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Rise of Islam
 Muslims trace their lineage back through the Hebrew
Scriptures to Ishmael, the son of Abraham and Hagar,
Abraham's second wife.
 Born in Mecca, in western Arabia, Muhammad (ca.
570–632)
 Received his first revelation in 610.
 Muslims believe that the word of God was revealed to
him by the archangel Gabriel in Arabic.
Rise of Islam
 Gabriel told him that God (Allah) had chosen him as
the last of the prophets to mankind.
 These revelations were subsequently collected and
codified as the Koran (literally "recitation" in Arabic),
the Muslim holy book.
 Koran describes the relationship between an almighty
and God and his creations.
 Provides guidelines for proper behavior.
Rise of Islam
 Muhammad’ teachings in conflict with deities then
being worshipped by the Arabs.
 In 622 forced to emigrate north to the oasis town of
Medina.
 In Medina, Muhammad continued to attract followers
 War between Mecca and Medina followed, in which
Muhammad and his followers were eventually
victorious.
Rise of Islam
 Upon his return to Mecca, one of the Prophet's first
acts was to cleanse the Kaba of its idols and rededicate
the shrine to Allah.
 Muhammad died in 632.
 His followers, led by a series of four caliphs
("successors"), continued to spread the message of
Islam.
Rise of Islam
 Under their command, the Arab armies carried the
new faith and leadership from the Arabian Peninsula
to the shores of the Mediterranean and to the eastern
reaches of Iran.
 The Arabs conquered Syria, Palestine, Egypt, the
Byzantine empire, Iraq and Iran.
 In these lands, Islam fostered the development of a
religious, political, and cultural commonwealth and
the creation of a global empire.
Rise of Islam
 The Arab conquest of Spain and the push of Arab
armies as far as the Indus River culminated in an
empire that stretched over three continents, a mere
hundred years after the Prophet's death.
 After Muhammad’s death there came a major division
between two groups.
 The principal issue upon which Islam's first major
sectarian split occurred centers on the question of
leadership.
Rise of Islam
 Sunni --the largest denomination of Islam.
 According to Sunni thought, Muhammad died without
appointing a successor to lead the Muslim community.
 A group of his most prominent companions gathered
and elected Abu Bakr, the Prophet's close friend and
father-in-law, as the first Caliph.
 Sunnis initially believed that the position of Caliph
should be democratically chosen, but after the first
four Rightly Guided Calliphs the position turned into a
hereditary dynastic rule.
Rise of Islam
 Shia – the 2nd Largest Islamic denomination.
 They follow Ali ibn Abi Talib (ca. 599 – January 661
CE).
 Shia Muslims see him as the first imam and first
rightful caliph.
 He was Muhammad's cousin, and, after marrying
Fatima, his son-in-law as well.
 The Koran forbids conversion by coercion, so Muslim
rulers were tolerant of other religions based on
revelation, such as Judaism and Christianity.
Koran
 The Koran regulates every phase of the Islamic law,
religious practice, culture and morals.
 As its title "the Recitation" suggests, The Koran was
made to be heard and recited.
 Since it is literally the word of God, Muslims do not
accept the Koran in translation from Arabic.
 The Koran is primarily dialogic: God speaks to
Muhammad or gives him messages to recite.
Koran
 There is no narrative thread or history of a single
group of people, as in the Jewish and Christian bibles.
 The revelations were received in verses, which have
been grouped according to subject into larger divisions
(Suras).
 The earliest and shortest Suras evoke the wonder and
glory of God;
 The later and longer ones often include legal
prescriptions and sage counsel.
The Five Pillars of Islam
 1. Declaration of faith:
 “I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship
except Allah (God) and I bear witness that
Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the Messenger of
Allah.”
The Five Pillars of Islam
 2. Prayer
 Offered five times a day (at the break of dawn, at noon,
mid-afternoon, at sunset and at dusk after dark.)
 All able bodied Muslims are to pray five times every
day.
 A person who can't physically perform the act of prayer
because of sickness is exempted without any feeling of
guilt.
 A traveler can offer half of the prescribed prayer.
The Five Pillars of Islam
 Before the prayer, the person has to wash their hands,
face, forearms and feet, and a person should be as
clean and as pure as possible.
 The prayer is offered directly to God without any
intermediary.
 Muslims all over the world face towards The Kaba,
which is in the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
 This practice symbolizes the unity of all Muslims.
The Five Pillars of Islam
 Muslims are required to pray in the mosque with the
congregation on Fridays.
 In practice, across the Muslim world Friday is observed
as a weekly holiday.
 There is no membership to belong to a certain
mosque. All Muslims are welcome to all mosques.
The Five Pillars of Islam
 3. Fasting
 Fasting is the third act of worship in Islam.
 Muslims fast in the month of Ramadan every year.
 The month of Ramadan is the ninth month in the
Islamic calendar.
 Those who are too weak or ill are not required to fast.
 The fast starts at the break of dawn.
 The fast ends at the time of sun set.
The Five Pillars of Islam
 At the time of fasting the person does not eat or drink
or smoke or have sex with the spouse.
 A fasting Muslim is expected not to speak ill of others,
not to cheat or lie or commit other sins.
The Five Pillars of Islam
 4. Charity
 The fourth pillar of Islam is charity.
 Charity is a purification of wealth, designed to help and benefit
those in need (i.e. the poor, hungry, orphaned, widowed, ill, etc).
 Charity is 2.5% of an individual’s total wealth and is paid yearly.
 “Zakat [charity] expenditures are only for the poor and for the
needy and for those employed to collect [Zakat] and for bringing
hearts together [for Islam] and for freeing captives [or slaves] and
for those in debt and for the cause of Allah and for the [stranded]
traveler – an obligation [imposed] by Allah . And Allah is
Knowing and Wise.” [Surah At-Tawba (The Repentance), 9:60]
The Five Pillars of Islam
 5. Haj--Pilgrimage to Mecca
 The Haj or the pilgrimage to Mecca is an essential duty of
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all Muslims.
This duty has to be performed once in a life-time.
Only those people are required to go for Haj who are in
good health, who have the money and the means to travel
to Saudi Arabia .
Haj is performed by visiting Mecca in Arabia at the annual
time of Haj.
The person who travels to Mecca and carries out the
prayers and procedures in and around the grand mosque of
Kaba at the time of Haj is called Haji (or the pilgrim).
The Five Pillars of Islam
 Every year more than one and one half million
Muslims from all parts of the world perform Haj at
Kaba.
 This large gathering of Muslims of all races and
cultures promotes the international brotherhood and
reflects that all Muslims are alike and equal in the
sight of God.
 A person who is to perform Haj wears two pieces of
white garment. The head is left bare.
 Thus every one is dressed in similar clothing. Everyone
walks around the Kaba seven times.
The Six Articles of Faith
 The six articles of faith are collectively the creed of
Islam.
 The six articles of faith sum up the basic theology of
Islam: the belief in one God, His Angels, His
Messengers, His Books, Divine Predestination, and the
Day of Resurrection.
 1. God
 There is no God but ONE God. He has neither parents
nor progeny. He is one entity, all knowing and
omnipotent.
The Six Articles of Faith
 2. Angels
 Angels are creations who worship and serve God.
 There are many Angels, though only a few are
mentioned in the Quran.
 The most well-known Angel in Islam is Jibril (Gabriel),
who brought most of the Quran and revelations from
God to Prophet Muhammad.
The Six Articles of Faith
 3. Prophets.
 The Prophet Muhammad is known as The Seal of Prophets,
indicating that there were many more Prophets before him,
and none after him.
 In the Koran, twenty-five Prophets are mentioned in
various chapters including: Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac,
Ishmael, Lot, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, David,
Solomon, Job, Jonah, Zachariah, John and Jesus.
 The Prophets serve as role models for all Muslims and were
sent down as the Messengers of God were all human
beings, spreading the same message that the Prophet
Muhammad spread across the world- to worship one God.
The Six Articles of Faith
 4. Scriptures
 There are five known scriptures and texts that
document revelations to five different Prophets, as
stated in the Koran.
 The five texts are: the Scrolls of Abraham, the Scrolls
and Torah of Moses, the Psalms of David, the Gospel
of Jesus , and the Koran of Muhammad.
 Muslims believe that these scriptures were once
authentic, but over time they have been changed and
therefore the original message has not been conserved.
The Six Articles of Faith
 Koran has not been changed since its codification.
 Previous scriptures had been revealed with specific
directions and guidance for the respective tribes of the
Prophets.
 Koran was revealed to provide universal guidance, for
all situations, for all nations of people, and for all
times to come.
The Six Articles of Faith
 5. Predestination
 God knows His creation’s actions even before they do
them.
 God has still given man free choice. Man has the power
to make his own decisions; God just knows what man
will decide before man does so.
The Six Articles of Faith
 6. Resurrection
 Every human being will be resurrected from the grave.
 This day is known as the Day of Resurrection or The
Day of Judgment.
 On the Day of Judgment, every human being will be
held accountable for every good and bad deed he or
she did, regardless of how small or great the deed was.
 On the Day of Judgment it will be decided whether a
soul will enter Heaven or Hell, determined by the
records of deeds.
Contributions of Islam
 Islam set family laws and made rules for inheritance.
 It discouraged and eliminated slavery.
 It made the state responsible for the basic needs of all
of it's citizens, regardless of their race or religion.
 The state is responsible to protect the legitimate rights
of the citizens.
 Islam encouraged the acquisition and propagation of
knowledge.
Contributions of Islam
 In the dark period of the Middle Ages, Muslims
scholars carried all the advances in the fields of science
and social subjects.
 Medical schools were active in Baghdad and later in
other parts of the Muslim world in the times of the
Dark Ages in Europe.
 Muslim scholars introduced the use of zero.
 Arabic numerals that are used in our every day life
today.
Contributions of Islam
 The Muslims invented the sciences of algebra and
trigonometry, including logarithms and
trigonometrical ratios, and the relations of sine and
cosine, tangent and cotangent.
 As a result of the wide acquisition and dissemination
of knowledge, even the peasants and farmers in
Muslim Spain could read and write, whereas, the
dukes and princes in Europe were mostly illiterate.
Koran: The nature of God
 He that obeys god is rewarded with place in heaven.
 Those who disobey are punished in the afterlife.
 God is forgiving and merciful. (so should you).
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[repeated]
God bears witness to all things.
God is all-knowing and wise.
Have fear of God.
God is stern in retribution.
Koran: The nature of God
 God knows the innermost thoughts of men.
 God is cognizant of all your actions.
 God loves those who do good.
 God has power over all things.
 God loves those who deal justly.
 God does not love the transgressors.
 God loves the charitable.
 God knows all that you hide and all that you reveal.
4. Women
 God created men from a single soul.
 Treatment of orphan girls.
 Treat them fairly.
 Do not squander their property
 Marrying more than one woman.
 Maintain equality among them.
 Division of property at the time of death of a relative.
 What to do with women who fornicate.
4. Women
 Four witnesses.
 Confine them to their house.
 Treat widows with kindness.
 A woman’s dowry should not be taken away form her.
 Man is forbidden to marry some women.
 Mothers, sisters, daughters, etc.
 Importance of chastity.
 Do not be jealous.
4. Women
 Men have authority over women.
 God has made one superior to the other. What was the
thinking of the Christian church regarding this at this
time?
 How to solve problems between a man and his wife.
How is it better than seeing a marriage therapist?
 Show kindness to everyone.
5. The Table
 What to eat and what not to eat.
 God has perfected your religion.
 How to pray.
 Bear true witness.
 Deal justly; that is nearer to true piety.
 God made a covenant with the Israelites. They broke
their covenant. “They have tampered with words out
of their context and forgotten much of what they were
enjoined.”
5. The Table
 Christians have also forgotten what they were
enjoined.
 Muhammad has come to reveal what Jews and
Christians have hidden.
 “Those who make war against God and His apostle and
spread disorder in the land shall be put to death or
crucified or have their hands and feet cut off on
alternate sides, or be banished from the country.”
5. The Table
 Fight valiantly for his cause, so that you may triumph.
 How to deal with thieves.
 The Koran confirms the Scriptures which came before
it and stands as a guardian over them.
 God did not wish for there to be one nation. Compete
with each other in good works.
 Don’t make friends with Jews and Christians. You will
become one of them.
 Your only protectors are God his apostle and the
faithful.
5. The Table
 If the People of the Book observe the Torah and the
Gospel and what is revealed to them from their Lord,
they shall enjoy abundance from above and from
beneath.
 The son of Mary cannot be the Messiah. “He that
worships other gods beside God, God will deny
Paradise and Hell shall be his home.”
 Unbelievers are those who say “God is one of three.”
 There is but one God.
5. The Table
 The son of Mary was no more than an apostle, like
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many before him.
His mother was a saintly woman.
They both ate earthly food.
“Jesus, son of Mary, did you ever say to mankind:
‘Worship me and my mother as gods beside God?’”
Don’t drink wine, don’t gamble.
Do not ask questions about things which, if made
known to you, would only pain you.