Pathway to Paradise — Page 4
PATHWAY TO P ARADISE 4 command. Also by Allah’s command angels serve as intermediaries in carrying out His will. In this sense they are also referred to as messengers (rasool) of Allah. Indeed, amongst their tasks are: to bring divine revelations to the prophets; bring punishmen t on the prophets’ enemies; pray for and give glad tidings to believers; glorify Allah with His praise; and keep records of man’s deeds. Four of the most well known angels are: Gabriel (Jibraeel), Michael (Mikaeel), Raphael (Israfeel) and Israel (Israeel). 3. Books (Kutub) Muslims believe that Allah revealed His laws in stages to mankind through His prophets, and therefore accept the Torah of Moses (peace be on him), the Psalms of David (peace be on him) and the Gospel (Injeel) of Jesus (peace be on him) as holy books, as we ll as the sacred scriptures of all other messengers of Allah. However, Muslims believe that all such revelations were limited to a specific time and people and are not preserved in their original purity, but subject to distortions. All the Holy Scriptures culminated in, and were perfected in, the Holy Qur’an (just as all religion was perfected in Islam). The Holy Qur’an says: “This day have I perfected for you your religion and completed My favor on you and chosen for you Islam as a religion. ” (5:30) 4. Prophets (Anbiya) All of Allah’s prophets or messengers (rasool) are believed in and revered by Muslims. The Holy Qur’an states that Allah raised up prophets among the people of every nation, sending Divine