Islam is one of the three major monotheistic religions, along with Christianity and Judaism. It is the world’s second largest religion behind Christianity. There are over 1 billion Muslims worldwide. The country with the largest number of Muslims is Indonesia. Most Muslims are non-Arabs.

Islam means "submission", which refers to submission to Allah. Muslim is the name of the follower of the religion. A Muslim (or Muslima, if a woman) is a person who submits to God.

In the past, Islam was incorrectly referred to as Muhammadanism, which suggests that Muslims worship Muhammad. Although they highly revere Muhammad, they do not worship him.

Key Facts

Founder: Muhammad (570 CE- 632 CE)

Date founded: Muhammad had a series of visions over a period of 22 years starting in 610 CE

Place founded: The Arabian Peninsula (modern day Saudi Arabia); Mecca and Medina are two major cities that played a central role in the development of Islam.

Sacred texts: The Qur'an (also known as the Koran) is the primary holy book in Islam. It contains the revelations to Muhammad from Allah and the Hadith, which is a collection of sayings of Muhammad..

Primary Beliefs

Belief in God – Allah is the Arabic word for God. Allah is called the "the Merciful", "the Compassionate", "oft forgiving".

Theology (view of God): Allah (God) is the Supreme Being. He is the one and only God. He is the creator and judge.

View of the afterlife: All people will be resurrected for the Day of Judgment. Based upon beliefs and deeds, a person either goes to Paradise (heaven) or Hell. If a person’s good deeds outweigh the bad, then he will go to Paradise (Sura 23:102-103).

Belief in angels – God’s servants.  The angel Gabriel revealed the Qur’an to Muhammad.

Belief in Scriptures – The Qur’an is the ultimate authority and source of truth. The Torah and the Gospel are also honored by Muslims.

Belief in prophets – Muhammad is called "the Seal of the Prophets"(the last prophet). The Qur’an mentions numerous prophets from the Bible, including Abraham, Moses and Jesus.

Belief in a day of judgment – All people will be judged by God on the Last Day. Their fate will be either Paradise (heaven) or Fire (hell).

The 5 pillars of faith are central to Islam’s belief system. The 5 pillars are the profession of faith, prayer, charity, fasting, and the hajj.

Profession of faith: "There is no true god but God (Allah), and Muhammad is the Messenger (Prophet) of God."This is known as the shahada. It is by saying the shahada with sincerity that a person becomes a Muslim.

Prayer – Muslims are to pray 5 times a day, each time facing Mecca.

Charity (also known as alms-giving or zakat) – Muslims give 2.5% of their wealth each year to the community.

Fasting – Muslims must fast every day during the month of Ramadan from sunrise to sunset. During the fast Muslims are to refrain from eating, drinking liquids, smoking, and sex.

• The Qur’an is divided into 114 chapters called "suras".  Each sura is numbered 1 through 114.
• Each sura has a title, based on a key word in the sura.
• After the first sura, most Qur’ans are organized, from the longest sura to the shortest.
• The first sura consists of the shahada.
• It is about the same length as the Christian New Testament.
• Was revealed to Muhammad by Allah through the angel Gabriel.
• Only the Arabic version is considered authoritative.
• Emphasizes belief in Allah.
• Includes many prescriptions for moral living.
• Contains revelations from two major periods in Muhammad’s life – one during the Mecca period and one during the Medina period.
• Contains many references to Jews and Christians and to biblical prophets, such as Abraham, Moses and Jesus.
• One sura is about Mary, the mother of Jesus.
• Includes some stories about Jesus and Mary that are not in the Bible.
• The authoritative version was collected by Caliph Uthman between 644 – 656 CE
• The Qur’an does not say that a person who dies for the cause of Islam gets a multitude of virgins in Paradise.

Muhammad

• Born in 570 CEin Mecca.
• Died in 632 CEof natural causes.
• Was uneducated and illiterate.
• Considered God’s last and greatest prophet.
• Referred to as "The Messenger"and the "Seal of the Prophets".
• Received messages from God over a period of 23 years, starting at age 40.
• Memorized what the angel Gabriel told him. In turn, Muhammad’s associates wrote down what Muhammad told them.
• At age 25 he married a 40-year old woman, Khadija
• After Khadija’s death, Muhammad married again and had 7 or more wives. One of his wives was a 9-year old girl, Aisha (source: www.textbookleague.org/72proph.htm). The Qur’an, however, permits up to 4 wives at the same time (Sura 4:3).

Sects

Sunni – About 90% of Muslims are Sunni.  The guiding principle of Sunnis is consensus (to find agreement).  Believe that Abu Bakr was Muhammad’s successor because he was chosen by consensus of the community.

Shiite – About 10% of Muslims are Shiite (Shi’i).  Most Shiites live in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine.  Shiites believe that Ali, Muhammad’s close relative, was Muhammad’s successor.

Sufism – A form of Islamic mysticism.  Rumi was a famous Sufi poet (he died in 1274 CE)

Wahabbism - "Wahhabism is the name given to the branch of Islam practiced by those who follow the teachings of Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab. Wahhabi theology treats the Qur'an and Hadith as fundamental texts. Wahhabis see their role as restoring Islam from what they perceive to be polytheism and innovations, superstitions, deviances, heresies and idolatries."(source: Wikipedia). It is prevalent in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.

Customs

• Muslims take their shoes off when entering a house.
• Muslims do not eat pork.
• Muslims do not drink alcohol.
• It is prohibited to make an image of Allah or Muhammad.
• Muslims say "Peace be upon him" whenever they speak of Muhammad or Jesus.
• When talking with a Muslim, a sign of respect is to refer to Muhammad as the "prophet Muhammad".
• It is not respectful to shake the hand of a Muslim woman.

Islam in the Media

The Message – a Hollywood-produced movie about the founding of Islam.

Similarities with Christianity

• Monotheistic
• Revere Jesus (Jesus is a prophet)
• Revere many Old Testament prophets, such as Moses and Abraham
• Revere the Bible
• Believe in angels, heaven and hell
• Believe in the Virgin Birth of Jesus and his miracles

Differences with Christianity

• Don't believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
• Don't believe Jesus died on the cross or rose from the dead.
• View Christianity as tritheistic, not monotheistic.
• Believe that the Bible has been altered by the Jews and Christians.

Key Terms

Abrogation – The correction of an earlier-written verse by a later-written verse.

Burka – an outfit that covers the entire body; worn by Muslims in/from countries that have a strict code of behavior, such as Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia.

CAIR – The Center for American Islamic Relations.   A Muslim advocacy organization in the United States.

Calendar – The Muslim calendar begins on July 16, 622 CE

The Crusades – A series of Christian military conquests, which included the capture of Jerusalem from the Muslims.  Muslims seized control of Jerusalem from the Byzantines in 638 CE

Dome of the Rock – A Muslim holy site in Jerusalem.  The location where Muhammad was taken up to heaven.

Fatwah – A legal ruling based on reasoning from the Qur’an.

Hijrah – The Hijrah is known as the "flight" of Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina in 622 CEThis event represents the start of the Muslim calendar (year 1).

Iman – A prayer leader and teacher.

Jerusalem – The location of Muhammad’s Night Journey and Ascension.  Early Muslims faced Jerusalem when praying.  Sura 2:139.

Jihad – Means striving or struggle.  There are several types of jihad, including jihad of the pen, jihad of the tongue, jihad of the mind, and jihad of the sword.

Kabba – A cubic structure in Mecca, around which the Hajj is celebrated.  Before Islam took root, many gods were worshipped at the Kabba by pagan and polytheistic worshippers.  Muslims claim it was a place of worship for Abraham.

Mecca – A city in Saudia Arabia.  The holiest city in Islam.  The location of the Kabba and the city in which Islam began.   The birthplace of Muhammad.

Medina – The city in Saudi Arabia to which Muhammad and his followers fled in 622 CEMedina became the primary city of refuge for Muhammad’s followers.  In Medina Muhammad gained new converts to Islam and established political power. 

Muezzin – The man who calls Muslims to prayer each day.  Muezzins call from the mosque, oftentimes from the minaret.

Nation of Islam – An African American religious organization founded in 1930 in the United States.  It mixes traditional Islamic teaching with African American nationalism.  It’s adherents include Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X and Louis Farrakhan.

People of the Book – A reference in the Qur’an to Jews and Christians.

Prophets – The 3 most important prophets in Islam are Moses, Jesus and Muhammad
.

Shari’ah – A system of law based on the Qur’an and the Sunna (a record by Muhammad’s companions of his sayings and actions).

Sunnah – The traditions of Muhammad.

Taliban – A sect of Islam fundamentalists with a strict code of ethics and laws.  Women have few rights under Taliban rule.  The Taliban ruled in Afghanistan until the recent U.S.-led war in Afghanistan.

Sources: Encyclopedia Americana International Edition. Scholastic Library Publishing, Danbury, 2004.