There are various kinds of Muslims motivated by faith as they strive for eternal life in Jannah. I will shed light on two current groups.

One is traditional, they focus on rituals and they hope that their fulfillment of their daily prayers and fasting along with the other rituals with earn them Jannah for their eternal life. However, this kind of Muslims can’t produce any changes in society, as history shows.

The other group have a different focus. They are mission oriented. The mission they’re talking about has two dimensions. One has to do with striving to be the best one can be. The Qur’an calls it تزكيه Tazkiya.

The other dimension is for that person who is improving every day to start influencing his/her environment, by being the change for which they want to be. The name the Qur’an gives to this dimension is اصلاح, Islah, meaning fixing or improving the world, known in Judaism as “Tikkun Olam”.

These Muslims who are mission oriented are our hope to produce positive change in themselves and their world.

~ Safi Kaskas