['Aalim Network QR] Messiah, Ritual Sacrifice

[abbas@dircon.co.uk (Abbas Jaffer)]

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|       In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the All-Merciful       |\
|  Greeting of Allah be upon Muhammad and the pure members of his House |\
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Salamun Alaykum,

The following questions were kindly answered by Mulla Bashir Rahim.

Regards

Abbas Jaffer
Acting Moderator - 'Aalim Network

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QUESTION 1:

A question about Prophet Isa(as):  What is the meaning/purpose of his being 
raised alive to heaven and returning behind Al-Mahdi(as)?  What is he to do then 
when Al-Mahdi(as) returns?  And, what is the meaning of the word Messiah, does 
that refer to Isa(as) or to Al-Mahdi(as)?

ANSWER:

Maseeh means the Anointed one, the one who has been graced by Allah to deliver 
mankind from the slough of sin by leading them to the True Path. Certainly 
Hadhrat Isa was a maseeh. So were all the Prophets and the aimmah (A.S.).

Inshallah Hadhrat Isa will soon reappear with our Awaited One, Imam Saahibul'Asr 
(A.S.) to rid the world of evil. These two are the awaited massehs. 

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QUESTION 2:

 Another unrelated question comes from the christian concept of the meaning
of animal slaughter in religious ceremonies.  When they read the Old
Testament, they see the blood sacrifice as being necessary for atonement
of sins, and the scriptures as we have them today could be interpreted
that way.  Then, when they look at the Muslim practice of animal slaughter
at Eid ul Fitr and Hajj, they think it is a relic of the blood sacrifice
and a proof that blood sacrifice for forgiveness is required, going along
with their belief in the blood sacrifice of prophet Isa (as).  The animal
slaughter at Hajj I understand to be a reminder of Prophet Ibrahim's (as)
willingness to kill his son at Allah's command, but is there more to it?
Is the christian concept of animal slaugther in ancient times incorrect,
and if so, what was the real purpose behind it and why is it continued
today in Muslim practice?

ANSWER: 

Without going deep into the Old Testament and other Christian scriptures
let us be clear about one thing. The modern day objection to the Islamic form of 
slaughter has nothing to do with atonement of sins. It is motivated by the 
belief in the so called  humane form of killing the animal. You kill an animal 
humanely, they say, then you can eat it.


Please do not hesitate to submit to the Alim Network  any supplementary question 
you may have.

With salaams and du'aas from a humble servant of Ahlul Bayt and their
followers, and with a request to be remembered by you in your prayers,

Bashir Rahim