My brother seems to be pushing his religious views onto me. What should I do?
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QUESTION:
Salam! I am in great distress.
I recently read the Quran and begin to live accordingly. I haven’t officially told my family but I mentioned that I was studying it. My brother keeps sending me text messages about scripture references. He shares it with all of us siblings in our group chat but it’s always directed at me. I don’t know how to respond to this without offending him. I try to think he is only sharing out of love, but it is really annoying me. I have prayed about it. The idea came to try asking an imam online. I don’t know if it’s my heart that is just viewing it wrong or what is going on. I have never tried to push my belief on anyone. I just shared this is a direction I may be going in. That’s all. I am trying to figure out why it appears he is taking digs at me.
I have tried my best to describe my dilemma in words. I hope you understand and can provide insight. Thank you.
ANSWER:
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.
We pray that Allah Ta’ālā makes your situation easy, and we pray that Allah Ta’ālā guides you and keeps you steadfast on the straight path. Āmeen.
It is human nature that a person is enthusiastic in what they believe in. Hence, if you assume that your brother is pushing his beliefs on to you, it should be understood that this may be his eagerness to share with you what he deems precious to him. We advise you to excuse him, overlook his behaviour, and continue to study and research Islam – particularly, the Holy Qur’ān and the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
Some of the books we recommend for you are following:
- The Quran – English Translation: by Mufti Taqi Uthmani (may Allah preserve him): https://archive.org/details/QuranWithEnglishTranslationByTaqiUsmani
- Understanding the Religion of Islam: by Mufti Inayatullah (may Allah preserve him):
https://1drv.ms/b/s!AhVfig1Ln5gQ3VQ9RkgEDNcAiBXt - Sirat al-Mustafa Abridged: by Shaykh Muhammad Idris al-Kandehlawi (may Allah have mercy upon him):
https://archive.org/details/sirat-al-mustafa-abridged/page/190/mode/2up - Prophet of Mercy: by Shaykh Abul Hasan Nadwi (may Allah have mercy upon him):
https://www.mnblind.org/pdf/15-seerah/9039-57-prophet-of-mercy-by-shaykh-abul-hasan-ali-nadwi-pdf/file
In addition to the above publications, we also recommend the following website, run under Hadhrat Mawlānā Saleem Dhorat (may Allah preserve him), which includes various resources for new Muslims: www.lightofhira.org
We advise that you keep making prayers for yourself and ask for guidance for yourself and for your family.
And Allah Ta’ālā Knows Best
Mudathir Karim
Concurred by:
Hanif Yusuf | Zayd Imran
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Posted in Daily MattersSocial ConductAadaab (Ettiquettes & Manners) on 26th Nov 2022 by Our Imam | 559 Views
