r/progressive_islam

I will be honest .

I never really understood this concept of religion, God. My parents aren't even religious, and they never really forced religion onto me, which was mostly because my Father came from a lower income household so he wanted to uplift his condition while my mother do came from moderately religious background . My mother's side has been Muslim for centuries (recorded history), while my father's family , when did they convert which generation of Muslims are they is unknown. But my mother didn't really learn about religion

My concept always lacked because suffering was visible to me , I used to live in a Muslim neighbourhood, which by was the worst neighbourhood in the city.

People mostly say that these suffering and all is a Test by God , which doesn't make sense at all ! Why a test ? is there anyone whom he needs to impress? What are we , experimental rats in a lab?

Hi everyone. I’m looking for a progressive perspective on how to engage with a female friend who is now a staunch atheist and quite aversive to Islam.

I value her perspective and our connection, but I want to navigate our conversations in a way that respects her journey while remaining true to my own path. How do you all handle situations where a loved one sees the religion only as a source of restriction or trauma?

I’m not looking to debate her into submission, but rather to create a space where we can discuss big ideas without her feeling like I'm trying to save or control her.

Any tips on de-escalating the hostility and showing a more compassionate, progressive side of faith through action rather than just words?

What should I do if I forgot the number of raka'ahs? After I cast aside my doubts and started praying with a raka'ah I was sure I had completed, but then I remembered I had already completed that raka'ah. What should I do next?

this is gonna be heavy topic involving ocd and extreme anxiety please interact with caution .

sadly, I have developed extremed anxiety and ocd is only getting worser an worser over time it reach the point where I can't stop can't stop insulting Islam whenever I am near religious stuff and having to repeat my testimony reinforcing the cycle even more the more way I could make it work is if I made my testimony fast enough than my mind can catch up with it obsessive thoughts or relax a bit but it wouldn't last long since religion trigger me it will reinforce the cycle that literally the most I can, the most religious thing my body can handle is literally the basics of basics of Islam I can handle , I can't even do ghusul let alone wudu and prayer I feel like sinner whenever I hear adhan during Friday and hadiths about prayer cause me extreme anxiety despite being literally unsure about validity of ritualistic prayer I am semi quranist semi sunni btw but what else can I do I have to fight for my life just to take ghusul and this was way before it become stronger that I can't hold it for long without insulting Islam let alone prayer , idk what else can I do

I try to clean impurity if I came across them like urine or such wchich I had to repeat shahada again and do it quick before my compulsive disorder catch up .

I am afraid of death and I am trying to figure out religion but this is condition make it near impossible how am I supposed to figure out what religion is if I can't stay one piece without breaking down

I will share what I feel during those episode it's often vague cuz these episodes are quick to make sense of them but basically it's like this first of during doing something your mind shift objective for mere second when you try to redo it again and focus you feel like you but at the same time not you as in not like anger but not normal anger like fast excessive anger the more you try to control the more it take over if you fight it so hard it highjack your mind and make you do things you normally wouldn't do like this for brief moment you hate Islam or something then basically boom regain control it often too fast and intense to make sense but in that brief moment you do something you normally wouldnt like idk being anti Islam insulting god etc.. in that state you do it like due to extreme stress but you normally wouldn't like , idk what to do I feel bad but what else can I do , spirituality often doesn't work for me , and I often feel guilty on this part because It's was me who do it and who am I to tell I didn't enough control what make me different from people who commit disbelief out of anger , even while seeing Islamic history or like relic of past or this chain of narration is true or something it's make me even feel more anxious because I feel I am following desire and that sunnism is the default right path when I am myself feel stuck between multiple aspect from suñism to quransim so things that assure this x path is true only cause more insanity the reverse work do , I am afraid of going to hell after I die but idk what else am I even supposed to do, I don't wanna a bad person . .. I truly don't want to ...( so whenever I see Hadith or verses or such saying you are borderline Kaffir or very least sinner if you don't pray or even skip one prayer is already bad enough om it own ... this also apply to other things as well even when I am not sure that what the Quran talk about or had different context back then or something like interest or not wearing hijab( I am male but still ) I am not sure if that what these verses meant but still

sorry , this got me a bit emotional writing this and I am starting to cry , I should stop now , thankfully this was all I got to say I am currently on medicines and I went and still go to pscyhrist ... but yeah sorry if this is a bit heavy

Salaam everyone,

Sorry if this is a repeated question i couldnt find anything about this.

Ive recently been praying more consistently, all 5 prayers most days alhamdulilah and im really happy about that because it is so hard for me to keep routines. One thing im worried about though is fidgetting.

I just cant help it, ik youre supposed to stay still during prayer and focus on what youre reciting but i cant, ive really really tried.

I tried memorizing the meaning of all the surahs you read in salah but that didnt help, i try focusing on a point in the prayer mat but that also doesnt help. If i consciously make myself stand very still i can for a while but usually my mind wanders and i easily forget what rakkah im on and i feel like thats worse in a way.

Usually i just crack my fingers or shift my weight from leg to leg or occasionally adjust my glasses or scarf, but it bothers me because my mom always gets mad at me and says my prayer wont be accepted if i keep moving around like that, which is part of the reason i couldnt consistently pray every prayer before. I usually thought "why should i even pray if it wont even be accepted anyway"

What should i do? Should i try harder to stop fidgeting or is a little movement okay? I assume i could potentially stop unnecessary movements during prayer but i feel like that would make praying feel like a chore again and i dont want to distance myself from islam anymore.

I recently turned 25, but I feel like only my body has grown physically, internally I still feel the same as I did when I was 15 or 16. I’m still scared to face the world, still dependent on my parents, and emotionally sensitive. I don’t feel street smart, nor do I have the so called skills to impress or influence people.

When I meet my friends, it feels like they received some message about “growing up” that I somehow missed. They’ve progressed in their careers and are now even planning to get married, while I still feel confused and afraid. It’s not about jealousy, it’s more about wondering why I still feel like a teenager inside.

Is it just me, or do others feel this way too?

Also, if you have any insight, what does the Qur’an or Islam say about growing up and maturity?

I’m sorry if this message feels scattered, I’m finding it hard to think clearly right now.

Guys

Whats your thoughts on 'Shariah is not something obligatory to enforce in a state level, It's just a bunch of core principles that Muslims have to follow in personal level'?

Salam, I'm in the process of converting, but I was curious about something.

If the Many Worlds Interpretation is true, I'm guessing God would be the only constant.

But if there are multiple universes, with an infinite number of possibilities,

1. Would that mean there could be universes where everything's the same, but God never revealed Himself?

2. And for the universes where He did, would that mean there could be universes where pork/zina is halal, or even encouraged in their Qur'ans (or equivalent)?

How could we reconcile the two?

I’m a 23F and I met this guy (23M) more than three years ago. We are both from the desi community. He told his family about me a few months into knowing each other because they are a bit more progressive, they were very accepting and happy with me and still are. I have gotten to know his family over time and am close with them, specifically his mom. My family is very traditional so I didn’t tell them until about eight months of knowing him and suggested that I would like my parents to meet him and that I am interested in him for marriage. My parents were severely against this and said a lot of negative things about both him and me. He is a childhood cancer survivor and walks with a bit of limp that resulted from a surgery that replaced his knee-hip-femur with titanium. He has some limitations in his day to day but not many, he’s very active, plays pickleball for hours everyday, but more importantly, a very good man and good Muslim. Regardless of how active he is, I accept him as is. I don’t see those things as a problem. My parents eventually agreed to meet him and his family, which went very well, but they ultimately said that his limp looked bad and that he is weak and could get sick again, therefore I can’t marry him. I fought with them over this for a while, it’s been over two years, but they have still not agreed. They have consulted with my extended family members who say the same thing. No one in my family is on my side. My dad constantly says I am a bad daughter for wanting a love marriage. Although my mom doesn't agree, she says this specific marriage is not okay and backs my dad. I don’t know what to do anymore. They would constantly threaten to kick me out of the house, which they did not do and stopped threatening eventually. Now everytime I discuss this with them they give me an ultimatum to marry him and leave the house or stay in the house and leave him.

TLDR: my parents won’t let me marry him because he is a cancer survivor with a limp.

I recently saw an Instagram post where a girl found her dream wedding dress last minute and captioned it "I know God is a girl-dad because he helped me find the wedding dress of my dreams" and everyone was flaming the girl saying things along the lines of "tell your girl-dad God that there are people dying." I understand both sides. How are you guys able to come to terms with the fact that there are so many people struggling, suffering, and dying, etc without dehumanization or detachement?

Bismillah iRahman iRahim, Insha'Allah I have been granted to see the way, and to recognize the Book, to know there is only one God who is called Allah, and Muhammad, Blessed Be His Name, is his Prophet.

I would be looking for a good Mosque, both virtual and on-site in Vienna, Austria. Any recommendations? Are there any particular steps you would recommend for a recently converted Austrian?`Anyway, happy to be here, and looking forward to your comments.

This may have been asked before by others but just wanted to get some updated input. I got banned from a Muslim convert sub for saying there’s nothing in the Quran that I’ve found that states we *must* pray in Arabic. And that we need to understand what we’re saying when we pray which is why it may be easier for some in their native language. Am I wrong?? If so lmk bc what😂😭

Salam aylakoum i have a question, is hijra obligatory ?

I was thinking about this a lot while I carry a ton of doubt about Islam and doubting hadaiths Ik it’s not pacifically mentioned in the Quran in another thing is if that punishment exist what’s the point of the day of judgment? Or the Hadiths mutawirr or the three questions??

Please explain fully

Anyway ig help if y can

I need a hand I feel so sinful context after this Ramadan I approached Allah in a serious way but I still find it too difficult for certain things like listening to music that I like too much and I understand not listening to music that talks about haram but also music that talks about love peace and difficulty is not allowed even if some allow it others no the fact that I couldn't wear earrings because it was tashabbahu bi'l-nisa despite the fact that I put them because I liked them and not to look like anyone and some say that I can put them on because in the West it is unisex it is not only for women (I agree with the fact that they are unisex) in addition there is the fact that I can't even hug a friend despite my niyya is good and I feel a fraternal affection towards my friends and I don't feel attraction towards my friends in addition I can't watch anime TV series like rick and morty invincible naruto Because they always have that something wrong which I find limiting so as not to add sins such as masturbation and smoking from which I stay away because they are harmful and I recognise it even if some do not say that masturbation is haram or in some cases it is allowed and in the moments when these weaknesses assault me I feel a hypocrite because if I sin I know I really regret and ask for a sincere tawba and that Allah is the most merciful so he would forgive me but this makes me feel even more hypocritical and I feel very limited and in difficulty even if the prophet (saw) says that Islam is simple but I don't see it so I feel too in difficulty and overwhelmed even if I shouldn't be like that but I thank Allah for making me be more constant with my prayers that make me feel good but I still have the fear and the feeling that I will fall back into my sins and I feel very disoriented because there are too many different thoughts from many scholars and I don't know who to agree with (in fact I choose the scientists most in line with my thoughts but even this creates difficulties for me) I don't know what to do

(Mods please don't remove, I can't see any rule prohibiting a quick PSA!)

Hi all! I've set up r/IslamicR4R, a forum for posting personal ads--you can look for Muslim spouses, book clubs, travel groups, or someone to go with you to the masjid. I'm hoping that, inshallah, this subreddit will give you a place to a) be honest about who you are and what you're looking for and b) provide a well-moderated and searchable subreddit for those seeking to have more Muslims in their lives.

All those who consider themselves Muslim are welcome. There is a strict rule against haram-policing, as the subreddit is not the place for debate or public shaming. Be brave and consider posting an ad today! May Allah make it easy for all of us to find community in our online and in-person worlds.

I know we pray to Allah because we need Him. But Allah is the most compassionate. Is it His affection?Does He Love His creation? Or is it simply mercy for His servants? I remember some Hadith (I don't know how reliable they are) about Allah loving us seven times more than our own mother. Is this true?

How can He love us if we're the only ones who need Him? I mean, is it a conditional love, only if we try to do good and follow His commands? Yet many non-Muslims live well, and when they pray, they receive mercy

Is listening to rap music haram?