Is there such a thing as something being intrinsically “right” or “wrong”, “Good” or “bad”?

Within the issue of piety arises the question of whether there is such a thing as something being intrinsically “right” or “wrong”. Today we are led to believe that each person decides for himself what is best for him, and that there is no such thing as something being inherently “right” or “wrong”. It is the individual and his circumstances that decide this.

This logic and reasoning is not inspired by God. When we think through this carefully, we will understand why we have been misled into thinking this way.

The guidance given to us by God is never compulsory; it is always by way of advice. We exercise our free will and decide whether to accept God’s guidance or not. God never imposes Himself upon those He has created. This becomes self evident when we study God’s relationship with us.

From the outset He has chosen freedom as the best course for us. To this effect He gave us free will. He never forces His guidance upon us.

Prophet Moses (PBUH) asked God to make his people obedient to him. God replied that He did not impose such a compulsion on His creation even concerning Himself. While God guides us to the best possible action we can take, he never imposes His guidance.

How can we put His guidance into perspective? God knows everything and also every possible outcome of every possible decision we make. That being the case, he is in a position to chart the best course for us.

Take the example of a candle. If we knew nothing about fire, God will guide us not to touch it. We may decide to take the advice. If not, we get burnt. This is not punishment, simply the consequences of our bad decision. Every advice of God fits in this category.

In the case of the candle, we can understand the cause (touching the fire) and effect (getting burnt) relationship between the two because they happen together. It is easy for us to make the connection. Many actions, however, produce consequences years or decades later. We are incapable of making the connection and hence we do not learn from our mistakes and continue making them.

God’s advice protects us from these “down the line” consequences, making our life one of the best possible quality overall. Even being consigned to Hell is not punishment, it is what we qualify for based on the decisions we made on Earth. We find a tendency for God to be held responsible for things which are of our own doing, and this is usually promoted by agents of satan.

It is because of these “down the line” consequences that we have the guidance regarding recognizing that God is One, belief in the Prophets (PBUT), His Books, life after death, Day of Judgment, promiscuity, adultery; lying, theft, murder etc. It is our decision whether to accept the advice. By God’s decree, no one can legitimately impose His guidance upon us.

It is this advice from God that we describe as being “right” or “good” and contrary advice as being “wrong” or “bad”. This is not something that falls within our power of discretion. If our lives are contrary to the teaching of God, then we are bad people, and there is no debate on this. Satan acknowledges this and has responded by popularizing being “bad”. Watch the wording on clothing and advertising these days and you will understand what I am saying. We do not become “good” by making “bad” acceptable behaviour.

“Bad” means we are acting in ways that do not promote our progress along piety. It means we will fail in our ultimate quest. “Bad” is not just a word whose meaning we can change to suit our purposes.

There is no obligation on us to choose to be “good” and anyone who tries to impose “good” practice upon another becomes a “bad” person. This is something we need to understand. Freedom as given by God means we have to accept a person’s personal decision to be “bad” and our only recourse against them is when they act in ways which violate our rights. Otherwise what they do is their right as God has granted free will both in pursuing good or bad.

If we choose to be “good”, we must manifest this in our life and hope that it would inspire others to adopt our way of life as their own. We do not become “good” by pointing out the “bad” in others. Doing this causes us to become “bad”.

Freedom as given by God means we mind our own business and no one has any right to mind ours; that we can forcibly stop anyone from minding our business (by use of force if necessary), but that we respond to someone when they issue a call for help.

The true worshipper of God uses the guidance of God as the foundation of his thinking. All decisions and ideas are built on this. This is the only way to protect against the evil suggestions of satan that make “bad” appear good, and “wrong” appear “right” and we will fall for this deception unless we have the foundation to recognize the truth.

Until next time.

The answer to the question, free will or pre-destiny (fatalism)?

God has promised us that we will never be judged unfairly or unjustly. This is a promise to every human being and ginn. This is God’s promise whether we have realized His presence or not.

Think back on the examinations we participated in at school. Each year we would be tested on a variety on subjects, and we had to prove a minimum level of competence in a subject to proceed to the next level of study in that subject. In general, no single subject had any higher ranking over the others; all were considered of equal importance.

We are told that we are created with free will, which is a great privilege, that it comes with great responsibility, and in the end we will be on trial and will be judged. Failure here means that our entire existence on earth had been a failure, a waste.

What are the criteria by which we are to be judged?

We are told that we will be tested. So, in effect, the tests are here on earth, and the judgment, or the result of these tests is what we will get on the Day of Judgment. Once we have departed this world we can do nothing to change the results of our tests, we can only improve our score while we are still alive.

We will never be held responsible for the actions of others. There is a corollary, others cannot carry our burdens for us.

We are promised that the tests will never be greater than our abilty to successfully handle them. The trial will never be one that is beyond our capacity. This is a great source of comfort, but the question remains, what are the criteria by which we are to be judged?

It is easy when doing examinations in school. We know in advance which subjects we are to be tested in and the specific date of each test; but what aspect of our response to the tests on Earth actually qualifies us as having passed.

We know for a fact that some people are born wealthy and others not. Some amass great wealth and others do not. Some are beautiful and some can be considered quite the opposite. Some are born with great physical prowess and others are handicapped. Some are intellectual giants and others their midget equivalent.

On what basis are we to be judged when at the outset there is such discrepancy between us? But let us go one step further, why are we tested and judged in the first place? Why is this necessary?

God created us and knows us better than we know ourselves. What purpose can these tests possibly serve?

God has promised us total fairness and justice. He created us and he does indeed know us. When we are assigned to one part of Paradise and not another; or a place in Hell instead of Heaven, on what basis will this be done?

Let us answer some of these questions.

The gift of free will is a very powerful one. It is because we can act on our own discretion that we can be held accountable for our actions. This tells us that while there is a degree of pre-destination, not everything is pre-ordained. If everything was, we would have no say in the matter, could incur no accountability, and there would be no basis for judgment. So without a doubt there are things within the domain of our choice which God has left unanswered. How does this fit in with the fact that God is all-knowing and knows everything. If he knows everything, then surely he knows how we will act, what we will do, and so, will also know the outcome of our actions.

The following clips explains the question of free will and pre-destiny, and also explains the basis on which we will be judged. The part under discussion here begins at about 6 mins into the first clip. Study these carefully.

These clips also answer the crucial question, why we are tested, and explain our purpose on Earth. We are here to prove our worthiness of our place in Paradise. It is something we have to prove, so in the end, if we succeed or not, we have no one to blame but ourselves. Will we use the time we have left to save our situation? Only we can answer this question for ourselves.

From the above we can understand that while God knows everything, he creates the boundary within which we have free choice, and God alone knows the limits of this boundary. This serves as motivation for us to always strive harder since we truly do not know the limits of our own capability. Since God creates our boundaries, he is aware of everything we can potentially do.

It is only in the area of piety that God creates no limits, and this is the only criterion on which we will be judged. Every other aspect of our life is there for us to use to promote our level of piety. We are not judged on these other aspects (such as wealth, beauty etc) because God has designated limits on these, and it would be unjust then to judge us on something which is pre-determined.

Wealth and poverty and both great tests, and it is our task to use these to further us along the road of piety. A poor man must practice patience, tolerance and forgiveness, while a rich man must look to the needs of those less fortunate and ensure that the wealth in his care is used appropriately so as to promote him on the road of piety. Many will say that wealth is as great, if not a greater test than that of poverty, God knows best.

Each test, if successfully handled, prepares us for greater tests and hence our elevation on the ranking of piety, in much the same way as we get more challenging tests as we progress in school. A grade 2 student will find a grade 8 paper very difficult, but this paper should pose no problems for a grade 9 student. Tests are relative to the person concerned. We must not be concerned for others who seem to be faced with humungus challenges in life. This could be a reflection of their higher status and greater capability. God knows best. We know that the greatest challenges were those faced by the prophets (PBUT) and we now know why.

The promise that the tests we are faced with will always be within our capability means that we have no justifiable reason for becoming depressed or despondent with life’s challenges. They are a service to us, helping us grow and become stronger and better. If handled correctly, we can only benefit from them.

In summary, there is pre-determination but also an aspect of free will. We are judged on our piety.

We are put to the test so that we may be the ones who choose the kind of place we will reside in for the rest of time. Because God is so totally true to his claim of justness, he does not decide this for us. Our destiny truly is in our own hands.

Bye for now.