Studying Islam

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[quote]Assalamu Alaykum

My opinion is that there is no direct relation between intelligence and faith in God.

For example, you can find videos all over the Internet documenting scientists taking shahada (in other words, embracing Islam), alhamdulillah.

Also, I see two problems with the survey you quoted.

One: it was taken only in the west. There are a lot of intelligent people living in other parts of the world. I think that to get fair results, the survey should be concluded worldwide.

Two: it was taken in these modern times only. To get fair results, intelligent people (great contributors [for good] to history of mankind) of the past should be also considered,  their beliefs researched. I think a lot of people today would be surprised of how faith in God and progress in science could &quot;co-exist&quot;, and in fact strengthen each other in one person. It is only the idea of our times, especially in the west, that religion equals to obscurantism, and moreover, modernity can be achieved only through atheism.

Not to mention the credibility of such a survey. It is well known that in the west a scientist can loose his/her position if he/she reveals his/her faith in God. Such a scientist will often be ridiculed and marginized. Just look at the harsh attacks against the theory of Intelligent Design. With this in mind, it is no surprise that if a scientist wants to carry on with his/her research, wants to contribute for the good of mankind, or for selfish reasons wants to benefit from his/her work, he/she will hide his/her faith in God Almighty (I am not saying that I agree to this practice, but it happens more than one would think).

My opinion is that strong faith in God has nothing to do with intelligence. I would say that probably an intelligent person will believe in God for a different reason than a simpler person, that might be true. Or, talking about new converts, probably a different reason will attract intelligent people to the deen. Again, you can find videos of new Muslims all over the Internet, and if you spend some time watching them, you will find so many different stories and reasons of why someone has faith in God Almighty.

So faith in God is more of a question of upbringing, personal interest, and of course primarily the guidance from Allah (swt). For Allah (swt) says in the noble Qur'an: &quot;Verily! You guide not whom you like, but Allah guides whom He wills. And He knows best those who are the guided&quot;. (Surat 28 Al-Qasas, ayat 56)

And Allah (swt) knows best.[/quote]

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