Page 56 - Romanticism: A Weapon of Satan

ROMANTICISM: A WEAPON OF SATAN

In superstitious
religions, it is
common for people
to immolate
54 themselves, injuring
their bodies in the
name of faith. This
is a result of a
romantic
understanding of
religion.

uncomfortable place, and other forms
of "self immolation," are supposed to
make one holy. However, in the
Qu'ran, there is absolutely no such
idea as that a person should cause
himself pain. This verse from the
Qu'ran expresses this warped romantic understanding succinctly:
"God does not wrong people in any way; rather it is people who
wrong themselves." (Qur'an, 10:44)
In short, according to the romantic approach, religion is
something that encourages one's tendencies to idolize individuals, to
be unreflective, nostalgic, self-effacing and self-destructive. It is a
counterfeit system, comprised of beliefs and practices totally alien to
true religion.
Instead of learning what God wants from them, and living their
lives accordingly, people prefer to continue the approach to religion,
the behaviour and stereotypical ways of thinking inherited from their
ancestors. They do not lead their lives according to a rational
assessment of the conditions surrounding them, but hold on to the
same old traditional patterns of thought and behaviour. This is a
perversity against which God warns strongly in many verses of the
Qu'ran. Here are a few examples:

When they are told, "Come to what God has sent down and to the