Umm Emarah – a woman of courage !

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

How can we forget her whose name was Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها ? Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها , a woman from Banu Najjar tribe, the mother of two martyrs and the sister of a companion of the Prophet , Abdullah bin Ka’b  رضي الله عنه

She appeared to pledge allegiance to Allah and His Messenger ﷺ along with about seventy two men and two women including herself, the other woman being Umm Munee Asma bint Amr bin Adi.

Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها  had two sons from her first marriage by the names of Abdullah and Habib. From her second marriage she had a son called Tameem and a daughter called Khawlah.

The battle of Uhud arrived and there was Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها , the brave and believing woman with a sword in one hand and a shield in the other. Umm Emarahرضي الله عنها  stood firm in defending her beloved Prophet ﷺ such that the Prophet ﷺ said that in whichever direction he turned in the battlefield he could see her defending and protecting him. Subhaan Allah, look at the concern she had for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ! Where is her concern and the concern of her likes, and our concern? Yesterday Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها  was there defending the Messenger ﷺ, today those brothers who defend the sunnah of that same Messenger ﷺ with their blood and life are slandered.

Furthermore, Nabi ﷺ said about Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها :

“From where can anyone get courage like you, O Umm Emarah?”

After all, Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها  was a woman who gave blood for this religion! In the battle of Uhud she sustained at least twelve wounds. One of them was so deep that she fainted. She also participated in the battle against Musailmah alKathaab. She sustained eleven wounds and her arm was cut. Furthermore, she was also among the twenty women who took part in the  battle of Khaybar.

Her son, Habib bin Zayd رضي الله عنه  , was martyred by Musailmah alKathaab and her other son, Abdullah bin Zayd  رضي الله عنه  became a martyr in the battle of Harrat and the giving of life for the Religion of Allah hasn’t stopped today, just look to our honorable brothers in Afghanistan and Syria for example.

وَلَا تَقُولُوا لِمَنْ يُقْتَلُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أَمْوَاتٌ ۚ بَلْ أَحْيَاءٌ وَلَٰكِنْ لَا تَشْعُرُونَ

And do not say about those who are killed in the way of Allah, “They are dead.” Rather, they are alive, but you perceive [it] not.

Surah Baqarah, verse 154

So, not only was Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها a woman of great courage but she also the mother of men who sacrificed themselves for the Religion of Allah.

All the while the disbelievers today continue to parrot their propaganda against the woman of Islam even though among her predecessors were women who sacrificed their blood for the very religion which is supposedly an “oppression” for women.

They foolishly continue in trying to force the Muslim woman into believing that she is either oppressed by somebody else or that she is oppressing herself.

Anyway, may Allah allow us to walk in the footsteps of those great men and women from our Islamic history, ameen. We do not need other female role models which the West puts forth for its women, we do not need to take inspiration from makeup covered, mini-skirt wearing pop-stars or actresses. When noble female companions the likes of Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها decorate the pages of our history, why do we look to disbelieving women for inspiration? We only embarrass ourselves by doing so.

May Allah be pleased with Umm Emarah and make us like her, ameen.

“O Allah! Make this family my friends in Paradise.”

-Nabi Muhammad ﷺ

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم How can we forget her whose name was Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها ? Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها , a woman from Banu Najjar tribe, the mother of two martyrs and the sister of a companion of the Prophet , Abdullah bin Ka’b رضي الله عنه She appeared to pledge allegiance to […]

via Umm Emarah رضي الله عنها- a woman of courage — Bintul Ummah

 

Newsweek: Why Cuba muslim population is growing ?

The first time a pope ever set foot in Cuba was in 1998, when John Paul II traveled to the Communist state. The visit was the result of a thaw between the Vatican and Cuba’s president, Fidel Castro, who banned religion in 1959 when he seized power. Cuba’s majority-Catholic population welcomed the pontiff with great excitement; several hundred thousand people, including Castro, attended the Mass led by the pope in Havana. Meanwhile, a small number of other Cubans drew their own conclusion from the regime’s growing tolerance of religion: Perhaps soon the state would increasingly accept Islam too.

The religion is now quietly growing in Cuba, where there are as many as 9,000 Muslims. While they represent a tiny segment of Cuba’s 11.3 million population, it’s a significant increase from roughly a dozen in the early 1990s. “The Communist Party has been making decisions to open up religious plurality,” says Michael Leo Owens, associate professor of political science at Emory University in Atlanta. “Islam will naturally grow.”

Because there isn’t a long legacy of Islam in Cuba, many of the island’s Muslims are converts who found the faith after speaking with students and diplomats visiting from Muslim-majority countries, says Joan Alvado, a photojournalist based in Barcelona, Spain. Starting in 2014, Alvado has photographed the lives of Cuba’s Muslims, in the capital of Havana and around the country. Most recently, Alvado returned to Cuba, from early October to early November, to further explore this tiny culture, and his work is showcased here.

Osman Reyes, one of Alvado’s subjects, converted to Islam in June 2015. He says the religion helped him to feel “more free,” according to Alvado. Reyes lives near the central Cuban city of Camaguey, where local Muslims established a humble mosque inside a private home in the early 2000s.

Despite being part of the fastest-growing religious group in the world—a Pew Research Center report estimates the world’s Muslim population will increase by 73 percent by 2050—Cuba’s Muslims can seem invisible, even to other Cubans. “No one in Havana, even my Cuban friends, knew that there were Muslims,” Alvado says.

In the early 1990s, the handful of Muslim citizens in Cuba faced possible persecution by the regime for practicing their religion, but most worshipped on their own; few could teach them about their newfound faith. Now they have leadership, teachers and a large house of worship that opened in Havana in June 2015. The mosque distributes traditional Muslim dress to men and women and donates lamb to congregants during Ramadan.

Adapting to Islam has been a significant departure for Cubans, many of whom grew up eating pork and drinking alcohol. Most Cuban Muslims have adapted gradually. A lack of experts or imams to guide their way has meant that old traditions survive even as the converts adopt new ways of living under Islam. In one of his photographs, Alvado features a small Christmas tree next to a green Saudi Arabian flag. The decorations belong to a Catholic-born Cuban woman who has been a Muslim for five years. “She still puts the Christmas tree up every year,” says Alvado. “The Muslim community in Cuba is really young.”

It’s unclear whether Castro’s death in November will affect Cuba’s religious revival. Castro had already passed the presidency on to his younger brother Raúl in 2008, though he continued to represent a powerful and uncompromising faction in Cuban politics. “The hard-liner elements of the Cuban government lost their greatest mouthpiece,” says Andrew Otazo, executive director of Washington-based think tank the Cuba Study Group. Cubans will be watching anxiously to see whether Castro’s death will lead to reform or whether hard-liners—insecure about where they stand now—will crack down on religion. “Will there be more religious freedom or ability to practice your religion if you see fit? That’s the big question,” he says.

http://europe.newsweek.com/why-cubas-muslim-population-growing-535773?rm=eu

 

Ever heard of an opera singer embracing Islam?

Assalamualaikum guys! So i’m going to be working with a lovely sister who does excellent work sharing revert stories in the hopes that it will help others who are contemplating reverting. She hopes that by sharing these stories through YouTube videos, it will help others. Check out the website for more information overcome.tv So please […]

via Ever heard of an opera singer embracing Islam? — neelamhussain

 

A Reflection: My Two Year Anniversary and My Second Shahada

So, I just passed my two year anniversary of converting to Islam last month, and today I wanted to share some of my reflections and thoughts as I look back on the past two years. Firstly, I can’t believe how fast two years has gone! And looking back even just one year, I can’t believe […]

via A Reflection: My Two Year Anniversary and My Second Shahada — Muslimah According to Me

 

Christianity is 100% idol worship -Rabbi

AMAZING LECTURE By Rabbi Yehoshua Zitron: Christianity, christmas, christmas tree is 100% idol worshipping (Avoda Zarah)

via Christianity is 100% idol worship — Blogging Theology