Download Islam

 Islam: an Arabic word that means “peace through
submission to God”
 Muslim: a person who follows the teachings of Islam.
It means “anyone or anything that submits to the will
of God.” All creation is Muslim.
 Shahadah: “There is no god but God and Muhammad
is the Messenger of God”.
 Allah: Arabic name for God. It is preferred over other
names because it has no gender affiliation and does
not have plurality
Christianity
Islam
Adherents
2 billion (32%)
1.3 billion (18%)
Leading Person
Jesus
Muhammad
Holy Book
Bible
Qur’an
Clergy
Bishops, Priests
Sheikh or Imam
House of Worship
Church
Mosque
Theology
Monotheistic-Trinitarian
Monotheistic
Soteriology
Passion of Christ;
Baptism
Following the Five Pillars
Holidays
Easter
Christmas
Pentecost
Muharram
Eid al-Fitr
Mawid al-Nabi
Fasting Time
Lent (Advent)
Ramadan
 Islam is the third in succession of the three
monotheistic and Abrahamic faiths
 Historically: Judaism, Christianity, Islam
 All three trace their roots to Abraham
 Islam claims to contain the next revelation after Christ
 Islam is the second largest religion in world
 Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world
Founder
of
Islam
 Muhammad Ibn (son of) Adballah
 Abū al-Qāsim Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-
Muṭṭalib ibn Hāshim
 Born 570/571 AD in Mecca, (Saudi) Arabia
 13 wives
 One from 595-619; 12 after she died
 Trade merchant; Warrior
 Descendant of Abraham
Abraham
Ismail
Adnan
Quraiysh
Qussaiy
Abdmanaf
Abdshams
Hashem
Adbelmuttalib
(Amneh+) Abdallah Abutalib Hamzeh Alabbas
Muhammad
Ummayah Dynasty
(661-750)
Abulahab Alhareth
Ali
Abbbassides Dynasty
(750-1258)
 Islamic Tradition
 Angel Gabriel appears to Muhammad in 610 AD
 Muhammad was either deeply distressed (Sunni) or not
frightened (Shi’a) at the appearance of Gabriel
 Over several years, wrote the revelation (Qur’an)
 Founded Islam in 622 in Mecca
 Consolidated warring tribes
 Nicknames: Almustapha (the chosen), Alamin (the
faithful)
 Titles: The prophet, the messenger (Alrasul)
 Died 632 AD in Medina, (Saudi) Arabia
Muhammad’s
Burial
Site
History
of
Islam
 Begins in Arabia
 Arabs were
 Semitic-speaking people
 Nomadic
 Organized into federated tribes
 Independent but cooperative
 Led by a sheikh
 Chosen from a council of elders
 Lived in the arid, harsh climate of the Arabian Peninsula
 The Arabian Peninsula was an important center for
trade.
 Trade via caravans across the desert
 Camels important
 Empires grew
 Mecca
 Key trading center
 Became rich
 As the merchants became rich from the Caravan traffic
the life of the poor people of the area suffered
 Theologically, most early Arabs were polytheistic
 They recognized a chief, or supreme god who they
called Allah which is Arabic for “God.”
 Allah was symbolized by a sacred stone
 Each tribe had their own stone
 One central stone called the Black stone which was
placed in the shrine called the Ka’bah.
 This shrine was located in the city of Makkah (Mecca)
in what is now Saudi Arabia
 610 First revelation in the Harraa cave (27 Ramadan).
 622 “Hijra”or Escape.
 Muhammad and followers escape prosecution and go to
Almadinah (Yathrib).
 Year 1 in the Islamic calendar
 ‘Missionaries’ sent all over Arabia building peaceful
coalition
 629 Muhammad conquers Mecca
 Destroys idols in Alqaaba.
 Single-handedly, brings peace to war-torn Arabia
 Either peaceful or out of revenge
 Abu-Bakr - 632-634
 The first elected official. Wise leader, crisis manager
 Omar Ibn Elkhattab - 634-644
 A first-rate statesman. Honest, modest and just.
 Conquered the Levant, Egypt, Iraq, Persia
 Damascus (635)
 Jerusalem (638)
 A modern state: Treasury, communication, defense.
Engraved currency.
The Levant
Mesopotamia
The fertile Crescent
EGYPT
•Medinah
•Mecca
Dynasties
of the
South
 Othman bin Affan - 644-656
 Collected and compiled the Quran
 Emergence of power struggle
 Ali Bin Abitalib - 656-661
 Power struggle escalated to armed conflict
 Emergence of political parties
 End of democracy.
 Ummayah Dynasty in Damascus, Muawyia (661-680)
 The Shahadah
 Believing and professing the unity of God and the
messengership of Muhammad
 “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the
Messenger of God.”
 The Qur’an requires the faithful to tell others of Islam
 However, it rules out the use of coercion in spreading
the message
 The Qur’an insists on respect for all prophets and all
revealed scriptures.
 Five times a day
 Facing Mecca
 Recitation of a series of prayers and passages from the
Qur’an
 Unites community around the world
 Prayers end as one turns to the two guardian angels on
one’s shoulders to say the traditional Muslim
greeting—“Assalamu Alaykum” (“Peace be on you”)
 Zakat
 2.5% to needy
 Purpose: decrease inequality & prevent personal greed
 Ramadan required
 Frequent fasts recommended
 Fasting
 Liberates a person’s body from the heaviness of food
 Teaches the soul not to allow anything into the mind
and heart that would distract one from God.
 Controls the body’s desires and builds the mastery
needed to control the lower emotions, such as anger and
jealousy.
 Pilgrimage to Mecca
 At least once in life
 Walk around Ka’bah seven times
 Draws all Muslims together in one community
 According to Islamic tradition,
 Abraham and Ishmael together built the Ka’bah.
 The site of Adam’s original place of worship
 Part of the cubic stone building is a venerated black
meteorite
 Is now the holiest sanctuary in Islam
 Visit/Pilgrimage required once in a lifetime (one of the
Five Pillars)
 God told Abraham that the Ka’bah should be a place of
pilgrimage.
 Remained a holy place by the Arabian tribes when they
turned to polytheism
 Centuries later, Muhammad was born
 Father died before he was born
 Grandfather raised Muhammad
 He became a shepherd, then a tradesmen
 “Sixth Pillar”
 Means “striving”
 Safeguarding one’s life, faith, honor, livelihood, and
the integrity of the Muslim community
 Absolute monotheism
 No distinctions or divisions or persons in God
 Opposes Christianity and Hinduism
 Supports modern Judaism
 The original faith
 “Muslims think that the Oneness of God [monotheism]
is the primordial religion taught by all prophets of all
faiths.” (Fisher, 373)
 No worship or prayers to anything other than Allah
 Major sin: shirk (blasphemy)
 The sin of practicing idolatry or polytheism
 The sin of calling a human or material thing “God”
 Associating anything else with divinity except the one God
 The unforgiveable sin in Islam
 Say: “Oh People of the book! / Come to common terms as
between us and you: / That we worship none but Allah; /
That we associate no partners with Him; / That we erect not
from among ourselves / Lords and patrons other than Allah.”
(Qur’an)
 Sufism: There is nothing but God.
 Monism—one absolute reality.
 “The underlying essence of life is eternal unity rather
than the apparent separateness of things in the physical
world.” (Fisher, 373)
 One reality, but some is unseen—not known to the
senses
 Angels – submissive servants of God
 Satan – non-submissive being
 jinn—immaterial beings of fire, whose nature is between that
of humans and angels.
 Satan was originally one of these
 Unity in Purpose
 All humans are essentially good since humanity springs
from the One Good (God)
 Struggle for goodness (jihad)
 Major sin: kufr
 ungratefulness to God, unbelief, atheism
 Problem with man is that he is forgetful; hence, struggle
to overcome forgetfulness (Brodd, 252)
 Abu Hashim Madani, an Indian Sufi sage, is said to have
taught: “There is only one thing to be gained in life, and that
is to remember God with each breath; and there is only one
loss in life, and that is the breath drawn without the
remembrance of God.” (In Fisher, 373)
 Goal: Union with Divine
 Unity in Purpose realized
 “In the life of the individual, every thought and action
should spring from a heart and mind intimately
integrated with the divine.” (Fisher, 373)
 “To believe is to surrender totally to God” (Fisher, 375)
 None believes in Our revelations save those who, when
reminded of them, prostrate themselves in adoration and give
glory to their Lord in all humility; who forsake their beds to
pray to their Lord in fear and hope; who give in charity of that
which We have bestowed on them. No mortal knows what
bliss is in store for these as a reward for their labors. (Qur’an)
 Community: Umma (Brodd, 252)
 Union among all Muslims & relationships (Struggling
together)
 “All humans, for that matter, are a global family; there is no
one “chosen people,” for all are invited into a direct
relationship with God.” (Fisher, 373)
 Unified Ritual: Five Pillars
 All Muslims must follow the Five Pillars to receive
greater “rewards” or “enjoyments” in Paradise
 Right shoulder angel records a Muslim’s attempts to
keep the Five Pillars
 Also, all good the Muslim does
 Left shoulder angel records a Muslim’s failings at
keeping the Five Pillars
 Also, all evil the Muslim does
 A personal diary or book is presented at the end of life
which contains the record of the two angels
 Heaven & Hell clearly distinguished
 Resurrection of body and soul followed by eternal paradise or
hell
 Hell graphically described so that goodness is done and sin
(shirk & kufr) is avoided
 Hell is the grievous destiny of unrepentant non-believers—
those who have rejected faith in and obedience to Allah and
His Messenger, who are unjust and who do not forbid evil.
Hell also awaits the hypocrites who even after making a
covenant with Allah have turned away from their promise to
give in charity and to pray regularly: (Fisher, 377)
 It is a flaming Fire. It drags them down by their scalps; and it shall
call him who turned his back and amassed riches and covetously
hoarded them
 By contrast, sinners and non-believers will experience
the torments of hell, fire fueled by humans, boiling
water, pus, chains, searing winds, food that chokes, and
so forth. It is they who condemn themselves; their very
bodies turn against them “on the Day when their
tongues, their hands, and their feet will bear witness
against them as to their actions” (Sura 24:24). The great
medieval mystic al-Ghazali speaks of spiritual torments
of the soul as well: the agony of being separated from
worldly desires, burning shame at seeing one’s life
projected, and terrible regret at being barred from the
vision of God. (Fisher, 377)
 Heaven is also graphically described to encourage
remembering and goodness
 For the just and merciful, the state after death is a
Garden of Bliss. Those who say, “Our Lord is God . . .
shall have all that your souls shall desire. . . . A
hospitable gift from One Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful!”
(Sura 41:30–32).
 The desire of the purified souls will be for closeness to
God, and their spirits will live in different levels of this
closeness. For them, there will be castles, couches,
fruits, sweetmeats, honey, houris (beautiful virgin
women), and immortal youths serving from goblets and
golden platters. Such delights promised by the Qur’an
are interpreted metaphorically to mean that human
nature will be transformed in the next life to such an
extent that the disturbing factors of this physical
existence will no longer have any effect. (Fisher, 377)
 No purgatory; just long repose in the grave
 Last Judgment clearly taught
 Belief in only One God.
 He is defined as Eternal, Absolute, Infinite,
Compassionate and Merciful, the sole Creator and
Provider.
 Engage only in Righteous Actions
 in all areas: spiritual, intellectual and physical activity.
 All God’s creation is “Muslim”.
 Only humans are given CHOICE to submit (be Muslim)
or reject submission to God’s will.
 All children are born without sin and are Muslim.
 As they grow older, they make their religious CHOICE.
 God created human beings with a body and soul.
 The body is a temporal host for this life, whereas the
soul is eternal.
 It is the soul that will survive beyond death.
 Universality of the call.
 All Muslims are brothers and equals without any
distinction of class, race or tongue.
 Superiority is only based on the greater fear of God and
greater piety.
 Ninth month of the Islamic calendar
 12 month lunar calendar
 354 or 355 days per year
 Year 1 = 622 AD
 The Hijra (the immigration of Mecca)
 The beginning of Islam
 Currently: 1435 AH (Year of Hijra)
 Ramadan is the most venerated month of the Hijri
calendar during which Muslims must fast from dawn
till sunset and should give charity to the poor
 The month of Ramadan is that in which was revealed
the Quran; a guidance for mankind, and clear proofs of
the guidance, and the criterion (of right and wrong).
And whosoever of you is present, let him fast the month,
and whosoever of you is sick or on a journey, a number
of other days. Allah desires for you ease; He desires not
hardship for you; and that you should complete the
period, and that you should magnify Allah for having
guided you, and that perhaps you may be thankful
 The month lasts 29-30 days
 Fast from dawn to sunset
 Increased prayers (salat) and recitation of the Qur’an
 Ends with Eid al-Fitr
 A special festival of breaking the fast
 Eid is a single day
 Muslims are not permitted to fast on that day.
 This is a day when Muslims around the world show a
common goal of unity
 A day of no school, no work
 A special festival of breaking the fast of Ramadan
 Eid is a single day
 Muslims are not permitted to fast on that day.
 People dress in their finest clothes, adorn their homes
with lights and decorations, give treats to children, and
enjoy visits with friends and family.
 This is a day when Muslims around the world show a
common goal of unity
 A day of no school, no work
 Begins on first day of Muharram
 Beginning of Islamic New Year
 Week long
 Festival of Five Pillars
 Symbolizes Abraham attempt to sacrifice his son
Ishmael by God’s request.
 Should sacrifice an animal and give the food to the
poor.
 Concludes the annual pilgrimage to Mecca
 Celebrated by all Muslims (not just those on
pilgrimage)
 Alisraa Walmaaraj
• Symbolizes the ascending, in Jerusalem, of
Mohammed's soul to heaven
• Al-Aqsa Mosque in Old Jerusalem
• Built over the Jewish Temple
• Third holiest place in Isalm
 The Birthday of Muhammad
• Mawlid al-Nabi
• This holiday celebrates the birthday of Muhammad, the
founder of Islam. It is fixed as the 12th day of the month
of Rabi I in the Islamic calendar. Mawlid means birthday
of a holy figure and al-Nabi means prophet.
• The day is commemorated with recollections of
Muhammad's life and significance. Fundamentalist
Muslims, such as the Wahhabi sect, do not celebrate it.
• Originally, the Quran granted women spiritual and
social equality with men. Both men and women were
to be friends and protectors of one another.
• Women could earn a living and own and inherit
property. They played a prominent role in the rise of
Islam.
• Men and Women had assigned social duties, but most
societies in which Islam arose were male dominated
• Women in these societies had to have a male guardian
and parents arranged marriages for their children.
• Men could have up to four wives, but they had to pay a
dowry (gift of money or property) to their wives’
families.
• Women did have the right to divorce and adultery was
forbidden for both men and women.
• After the spread of Islam local traditions began to assert
themselves and many of the rights that were initially
given to women in Islam were replaced by older
traditions which denied women equal rights.
• The veil worn by Muslim women is traditionally called the
Hijab.
• The ideal of women wearing veils was common in many
Middle Eastern cultures before the advent of Islam.
• In Ancient Mesopotamia a veil was a symbol of status, purity,
and moral character.
• There is some controversy over this use of these veils today.
There are different interpretations of this tradition in
different parts of the Muslim world. In general, women and
men are supposed to dress modestly, the degree of that
modesty varies from region to region according to local
custom and tradition.
• In the Quran the Hijab has different meanings it can mean
a curtain or partition dividing rooms--in other verses it is a
sacred divide between the earth and holy, god and human,
light and dark, and men and women.
The Hijab covers the head and Neck
The covering that
women wear varies
from country to
country.
The Chador covers the full body with
a head scarf underneath.
The Burka (Burqa) is a veil that
completely covers the face and
body.