WHY IS ISLAM THE LAST RELIGION?

 

The main question of this essay is kind of tricky, since it implies that Allah has sent more than one religion. In fact, Allah sent different revelations and laws to different nations but they all contained the same message as Islam. Islam is the name of the universal religion and law that has been completed and sent to all humanity. Allah Himself says: “Today I have perfected your faith for you, completed My favour upon you, and chosen Islam as your way” [Qur'an 5:3].

 

After creating the universe and humankind, Allah sent His messengers and prophets to every nation on earth, as He states in the Qur'an: “There is no community that has not had a warner” [Qur'an 35:24]. All messengers from Adam to Muhammad (peace be upon them) preached the same message, which was the oneness of Allah and submission to Him. However, due to social circumstances and the progress of human development in different areas such as their economy, the revelations and rules were local to those communities and restricted to the time at which the revelation was sent. That is to say, revelation and rules were regulated according to the needs of specific communities and times, while the basic principles like the oneness of Allah stayed the same. In addition, previous revelations were changed by humans in subsequent years, perhaps due to some people’s ill intentions or flawed transmission of revelation, as well as inadequate protection of the original message due to the circumstances of their time. Islam, Qur'an and its laws, on the other hand, were sent to all humanity, as Islam has the capacity to address the needs of people from all eras, with the same basic principles for them to follow.

 

Muslims also believe in previous revelations and prophets, because they were sent by Allah with the same message. In the Qur'an, Allah says: “Say (O, Muslims): “We believe in Allah, and in what has been revealed to us, and in what has been revealed to Ibrāhīm, Ishmael, Isaac, Ya‘qūb and his children, and in what has been given to Mūsā and ‘Īsā (Jesus) and what has been given to the prophets from their Lord: We make no difference between any of them, and to Him we submit ourselves” [Qur'an 2:136]. So Islam is the completed, perfected and universal version of Allah’s one religion. Allah’s final revelation was sent to the prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Allah says, “Indeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Qur’ān], and indeed, We will be its guardian” [Qur'an 15:9].

 

In conclusion, Islam is the final version of Allah’s Message, that He sent to previous generations as well. In contrast to previous revelations sent to previous communities, Islam is universal and protected.