What is Islam and how is it related to Judaism and Christianity?

1. What is Islam and how is it related to Judaism and Christianity? • Islam = “peace,” “submission” • Muslim = “submitter” • Not “Mohammedanism” • Abraham’s two sons: • Isaac  the Hebrews (Judaism  Christianity) • Ishmael  the Arabs (Islam) • Islam respects the two earlier Abrahamic religions as “Peoples of the Book”

2. Who was Muhammad • b. 570 CE, d. 632 CE • Prophet/founder; human, not divine • Lived in Arabia, near Mecca • Orphaned by age 6, raised by grandfather and uncle • Worked as a caravan driver for a woman – Khadija – 15 years his senior • Age 25: accepted offer to marry Khadija • Sired six children, only one daughter – Fatimah – had children of her own • Age 40: Revelation begins 610 CE, continues throughout remainder of the Prophet’s life

3. What is the Qur’an? • Holy book of Islam • Revealed to Muhammad by God through angel Gabriel • Written piecemeal by scribes during or shortly after Muhammad’s life • Compiled as a whole about 20 years after Muhammad’s death • Comprised of 114 chapters (called surahs) (listen to the opening surah: The Fatiha) • Other Sources: Hadith and Sunnah (stories, sayings, and traditions of Muhammad) • Qur’an + Hadith and Sunnah = Shariah (Islamic Law)

4. The Development of Islam • Early persecution by Meccans • Year 619: wife and uncle both die • Year 622: Hijrah - migration to Yathrib (Medina = “City of the Prophet”) (year 1 AH) • Success in Medina, defense against Meccan attacks • Year 630: Reclaiming of Mecca • Year 632: first Muslim pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca, led by Muhammad who died a few months later, having united the Arab tribes under the banner of Islam • Within 100 years, spread east toward India and west into north Africa and Spain

5. Muslims in America today Who are Muslims? • More than one billion Muslims in the world today • Two major groups: • Sunni: 80% in many locations throughout the world • Shi’ite: 15%, mostly in Iran • Difference is political, basic beliefs and practices are the same • Sufis are Muslim mystics, come from both Sunni and Shi’ite backgrounds • Most Muslims are not Arab and not all Arabs are Muslim (stats)

6. What do Muslims Believe? • One God (Allah) • Spiritual beings: • Angels, Jinn and the Devil (“Iblis,” “Shaitan”) • Prophets & Messengers: • Adam, Abraham, Moses, David, Jesus, Muhammad… • Holy Books: • Torah, Psalms, Gospels, Qur’an • Decrements (destiny) – Inshallah (“if God wills”) • End Times (eschatology) • Resurrection, Judgment day, Heaven & Hell

7. How is Islam Practiced?The Five Pillars • Shahada – Witness: • “There is no God but The God (Allah) and Muhammad is the Prophet of God • Salat – Prayer, five times every day • Zakat– alms giving to the poor and needy • Sawm– fasting, sun-up to sun-down during month of Ramadan • Hajj– Pilgrimage to Mecca (at least once in a Muslim’s life, if able)

8. Feast Days • Eid-al-Fitr - Feast at the close of the Ramadan fast • Eid-al-Adha - Feast of Sacrifice, at the close of the annual Hajj

9. What is the Ka’aba? • Located in the center of Mecca • Pre-dates Islam (said to have been built by Abraham and Ishmael as an altar to God) • Used by pre-Muslim Arabs for worship of their many tribal gods (idols) • Year 630: reclaimed by Muhammad, cleansed and rededicated to Allah • Center of Islam to this day – place of annual pilgrimage and direction of prayer for Muslims from all corners of the globe

10. The Great Mosque in Mecca The Prophet’s Mosque in Medina The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem Muhammad’s Night Journey Other Sacred Places

11. What is a Mosque? • A place for prayer, study, socializing • No shoes in prayer hall • Women cover head, separate from men • Wudu room for ritual cleansing before prayer • Minaret for call to prayer (Adhaan) • Prayer hall oriented toward Mecca (qibla) • Imam (prayer leader) stands in mirahb(niche)

12. Islam as a Way of Life Shariah (Islamic Law) • Based on Qur’an + Hadith and Sunnah • Concerned with preserving human dignity through five principles: • preservation of life • preservation of progeny (family) • preservation of intellect (education) • preservation of wealth (property) • preservation of religion • not just for the individual but for the society

13. Prohibitions Halal (permissible) and Haram (prohibited) • No eating of pork (other dietary regulations = halal) • No gambling • No intoxicants • No fornication (homosexuality, adultery, prostitution, etc.) • No usury (charging or paying interest on loans) (the rich shall not profit from helping the poor)

14. What about Jihad? • “Struggle” not “Holy War” • Inner: spiritual and moral struggle between good and evil • Outer: struggle to maintain proper social setting according to God’s will • Struggles in the Holy Land • Palestinian vs. Israeli, not Muslim vs. Jew (political, not religious)

15. Wearing Hijab in America What about Women in Islam? • Respected and Protected by Men • “Modest dress” for both men and women • “Hijab” differs from culture to culture • Heavy cover and veil not a religious requirement

16. Rights of Women • Right to vote (citizenship) • Right to inherit • Right to work, earn and keep her own money • Right to keep her own name in marriage • Right to initiate divorce • Right to refuse additional wives • Female infanticide outlawed

17. Resources: • Jannah.org http://www.jannah.org/ • World Assembly of Muslim Youth http://www.wamy.co.uk/ • Discover Islam Online http://www.discover-islam-online.com/ (posters) PBS Documentaries: • Islam: Empire of Faith http://www.pbs.org/empires/islam/ • Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet http://www.pbs.org/muhammad/ • Muslims (Frontline): http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/muslims/