Global Hunger problem and it's Islamic solution:

Global Hunger problem and it's Islamic solution:

The Global Hunger Index 2021 has been released. Some of it's findings are shocking.
India stands at 101 out of 116 countries just near to Afghanistan which is at 103.
While our neighbours Pakistan is at 92, Nepal at 76, Bangladesh at 76, Myanmar at 71.

(See full global hunger index ranking here:
https://www.globalhungerindex.org/ranking.html )

It's indeed very sad, painful and shameful that so many of our brothers and sisters are suffering from hunger while we enjoy delicious food to our hearts fill & even shamefully throw out food regularly.

Millions going hungry is not due to food shortage or "over population". It's due to Food wastage by the rich, dumping extra food in the oceans by the capitalists to keep the prices high, improper distribution, selfishness, negligence & the world-order built on injustice & oppression.

An article in the Scientific American magazine revealed that reducing Food Wastage Can Feed the World as Globally 30% to 40% of food intended for human consumption is wasted while more than 800 million people go hungry every day.
(See detailed article here:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/massively-reducing-food-waste-could-feed-the-world/ )

The solutions to this global problem of hunger and food wastage are given by Islam:
“Eat – But waste not by excess: for God does not love the wasters.” (Qur’an, 6:141).
This command of the Quran is for the individuals as well as the business establishments & governments.

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ instructed that if a piece of food falls down, it should be picked up and any dirt should be removed from it, and it should be eaten.
The prophet ordered us not to leave anything in the plate and he said: "You do not know in which portion of your food Allah has put the Barakah (Blessing).

While Islam prohibits wasting food & over consumption and also it commands to feed the hungry.

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said,
“He who eats to satisfaction while his neighbour is hungry is not a believer.” (Baihaqi)

“A man asked the Prophet ﷺ ‘Which aspect of Islam is best?‘
He said, ‘FEEDING PEOPLE ...' (Bukhari)

The Prophet ﷺ said ,“FEED THE HUNGRY, visit the sick and free the captives” (Bukhari)

May Allah give good sense to humanity to follow His guidance. Aameen.

The Roots of Modernist objections on Prophet Ibrahim:

The Roots of Modernist objections on Prophet Ibrahim: 

The thing that blocks us from benefiting from the stories of Hazrat Ibrahim عليه السلام  (of leaving his wife & infant son in a desert on Allah's command and of his sacrificing his son) is the influence of modern intellectual ideas on our ‘aqida, i.e. what we think and believe to be true. The great equalizing push of secular liberalism means that we no longer see the prophets as being on the very top of a grand hierarchy, set up by God as a way to teach us how to be. We see them to be men, “just like us,” due to the liberal idea of the fundamental equality of all men and also because of modern movements in Islam that deemphasize concepts like adab (decorum) and the veneration of godly people. 

The more we see ourselves approaching their status, such that the gap between us and the divinely inspired prophets decreases in our eyes, the less we feel compelled to push ourselves to understand what Allah is getting at by telling their example.

When not compelled to move beyond our own realities to higher spiritual ones, we can then only interpret the actions of the prophets through our own inclinations and social understandings. 

With the equalizing push of secular liberalism comes a growing emphasis on the right of the human toward self- (and not divine) determination. We feel entitled to our own opinions and our own perceptions in a manner unlike any era of the human past. What this ultimately means is that the human, “rational,” way of understanding what is right and wrong takes precedence over any understanding that comes from God. And in this way, we are left completely unable to comprehend a subtle but critically important theological point: Allah is the One who determines what is Right and what is Wrong, whether you understand the reasoning behind His determinations or not. 

This point of ‘aqida is deeply connected to the idea of submission and slavehood to Allah. To restate it: according to the ‘aqida of Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jama‘ah (the formal name of those who consider themselves to be “Sunni” Muslims), the meaning, or ultimate consequence, of any given action can only be determined by Allah Himself, the Lord and Master of all creation.[xii] Out of His Generosity to us, He has made it so that we can see the wisdom in many of His rulings. For example, it is not difficult for a human being to understand why murder is unlawful, why charity brings reward, and why slander is a sin. But sometimes religious rulings are not based on any rational sense (e.g. why must we pray five times a day, instead of four, or six?). And sometimes on rare occasions, when dealing directly with his prophets and not as commands to the generality of believers, Allah might even reverse the ruling so that it seems to go against reason in order to bring higher truths to light. 

Regarding these particular accounts of Sayyiduna Ibrahim (Allah grant him peace), we learn something great as far as the internal aspect of how we should be. The starkness of the action and the unapologeticness of Sayyiduna Ibrahim (Allah grant him peace) afterwards are signs to us of what our internal state should be with our Lord. As modern people, we have a desire to understand with our minds everything, but this sometimes clashes with the soul’s ability to submit to the divine call. As submitted Muslims, we might not understand the rationale behind every divine command, but we must do them anyway. Some believers manage to still act on the commands they don’t understand because they trust in His Wisdom and in the fact that He has promised that a believer’s good deeds will never go to waste (such deeds always result in even more good, both in this world and in the Next). Others, at an even higher level of iman, act simply because they understand the supreme rank of Allah as Lord, and so their attitude is: “We hear and we obey”[Quran 2:285] without hesitation and without needing an explanation. They are the perfectly submitted slaves of Allah, who see nothing before them except Him. 

-extracts from 'Ibrahim عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ: The Father of Supreme Devotion' by DR. FAREEHA KHAN 

https://thesilainitiative.org/modern-questions-grounded-answers/ibrahim-the-father-of-supreme-devotion/20201021/by-dr-fareeha-khan/#_edn17

Basic Principles of Takfir: when does a Muslim go out of the fold of Islam

Basic Principles of Takfir: 

By Mufti Muhammad Zubair Butt 

The issue of takfir (declaring someone a kafir) is an extremely delicate issue and should be approached with extreme caution. It is a grave sin to declare a Muslim to be kafir or murtad (apostate). The Holy Qur’an states: 

O you who believe! When you go in the cause of Allah, verify [the truth of all matters], and say not to anyone who greets you: “You are not a believer”; seeking the perishable goods of the worldly life for there are with Allah booties in abundance. Even as he is now, so were you yourselves before till Allah conferred on you His favours [i.e. guided you to Islam], therefore, be cautious. Indeed, Allah is Well-Aware of what you do. [4:94] 

It is reported on the authority of Ibn ‘Umar (R) that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam said: 

Any person who called his brother: Kafir, [has in fact done an act by which] one of them has returned with it. If it were so, as he asserted [then the unbelief was confirmed], but if it was not true, then it returned to him [who labelled his brother Muslim). [Sahih Muslim] 

However, just as it is a grave sin to declare a Muslim to be a kafir or an apostate, it is equally incorrect to consider a kafir to be a Muslim without due consideration to the erroneous beliefs he may hold. In this regard the Holy Qur’an states: 

Do you want to guide him whom Allah has made go astray? And he whom Allah has made to go astray, you will never find for him any way [of guidance]. [4:88] 

Therefore, before submitting a direct answer to your question, it is important to first discuss the basic principles according to which one who was previously a Muslim may be considered to be an apostate. There are two fundamental ways in which one who was previously a Muslim may be considered to be an apostate: 

One who was previously Muslim totally renounces Islam [ والعياذ بالله ] and adopts another religion such as Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, etc. or denies the existence of Allah (SWT) entirely, or the concept of tawhid or denies the prophethood of Rasulullaah sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam. Such a person is undoubtedly an apostate. 

Although one who was previously Muslim does not renounce Islam and adopt another religion, nor deny the existence of Allah (SWT) or the concept of tawhid or the prophethood of Rasulullaah sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam, but adopts beliefs that amount to the denial of the text of the Holy Qur’an or the prophethood of Rasulullaah sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam. For example, such person denies an injunction established through a text of the Holy Qur’an that is definitive in its meaning or through a definitive mutawaatir hadith of Rasulullaah sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam. Such a person is also considered to be an apostate by the consensus of Muslims. 

To elucidate further, in the latter case, apostasy will only apply if one denies an absolute injunction ( الحكم القطعى ) that has been established from evidence that is unquestionably established قطعى الثبوت (qat‘i al-thubut) and unquestionable in its purport قطعى الدلالة (qat‘i aldilalah), i.e. it does not admit more than its one apparent meaning. This can be either through a text of the Holy Qur’an that is definitive in its purport or through a mutawaatir hadith (prophetic tradition that has been transmitted to us via indisputably authentic chains of authority) that is definitive in its purport. 

Then, if the knowledge of such absolute injunctions is widespread amongst the Muslim masses to the extent that one does not have to venture to any great length to acquire knowledge of them, such as the injunctions of Salaah, Zakaah, Hajj, and fasting, the prohibition of theft and the consumption of wine, such injunctions are referred to as ‘dharooriyyaat al-deen’ (essentials of deen). If the knowledge of such injunctions is not so wide spread, then although they are absolute injunctions there are not referred to as ‘dharooriyyaat al-deen’ (essentials of deen). The difference in the ruling between the two is that the denial of those absolute injunctions that are also from the ‘dharooriyyaat al-deen’ (essentials of deen) immediately renders one apostate according to the consensus of the Muslims. Ignorance is not considered to be an excuse, and any other divergent interpretation is unacceptable. With regards to those absolute injunctions whose knowledge is not widespread amongst the Muslim masses to the extent mentioned above, denial of such injunctions will not immediately render one an apostate. Instead, one will be made aware that the injunction in question is an absolute injunction that has been established from evidence that is unquestionably established قطعى الثبوت (qat‘i al-thubut) and unquestionable in its purport قطعى الدلالة (qat‘i aldilalah). If one still continues in one’s denial, one will be considered an apostate. 

However, if one does not deny such injunctions, even if one’s practice is to the contrary, although one will be considered a transgressor, one will not be declared an apostate. 

In short, just as renouncing Islam and adopting another religion is apostasy, in the very same manner, to deny an absolute injunction, or offer an interpretation that is contrary to the established interpretation is also apostasy. The latter form of apostasy is referred to in the Qur’an as Ilhaad: 

Indeed, those who deviate in Our verses [by attributing self assumed meanings to them that are contrary to the clear and explicit meanings recognised by the ummah and that change the intention of the Holy Qur’an in it’s entirety] are not hidden from Us. [41:40] 

The scholars of scholastic theology and jurisprudence refer to such apostasy as baatiniyyah and also zandaqah as ‘Allaamah Sa‘d al-Din al-Taftaazaani has done in Sharh al-Maqaasid. 

From: https://www.ilmgate.org/what-is-the-status-of-one-who-considers-homosexuality-to-be-permissible/