Aqaaid

Waswasas of Kufr

Q: I suffer from a lot of waswas about kufr. So sometimes I utter the Shahada to calm my mind. Does this affect my Nikah? If I hadn't actually comitted kufr but uttered the Shahada out of fear I had comitted kufr, would I consequently have to renew my Nikah as well? Sorry if you find the question strange, but these kind of things are in my head.

Birthdays

Q: What is the ruling regarding birthdays? Our muslims greet one another on this day and feel insulted if one does not greet them. Another issue is regarding birthday cakes, gifts and parties. Please advise.

Changing One's Madh-hab To Fit In With The Local Community

Q: A friend of mine who was born in Pakistan had migrated to Indonesia. He has no intention of going back to Pakistan. Now, he has a family in Indonesia. He is asking is it right that he changed his mazhab because he don't want to be the only one different in his own house and the community. His wife is also a local there and his children are sent to the local madresa.

Keeping Good Opinions About Ulama

Q: I'm a youth and there's just something that's been bugging me for a while: Sometimes when you go out then you hear people saying that nowadays a lot of the Ulama only want to know you if you are wealthy or if you pious i.e. the ordinary person is overlooked ( I know this is not true for every Moulana and there are many Ulama who are not like this). This has happened to quite a few people who I know where a well known Aalim will greet selective people. This kind of attitude puts a young person in a position where they feel a bit despondent. I was just wondering if you could advice me on this.

Repentance after Apostasy

Q: If a believer commits an act of kufr which renders him a murtad thereafter he repents, will that repentance be accepted or not? E.g. Someone spoke bad of Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) so he became a murtad thereafter he repented, will that particular sin of kufr be forgiven or not?