Good, evil and suffering

• Fard- good actions
• Mandub- you will be rewarded for these actions, but not punished if not
• Sunnah - actions that were performed by the Prophet Muhammad and are highly recommended but not obligatory.
• Mubah- permitted, as they aren't mentioned in the Qur'an or Hadith
• haram= "that which is forbidden"
• different types of evil:

  -moral

  -natural
• moral evil- comes from the misuse of free will
• non-religious attitudes to evil and suffering:

  -if god were omnipotent: surely, he could remove evil and suffering

  -if he were omnibenevolent: surely, he'd want to remove evil
• humaninists may believe:

  evil and suffering means that God is either not omnipotent, omnibenevolent or existant
• however, a muslim attitude to evil may be:

  -belief in misuse of free will

  -the fault of accidental nature of the universe
• Muslim response to why people suffer:

  -God is greater than humans, so we cannot understand his motives. Instead, we should accept it and have faith and trust in him, rather than question it

  -the qur'an teaches God is good, so there must be a reason behind it

  -humans will be judged on their evil actions
• in the qur'an, Allah ordered all angels to bow down to Adam: but one, Iblis, refused. As a result, he was sent out of paradise and now attempts to try and tempt humans to choose wrong over right until the day of judgement

  -could act as a test
• Evil and suffering could be seen as a test of faith: God is testing us to see if we are worthy of his kingdom, and Muslims will be rewarded in Paradise for eternity
• Islam teaches that the endurance of suffering with faith: Muslims should accept it at God's will, rather than question his motives

  Islam also teaches to work actively to remove evil and suffering from the World, so a Muslim's response should be to try and remove it (through praying or practical work)

  -they will then be rewarded for these attempts
• Forgiveness: the first step to reconciliation
• the Qur'an teaches Allah is compassionate and merciful

  "In the name of God the Merciful, the Compassionate"

  -every Surah, apart from one, begins with the bismillah