Question (Taken from a true website):
“…And it is this type of love relationship that is lacking in Islam.
However, we see this love expressed by Judaism’s and Christianity’s God. God was more to His people than a master who required obedience. He was a Shepherd for His people. He went beyond their limitations and sinfulness and gave them His love. We see a Father’s love given in both Judaism and Christianity, but never in Islam.
People say love makes the world go round. Why is love lacking in Islam?“
Answer: In Islam, the Love of Allah (God) is central in the belief of Muslims. We believe that His Love for us is greater than any amount that we could have ever imagined. The following is a saying of the Prophet Muhammad that has been related by one of his companions:
Umar Ibn al-Khattab (radhi allahu anhu) relates that some prisoners were brought before Allah’s Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) and amongst them was a woman who was frantically searching for someone in the crowd. When she found a baby amongst the prisoners, she took it in her arms, cradled it next to her chest and suckled it. So Allah’s Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) said: “Do you think that this woman would ever throw her child into the fire?” We said: ‘By Allah, Never!’ So he said: Allah is more merciful to His believing servants than that mother could ever be to her child.”
If we are to analyze the word ‘love’ and the different types of love there are in this world, we can safely conclude that there is no love as strong and as pure as the love that a mother has for her child. Now, in this Hadith (narration), we are seeing that Allah’s Love and Mercy for us, His servants, is much more than a mother could ever have for her child!
The Prophet Muhammad (may peace be upon him) once reported in a narration that Allah said,
“My servant draws near to Me with nothing more loved by Me than the acts of worship that I have enjoined upon him. My servant continues to try to draw near to Me with more devotion, until I love him. When I love him, I will be his hearing with which he hears, his sight by which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, his feet on which he walks. When he asks Me for something, I will respond and when he takes refuge in Me, I will grant it to him. I do not hesitate in doing anything I intend to do as much as I hesitate in seizing the soul of My faithful servant; he hates death and I hate hurting him. But death is a must for him.”(narrated by Bukhari)
Look at the love that Allah has for His Servants! His Love for us is so great that when our time comes to expire in this world, He actually hesitates to take our soul from us because, as He says, “I hate hurting him”.What a Merciful Lord!
Now, if we really want the Love and Mercy of Allah, then we must actively seek it by performing the actions of good. We believe that our destiny is in our intentions and in the actions that we perform. So if someone believes in the truth and performs good actions, then he will be admitted to Paradise. However, if someone denies the truth and performs contrary actions, then his final abode will be Hell (unless, of course, he repents for his actions and believes before the Last Day).
From this, one can see that believing is not enough - one must perform the required actions to get close to Allah. No one can “die for our sins” and we cannot be born “with original sin” because we are responsible for our own actions - nobody else. In the Islamic tradition, there are many authentic verses and sayings that explain how to get close to the Mercy of Allah:
1. “God loves kindness when you deal with any matter” (narrated by Bukhari and Muslim)
2. “God Almighty said “I am as My servant expects Me to be. I am with him if he remembers Me. If he remembers Me to himself, I would remember him to Myself. And if he remembers Me in a gathering, I would remember him in a gathering, which is even better. And if My servant draws near to Me by a hand’s span, I would draw near to him by an arm’s length and if he draws near to Me by an arm’s length, I would draw near to him by a fathom’s length. And if My servant comes to me walking, I would go to him speeding.” (narrated by Bukhari)
3. Say [O Prophet]: “If you love God, follow me, [and] God will love you and forgive you your sins; for God is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (3:31)
. Linguistically,