At 85 years old, James made a decision that many spend a lifetime postponing — he acknowledged the truth his heart had always held: that this universe did not arise by chance, that there is an Orchestrator behind all of creation, and that every soul will one day return to the One who gave it life. His story, shared on The Deen Show with Sheikh Yousuf Estes, is not simply a personal testimony. It is a mirror held up to something deeply embedded in human nature — the fitrah, the innate recognition that there is One God, One Creator, One true object of worship. In Islam, this recognition is not merely a theological proposition; it is the very cornerstone of faith, known as Tawheed — the absolute, undivided, uncompromising Oneness of Allah, the One True God, upon which all of Islamic spirituality and purpose rests.
Tawheed: The Three Dimensions of Knowing Allah
Islamic scholarship has distilled Tawheed into three interrelated dimensions, each illuminating a different facet of who Allah is and how we relate to Him. Understanding these categories is not an academic exercise — it is a practical roadmap for living a life of authentic faith, genuine guidance, and spiritual clarity in a world of confusion and distraction.
- Tawheed al-Ruboobiyyah (Oneness of Lordship): Affirming that Allah alone is the Creator, Sustainer, and Controller of the entire universe — the One who gives life and causes death, who orchestrates every sunrise and sustains every breath you take. Even the ancient polytheists, when pressed, conceded this truth.
- Tawheed al-Uloohiyyah (Oneness of Worship): Directing every act of devotion — prayer, supplication, love, fear, and reliance — exclusively to Allah alone. No prophet, saint, or intermediary shares in this right. This is the Tawheed for which the messengers were sent, the Books revealed, and over which humanity’s greatest disputes have been waged throughout history.
- Tawheed al-Asma’ wa’l-Sifaat (Oneness of Names and Attributes): Affirming Allah’s perfect names and sublime attributes exactly as He has described Himself — without distortion, denial, or comparison to His creation — accepting in full that “there is nothing like Him.”
“Say: He is Allah, the One. Allah, the Self-Sufficient Master. He begets not, nor was He begotten. And there is none co-equal or comparable unto Him.”
— Surah Al-Ikhlaas (112:1–4)
Allah — The Name Moses, Jesus, and Abraham All Spoke
One of the most illuminating points this episode raises is the linguistic reality of the name Allah. In Arabic — the language of the Quran — He is Allah. In Aramaic, the very language that Jesus (peace be upon him) spoke, the word is Alaha. In Hebrew, the sacred tongue of Moses (peace be upon him), it is Eloah. The noble prophets of history — Ibrahim, Musa, Isa, and Muhammad, peace be upon them all — never referred to the vague English construct of “God.” They all called humanity to the same singular, undivided, incomparable One. Allah is Al-Rahman, the Most Merciful. Al-Rahim, the Most Gracious. Al-Malik, the King. Al-Quddus, the Holy. Al-Salam, the Source of Peace. Al-Khaliq, the Creator of all things. Al-Hakeem, the Most Wise. Al-Wadud, the Most Loving. Al-Hayy, the Ever-Living. He is the only one who is truly independent — all of creation depends utterly upon Him, yet He depends on nothing. His names are not titles; they are invitations into a relationship with the only being worthy of total trust, complete surrender, and sincere love.
“And your God is One God — there is none who has the right to be worshipped but He, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.”
— Surah Al-Baqarah (2:163)
Every soul, at some point in its journey through this world, confronts the same questions James faced at 85: Why am I here? Who made me? To whom must I return? Islam answers with breathtaking simplicity and clarity — not through mythology or esoteric ritual, but through the pure, rational affirmation that Allah alone is God, that this life is a trust and a test, and that accountability before the Creator is a reality no amount of distraction can permanently silence. The pleasures of this world are always spoken of in the past tense — “I was there, I did that, it was wonderful” — while the rewards of the Hereafter only grow and multiply without end. The message that every prophet from Adam to Muhammad ﷺ carried was the same: submit to the One God, strive to be the best human being you can be, and live on His terms — not your own. Allah, Al-Ghafoor, the Most Forgiving, promises to forgive all sins to the one who sincerely turns to Him. The guidance is available, the door is open, and the truth — when it arrives — feels neither foreign nor complicated. It feels like coming home.
