The Difference between Faith and Islam

He who reviews Imam Ali’s (a.s) sayings in Nahj Al Balagha and other narrative books and tellings reported by the pure Imam, discovers a new kind of Conceptual difference and credibility between faith and Islam.

 

Faith is the heart approval built in the deep self and it is the highest rank of Islam. On the other hand, Islam is: saying the profession of faith (shahada) and showing the religion’s rules through actions.

 

Therefore, the conditions and traits will differ between the Muslim and the faithful because they somehow differ in characteristics.

 

The relation between them may be noted in terms of honesty, which means applicability of credibility because Islam is more general than faith and faith is less general than Islam. Hence, every faithful is a muslim but not every muslim is faithful.

 

This is clearly shown in God’s almighty saying:” The Bedouins say, `We believe.' Say, `You have not yet truly believed, (you should) rather say, "We obey and have submitted," for true faith has not yet entered your hearts”. Abu Abdullah (a.s) has told this explanation to Jamil bin Darraj about the difference between Islam and faith. Abu Basir reported from abi Jaafar (as) the end of the verse:” He who says that they believe is a liar, and he who says they didn’t obey is a liar”.[1]

  

Foudail bin Yasar reported that Abu Abdullah says:” Being a muslim doesn’t mean being faithful, but being faithful is a part of being a muslim. [2]

 

Foudail bin Yasar said that he heard Abi Abdullah saying:” Being faithful is a part of being a muslim, but being a muslim doesn’t mean being faithful. Faith is what’s hidden in the hearts, and Islam is presented by intermarriage, inheritance and bloodshed; Islam is associated with faith, but faith is not associated with Islam.[3]

 

The purpose of “being a part of it or not” may be the “concept” which means that the concept of Islam is a part of faith not the contrary, or it may be “honesty” which means that every faithful is a muslim not the contrary. Or it may be “admitting” which means he who admits faith admits Islam not the contrary, or it may be “rules” which means that the rules of Islam such as bloodshed, trustworthy and vulval extrusion are proofs of faith not the contrary because the rule originating from faith such as the reward, warners for the faithful and liberation of him are not for Islam… all of these meanings show the differences between them.

  

The Result: according to the mentioned before, the differences between Islam and faith are as follows:

  

Islam can be reached before faith so that faith cannot be reached before Islam. Yes, this means that Islam may be reached without reaching faith.

 

Islam can be simply reached through confessing by words, even if it is not accompanied with behaviors. But (full) faith is reached by confessing through words, believing through the heart and behaving by organs.

 

Some actions are valid in terms of dropping the assignment, not the reward for the hereafter on Islam, and others are based on faith.

 

 There are two meaning for Islam: general and specific. The general meaning is believing in Islam as mentioned before, and the specific meaning is believing in what Imamate believes in, which is the group of rules that the prophet has called for including the Imamate.

  

[1] Al Sheikh Al Kilini, part 2, page 25

[2] Same source page 25

[3] Same source page 25