Pleasing Allah through Taqwa
Translations of Taqwa Taqwa is an essential Islamic term. Linguistically, this term is from the Arabic root, < ي – ق – و > or < w – q – y >, which means “to protect.” In Islamic terminology, Taqwa means to…
Author: Ayman Refaat
Ayman Refaat hails from Alexandria, Egypt and now resides in the United States of America, where he teaches as Adjunct Instructor of Arabic Language at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He also serves as Islamic Spiritual Guide at the U.S. Penitentiary in Leavenworth.
Mr. Refaat holds several university degrees: Bachelors (1994) in Arabic Language and Literature, as well as in Oriental Language and Literature, from the University of Alexandria; Masters (2015) in Curriculum and Instruction, from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Among his publications in Arabic are several articles regarding Arabic and Hebrew Literature; also two books on Arabic grammar and rhetoric. English language publications include a set of three primary level books for learning Arabic starting with the alphabet. Forthcoming works: Liberate Islam: A Modern Rational View of Islam in its Original Sources; The Bell Curve of Civilizations - with focus on Islamic Civilization; The Purpose of Life in Islamic Spirituality. Also, he has given presentations on the theme of his book, The Bell Curve of Civilizations, at several churches in his area.
Mr. Refaat is available for small group talks on Islamic subjects and may be contacted at ayman_refaat72@hotmail.com
Worldly Life and the Hereafter | Part 1
Moral Compass I teach a spiritual curriculum that includes the concept of a moral compass. On this compass, God is the “north” position and the world is “south,” which is meant to symbolize that good decisions are made for God while bad…
Does Jihad Fulfill our Purpose? | Part 2 of 2
We ended Part 1 with the following Table: Table 2. Three Gradual Stages of Jihad We now turn to the third stage of Jihad: Physical [military] Jihad. Correcting the Understanding of Non-Muslims One of the biggest western stereotypes about the concept of…
Does Jihad Fulfill our Purpose? | Part 1 of 2
Yes, Jihad fulfills our purpose as God’s vicegerents [khalifa] on earth. First, who is Allah’s ‘vicegerent’ (successive authority)? “…when your Lord said to the angels, ‘I shall place upon the earth a viceregent [khalifa] … …And He [Allah] taught Adam … …and…
Worldly Life and the Hereafter | Part 2
Conditions of Enjoying Worldly Life As we see in the last verse, the Quran encourages Muslims to enjoy the pleasures of their worldly life, but on the other hand, it warns us of squandering and prodigality. So there is a limit to…
The Rightful Place of Reason in Islam
Is there a conflict between religion and the thinking, rational mind? The atheists say: “The mind is enough, so we do not need religion,” and the fundamental conservative religious say: “We cannot use our mind in religion.” So, the question is this:…
Free Will and Freedom of Choice
Adam chose to eat from the tree that God had forbidden. That means he had free will to choose between listening to God’s command and submitting to Satan’s seduction. However, this free will is not absolute. It operates only within a range…
Between Jihad and Terrorism | Part 2
Between Jihad and terrorism So what are the differences between Jihad and terrorism? First, terrorists are not committed to the ethics of military Jihad, such as “Do not fight those who did not fight you”; and “Fulfill your treaties.” Most terrorists break…
Between Jihad and Terrorism | Part 1
We were created as human beings before we chose our religions, acquired our cultures, learned our languages, or belonged to our homelands. Therefore, we cannot be good religious people, or good citizens, if we are not human beings first. Our religions, cultures,…
Revving Up Your Worship in Islam
Worship is a relationship natural to the human being. How a person establishes his (or her) link to whom or to what he chooses (or allows himself) to worship will define how well he can successfully fulfill his purpose in life. The…