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Islam

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Countries with more than 5% Muslim population from the CIA World Factbook. Green represents a Sunni majority and red represents a Shi`a majority.

Islam is a religion (Arabic: الإسلام; al-'islām) founded by their prophet Muhammad in AD 622 and based on the teaching in the Qur'an. A person who follows the islamic religion is a Muslim. According to Islamic belief, the angel Gabriel revealed God's last message, the Qur'an, to his last prophet, Muhammad (Mohammed). Allah (Arabic: الله) is the name of God to Muslims, and the Muslim holy book is the Qur'an. The word islam means "submission" or total surrender of oneself to the will of God (Allah).

Contents

Fundamentals of Islam

First and foremost a Muslim must practice Islam's five pillars of faith.

  1. Faith (iman) in the oneness of Allah and Muhammad being the last prophet.
  2. Keeping of the five scheduled daily prayers (salah).
  3. Almsgiving (zakat).
  4. Fasting (sawm).
  5. Pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca for those who are able.

The Qur`an

Main Article: Qur'an

According to Islamic teaching, the Qur`an (Quran) came down as a series of revelations from Allah by way of the Archangel Gabriel. Gabriel gave this message from Allah to the Prophet Muhammad who then later dictated it to his followers. The length is about that of the New Testament and these dictations from Gabriel began in 610 AD and according to Islamic tradition continued for twelve years in a cave near Mecca (Modern day southwest Saudia Arabia).

Translations of the Qur`an are generally not accepted by Islam because Arabic is considered the original and purest form. It is through this exegesis that Islamic apologists often use this as a way to deflect criticism, stating that only those who are fluent in Arabic may understand their beloved holy book.

The way of Muhammad

Main Article: Muhammad

Muhammad himself is considered an ideal man, al-insan al-kamil in Arabic. He is not considered divine nor is he to be worshipped. He is rather a model in how a Muslim should live his life.

Through Muhammad' example, his life and his teachings, Muslims can discern the sunnah or "way" of the prophet. Through Muhammad's non-Quranic utterances to his personal habits, all ways should be mirrored. One can attain these insights into his life primarily by way of Hadiths or reports of his life passed down orally until finally written down in the eighth century AD. The hadiths are considered written by contemporaries and eyewitnesses to Muhammad. There are thousands of hadiths with some very lengthy while others are only a few sentences. Many were considered fakes, not what they claimed to be. Through Islamic scholars during the time those that were not real were found out.

Muhammad's life as a prophet can be separated into two epochs. One is when he was in Mecca, where he first received revelation for twelve years and painstakingly tried to convert others for fourteen. The other epoch which took place after Mecca takes place within the context of the city of Medina or what is also called The City of the Apostle of God. The time spent in Medina is characterized by powerful political and military leadership development of Muhammad.

According to Gregory M. Davis, author of "Islam 101"[1] published on Jihad Watch,[2] Muhammad during the first period of his prophetic career can be characterized as:

“ ... a quasi-Biblical figure, preaching repentance and charity, harassed and rejected by those around him; later, in Medina, we see an able commander and strategist who systematically conquered and killed those who opposed him. It is the later years of Muhammad's life, from 622 AD to his death in 632, that are rarely broached in polite company. In 622, when the Prophet was better than fifty years old, he and his followers made the Hijra (emigration or flight), from Mecca to the oasis of Yathrib—later renamed Medina—some 200 miles to the north. Muhammad's new monotheism had angered the pagan leaders of Mecca, and the flight to Medina was precipitated by a probable attempt on Muhammad's life. Muhammad had sent emissaries to Medina to ensure his welcome. He was accepted by the Medinan tribes as the leader of the Muslims and as arbiter of inter-tribal disputes.

...
Along with the reliable hadiths, a further source of accepted knowledge about Muhammad comes from the Sira (life) of the Prophet, composed by one of Islam's great scholars, Muhammad bin Ishaq, in the eighth century AD.

Shortly before Muhammad fled the hostility of Mecca, a new batch of Muslim converts pledged their loyalty to him on a hill outside Mecca called Aqaba. Ishaq here conveys in the Sira the significance of this event:

Sira, p208: When God gave permission to his Apostle to fight, the second [oath of allegiance at] Aqaba contained conditions involving war which were not in the first act of fealty. Now they [Muhammad's followers] bound themselves to war against all and sundry for God and his Apostle, while he promised them for faithful service thus the reward of paradise.


That Muhammad's nascent religion underwent a significant change at this point is plain. The scholarly Ishaq clearly intends to impress on his (Muslim) readers that, while in its early years, Islam was a relatively tolerant creed that would "endure insult and forgive the ignorant," Allah soon required Muslims "to war against all and sundry for God and his Apostle." The Islamic calendar testifies to the paramouncy of the Hijra by setting year one from the date of its occurrence. The year of the Hijra, 622 AD, is considered more significant than the year of Muhammad's birth or death or that of the first Quranic revelation because Islam is first and foremost a political-military enterprise. It was only when Muhammad left Mecca with his paramilitary band that Islam achieved its proper political-military articulation. The years of the Islamic calendar (which employs lunar months) are designated in English "AH" or "After Hijra." [1]

”

Or in Latin, Anno Hegirae.

Sharia law

Unlike many religions, Islam has mandatory, highly specific legal and political principles for the government of an Islamic society,[3] called Sharia which means "way" or "path." The specifics of Sharia law are understood by way of the Qu'ran, the Sunnah and Sira of the Prophet Muhammad. The Quran and the Sunnah together are used to draw the blueprint for good government. There is no seperation between the religious and political within Islam; Sharia law effectively becomes the legal code ordained by Allah for all mankind. To deviate, or not accept Sharia is to blatantly dismiss Allah in the most disrespectful way and is an action which causes adherents at times to be brought to combat.

Jihad

The Arabic word jihad, or "struggle", has carried two meanings over the centuries. By one meaning, jihad is the rejection of worldly ways to achieve spiritual depth, and an individual struggle to attain righteousness in the eyes of Allah. While Christianity also calls for rejection of worldly ways, Islam insists that a man may justify himself through this "struggle against temptation."

The other meaning of jihad is "holy war." This stands for the duty of all Muslims to aid the defense of their faith through combat. Essentially it is war carried out by Muslims in an effort to expand territory at the expense of territories not ruled by Muslims. Anyone who is not a Muslim is called kuffar, or "foreigner."[4]

Several Western commentators, and perhaps also certain radical Muslim clerics (imams), tribal chiefs (sheikhs), and political leaders, have portrayed jihad as a natural progression of a Muslim's life, not only to become religiously influential, but also to be politically and militarily inclined for the sake of the global Ummah (community or nation). According to this interpretation, a Muslim's duty to the ummat al-mu'minin (community of believers) is to mold a world under one Islamic banner and thus make it Ummah Wahida (One Community).

The first wave

The first major jihad was by the Arabs in 622-750 AD. Arguably it ended at the Battle of Tours, when Charles Martel defeated a Muslim army that had invaded France.

Counter-Jihad: the Crusades

The tenth century AD saw the first of the four Crusades, an attempt by Christian kings, knights, and soldiers to reverse Muslim expansion. These campaigns ended in failure, with no lasting territorial gains.

The second wave

The second major wave of jihad was by the Turks from 1071-1683 AD. It ended at the Battle of Vienna, when once again a Christian army stopped Muslim expansion.

A third wave?

Multiple Western commentators allege that a third wave of jihad is now under way. If so, it does not involve mass armies. Instead, individuals or groups are perpetrating acts of sabotage and/or murder. This "third wave" began arguably with the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, United States Senator and candidate for the Presidency of the United States. This event took place on June 5, 1968, one year to the day following the Six-day War between Israel and various members of the Arab League. The perpetrator of this act, Sirhan Bishara Sirhan, is now serving a sentence of life imprisonment in the State Prison at San Quentin, California.

The next three decades saw more acts of this kind. The targets of these acts have been either citizens or soldiers of the Republic of Israel, or citizens and lawful residents of other Western countries, especially the United States.

At present, Islam has no speaker-for-all who is universally respected and acknowledged as the most authoritative interpreter of the Qu'ran, or commander-in-chief of any "army of Allah." Yet at least two men now pretend to be that speaker-for-all. One, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of the Islamic Republic of Iran, is, to be sure, a head of state. Some military analysts have alleged that he is conducting jihad by proxy, chiefly against forces of the United States and its allies.

The other, Osama bin Laden, is the founder and presumably still the head of a secret network of irregular combatants, or "terrorists," known by its Arabic name of Al-Qa'ida (literally, "The Base"). This group perpetrated a number of acts of sabotage and murder in the last decade of the twentieth century. It then opened the twenty-first century with a spectacular and shocking incident that cost the lives of nearly three thousand people, most of them civilians. What shocked the world the more was that it occurred in American territory, the first such act since the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy.

Western forces, mostly American, have sought to hunt Bin Laden and frustrate his operations throughout the world ever since. Rumors have Bin Laden ill or dead of end-stage kidney disease.

Perhaps because Islam has not had a speaker-for-all since the destruction of the Ottoman Sultanate in 1922 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, these various acts, and attempts by some Muslim clergy and political leaders to justify them, have created a crisis within the global Muslim community. On the one side are those calling all Muslims to join them in physical jihad. They do this primarily through a recent school of Muslim theology called Wahhabism, which receives most of its funds from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Chief among their objectives is the destruction of the United States and other countries that embrace freedom and democratic/republican rule, a type of governance that they regard as little better than anarchy. The other objective is the destruction of the Jews and specifically of the present Republic of Israel, or "Palestine" as they insist on calling it today.[5][6]

Yet would-be reformers of Islam occasionally make themselves heard, to denounce the acts and objectives of Messrs. Ahmadinejad and Bin Laden and their proxies and also to question the justice and/or the practical efficacy of Sharia law, among other subjects. The Middle East Media Research Institute[7], founded in February 1998 by a former intelligence officer in the Israel Defense Force, remains a valuable source of information and commentary concerning this so-called third wave of jihad, and how much support it actually enjoys in Arab and other Muslim countries.

Islamic History

Islam as a religious, political, and military movement began in 622 AD and continues today. Its history is marked with significant battles among and against peoples living in the lands that at the time became the targets of the Caliphate or the overall Dar al-Islam (House of Islam). The theological beliefs of Islam and the desire to establish a worldwide Caliphate ruled by Sharia law are still a potent force within Islam today, and some suggest that it has become as dominant as it was in the days of the first and second waves of jihad.

After the time of Muhammad, the Umma (Muslim community) leadership came from four Rightly Guided Caliphs for about 30 years: Abu Bakr from 632-634, Umar from 634-644, Uthman from 644-656 and Ali from 656 to 661 AD who was the closest blood relative of Muhammad. By 650 AD Islam and its military campaigns had brought most of Syria, Palestine, Egypt (642) and the Persian Empire (643) under their control, capturing Jerusalem in 638, North Africa in 647 and Cyprus in 649. Some of the nations invaded and now controlled were considered the richest nations in the world at the time and were guarded to the teeth by powerful militaries, yet they all fell into Islamic hands.

During the time of Ali, the last Rightly Guided Caliph in 656 AD, he moved the Arab capital from Medina to Kufa in southern Iraq. As the closest blood relative to Muhammad he was extremely revered and followers were given a special name called the Shia or, "party" of Ali. During this time Arab exclusiveness within Islam was broken and all were considered equal when converted to Islam to become Muslim.

Ali was later assassinated in 661 by Muawiyah, the founder of the Umayyad Dynasty, who took his place as leader of the Umma. This triggered a split in loyalty from Muslims. Today almost 1500 years later these loyal groups still rule the majority of Islam. After the assassination two schools of thought within Islam became prominent: the Shia which follow Ali and the Sunni which pledged loyalty to Muhammad. During this time however Muslims continued to dominate the middle-east, eastern and southern Europe, as well as north African and Asian regions. From 650 to 732 AD massive expansion was taking place that ended up with eastern Turkey, India and China adding to the Umma's influence as well.

In the 730's Charles Martel and Charlemagne fought back Muslim expansion into France. The Battle of Tours is still seen today as an important historical event that stopped Islamization of Western Europe. The lack of ability by the Muslims to scout Europe accurately and set up defensive positions is known to have been a vital component in their ultimate defeat.[8]

The Umayyad Caliphate (661-750) was ousted from Damascus and replaced by the Abbasid Dynasty with its capital in modern day Baghdad, Iraq in 755 AD. A different Umayyad line continued in Spain, beginning with the Umayyad prince Abd Ar-Rahman, until 1492 and the Battle of Andalusia. During the time of the Empire in Cordoba in Spain there were two capitals of rival caliphates, the Abbasid Baghdad and Umayyad Cordoba. Cordoba was probably the greater influence because of its geographical location.[9]

Demographics

Distribution of Islam, Sunni (green) and Shi'a (blue).

Those that make up the majority of the worlds Muslim population (80-85%) strictly follow only Muhammad and are called Sunni, while those who also follow the teachings of Muhammads son-in-law Ali, are called Shia and make up about 10-15%. There are few fringe minority groups or divisions which include Sufi, a mystical tradition.[10]

Sunni Islam is derived from the word Sunnah which means "example" or "way", from that of Muhammad. They maintain a huge majority overall but especially in Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Turkey, Somalia, Pakistan, Libya and Egypt. The Shia or who can also be referred to as the Shiites maintain healthy majorities in Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Syria and Bahrain.[11]

Schools of Thought

There are two dominant schools of thought or denominations within Islam: Sunni and Shia. The Sunni and Shia follow the same holy book (Qur'an), they follow the teachings of Muhammad, offer prayers to Allah five times a day, fast in the month of Ramadan and both support visiting Mecca once in the follower's lifetime as an essential part of gaining salvation (the hajj). They differ however in adherence and loyality.

There are also two branches of Muslim learning. The first is Tawhid, a major tenet of Wahhabism which defines all that a man should believe such that Allah is a unique and singular God. The second is Shari’a, which is a legal framework to dictate all he or she should do in their public and/or private life.[12]

Teachings of Creation

Islam teaches creation in a way that is at times similar to that of the account in Genesis. But detailed theological analysis reveals that Islamic teaching on creation differs from Christian teaching in many critical ways.

Six-day creation

Main Article: Young earth creationism

Muslims believe that Allah created the heavens and the earth in "six periods of time," and continues to reign over His creation.

The Qur`an says:

“ "7.54": Surely your Lord is Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth in six periods of time, and He is firm in power; He throws the veil of night over the day, which it pursues incessantly; and (He created) the sun and the moon and the stars, made subservient by His command; surely His is the creation and the command; blessed is Allah, the Lord of the worlds. ”

Although this seems similar to the creation account in the Bible, there are important differences. Muslims generally interpret the "six day" creation not as six days of 24 hours each, but as six separate periods of indefinite duration remaining consistent with internal wording. They do not precisely define how long a creation day is, but believe that life developed over a long period.

Life came from water

Although Muslims disagree with many ideas in the theory of evolution, especially human evolution, they accept much of it, such as life beginning in water, although not by unguided natural processes as evolution would purpose but rather by divine guidance by Allah.

As the Qur`an states:

“ "24:45": And Allah has created every animal from water: of them there are some that creep on their bellies; some that walk on two legs; and some that walk on four. Allah creates what He wills for verily Allah has power over all things. ”

Adam and Eve

Muslims do not accept the evolutionary idea that humans came from ape-like animals. They believe human life began with God’s creation of Adam and Eve (Hawwa). The Qur`an says:

“ "15.26": We created man from sounding clay, from mud moulded into shape; 27. And the Jinn race, We had created before, from the fire of a scorching wind. ”

Chapter 15 of the Qur`an does not give the name of the first woman, but Islamic tradition knows her as "Hawwa". Muslims believe that Adam was a prophet who taught his children to worship Allah alone. His children continued to worship Allah alone for many generations. Then corruption seeped into their faith. So Allah sent prophets and messengers to call on them all to come back to the unitarian faith.

Evolution

Main Article: Theory of evolution

Muslims will not accept any part of the theory of evolution that conflicts with the Qur`ans teachings. They believe there is a Creator (Allah) who has created everything, whether at once or through the process of growth and development. They reject the evolutionary teachings about the origin of humans from ape-like creatures.

Other Doctrines

Islam and its other doctrines actually show the major theological differences between it and Christianity far better than its creation doctrine.

Muslims and Jesus

Main Article: Jesus Christ

Muslims respect Jesus as a prophet, but do not believe He was the Son of God. They accept that He performed great miracles, but do not believe He was crucified (from chapter Maryam in the Qur`an).

The Bible

Main Article: Bible

Muslims believe that the Christian Bible (Old and New Testaments) is corrupt in many places. Islam therefore forbids Muslims to read the Bible to others (such as to a dying relative who is a Christian).

Heaven and Hell

Christians, Jews who are specifically viewed as deviating from the true path of Islam, and essentially all who deny Allah and Muhammad as his last prophet will go to a place of "disgraceful chastisement," according to the Qur`an. Only those who end up believing in and worshipping Allah will go to what is referred to as Paradise.

The Qur`an says:

“ "4.150": Surely those who disbelieve in Allah and His apostles and (those who) desire to make a distinction between Allah and His apostles and say: We believe in some and disbelieve in others, and desire to take a course between (this and) that. "4.151": These it is that are truly unbelievers, and We have prepared for the unbelievers a disgraceful chastisement. ”

At least one Muslim questions the applicability of that statement. This person cites this verse, also from the Qur`an:

“ "2:62": Verily, those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians, and Sabians, whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day and do righteous good deeds shall have their reward with their Lord, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. ”

And:

“ "5:69": Surely, those who believe, those who are the Jews and the Sabians and the Christians – whosoever believed in Allah and the Last Day, and worked righteousness, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. ”

These verses seem to say that a Christian and a Jew is not necessarily doomed.[13]

The Qu`ran is known to have contradictory passages. The chief principle that Muslims apply when trying to reconcile a contradiction is the Abrogation Principle, which states that the verse most recently written takes precedence. But the inconsistent application of this principle makes the resolution of this question unclear.

Noah's flood and the Ark

Main Article: Global flood

Muslims regard Noah as one of the six great prophets of Islam; the others are: Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. They also believe Noah went on an ark with two of each kind of animal. Unlike the Bible, the Qur`an does not give the dimensions or the geography of the land that the flood covered, nor that God had a hand in actually sending the animals to Noah. Because of this absence of information, most Muslims accept a local flood rather than a worldwide flood.

Fundamentalism

Main Article: Fundamentalism

Fundamentalism is strictly a concept applied to Christian belief. The name originated in 1920 from a series of pamphlets issued between 1910 and 1915 titled The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth. Leading evangelical churchmen of the time wrote these booklets for clergymen and theology students to give them the basics of the Christian faith.[14]

The media today use the word fundamentalism in a negative sense to mean "fanaticism". Muslims say there is no concept of "fundamentalism" in Islam. One Muslim website says, "The Western media has coined this term to brand those Muslims who wish to return to the basic fundamental principles of Islam and mould their lives accordingly. Islam is a religion of moderation and a practicing God-fearing Muslim can neither be a fanatic nor an extremist."[15] However, a religious duty associated with the five pillars of Islam is Jihad, sometimes defined as Holy War.

“ This duty requires that if the situation warrants, men are required to go to war to defend or spread Islam. If they are killed, they are guaranteed eternal life in Paradise.[12] ”

The Trinity

Main Article: Trinity

The word trinity itself is from the Latin trinitas, meaning "threeness." It is used to describe a fundamental Christian belief based on the biblical theological doctrine that one God is manifested to the world as a Father, a Son and a Holy Spirit.

However Muslims deny the Trinity.[16]

Jinn (genie)

Muslims believe in jinns (genies). A jinn is a spirit that inhabits the Earth and influences mankind by appearing in the form of humans or animals. The Qur`an teaches that Allah made the jinns subservient to Solomon, they were essentially helpmates for him.[17]

“ "55.14": He created man from sounding clay like unto pottery, 15. And He created Jinns from fire free of smoke: ”
“ "34.12": And to Solomon (We made) the Wind (obedient): Its early morning (stride) was a month's (journey), and its evening (stride) was a month's (journey); and We made a Font of molten brass to flow for him; and there were Jinns that worked in front of him, by the leave of his Lord, and if any of them turned aside from our command, We made him taste of the Penalty of the Blazing Fire. ”

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Davis, Gregory M. "Islam 101." Jihad Watch. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  2. ↑ "Jihad Watch" home page. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  3. ↑ Taher, Abul. "Revealed: UK's first official sharia courts." The Times (London, UK), September 14, 2008. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  4. ↑ Pipes, Daniel. "What is Jihad?" The New York Post, December 31, 2002. Hosted at <http://www.danielpipes.org/> Accessed October 13, 2008.
  5. ↑ Wahhabism by Wikipedia
  6. ↑ "Terrorism:Objectives." Family Security Matters, n.d. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  7. ↑ MEMRI Home page. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  8. ↑ Charles Martel by Wikipedia
  9. ↑ "Cordoba: History." <http://www.islamicity.com/>, n.d. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  10. ↑ "Islam: Sunnis and Shiites." CRS, February 23, 2004. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  11. ↑ Demographics of Islam by Wikipedia
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Wenner, Sara. "Basic Beliefs of Islam." Minnesota State University, 2001. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  13. ↑ "Which Jews and Christians will enter paradise?" <http://talk.islamicnetwork.com/>, June 19, 2004. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  14. ↑ Jones, Steven. "Fundamentalism." Religious Movements Project, University of Virginia, July 16, 2001. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  15. ↑ Athar, Shahid. "Twenty-five Questions Asked about Islam." Islam for Today, n.d. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  16. ↑ Robinson BA. "Comparing Christianity and Islam: the world's two largest religions." Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance, March 21, 2008. Accessed October 13, 2008.
  17. ↑ "Jinn according to Quran and Sunnah." <http://www.islamawareness.net/>, n.d. Accessed October 13, 2008.


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