Islam Is... Islam and Its Principles

The Dangers of Innovations in Islam (Bid'ah)

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9. THE DANGERS OF INNOVATIONS IN ISLAM (BID’AH)

God ordered Muslims not to divide themselves into sects. Innovations and divisions in matters of religion and worship within Islam are considered to be contamination, error, and deviation. Earlier heinous deviations from monotheism, such as worshipping creation, resulted in condemnation by God. (However, innovations in other matters, such as science and technology to improve life, are greatly encouraged.) God, The Most Compassionate, has told us through His last Prophet Muhammad, when Muhammad was nearing the end of his life, that He had completed the religion of Islam. Muslims must recognize that any change in matters of worship is strictly forbidden. No change introduced by humankind, who are under the influence of Satan, could ever add anything positive and would only contribute to the degradation of the completed and perfected religion established by God. All innovations in matters of religion lead to straying, and all straying leads to hellfire. People must not allow any deviation (addition or deletion), even as small as one degree, in matters of worship.(1) If any changes are allowed, those deviations will be compounded by future generations, and the result will be another manmade religion, not the Islam as it was perfected by God, The Truth. To build a faith using a “shopping cart” approach or the blind following of any religious leader is inadmissible.
The changing of God’s laws is forbidden in Islam. God condemns religious leaders who alter divine principles. One who attempts to make changes places him or herself on the same level with God, committing polytheism. An example of this would be to make the killing of innocents lawful. The laws of God are perfect and do not need to be “modernized” by anyone. God allows us the freedom to obey or disobey Him by choosing to follow His faith or to follow our own desires. However, He forbids us to change His religious principles.
(It is interesting to note that the crescent moon is not representative of the religion of Islam, as the Prophet Muhammad never used or mentioned it. It was a pagan symbol and an innovation brought about by later generations as a political symbol. Sadly, it is commonly adopted and mistaken as an Islamic symbol.)

(1) Islam teaches that for an act of worship to be accepted by God it must fulfill two conditions: The intention must be first and foremost to please God, and the act must be done according to the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad.