Today's Ayat for Friday, 2018-05-18 / 03 Ramadan 1439

Today's Ayat for Friday, 2018-05-18 / 03 Ramadan 1439



You who believe, fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may be mindful of God.

-- al-Baqarah 2:183 as rendered by Abdel Haleem

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

Listen http://www.islamawakened.com/Audio/002183.mp3

Study http://www.islamawakened.com/quran/2/183/

Go deeper http://www.islamawakened.com/quran/2/183/w4wcv.html

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Now that we have passed all the possible starting days of Ramadan, based on the various methods, etc., etc., etc., it is safe to say Ramadan Mubarak! to all of our readers.

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IslamAwakened has been asked to add commentary to our Today's Ayat

This is today's (somewhat extendend) comment:

Here are the main verses about fasting found in the Qur'an

2:183 fasting is prescribed, as it was... (see above)

is prescribed, as it was... (see above) 2:184 fixed no of days, unless on a journey

2:185 fast month of Ramadan

2:187 spousal relations are permitted at night; white thread / black thread



Note the missing 2:186? We'll get back to that.

First let's expand on "...as it was prescribed for those before you"

What do we find when we examine the fasting-related teachings of those before us?

In Christianity, we find

Acts 13:3, 14:23 fast before important decisions

Luke 2:37, 5:33 fasting linked with prayer

1 Corinth 7:1 - 7:5 giving up anything for God can be a fast

Matthew 6:16 - 6:18 dont be obvious about fasting

Isaiah 58 "the fast" is a long-term lifestyle

And the first fast in the Christian story is Jesus’ forty days in the desert, the basis for Lent





And in Judaism we see

Leviticus 23:26 - 23:32 the basis for Yom Kippur



Now, remember that missing 2:186? In the middle of verses about fasting?

This is the verse wherein Allah says "if My servants ask you about Me, tell them I am near, I respond to those who call Me"

The common thread we see in all the books: fasting is associated with prayer, with calling on our Creator.



Notice, too, that in earlier traditions, fasting is understood as "abstaining from something for the sake of Allah",

with that understanding, let's remember the very first fast: not eating from that one tree.



We didn't do so well on that one, did we?



May all your fasts go well this year!

Remember, this is an opinion.

We must always read the verse(s) for ourselves!