QUICK LOOK IN DEPTH RESOURCES/LINKS
- PRACTICED BY
Approximately 1.2 billion people
- MAJORITY OF FOLLOWERS IN
South Asia
- FOLLOWERS CALLED
Muslims
- DAY OF WORSHIP
Friday, with prayer 5 times daily
- FOUNDER
Muhammad
- DEITY/DEITIES
Al'lah(God)
- SACRED TEXT(S)
The Qu'ran, The Torah, The Psalms Islam traces its formal formation to approximately 620 CE, but realizes its roots in the formation of Christianity. Muslims believe that Muhammad was the last and true prophet and do not deny the events that are chronicled in the Bible. Muhammad was born in Mecca, Saudi Arabia around 570 CE and heard his first "call" from God via the angel Gabriel at age 39. He continued to hear messages from God for the next 23 years and they were recorded in the Qu'ran exactly as they were told-in Arabic. Muhammad was not accepted in Mecca and, as such, had to flee to Medina in 622 CE. The year of his flight is the beginning of the Muslim calendar. Within little time, Muhammad and his armies conquered almost all of Arabia, Armenia, Persia, Northern Africa, and Spain. Despite defeat in these areas in the mid-700s, Islam spread across the land trade routes across Asia. Today, Islam is the second largest religious group in the world and is growing at an extremely fast rate.
Despite the depictions in current American press, Muslims are extremely peaceful people. They believe that there is One True God, and that Jesus was merely a Prophet, not the son of God. Naturally, they reject the Trinity. Muslims believe that Zoroastrians, Christians, Jews and Muslims are all people of the same heritage and "people of the book." They preach acceptance of other religions. Islam seeks to integrate all facets of life; social, political and spiritual.
Islam holds five basic tenets. The first is the belief in One True God with angels as messengers of his will. The second is the belief that Muhammad was the last in a great line of Prophets. The third tenet holds the Qu'ran as the last and final book revealed by God. Muslims believe that their life on earth will be judged by God, and the pure shall ascend to Heaven while the others will burn in Hell. The final tenet of Islam recognizes the supremacy of God's will.
A Muslim's duties are prescribed in the 5 Pillars of Faith. The first is Shahadah. Shahadah is a statement of faith that must be made at least once in the lifetime of a Muslim. Shahadah declares Al'lah as the One True God and Muhammad as his prophet. This sets up the religion as a monotheistic religion and shows Muhammad not as a deity, but a man. The second Pillar is the Salat. The Salat calls for all Muslims to offer prayers five times daily, so that at any moment, somewhere in the world, someone is offering prayers to Al'lah. The Sawn is the third Pillar of Faith. The Sawn calls for fasting during the holy month of Ramadan. In the Muslim calendar, this month correlates to the month when Muhammad was called as Prophet as well as his flight to Medina. The fourth Pillar is Zakat. Zakat is the necessity of giving charity. The final Pillar calls for all capable Muslims to make the Hajj, or holy pilgrimage to Mecca.
http://www.religious tolerance.org/islam.htm Author: B.A. Robinson, Copyright © 1995 to 2002 incl. by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance Last update: 2002-AUG-14
http://www.islamworld.net/ Author: Shafi, Ibrahim
Hicks, Johnnie. Ideas from class discussions and handouts, Multicultural Education, a Global Perspective.
Copyright ©2003, Jason Coleman
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