Allah punishing Mohamed Salah
‘Instead of claiming that Allah would punish Salah for not fasting, why not use our God-given intellect and change the rules of the game so that no more Ramos can triumph over Salah.’
ON THE eve of the Champions League final between defending champions Real Madrid and Liverpool FC, my son, Duvaughn, a Real Madrid fan, told me that some Muslims were claiming that Salah would be punished for stating that he would not be on a fast during the football match scheduled to be held in Kiev, Ukraine, although it was during the period of Ramadan.
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar during which Muslims do not eat or drink during the daytime but can engage in food consumption from sunset until sunrise. This fast from dawn to sunset celebrates revelation of the Quran to Mohammad.
Lo and behold, Salah’s team lost the match by a two-goal margin, and worse, Salah was injured after 20 minutes by Sergio Ramos, captain of Real Madrid, who fouled him. Apparently, his shoulder was dislocated. Ramos dragged down Salah by holding his arm. It was a cynical foul. Perhaps some might conclude that Allah was punishing Salah for not keeping the fast.
THE ESSENCE OF GOD
It is sad that so many religious people perceive the essence of God as a God who delights in punishing his people. It is as if God is waiting on human beings to make a mistake and has a big book to record every sin. However, it is better to perceive God as good and gracious towards us. God wants us to lie in green pastures and by still waters. God protects us from the evil one. He is quick to forgive us of our sins. He prepares a table for us in front of our enemies. God’s plans for us are always better than we could imagine.
It is also important to remember that we suffer the consequences of bad decisions and wrong actions. Stop blaming God.
This position assumes that not fasting is a greater sin than if Salah lied or stole or cursed on the day. Even if Salah was wrong not to fast, why would Allah not forgive him and honour him for the many times he publicly paid homage to Allah on the football field? In addition, why didn’t God punish Ramos for making these cynical fouls?
FOOTBALL RULES NEED CHANGING
Salah suffered not because Allah was punishing him but because the rules of football need changing. Ramos’ foul should result in a direct spot kick about 25 yards out with the offending player having to stand where the offence happened. In other words, any foul like that should be a scoring opportunity. This would cut down on the number of fouls and the game would flow freely and be more exciting. Furthermore, any player who commits two fouls should get a yellow card!
When Luis Suarez of Uruguay stood on the goal line and used his hands deliberately to stop a goal in a World Cup match against Ghana, all that resulted was a red card and a penalty. A blatant offence like that should be a penalty kick with no goalkeeper. And Ghana would have made history as the first African team to make the semifinal of the World Cup.
Instead of claiming that Allah would punish Salah for not fasting, why not use our Godgiven intellect and change the rules of the game so that no more Ramos can triumph over Salah.