Lets Watch Our Words..

Dear Brothers & Sisters in Islam,

Are you familiar with the phrases, "Cross my fingers", "I keep my fingers crossed", or "Cross my heart n hope to die" and the likes.. i believe most of us have at least heard these phrases once or twice.. these words are popular and frequently used in movies, dramas and songs to symbolize good luck or for nullifying promises.. in fact, unfortunately, some of us have embedded these words in their daily vocabulary without realizing the meaning behind it.. these words may sound cool to you but lets be reminded brothers and sisters, to be very careful of what we utter in our conversation as it may hurt our aqidah and faith in the end..

The reason why im posting this issue is because im saddened by the fact that these phrases are widely used without guilt by some of my Muslim friends, especially in their FB statuses.. there were few instances whereby i was taken aback after reading their statuses as these phrases were "nicely" arranged in their sentences; staying oblivious of its meaning.. Thus, i figured perhaps i can use this medium to unveil the truth behind these phrases.. hence, i went to visit Mr Google and found an interesting article to support my doubts.. these are pretty much the gist of the message, however, the full content can be found here..

Crossed fingers have a Christian usage as well. Yet even here there is a divergence of opinion as to its exact meaning or origin.

While most agree that it was a “secret sign” employed by Christians when Christianity was illegal there is a divergence of opinion as to what it evolved from. Some today suggest it is a version of a cross (two fingers “crossed over” each other, thus symbolizing a cross). Yet I have trouble with that suggestion.

For the earliest Christians, when this symbol’s usage first developed, the cross was not as common as a symbol as the fish for Christianity. Since the cross was a depiction of a purposely painful and gruesome method of public execution its usage was less common in the first century and came into use as early as the second century.

The fish, however, has a much earlier usage by Christians. ICHTHUS is a Greek word, which means fish. Christians used the word as an acrostic, meaning “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.” There are early examples of a fish scribbled in places associated with Christians-used as a sign to identify one Christian to another. Many suggest that crossed fingers were a simple fish sign one Christian would use to identify them to another.

It amazes me that the simple symbol of crossed fingers can be used in so many different ways-as a symbol for good luck or giving the user the ability to lie. Yet for us the most important usage would be a symbol of the Christian faith. It either is the symbol for the cross (possible) or a symbol of a fish (more probable, in my opinion). As a symbol for the fish it’s a profession of faith-saying that the user believes that “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, (is the) Savior.”

So Brothers & Sisters, lets be reminded again to be careful of our words.. whether the "crossed fingers" symbolizes cross, or fish, this phrase and act are the symbol or identity to portray faith in Christianity.. dont get too carried away to copy the Westerners lifestyles as these are probably their propaganda to shove us astray from the right path.. so brothers and sisters, dont hurt our aqidah by uttering these words or copying this act.. Let's say NO to the phrases of "Cross my fingers", "I keep my fingers crossed", or "Cross my heart n hope to die" and the likes..

Let's say "Allahu Akbar", "Alhamdulillah", "Subhanallah", "Masya Allah" instead.. and make these words as parts and parcels of our lives..