMAN that denotes profound and sincere feeling of safety implying that one is in complete trust of a protective entity, that is, God. One cannot feel safe in an entity without having love for that entity, and knowing in turn that the entity is loving. This is where the Quran explains that this love isnt reciprocal, but more intense when coming from God. He is as al-rahman, the intensification of rahma. The root R-H-M means WOMB. Therefore in order to imagine what this word actually means one has to picture the womb and what it does to the fetus. It nurtures, protects, provides warmth, love etc. without even the fetus being aware of it.

Islam critiqued given a glimpse of a special scene; standing in front of the perfect judge?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

People will be divided into 3 groups; the foremost in faith who will have precedence over the others and will be drawn close to God (more from old times than later times 56:13-14), the righteous (more from the old as well as late times 56:40) and the wrongdoers 56:7-11. This shows that the communities and groups that have been formed in the world on the basis of race, country, language, tribe and clan, and economic and political interests, will break, and the people will be re-grouped on the basis of true belief, morality and character.

Each group will have to answer to a different level of reckoning, going from fast and easy to difficult and lengthy. The first group wont be reproached for their minor sins and shortcomings, will be forgiven and redeemed through their good deeds. Once made to enter paradise, the reward awaiting them will be made to match not any deed, but the best of them at least. Then by God's grace their reward will be made to surpass what is proportionaly due to them 6:160,16:96-7,29:7,39:35,46:16,84:8. It is clear that in Islam, the righteous' good deeds in themselves are not what grant him salvation in the hereafter. They serve as a measure of a person's faith in God. It is then God's grace that translates exponentially that level of faith, whose indicator are the deeds, into reward in the hereafter.

On the other hand, others will be requited for the worst of their deeds, all the bad that they accumulated, including the smallest sins. These small sins wont be forgiven immidiately as with the previous group 13:21,46:16,74:38-9 hence their lengthy and difficult reckoning 13:18,41:27,74:9-10. This minute, but just requital will fall upon them on a day like a crushing weight 75:25. The ahadith speak of people coming on the plain of judgement carrying their sins that will physically materialize as mountain like burdens on their backs. They will be reprimended for every one of their misdeeds, great or small. Depending on each case, that requital will occur starting from their earthly death, in the intermediary period that precedes the resurrection, meaning the barzakh. It will go on during the Resurrection and Hell if necessary, before they are finally granted forgiveness and potential entry in Heaven. Some will certainly have to go through the last stage, dwelling in Hell, before they are purged from their sins but others will be cleansed through prior processes. As God says elsewhere even in reference to the followers of the devil himself

7:18"Whoever of them follows you, I will surely fill Hell with some/min of you all".

This is because each person's circumstances that lead him to follow a certain path are different. Only God is capable of integrating such intricacies in a perfect individual judgement. The vast majority of mankind will have to undergo one of, or a combination of these stages of requital -the grave, the resurrection, and hell- while a tiny fraction will enter heaven without rendering any account.

This is the idea behind the prophet's reported statement that from among Adam's progeny 99% of mankind will be singled out for hell. It doesnt however say that these 99% will all be made to enter it, just that they will certainly deserve it. As said above, some will have to go through it while others will sufficiently be retributed and cleansed through prior processes.

Islam critiqued looks envious; the righteous will be thrown in hell?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

Those who are destined for Heaven, without undergoing any cleansing process, will not be brought anywhere near Hell. They will be so far removed from it, they will not hear the sound of its roar on the Day of Resurrection

92:17,26:90,21:98-103"Surely you and what you worship besides Allah are the firewood of hell; to it you shall come. Had these been gods, they would not have come to it and all shall abide therein. For them therein shall be groaning and therein they shall not hear. Surely (as for) those for whom the good has already gone forth from Us, they shall be kept far off from it, They will not hear its faintest sound, and they shall abide in that which their souls long for. The great fearful event shall not grieve them, and the angels shall meet them: This is your day which you were promised".

The supreme awesomness of this Day will not grieve the righteous, who shall in addition be protected from its upheaval and afflictions 2:277,21:103,88:8,76:7-11. Through a subtle linguistic device, the Quran explains this idea of the righteous believers on that day being far removed from the terror

"no fear upon them, and nor shall they grieve".

The first part of the verse pictures a caring entity looking over with full understanding of the situation without any fear while watching the scene. A practical example would be of a child who might be fearlessly playing with a snake, not knowing the impending danger but the mature person watching over, understanding the situation, would be full of fear and worry.

On the last day however, because the successful will be fully justified in lacking fear and feeling secure despite the surrounding terrifying events, then the caring entity watching over wont have any fear upon them. The same phrase is used in 7:49 for the dwellers of heaven, they are in such secure conditions that none will have any reason to fear for them.

As Solomon reportedly says concerning the righteous in the life to come

Prov1:33"But he who hearkens to me shall dwell confidently and shall be tranquil from the fear of harm".

The righteous will thus proudly exclaim to all to come read from his book of deeds held in evidence in his right hand, the Iliyin 69:19,83:18,84:7. He shall be secured from harm 41:40, relieved with sustenance from heaven before entering it. The traditions speak of a Pool the water of which is from the Garden, and from which the believers shall drink before entering the Garden. Those that will be prevented from this favor on account of their sins, will long for a portion of that sustenance 7:50,19:86. They will wish for a share of the light beaming upon the righteous with such force that it will emanate from them 57:13-15. The absence of light upon the wicked on the day of judgement is alluded to in the Hebrew Bible, including in Job38:14-15.

The futur dwellers of heaven will be greeted with the best greetings by the angels and God Himself, honored and given the good news of Heaven from the moment of their earthly death 16:32,41:30 until their resurrection and entry in Heaven 7:46,13:23-4,14:23,15:45-8,21:103,36:58,39:73,56:26. This doesnt sound in anyway as if all people will be made to suffer after death as suggested by this youtuber.

Once in heaven, no lewd, empty talk will be heard, only peaceful and wise speech 19:62,56:25,88:11. They will keep greeting one another and praying for eachother's peace within heaven 10:10. On the other hand the hell dwellers, from the instant of their death where they will be violently seized by the angels and told they had been following the evil course 16:28-9,7:37,8:50,47:27 will endure a lengthy and difficult trial until they enter hell where they shall incessantly quarrel among oneanother, receive each new comer with open hostility for having influenced one another in sin 38:55-60, cursing, denying and blaming one another.

Islam critiqued exposes Islamic injustice; all people will suffer in the grave?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

The passage from that sura which this youtuber is refering to, isnt addressing all people, righteous and unrighteous alike. More specifically it speaks of the misleaders and those that blindly follow them. And it is not true at all that all people will experience suffering on the resurrection or in the world of the grave/the barzakh.

The passage he alludes to starts with 19:68 where the blind followers and their leaders are gathered.

Only those arriving to the resurrection burdened with disbelief and so many sins they havent repented for, they will be the only ones gathered for a terrible task 25:26,54:6 as opposed to the righteous believers who in their lifetime stood in awe of such day

76:7-11"Therefore Allah will guard them from the evil of that day and cause them to meet with ease and happiness".

Consequently they, whether male or female, will never be abased or disgraced between their earthly death and final entry to heaven. Instead, once resurrected they will be shining with a light emanating from them and guiding them on the path to paradise while the rest of the world is plunged in darkness 3:194-5,57:12,66:8. They will in addition be receiving Allah's love 19:96, His individual care 76:11, they will be safe from harm 41:40 and raised in a happy state 56:8,76:11,88:8. Their faces will be bright 3:107,75:22 looking forward to Allah's promise 50:32,28:61. They wont have any grief or fear of the supreme awesomeness of that day, as they will be protected from its upheaval and afflictions, welcomed and greeted by the angels before the beginning of their judgement 2:277,16:32,21:103. They will be removed far away from hearing the faintest sound of hell 2:17,26:90,21:98-103.

The fire of hell will only be brought before the disbelievers and unrepented sinners 18:99-101, the only ones experiencing this mighty day as a great difficulty 74:8-10. This group of believers from among the Muslims and the righteous who will be safeguarded from any difficulty on that Day, does not include the criminals among the Muslims themselves whom the Quran says will enter hell and/or experience a difficult judgement. Those who rejected or disregarded most or all of the directives of the Quran when it was communicated to them (Muslims and non-Muslims alike) and who transgressed willingly and rebelliously, then despite their good actions, their measurements on the scales of deeds, on the day they are raised for judgement, these measurements will be light

23:102-103"Then as for him whose scales/mawazin are heavy, these are the successful. And as for him whose scales are light, these are they who shall have lost their souls, abiding in hell".

The Quran also clearly says that among the Muslims themselves there are different grades in God's eyes 35:32-5 and although all will eventually enter heaven, this entry will be granted differently from person to person following a personalized appropriate trial, going from short and easy to lengthy and difficult. Some will even have to pass through Hell as long as Allah deems fit before being granted entry in heaven 6:128,11:106-108 and the Quran has mentionned several crimes such as murder, corruption of inheritance, abusing the weak people's wealth or charity etc whose perpetrators will go to hell regardless of their faith. It is in such context that the following prophetic saying is understood

"Gabriel, upon him be peace, came to me with the good news that anyone from my nation who dies without associating partners with Allah will enter Paradise. I said, “Even if he commits adultery and theft?” The Prophet said: Even if he commits adultery and theft".

Elsewhere

"People among those who worshiped Allah alone (ahl al-tawh?i¯d) will be punished in the Hellfire until they are coals. Then the mercy of Allah will reach them and they will be taken out and presented at the gates of Paradise. The people of Paradise will pour water over them and they will grow just as the stubble carried by the stream grows, then they will enter Paradise".

Islam critiqued scared of heights; The bridge/al siraat over hell?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

As already seen, some people, including Muslims, will have to undergo a cleansing process to be purged of their sins before they are allowed entry to heaven. Among the cleansing processes, there is the bridge over hell, which every single human being will be made to pass through, in a manner that will more or less affect them in direct relation with their deserved retribution.

This bridge which all people are obligated to pass through can also be seen as the mirror reflection of the path we all are obligated to tread in the world and its surrounding spiritual obstacles. The better one is trained to pass the obstacles along the road in this life, the faster he will pass through the hurdles of the bridge.

There is a reason why the straight spiritual path is called by God, with the same word as that used for the bridge "siraatul mustaqim". So some will go through the bridge without stumbling on any of its obstacles while others will stumble, fall, be injured along the way, with each difficulty, fear and pain contributing to cleansing the person from his sins.

As they have gone through the required, personal cleansing process, what will be left, now that the scales of justice have been perfectly made clear and all accountabilities and responsibilities established, to fully complete their cleansing will be the mutual confrontation of those connected in wordly misdeeds, which is a natural demand of justice. Part of the just retribution of a criminal is to be made to confront his victim in full light of the truth. This is because there are certain divine laws whose transgression cause harm on several levels requiring different measures to be remedied. The first level of harm is the one done to one's own self. It necessitates to be remedied through a painful cleansing process, such as passing through the bridge as described earlier. There is then the harm to one's relation with God. This necessitates for Him to forgive in order to repair the damaged connection. The last level of damage is the sin that harms one's relation with other humans. The victims will be vindicated as they are given the chance at expressing their own harm to the one that caused it. They will then forgive so that the connection is repaired. Although emotional damage can be healed to a certain extent between humans, the fact is that scars, big or small, conscious or not, always remain no matter the sincere efforts on both sides.

That is why the Rahman, the Supreme Merciful will at last come between the parties and

15:47"will remove whatever is in their breasts of resentment, [so they will be] brothers".

All will then be granted the necessary divine forgiveness prior to entering paradise.

Islam critiqued still has hope; can anyone repent and be forgiven?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

God not only accepts but also loves the sincerely repenting and reforming sinner 11:90. All those reforming themselves are eligible to forgiveness. Those who sin out of ignorance

16:119,17:25"Your Lord knows best what is in your minds; if you are good, then He is surely Forgiving to those who turn (to Him) frequently".

Or even the unjust, the traitor or hypocrite striving for the corruption of Islam from within 9:74,33:24 the mocker of God's revelation who does not really know the portent of his words 9:66, the misleaders concealers of the truth 2:159-160 the criminals even the opressors striving to destroy Islam but are in fact destroying their own souls. All of them are encompassed by God's merciful forgiveness once they turn to Him with resolve, and reform their ways

4:110,5:33-38,8:38-39,27:11,11:61"therefore ask forgiveness of Him, then turn to Him; surely my Lord is Nigh, Answering".

With the correct attitude, forgiveness comes without delay as demonstrated with the first ever human to have turned to God with a sincere heart and thus was immidiately shown the way to forgiveness and effectively forgiven (as denoted with "fa" 2:37). The attitude of seeking sincere repentence is of itself proof of moral awareness because people who do not have moral courage do not confess or condemn themselves even after their sins are revealed. They fear that if they confess once, they will lose their credibility forever. This weakness of theirs ties them up with sins and while speaking of such people the Quran says it is their pride, resilience in sin despite their awareness of it, that has taken them and driven them away from the right path 2:206,63:5.

All prophets, as reflected in the HB or the Quran, called their people to repentence, assuring them that God's loving mercy is within anyone's reach. After warning the Midianites of the consequences of their sins, the prophet Shuayb would urge them to

11:90"ask forgiveness of your Lord, then turn to Him; surely my Lord is Merciful, Loving-kind".

The prophet Muhammad is similarily told to

15:49"Inform My servants that I am the Forgiving, the Merciful".

The prophet in this Quran is in addition told to explain that God not only forgives the sins but also provides a covering of protection from future sins

40:55"and ask protection/ghafr for your fault and sing the praise of your Lord in the evening and the morning".

God is depicted as One who

14:10"invites you to forgive you your faults".

This is because He is

40:3"The Forgiver of the faults and the Acceptor of repentance".

Islam critiqued seeks protection; Allah covers the sins!

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

God is described with the word "ghafur", steming from Gh-F-R meaning covering something either to protect and/or to hide. The implication is that God provides a covering upon the person to hide the sins of the past in case there were any 5:65 all the while providing a protection from the potential sins of the future. It is up to the believer to maintain that covering of protection throughout his life, elsewhere referred to as the garment of God-consciousness. If he loses it, he is again exposed to moral and spiritual failure. His past sins will remain hidden/forgiven but the future ones will have to be rectified

14:10"He calls you to forgive for you OF your sins".

This, as a side note, strikes at the notion of guaranteed salvation and forgiveness from sins -past and future- which is propounded by certain belief systems and more particularily Christianity.

The believers and prophets have always asked God to provide them with ghafr, the covering that hides and/or protects. It comes with merit as often repeated in the HB Ps23:1,85:3 but its implications far surpass in value the level of merit needed to obtain it. This merit however isnt placed at an unreachable standard. It only requires sincerity and resolve for reform.

That is why this grace from God is said to be at anyone's door, and to receive it, the effort demanded is minimal while its consequences disproportionately high

7:156"My mercy encompasses all things; so I will ordain it (specially) for those who guard (against evil) and pay the poor-rate, and those who believe in Our communications".

It is contingent on righteousness, repentance, restitution of the moral or physical harm, firm resolve in changing one's course during the appointed time of respite and walking aright

3:135,16:61,18:58,42:21,20:82"I am most Forgiving to him who repents and believes and does good, then continues to follow the right direction".

And just as it is conditional in this world, then those that did nothing to deserve it in their wordly life, did not undergo the spiritual hardships in the process as the faithful, patient in adversity did, they will not get it for free in the next life either. Since the aforementioned conditions to merit forgiveness cannot be accomplished in the afterlife, ie one cannot be faithfully penitent, show evidence of reform through actions, restitute the harm done etc, then the substitute to the fitna of this world will be the appropriate "fitna" of the hereafter. One will have to undergo a painfully cleansing process.

As Ezekiel told the sinful Israelites

Ezek33:14-16"And when I say of the wicked man, "You shall surely die," and he repents of his sin and performs justice and righteousness, And when I say of the wicked man, "You shall surely die," and he repents of his sin and performs justice and righteousness, All his sins that he sinned will not be remembered for him: he performed justice and righteousness; he will surely live".

And this is because

Ezek33:11"As I live, says the Lord God, I do not wish for the death of the wicked, but for the wicked to repent of his way so that he may live".

Islam critiqued opposes justice; God's punishment negates His mercy?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

Just as God's justice becomes liberal and lenient to the deserving faithful, on the other hand those who sin knowingly and persistently and die as unrepented sinners, they will be requited for every misdeed 6:120. Contrary to the former, meritorious group, they havent proved themselves worthy to receive God's gracious forgiveness and so will be bared from entering Heaven 2:174,3:77.

Because their sins were not obliterated and cleansed through forgiveness, as a pleasant reward from God, the cleansing process will have to be undergone through several stages after death. It will start in the intermediary period prior to the Resurrection, the barzakh, then during the Resurrection itself. To some this will be enough but others will need a temporary passage in hell. This cleansing process is called in the Quran "fitna", a word implying the manner by which gold is melted and purified of undesired elements. To picture how fitna works in the hereafter, one can observe how it manifests in this world through tests and hardships.

Like the fire extracts the precious metals from the ore and the torrent washes away the swelling foam of the sea 13:17, humans go through tests and hardships, a purging process that seperates truth and good from falsehood and sin. It is an inner 3:143,179 and outward process 2:143,149,3:167,18:12 offering mankind the chance of bettering, humbling themselves 23:76 and mending their ways

13:17"thus does Allah compare truth and falsehood; then as for the scum, it passes away as a worthless thing; and as for that which profits the people, it tarries in the earth; thus does Allah set forth parables".

Similar imagery is drawn in the Hebrew Bible when speaking of the process of seperation in this world, through blood and destruction, of the wicked from those willing to reform themselves, a process that sometimes causes good elements to be extracted while at other times only the waste and worthless elements remain

Jer5:29,9:6,Ezek22:18-22"The house of Israel has become dross to Me; all of them are copper and tin and iron and lead in the midst of a furnace; dross of silver have they become. Therefore, so said the Lord God: Because you have all become dross, therefore behold, I gather you together into the midst of Jerusalem. And I shall gather you, and I shall blow upon you with the fire of My anger, and you will be melted in its midst. As silver is melted in the midst of a furnace, so will you be melted in its midst, and you shall know that I, the Lord, have poured out My fury upon you".

Another depiction of that process is made in the context of an undetermined future of blissful utopia for the Jewish people. At that time, besides the Jews, only a third of world population will remain, those that accepted converting to Judaism. But they will still be made to undergo hard trials to determine their true hearts, if they have truly accepted Judaism as a religion

Zech13:8-9"..And I will bring the third in fire; and I will refine them as one refines silver, and I will test them as one tests gold.."

The same processing will be implemented on the Israelites themselves, and more particularily the priestly class which happenned to be the most spiritually degraded throughout their history

Mal3:3"And he shall sit refining and purifying silver, and he shall purify the children of Levi. And he shall purge them as gold and as silver".

In the words of David, this process of testing every human being leads to the erasure of falsehood and establishement of truth

Ps7:10"May evil destroy the wicked, and may You establish the righteous, for the righteous God tests the hearts and the reins".

This is the fitna, the spiritual smelting process of this world. However if mankind heeds God's guidance, turns to God so as to find the inner strength and resolve for true reform, none will be made to undergo this cleansing process in the hereafter. The believers 110:3 as well as the sinners 5:74 are therefore invited to ever seek Allah's forgiveness and protection from sins because

7:153,4:106,110"whoever does evil or acts unjustly to his soul, then asks forgiveness of Allah, he shall find Allah Forgiving, Merciful".

Islam critiqued finds grace; Allah the merciful?

In answer to the video "Allah is NOT Forgiving, Merciful or Loving"

Forgiveness is the key that opens the Garden of heaven and such forgiveness is only for those who reach the afterlife in a state of inner awe of God as well as a repentant heart 50:31-3,57:21. Since paradise is a place of purity and cleanliness; a person tarnished by the impurities of sins, even the minutest ones, cannot enter it only after forgiveness. It is granted at different stages after death, depending on the necessary cleansing process that will be needed for each individual.

While some will receive it immidiately and therefore will not be made to experience any difficulty after death and until their entry in Paradise, others will go through the "fitna", as will be detailed a little later. Almost all verses speaking of the reward in the Hereafter of the pious, the righteous, who do their utmost to avoid sinning, first mention that will receive God's forgiveness 3:133,5:9,34:4,35:7,36:11,64:9,67:12.

God's gracious forgiveness which is granted to the meritorious in the hereafter, also shows that He isnt like a miserly master who checks his servant on trivialities but instead He overlooks the errors of His obedient, sincere servant and rewards him exponentialy

35:29-30"Surely they who recite the Book of Allah and keep up prayer and spend out of what We have given them secretly and openly, hope for a gain which will not perish. That He may pay them back fully their rewards and give them more out of His grace: surely He is Forgiving, Multiplier of rewards".

This is Allah's grace that manifests itself in so many ways. It is by God's grace that one enters paradise in the first place because in reality none of our deeds are as perfect and faultless so as to grant us such rewards. These rewards are only the consequence of God's mercy and grace that He overlooks the servant's weaknesses and defects so long as he commits himself to piety and avoids the great sins, reforms himself and does not dwell in a state of transgression in which he stumbled into

4:17-18,53:32"surely your Lord is liberal in forgiving".

Allah is liberal in forgiving and accepts the faithfull's services despite their imperfections, and blesses him with rewards; otherwise if He resorts to minute accountability no one can dare claim to win Paradise only on the strength of his own deeds

44:51-7"Surely those who guard (against evil) are in a secure place,..and He will save them from the punishment of the hell, a grace from your Lord; this is the great achievement".

The Quran reiterates this principle many times 52:18,27 that the reward of the Hereafter is really a divine grace due to God's mercy that He overlooks the righteous believer's small misdeeds and imperfections. Otherwise, in reality and in accordance with blind justice these misdeeds actually require a certain degree of punishement. Yet He forgives the trespasses and only considers the best of a faithful servant's wordly deeds

39:35"So that Allah will do away with the worst of what they did and give them their reward for the best of what they do".