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Islam
Origins of the Faith
What is Islam?
• Youngest of the world’s major religions
• More than 1 billion adherents
• Dominant religion of many developing countries in
Middle East, Africa and Asia
• One God-Allah
• Final revelation was made to prophet Muhammad in
7th century CE
• Person just has one life to live and this will determine
how he/she will spend his/her eternal existence
• During this one life, believers must submit to the will of
Allah
• “Muslims” those who submit to God
Pre-Islamic Arabic Religion
• Islam began among Arabian desert people in 7th
century CE; these people had already developed
religious forms of their own and had been exposed to
other religions for centuries
• Byzantine Christianity and Judaism were familiar;
several of these desert tribes were Jewish.
• Origins of these tribes are unclear, however, many
historians believe they were descendants of Jews
forced out of Judea by the Romans; when Muhammad
entered Medina many of the residents were Jewish.
• Zoroastrianism: not as strong as Judaism and
Christianity, it is possible Muhammad had some
disciples who were Zoroastrian Persians.
Pre-Islamic Arabic Religion
• Native religion of the Arab people; very little is
known; worshiped a variety of Gods, one
supreme High God whom they called “Allah.”
• Deities that received the most attention and
worship were the local and tribal gods; images of
wood carving and blood sacrifices.
• Lesser divine creatures; angels and fairies who
were kind and helpful and demonic creatures
who sought to harm people
• Animism: Gods and spirits found in stones, trees,
wells and animals
• Mecca was holy place; large black stone mystery;
Ka’ba
Life of Muhammed
• Born in 570 CE into the group/clan that controlled the
Ka’ba in Mecca
• Father died before he was born and his mother died
when he was six; reared by his uncle abu-Talib, chief of
the Quraish tribe.
• Illiterate
• Merchant in a trading caravan that followed along the
Arabian peninsula where he met many Christians and
Jews. They had several things in common that
influence Muhammad; belief in one God, scripture
believed to be the word of God, world would one day
end and the righteous would be rewarded.
Life of Muhammad
• Khadija: wife; wealthy widow 40 years old
(Muhammad was 25)
• Married 25 years until she died
• Two sons (died in infancy)
• Four daughters (only one daughter survived her father)
• After his marriage, he would go into the hills
surrounding Mecca and sit and ponder the
fate of his people; Concerns of idolatry and
judgment day
Muhammad's Revelation
• Visit from Gabriel (angel in both Hebrew and Christian Bibles)
during his meditation
• Tradition says during the month of Ramadan, in a cave on Mount
Gira, Gabriel brought the following command from God
“Recite: In the Name of thy Lord who created, created Man of a
blood-clot. Recite: And thy Lord is the Most Generous, Who
taught by the Pen, taught Man what he knew not.”
• At frequent intervals during the rest of his life, Muhammad
received revelations from God in this fashion. Islamic tradition
teaches that inspiration came like a painful sounding of a bell
and Muhammad’s forehead became covered with sweat.
• Visions came to him in his sleep; memorized these divine
messages and taught them to his companions; eventually they
were committed to writing, to become the Scripture of Islam,
the Qur’an.
The Life of Muhammad
• After a series of revelations, Muhammad became
convinced there was only one God, whom his
people called “Allah” and whom other religions
called by other names.
• He was convinced he was the last of a series of
prophets who included Abraham, Moses and
Jesus; these had an incomplete revelation of
Allah-he had the complete and final revelation.
• Thus, Islam at its very inception did not deny the
validity of other religions but looked at itself as a
completion of what others had begun.
Life of Muhammad
• Muhammad never considered himself anything more
than a prophet; he was not divine. His mission was
much like the classical Hebrew prophet-to present the.
word of God to his people.
• As the prophet of Allah, Muhammad began to preach
his new understanding of religion to the citizens of
Mecca
• Received little encouragement and open hostility; idol
making was livelihood of many Meccans who
depended on pilgrims coming to Mecca to worship
idols at the Ka’ba.
Life of Muhammad
• First convert was his wife; debates over his first male
convert either Ali, a cousin, or Zayd, a slave boy who had
been freed by Muhammad; third convert was a friend abuBakr.
• Other converts began to join the Muslim movement;
mostly poor and young-opposition grew from older and
wealthier classes, therefore, Muhammad had to urge some
of his followers to leave the country; protection of his
uncle’s clan.
• In about 615CE, about 15 Muslim families took refuge in
Christian kingdom of Abysinnia (Ethiopia today); the
Prophet stayed and persecution continued; even a boycott
of Muhammad proved ineffective.
Life of Muhammad
• In 619 CE, uncle and wife died; does not have
protection of clan
• In 620CE, six men journeyed from Yathrib (city of clan
warfare and strife; later known as Medina) to Mecca to
confer with Muhammad; impressed with his honesty,
sense of justice and power of his personality.
• They needed an impartial judge to settle its disputes
and they believed Muhammad could be such judge.
The following year, 12 delegates (10 of 12 were Jewish
and believed he could be the Messiah) from Yathrib to
meet the Prophet; invitation to come rule the city.
Life of Muhammad
• It was 622 CE before Muhammad could leave Mecca (group of
assassins had pledged to kill him and he had to avoid them with
great care)
• Arrived in Yathrib; journey from Mecca to Yathrib is called Hijrah
(migration) and it is the time for which Muslims have since dated
their calendars (AH anno hegirae)
• Yahtrib: clan among clans
• Political authority to Muhammad, but freedom of religious practice;
three of the tribes were Jewish and there was a Christian
community.
• Up until this point, Muhammad had only dealt with the polytheists
in Mecca; but in Yathrib he met with a resistance form monotheistic
Jews.
• At first, Muhammad commanded his followers prayer toward
Jerusalem, but with the passing of time disciples pray toward
Mecca (Jerusalem remains third holiest city in Islam)
Life of Muhammad
• 623 CE, Muhammad marries Aishah, daughter of his friend
abu-Bakr. Also year of first conflict between the Medinans,
under leadership of Muhammad, and the Meccans.
• Medinans would raid Meccan caravans
• Battle of Badr: Muslims attacked and defeated Meccans; took
many prisoners and booty because the Prophet was present
and praying during battle; victory was great stimulus for the
Muslims and attracted many others to Islam
• Conflict between Jews; Jews rejected notion of Messiah and
often ridiculed him publicly. As a result, Jews were forced into
conversion or exile. According to Muslim tradition, final break
occurred when a Jewish matron invited the Prophet and his
friends to dinner and fed him poison lamb.
Life of Muhammad
• 627 CE, 10,000 Meccans attacked Medina, but withdrew after failing
to take the city ; considered a great victory and a major turning point
history of Muslim community
• 629CE, Muslims had grown so strong in numbers, they entered
Mecca on pilgrimage and no one stopped them
• 630 CE, Conquered Mecca; went to the Ka’ba and destroyed the idols
and images; became leader of the Arabic people with this act
• During the next few years, Islam grew stronger, Qur’an reciters were
sent to convert peoples throughout the Arabian desert. The Prophet
married new wives.
• 632 CE Led Muslims to another pilgrimage to Mecca; 62 years old and
in poor health. Upon his return, he delivered a farewell message to
Muslims and died in the arms of his wife Aishah.
• Because he had made no arrangements for a successor, confusion
regarding leadership; finally agreed that abu-Bakr should be
successor or caliph.