Islam makes your life simple?

[CHI83]

I was at Friday prayer with my dad. Our Imam (he is a crazy fundy) told us a whole load of bull. He talked about the signs of the Day of Judgement and how we are on sign 9 (widespread adultery/zina). But his most incorrect argument for Islam was that "Islam makes your life simple." At that moment I really had to bite my tongue or else I would of said something that I would probably get murdered for. The truth is that Islam is a complicated religion. There is soo many rules, how will you follow all of them! First and foremost you can't eat pig meat (gave us no good reason why). You have to do everything good with your right hand since Muslims wipe their ass with their left. You have to pray 5 times a day, praying for Muslims is a combination of incantations called surahs and du'aas and moving up and down. As with any other abrahamic religion they prevent you from homosexuality and sodomy (you could get stoned for it in this religion). You even have to say a du'aa before/during/after anything (even going to the washroom). That is far from a "simple" life. For the majority of my life I accepted the idea of god but didn't really care about most of the rules. But the hardest part of being a muslim, at least for me, was trying to defend these rules. I was never given a better answer than "because god told you so" or "life is a test, restrict yourself from this and you will pass in the end". Man I am happy that I am an atheist now (well at least on the inside). I really hope more and more people will leave this cult of a religion called Islam. I would go public but I don't want to be disowned or worse killed.

[Medusa]

I dunno. My boyfriend does all those things. He seems pretty relaxed.  Some poeple just can't do that stuff. I couldn't.

[xSilverPhinx]

I think it's a matter of perspective, maybe, though I also can't see in what way they say that all those strict controls and rituals make one's life simpler. For an atheist that has to go through the motions, I'd say it's the closest thing to hell there is. For a believer...I haven't a clue.

Could they have meant simple in the sense that all the rules are already there and that they don't need to think about anything other than what's already established to lead what they feel is a stable and 'safe' life?

[fester30]

My experience is with Muslims while I was deployed.  Part of our safety in the US Air Force is to do FOD (Foreign Object Damage) walks to find nuts and bolts and rocks that can get sucked into a jet engine.  We do this to keep our aircraft from crashing.  When I mentioned this to a Muslim Kuwaiti, he thought it was ridiculous.  When I asked him why, he said Insha'Allah, which means God willing.  In other words, we as humans cannot thwart God's will.  If it is God's will that your jet crashes, doing a FOD walk will not prevent this.  Allah will simply find another way to crash your jet.  Therefore, FOD walks and other safety measures are pointless.  Of course, this means the fact that they even do maintenance on their aircraft makes no sense. 

Anyway, the point is, that if you leave everything in life in God's hands, you are left with fewer things to be concerned with.  You just have to remember to pray and not be homosexual or a woman.  If you remember these things, Allah will take care of the rest.  That is simpler than what I concern myself with.

[The Magic Pudding]

If your faith is a bit shaky life could get a bit complicated.
If your values are better than those in the book, which wouldn't be too hard to imagine, you might have to go through all sorts of mental contortions to make things seem right.

[xSilverPhinx]

My experience is with Muslims while I was deployed.  Part of our safety in the US Air Force is to do FOD (Foreign Object Damage) walks to find nuts and bolts and rocks that can get sucked into a jet engine.  We do this to keep our aircraft from crashing.  When I mentioned this to a Muslim Kuwaiti, he thought it was ridiculous.  When I asked him why, he said Insha'Allah, which means God willing.  In other words, we as humans cannot thwart God's will.  If it is God's will that your jet crashes, doing a FOD walk will not prevent this.  Allah will simply find another way to crash your jet.  Therefore, FOD walks and other safety measures are pointless.  Of course, this means the fact that they even do maintenance on their aircraft makes no sense. 

Anyway, the point is, that if you leave everything in life in God's hands, you are left with fewer things to be concerned with.  You just have to remember to pray and not be homosexual or a woman.  If you remember these things, Allah will take care of the rest.  That is simpler than what I concern myself with.

???

Then if people are searching for harzards before taking off, then wouldn't that also fit with god's will? I don't know why people who think like that even bother to do things such as eat, drink, and take the occasional breath of air. If it's god's will that they live, then why go through those motions?

[CHI83]

I think it's a matter of perspective, maybe, though I also can't see in what way they say that all those strict controls and rituals make one's life simpler. For an atheist that has to go through the motions, I'd say it's the closest thing to hell there is. For a believer...I haven't a clue.

Could they have meant simple in the sense that all the rules are already there and that they don't need to think about anything other than what's already established to lead what they feel is a stable and 'safe' life?

Going through the motions is easy. Lying and pretending is easy. But telling the truth is what you really want to do. For better or for worse you just kind of want to get it off you chest. You just want to present your individuality and be you. But you have to stop yourself from saying anything. That's the hard part, not the lying itself but living with the lie.

Yea I agree with you, people are way too accustomed to routine. Well I personally think living life "safely" isn't really living at all.

[xSilverPhinx]

I think it's a matter of perspective, maybe, though I also can't see in what way they say that all those strict controls and rituals make one's life simpler. For an atheist that has to go through the motions, I'd say it's the closest thing to hell there is. For a believer...I haven't a clue.

Could they have meant simple in the sense that all the rules are already there and that they don't need to think about anything other than what's already established to lead what they feel is a stable and 'safe' life?

Going through the motions is easy. Lying and pretending is easy. But telling the truth is what you really want to do. For better or for worse you just kind of want to get it off you chest. You just want to present your individuality and be you. But you have to stop yourself from saying anything. That's the hard part, not the lying itself but living with the lie.

Yea I agree with you, people are way too accustomed to routine. Well I personally think living life "safely" isn't really living at all.

Living a double life in a sense, but it's not healthy.  But if there's a real risk to you if you come out as an atheist, then that's also not a good route to take. Some people might come up with rather dumb excuses such as all you have to do is accept it and that the problem lies within you and not in the situation, but that's all they are: dumb excuses made by people who have only their best interests in mind. Have you considered taking steps to remedy your situation without putting yourself at risk?

[CHI83]

I think it's a matter of perspective, maybe, though I also can't see in what way they say that all those strict controls and rituals make one's life simpler. For an atheist that has to go through the motions, I'd say it's the closest thing to hell there is. For a believer...I haven't a clue.

Could they have meant simple in the sense that all the rules are already there and that they don't need to think about anything other than what's already established to lead what they feel is a stable and 'safe' life?

Going through the motions is easy. Lying and pretending is easy. But telling the truth is what you really want to do. For better or for worse you just kind of want to get it off you chest. You just want to present your individuality and be you. But you have to stop yourself from saying anything. That's the hard part, not the lying itself but living with the lie.

Yea I agree with you, people are way too accustomed to routine. Well I personally think living life "safely" isn't really living at all.

Living a double life in a sense, but it's not healthy.  But if there's a real risk to you if you come out as an atheist, then that's also not a good route to take. Some people might come up with rather dumb excuses such as all you have to do is accept it and that the problem lies within you and not in the situation, but that's all they are: dumb excuses made by people who have only their best interests in mind. Have you considered taking steps to remedy your situation without putting yourself at risk?

What do you mean by taking steps by remedying the situation. I tried to tell my younger sis and she got pissed. She said "How dare you disrespect god!" After that I decided not to go any further. I trust my younger sis and she is usually the most neutral of the family. If she reacted this badly my parents will react worse. Much worse. I told them I wanted to go vegetarian (which I never got to be ) and they flipped out. If they reacted that badly to a simple diet change, a lifestyle/belief change would probably drive my mom into a panic attack. My mom is the crazy, almost psychotic one. My dad on the other hand is more calm and peaceful. But they will both take it badly.

[xSilverPhinx]

I think it's a matter of perspective, maybe, though I also can't see in what way they say that all those strict controls and rituals make one's life simpler. For an atheist that has to go through the motions, I'd say it's the closest thing to hell there is. For a believer...I haven't a clue.

Could they have meant simple in the sense that all the rules are already there and that they don't need to think about anything other than what's already established to lead what they feel is a stable and 'safe' life?

Going through the motions is easy. Lying and pretending is easy. But telling the truth is what you really want to do. For better or for worse you just kind of want to get it off you chest. You just want to present your individuality and be you. But you have to stop yourself from saying anything. That's the hard part, not the lying itself but living with the lie.

Yea I agree with you, people are way too accustomed to routine. Well I personally think living life "safely" isn't really living at all.

Living a double life in a sense, but it's not healthy.  But if there's a real risk to you if you come out as an atheist, then that's also not a good route to take. Some people might come up with rather dumb excuses such as all you have to do is accept it and that the problem lies within you and not in the situation, but that's all they are: dumb excuses made by people who have only their best interests in mind. Have you considered taking steps to remedy your situation without putting yourself at risk?

What do you mean by taking steps by remedying the situation. I tried to tell my younger sis and she got pissed. She said "How dare you disrespect god!" After that I decided not to go any further. I trust my younger sis  Do they believe in a literal hell? and she is usually the most neutral of the family. If she reacted this badly my parents will react worse. Much worse. I told them I wanted to go vegetarian (which I never got to be ) and they flipped out. If they reacted that badly to a simple diet change, a lifestyle/belief change would probably drive my mom into a panic attack. My mom is the crazy, almost psychotic one. My dad on the other hand is more calm and peaceful. But they will both take it badly.

Unfortunately I don't think I can help you without suggesting something more radical, such as moving out so or something like that. Like I said, there could be some real risks such as being ousted from a community that you may still depend on, or worse, but I'm not going to apply what have become an overly-used stereotype here. Have you tried talking to other ex-muslims online? They might have better suggestions on how to deal with the situation as best as possible. People who grew up in fundementalist Christian homes also have similar stories.

What do your parents think of atheists in general? Do you think that they would see you as a person differently if they knew that you were an atheist? Do you think that it might be productive to start with education them on how your worldview differs from theirs and why being an atheist does not mean that you're a bad person? Do they believe in a literal hell?

[Crow]

Then if people are searching for harzards before taking off, then wouldn't that also fit with god's will? I don't know why people who think like that even bother to do things such as eat, drink, and take the occasional breath of air. If it's god's will that they live, then why go through those motions?

The lazy religious persons reasoning.

As Christopher Hitchens likes to point out religion in all its forms are really death cults.

"Islam makes your life simple."

Yup don't think for yourself and just follow what he tells you to, simples.

I'm interested to see what iSok will say about this topic.

[xSilverPhinx]

Then if people are searching for harzards before taking off, then wouldn't that also fit with god's will? I don't know why people who think like that even bother to do things such as eat, drink, and take the occasional breath of air. If it's god's will that they live, then why go through those motions?

The lazy religious persons reasoning.

As Christopher Hitchens likes to point out religion in all its forms are really death cults.

That they are. Revolve too much around death. I've never seen such obsession.

[CHI83]

I think it's a matter of perspective, maybe, though I also can't see in what way they say that all those strict controls and rituals make one's life simpler. For an atheist that has to go through the motions, I'd say it's the closest thing to hell there is. For a believer...I haven't a clue.

Could they have meant simple in the sense that all the rules are already there and that they don't need to think about anything other than what's already established to lead what they feel is a stable and 'safe' life?

Going through the motions is easy. Lying and pretending is easy. But telling the truth is what you really want to do. For better or for worse you just kind of want to get it off you chest. You just want to present your individuality and be you. But you have to stop yourself from saying anything. That's the hard part, not the lying itself but living with the lie.

Yea I agree with you, people are way too accustomed to routine. Well I personally think living life "safely" isn't really living at all.

Living a double life in a sense, but it's not healthy.  But if there's a real risk to you if you come out as an atheist, then that's also not a good route to take. Some people might come up with rather dumb excuses such as all you have to do is accept it and that the problem lies within you and not in the situation, but that's all they are: dumb excuses made by people who have only their best interests in mind. Have you considered taking steps to remedy your situation without putting yourself at risk?

What do you mean by taking steps by remedying the situation. I tried to tell my younger sis and she got pissed. She said "How dare you disrespect god!" After that I decided not to go any further. I trust my younger sis  Do they believe in a literal hell? and she is usually the most neutral of the family. If she reacted this badly my parents will react worse. Much worse. I told them I wanted to go vegetarian (which I never got to be ) and they flipped out. If they reacted that badly to a simple diet change, a lifestyle/belief change would probably drive my mom into a panic attack. My mom is the crazy, almost psychotic one. My dad on the other hand is more calm and peaceful. But they will both take it badly.

Unfortunately I don't think I can help you without suggesting something more radical, such as moving out so or something like that. Like I said, there could be some real risks such as being ousted from a community that you may still depend on, or worse, but I'm not going to apply what have become an overly-used stereotype here. Have you tried talking to other ex-muslims online? They might have better suggestions on how to deal with the situation as best as possible. People who grew up in fundementalist Christian homes also have similar stories.

What do your parents think of atheists in general? Do you think that they would see you as a person differently if they knew that you were an atheist? Do you think that it might be productive to start with education them on how your worldview differs from theirs and why being an atheist does not mean that you're a bad person? Do they believe in a literal hell?

Its not like my parents are super fundys they are just not open to change. I don't think they will kill me but probably someone from my community. I don't know what they think of atheists in general but they think that bangladeshis and muslims are the best people. I have heard them criticize Christians and Hindus before. I'm kind of scared to tell them. After my whole interest in vegan/vegetarianism, I don't think they could handle me becoming an atheist. But I will take your suggestion. If only I knew an ex-Muslim forum, could you recommend me one?

[Tank]

http://www.councilofexmuslims.com/ quite a few members
http://www.formermuslims.com/ very small
http://www.faithfreedom.org/ this is a big one a relativly long established

[xSilverPhinx]

I think it's a matter of perspective, maybe, though I also can't see in what way they say that all those strict controls and rituals make one's life simpler. For an atheist that has to go through the motions, I'd say it's the closest thing to hell there is. For a believer...I haven't a clue.

Could they have meant simple in the sense that all the rules are already there and that they don't need to think about anything other than what's already established to lead what they feel is a stable and 'safe' life?

Going through the motions is easy. Lying and pretending is easy. But telling the truth is what you really want to do. For better or for worse you just kind of want to get it off you chest. You just want to present your individuality and be you. But you have to stop yourself from saying anything. That's the hard part, not the lying itself but living with the lie.

Yea I agree with you, people are way too accustomed to routine. Well I personally think living life "safely" isn't really living at all.

Living a double life in a sense, but it's not healthy.  But if there's a real risk to you if you come out as an atheist, then that's also not a good route to take. Some people might come up with rather dumb excuses such as all you have to do is accept it and that the problem lies within you and not in the situation, but that's all they are: dumb excuses made by people who have only their best interests in mind. Have you considered taking steps to remedy your situation without putting yourself at risk?

What do you mean by taking steps by remedying the situation. I tried to tell my younger sis and she got pissed. She said "How dare you disrespect god!" After that I decided not to go any further. I trust my younger sis  Do they believe in a literal hell? and she is usually the most neutral of the family. If she reacted this badly my parents will react worse. Much worse. I told them I wanted to go vegetarian (which I never got to be ) and they flipped out. If they reacted that badly to a simple diet change, a lifestyle/belief change would probably drive my mom into a panic attack. My mom is the crazy, almost psychotic one. My dad on the other hand is more calm and peaceful. But they will both take it badly.

Unfortunately I don't think I can help you without suggesting something more radical, such as moving out so or something like that. Like I said, there could be some real risks such as being ousted from a community that you may still depend on, or worse, but I'm not going to apply what have become an overly-used stereotype here. Have you tried talking to other ex-muslims online? They might have better suggestions on how to deal with the situation as best as possible. People who grew up in fundementalist Christian homes also have similar stories.

What do your parents think of atheists in general? Do you think that they would see you as a person differently if they knew that you were an atheist? Do you think that it might be productive to start with education them on how your worldview differs from theirs and why being an atheist does not mean that you're a bad person? Do they believe in a literal hell?

Its not like my parents are super fundys they are just not open to change. I don't think they will kill me but probably someone from my community. I don't know what they think of atheists in general but they think that bangladeshis and muslims are the best people. I have heard them criticize Christians and Hindus before. I'm kind of scared to tell them. After my whole interest in vegan/vegetarianism, I don't think they could handle me becoming an atheist. But I will take your suggestion. If only I knew an ex-Muslim forum, could you recommend me one?

I think that even the not super fundies have a fundamental misunderstanding of atheism (and other things). People already mistrust and fear atheists to varying degrees, and not actually knowing what an atheist worldview is like makes it worse. Like what your sister said, for instance. You could, when you find that the time is appropriate, explain to her that it's not really that you're disrespecting god, because you don't even believe in god in the first place. IMO it's like when people say that atheists are "angry at god". It makes no sense to harbour any such feelings towards something that in your worldview doesn't even exist. I think if you can get them to understand those sort of distinctions you could go a long way. It's where I'd start. Looks for some support before attempting to tell your parents. Try talking to your sister again and see if you can at least make her understand your point of view without feeling as threatened. She'd be one person less to fuel the fire that your parents might create after you tell them, if you do. 

You can always stress that you will always respect them as people, even if you don't agree with their beliefs. Maybe with time they will do the same for you.