Why did Allah create humans in such a way as to be liable to doubt? This is something that atheists ask in an aggressive way: If God is real, why did He make Himself hidden? If there is a God, why doesn’t He reveal Himself and remove all doubt?
And Allah addresses this charge directly in the Quran in multiple places. He says, If we sent down angels, if the dead spoke to them, if all kinds of miracles were shown to them, if literally every single sign was shown to them, they would still disbelieve.
One of the miraculous ayat in this regard is from Surat al-an`am, when Allah says: “If you are able to seek a tunnel into the earth or a stairway into the sky to bring them a sign, [then do so]. But if Allah had willed, He would have united them upon guidance. So never be of the ignorant.”
Allah is saying that even if you were to burrow deep into the earth or put a ladder up to the sky and bring the disbelievers and doubters a sign, that wouldn’t move their hearts one inch closer to belief.
What’s amazing about this verse is that, in modern times, this is exactly what has happened. We have drilled miles into the earth and we have gone miles up into the heavens and using telescopes we can see all these amazing, awe inspiring things in this universe, things that past people had never seen: galaxies, nebulae, pulsars, quasars, superclusters of galaxies. These are all ayat of Allah and they are so grand that they are literally beyond human conceptualization. We literally cannot fathom how large a galaxy is, how old the universe is, how powerful a black hole is and so forth. But we now see all these sublime things with our very own eyes, and none of that serves as evidence for the disbelievers.
Point being that even if disbelievers were suddenly presented with a whole other aspect of existence, no matter how unearthly, no matter how spectacular, they would always have a way to dismiss it or subsume it into their definition of “normal” and “unremarkable.” And Allah gives examples of past nations who did exactly this: miracles occurred before their very eyes, and they just said, oh this is just some kind of trick, this is not spectacular, this is just commonplace, this is not definitive proof that God exists, this is not definitive proof that God spoke through a messenger, etc. Because of their arrogance, they have become deaf, dumb, and blind.
The Nature of Atheistic DoubtWhy did Allah create humans in such a way as to be liable to doubt? This is something…
Posted by Daniel Haqiqatjou on Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Islam Is common or the norm in some countries and people are brought up with it. Likewise in the west it isn’t and people are brought up Christian or agnostic etc. I don’t think that makes some countries more stupid than other or people more stubborn than others. Chances are if you’re Pakistani you will follow Allah and won’t change your view, if raised in Ireland you will follow Christ and won’t change your view and if raised in uk, Australia china or Iceland you Likely are agnostic and won’t change. I’m agnostic but if God revealed himself more blatantly then I’d change my mind. Just as the complexity and beauty of the world are seen as blinding evidence of Allah to you, the suffering of the world and cruelty of nature are evidence of not to me.
Kath Fenn, did you ever think that maybe God did reveal Himself in a very obvious way? As a Muslim
we believe God sent Prophets and Messnegers to all communities throughout history- over 100,000 throughout time if I’m not mistaken. Many came with books/revelations through language, but at least a perfect man who was known by all to be perfect in character and dealings and who called people in the best way was always there in every community. Couple that with the fact that we were born in a world where we have no recollection of anything before and we should have an innate desire to find out where we came from so we should be searching and looking for answers – we have been given the tools, the mind, the many examples to ponder like a mother and fathers love for some is a clear indication of a loving and merciful and well wishing Creator. And then the Messengers and Prophets being sent, Books being revealed – yes is it true that there are people making things up and lying – yes that’s one of the challenges of life – isn’t it also true that life on earth is a short test that will end very very soon and countless generations have come and gone – isn’t it also true we have a mind with the ability to judge if someone or something is truthful. I think the main problem is 1- lack of access to information about God and His Message firstly, and if this is the case for some then God is their judge and we shouldn’t judge
2- lack of trying on our part to find out rather than being distracted by a temporary life that we will forget
In Islam the Messenger, Peace be upon Him, is known as the last messenger sent to all people. His records have been persevered with more accuracy and detail than any historical person. His manners, character, dealings, actions inside and outside the home from how he ate/drank to how he walked to how he spoke and what he spoke about is preserved in pristine condition for the seeker of truth to examine.
The greatest favor on man is guidance, and it was given to us through a Messenger, a perfect example. We have a responsibility to see if it is true and then to accept and cherish the guidance God has sent for our benefit, here and forever. Islam is actually about making things easier and it is sincere advice.
May God guide us
Kath fenn what more do you want to see to believe in Allah. There is even scientific proof of Allah . I also feel the same as tariq. You are the one being stubborn what more do you want how was the things sent by Allah not being blatant ?
Dear Kath Fenn,
You make a valid point when you say that people tend the follow the views upheld by the society they live in; at the same time, in every society, there are always some people that change their views because of experience and reflection. The universe is an open book full of signs that every human being can observe and understand and these signs points back to the one Creator who is the only one worthy of our love, obedience and praise. No one can deny that the world is full of pleasure, pain, success, failure, joy, and sadness; however, the presence of evil and suffering does not indicate an absence of a Creator possessing full and complete wisdom and knowledge of all things. May Allah guide us to the the correct understanding of things.