my faith
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ISLAM
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The concept of morality and good character
in Islam centers around certain basic beliefs
and principles. Among these are the following: 1) Allah
is the Creator and Source of all goodness, truth, and
beauty. 2) Man is a responsible, dignified, and honor-
able agent of his Creator. 3) Allah has put everything in
the heavens and the earth in the service of mankind. 4)
By His Mercy and Wisdom, Allah does not expect the
impossible from man or hold him accountable for any-
thing beyond his power. Nor does Allah forbid man to
enjoy the good things of life. 5) Moderation, practicality,
and balance are the guarantees of high integrity and
sound morality and good character. 6) All things are
permissible in principle except what is singled out as
obligatory, which must be observed, and what is sin-
gled out as forbidden, which must be avoided. 7) Man’s
ultimate responsibility is to Allah and his highest goal is
the pleasure of his Creator.
The dimensions of morality and good character in Islam
are numerous, far-reaching, and comprehensive. The
Islamic morals deal with the relationship between man
and Allah, man and his fellow men, man and the other
elements and creatures of the universe, man and his
innermost self. The Muslim has to guard his external
behavior and his manifest deeds, his words and his
thoughts, his feelings and intentions. In a general
sense, his role is to champion what is right and fight
what is wrong, seek what is true and abandon what is
false, cherish what is beautiful and wholesome and
avoid what is indecent. Truth and virtue are his goal.
Humbleness and simplicity, courtesy and compassion,
are his second nature. To him, arrogance and vanity,
harshness and indifference, are distasteful, offensive,
and displeasing to Allah.
More specifically, the Muslim’s relationship with Allah is
one of love and obedience, complete trust and thought-
