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The men and women who give charity and make a good loan to
Allah will have it increased for them and they will have a generous
reward. (Surat al-Hadid: 18)
While it is true that men and women are of different physical capa-

bilities, the fact that women are weaker physically is no reason for them
to command any less respect than men in society.
According to Islamic morality, what matters is people’s depth of
faith and their submission to Allah, not their gender. That they strictly
abide by Allah’s commandments and prohibitions, and try to live the
morality of the Qur’an in the best possible way. These are the qualities
that will be recognized in the Presence of Allah, Who reveals in the
Qur’an the qualities that a faithful man or woman must have:
The men and women of the believers are friends of one another.
They command what is right and forbid what is wrong, and perform
prayer and give the alms, and obey Allah and His Messenger. They
are the people on whom Allah will have mercy. Allah is Almighty,
All-Wise. (Surat at-Tawba: 71)
As Allah reveals in these verses, Muslim men and women have the
same duties. They are expected to worship Allah, to abide by all the

commandments and recommendations of the Qur’an, and to encourage
good and discourage evil. Allah promises everyone who fears and re-
spects him a “guiding light” that will enable him to tell right from
wrong: “You who believe! If you have fear of Allah, He will give you
discrimination and erase your bad actions from you and forgive you.
Allah’s favor is indeed” (Surat al-Anfal: 29). Whether we are men or
women has no bearing in this regard. In return for one’s sincerity, faith,
and devotion, Allah will provide guidance in every respect and give an
intellect capable of accurate decision making and right action. Therefore,
intellect develops according to one’s devotion to Allah and fear and re-
spect for him, not according to one’s gender.

Harun Yahya (Adnan Oktar)