TECHNOLOGICAL innovations are one of the basic and inescapable facts of life and no man can live without modern technology. Islam is never against the use of modern technological devices, but it should be used rationally and for the general good of man. In this article, I will talk about how Islam views the use of the internet, the mobile phone and the television (satellite channels in particular) as very effective aspects of technology. The internet: The internet has really turned the whole world into a small village. You can get any piece of information in a fraction of a second. It really saves the researcher's time and effort. You can use the internet to send emails to people around the world to give them information about Islam or to correct some of the widespread distorted information about Islam or Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). You can also use it to upgrade your information about the world around you. In other words, the internet is replete with sites that help man to increase his general knowledge in general and knowledge of Islam in particular. A good example of such sites is www.quranmiracles.com which is a wonderful site that presents information about the scientific miracles in the Holy Qur'an in both Arabic and English. The mobile phone: It should be used as a fast and easy mean of communication that facilitates man's life and not as a means of fun and passing the time, e.g. sending silly and useless messages or talking about trivial things for hours. It can be used to remind fellow Muslims of voluntary fasting on certain recommended days or to do a certain good deed or to donate blood to someone who needs it…etc The television: Nowadays man is bombarded by hundreds pf satellite channels that present shows and programs that are enough to make man spend the 24 hours of the day doing nothing except for watching TV. A Muslim should select the programs that increase his knowledge such as scientific and cultural programs or religious programs available on religious channels such as Iqraa, Ar-Risalah, Al Huda TV, An-Nas …etc. Also Muslim parents should keep an eye on their children when watching TV in order to make them avoid viewing programs or movies that might have a negative effect on their psychological make-up at this young age. At the end, I would like to point out that Islam supports technological devices and developments as long as they are used for the general good of the Muslim community. We also have to remember that time is a precious gift from Allah and the Muslim has to make the best use of it. __
