Download The Beginnings of Islam

Coach Parrish
OMS
Chapter 10, Section 2
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Islam teaches that in about 610 AD, the prophet
Muhammad went into a cave to pray.
An angel told Muhammad that people were
worshipping idols and wanted him to spread a
message.
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A group of people who lived in the Arabian
Peninsula were called the Bedouins.
Bedouins were nomads who traveled from one
oasis to the next for water.
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Muhammad was born and grew up in the
trading center of Mecca.
Muhammad enjoyed walking around the
mountains outside Mecca. He did so to think
and pray.
When Muhammad was 40, he first heard God
speak to him in the cave. Muslim – person
who accepts the teachings of Muhammad.
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In 622, Muhammad and his followers were
invited to Yathrib, a city north of Mecca.
The movement became known as the hirja. The
year of the hirja (622 AD) became year 1 in the
Muslim calendar.
After the move, Yathrib became known as
Medina.
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A muezzin calls Muslims to worship in Mecca.
Every day, five times a day, Muslims are called
to worship this way. Muslims will stop what
they are doing to pray five times a day facing
Mecca.
Some Muslims gather in a mosque – house of
worship.
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The Five Pillars of Islam are the basic beliefs of
Muslims.
The fifth pillar, the hajj, is required only of
those Muslims who are able to travel to Mecca.
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Quran – holy book of Islam. It contains the
message that God gave to Muhammad.
Muslims believe that the original language of
the Quran, Arabic, is best. Therefore, some
Muslims travel to Mecca to learn.
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Before Islam, most people in the Arabian
Peninsula felt that women were not equal to
men.
The Quran taught that men and women were
equal. Muslim women were not forced to
marry and had the right to divorce.
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A schism in the Muslim faith occurred after the
assassination of Uthman (Muslim leader).
Muslims disagreed over who should be their
next leader. The two groups split into Shiites
and Sunnis.
Shiites argued that the next leader should be a
male direct descendant of Muhammad
Sunnis argued that any Muslim man could
lead. Today about 85% of Muslims are Sunni.