Understanding the Five Pillars of Islam

1. Week #4

2. Practices and Rituals The Five Pillars • The ritual practices of Islam are the pillars of their religious system. • The objective is to follow Muhammad’s pattern (his exact words, motions, and timing) found in the sunnah as they accomplish the pillars. • Beliefs are important, but the substance of Islam is the accomplishment of the five pillars.

3. The First Pillar: Confession (Shahadah) • Shahadah is a public statement said in Arabic which means: “There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His prophet.” • Making this confession is the first step in becoming a Muslim. • Islam requires that everyone say this confession in Arabic.

4. Salat is a set prayer ritual to be done five specific times every day (sometimes combined in three sessions). • Prayers are memorized in Arabic. • Salatmust always be preceded by ritually washing the face, hands, and feet. This can be done with sand when water is not available. (Qur'an 5:6; also 2:222, 4:43.) The Second Pillar: Prayer (Salat)

5. The Second Pillar: Prayer (Salat)continued • The head must be covered. • The body must be pointed in the direction of Mecca. • The motions and prostrations must be followed for the prayers to be valid.

6. #4 #1 #2 #3 #5 and #6 are repeated; followed by turning head to sides #5 #6

7. The Third Pillar: Fasting (Sawm) • Sawm is an annual community event for all Muslims (except children, pregnant women, and travelers). • The fast lasts the entire lunar month known as Ramadan, and involves abstinence from all food, water, and sex during daylight hours.

8. A special meal (iftar) is served at sunset when the daily fast ends. • Everyone is awakened before sunrise to eat and drink to prepare them for the daylight fasting. • In Muslim-dominated countries there is often a shift to a more nocturnal schedule with more sleep during the daytime and feasting at night. The Third Pillar: Fasting (Sawm)continued

9. The Third Pillar: Fasting (Sawm)continued • Nighttime can be very festive and social during Ramadan, in contrast to the slower daytime. • Many Muslims gather together for the recitation of the Qur’an every evening of Ramadan. • There is an important three-day holiday (Eid Al Fitr) following Ramadan.

10. The Fourth Pillar: Giving of Alms (Zakat) • Zakat is an obligatory annual giving of 2.5% of a Muslim’s wealth, primarily to the poor. • There are rules for determining the basis of wealth and how zakat is given. • Some Muslim governments have a zakat tax.

11. The Fifth Pillar: Pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj) • Hajj is to be carried out at least once in a lifetime, providing a Muslim can afford it. • Uniformity is enforced in the manner of dressing—in a white garment—to shaving the head (for the men).

12. The Fifth Pillar: Pilgrimage (Hajj) continued • The objective is to copy the patterns set by Muhammad and do all the various rituals as he did them. • The Hajj rituals promise Muslims multiplied credits as well as help in removing the weight of sins in preparation for Judgment Day.

13. Jihad: A Sixth Pillar? • Some Muslims would include a sixth pillar, Holy Struggle (Jihad). • This struggle could be internal (a struggle in the soul to do the right thing) or external (an effort against the enemies of Islam). • The interpretation of jihad can determine the difference between moderate and radical Muslims.

14. Judgment Day • Belief in the nature of the final Judgment Day motivates Muslims to faithfully accomplish these pillars. • In the Qur’an, these practices are of great importance.

15. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. —Ephesians 2:8, 9 What Christians Believe The Gift of Salvation • The Bible teaches that salvation is a gift from God through faith in Jesus Christ. • There are no rituals or practices that anyone can do in order to get right with God. (Ephesians 2: 8, 9)

16. What Christians Believe Why Jesus’ Followers Obey Him • Even though no one can be saved by good works, followers of Jesus serve him, imitate him, and do what he commanded as the Holy Spirit gives them strength. • Jesus said, “If you love me you will keep my commands, and my commands are not burdensome” (John 14:15).

17. Who is God?

18. Who is God? What Muslims Believe Allah is One • The absolute Oneness of Allah is primary to Muslims. (tawhid) • The greatest sin is to associate any partner with Allah. • This sin is called shirk.

19. Who is God? What Muslims Believe Allah is One • Muhammad’s message advocating one God was courageous because idolatry was the established religion of Arabia. • Muhammad challenged this system and finally prevailed with the message of monotheism. • Islam is rooted in this commitment to the belief in one God.

20. Who is God? What Muslims Believe Allah Cannot be Compared • Allah is transcendent and cannot be compared to humans or any other created thing. • Allah’s character and attributes are revealed through His 99 Arabic names, the two most common being “The Merciful” and “The Compassionate.”

21. Allah! there is no god but He! To Him belong the Most Beautiful Names. (Qur'an 20:8) • Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: 'To God belongs 99 names, 100 minus 1, anyone who memorizes them will enter Paradise; He (God) is odd (odd number, he is the Only One), and He loves odd numbers (such as 99)'

22. Who is God? What Muslims Believe Allah Cannot be Compared • Allah is never described in Islam by using human family terms such as “father” or “son.” • In the Qur’an he reveals his will for mankind to obey, not his person for mankind to relate with and know.

23. Who is God? What Muslims Believe Allah’s Ultimate Attribute: His Will • Allah creates and sustains all life, spiritual and material; his will is absolute and cannot be questioned by his creation. • Allah is the final judge without a mediator. • The best chance on Judgment Day is for those who live lives of righteousness and submission to Allah’s will — InshaAllah(God willing).

24. The Shahadah:“There is no God but Allah” • But he does not love sinners, nor does he pay for their sins.

25. Allah=God?? Islam has the best view of God outside of Scripture, but it is only a weakened version of what Scripture has already revealed.

26. Allah=God?? Allah is not a loving father. He has no son.

27. Muslims believe: Allah is the greatest name which contains all the divine attributes and is the sign of the essence and cause of all existence. Whoever reads this Name of Allah 1000 times daily, all doubts and uncertainties will be removed from his heart and instead, determination and faith will become inborn in him. Insha-Allah. What Good Then Are The Names of Allah?

28. Muslims Believe that Allah is Sovereign. He is the owner and ruler of the entire universe, visible and invisible, and all of creation from before the beginning and after the end. If read abundantly each day after Zawaal, the reader will be given abundant wealth. Insha-Allah. What Good Then Are The Names of Allah?

29. Muslims believe Allah is the Overpowering Lord He is the repairer of the broken, the completer of the lacking, the One who can enforce His will without any opposition. Anyone who says this Ism 226 times each morning and each evening will be safeguarded against the oppression of tyrants. If anyone engraves it on a silver ring and wears it, his awe and magnificence will become inborn in the hearts of people. Insha-Allah. What Good Then Are The Names of Allah?

30. Jesus says: “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. . . . And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. (Matthew 6:1,5-8)

31.   Can this Allah save anyone? Some Christians speak of the three monotheistic religions as three ways to God, BUT “Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.” (John 5:22,23)

32. “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.” (John 8:23) “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1 John 5:11,12)

33. Allah is no God Islam is based on what Allah is, not on what he does for us. Allah is no Savior. He has no gospel, but only law for those who follow him. He is bound by no law nor by any promise. Muslims state clearly that those who worship Jesus are not worshiping the same God as Muslims worship.

34. The Trinity • Muslims emphatically reject the deity of Christ. • Shirk (association) is the unforgivable sin. • Muslims misunderstand the Trinity as Father, Mary, and their son Jesus (Sura 4:171)