Islam

Chapter 10

Islam: Key Terms (1)

Islam Muslim Islamist Allah Muhammad Jinn Mecca Medina Al-Aqsa Jerusalem Mosque Grand Mosque Ka’ba Black Stone Qur’an sura Hadith Caliph Ummah Imam Sunni Shi’a\ Shi’ite Sufi Jihad Mujahid Martyrdom Wahhabi Hijrah Byzantine Five Pillars Ramadan Hajj Muezzin Madrasa Shari’ah Hijab Dates: 570 C.E., 622 C.E., 630 C.E., and 632 C.E.

Pre-Islamic Arabian Religion

The story of the birth of Islam: set the stage for its context religiously, culturally, geographically, historically, politically, and socially

At the time of Muhammad’s birth: (7th century C.E.) The Arabian peoples were polytheistic with nature-based deities for sun, moon, stars, and were animistic, with spirits (Jinn) in stones, trees, wells, and animals.

Pre-Islamic Arabian Religion (2)

The Ka’ba shrine (“Ka’ba” means “square” or enclosure) was est. in Mecca, containing over 100 Deities including Hubal, Allah, many more, and even an Icon of Mary and the Christ ChildA Black stone was the focus of the reverence at the Ka’ba, which was believed to have fallen out of heaven, In addition, Mecca was an oasis along the caravan route, thus making Mecca a very important place

economically, culturally, politically,and spiritually

Pre-Islamic Arabian Religion (3)

Mecca was located along the Mecca along the lucrative caravan route (trade).

The Ka’ba shrine created the religious significance for Mecca: the Arabian nomadic peoples regularly made pilgrimages to the Ka’ba

The Story of the Birth of Islam (1):The Birth of Muhammad

Muhammad enters this scene. He was born into this religious and Arabian cultural context, and

Moreover, Muhammad was born strategically, coincidentally, advantageously in Mecca into the prestigious Quraish tribe that controlled the Ka’ba

The Story of the Birth of Islam (2): Muhammad’s Earliest Years

Muhammad born in 570 C.E. the Hashim clan of the tribe of Quraish, Muhammad’s father Abd-Allah died before

Muhammad was born Mother died before he was 6 years old Raised by his uncle abu-Talib but orphaned

The Story of the Birth of Islam (3):More To The Historical/Religious/Political Context

6-7th cent. C.E., the tail end of the Byzantine era Arabian merchants of Mecca controlled the trading

caravans that moved between the Indian ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

Around 600 C.E., a new Persian empire arose fighting the Byzantines and won the Middle East in a sweeping campaign in 614 C.E.

Young Muhammad worked and traveled on the caravans.

In his travels, no doubt was exposed to Christians, Jews, and probably Zoroastrians.

The Story of the Birth of Islam (4):Muhammad’s Early Career/1st Wife

Muhammad as a caravaneer, worked for a wealthy independent woman named Khadija, which was rare in those days

Khadija proposed Muhammad to marry her, and he did

Her wealth afforded Muhammad the time to contemplate theological questions. When in Mecca, he would often go out at night into the hills around, including to a cave. He …

The Story of the Birth of Islam (5):Muhammad’s 1st Revelations

contemplated the fate of his Arab people who were polytheists who worshipped other gods. He was very concerned over the spiritual fate of his people who worshipped many gods and had many idols, whereas the Jews and Christians’ God was one, the God of the Heavens and Earth.

One night while in the Mt. Hirah cave, he received his first revelation which told him to “Recite!”The year was 610. This was the first of many consecutive revelations believed to be from the angel Gabriel. Muhammad was convinced that there was only God, whom his people called Allah. (*Allah in Arabic since the Quran is the word for “God”

The Story of the Birth of Islam(6):Muhammad Formulates New Faith

(originally “Allah” was one of their deities, like the “high god” among indigenous sacred ways

He also became convinced that he was the last of a series of prophets (Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and others) but these former prophets had only an incomplete revelation of Allah.

From its inception, it did not deny the validity of the other religions but rather looked to itself as the completion of the others (c.f. surah 2:136). But Muhammad never saw himself as anything more than a prophet. As the Prophet of Allah, he began to preach his new understanding of religion to the citizens of Mecca.

The Story of the Birth of Islam (7): The New Faith Under Threat

His wife Khadijah was his supporter and the 1st convert to Islam

Meccan economy & their wealth was based on the idol-making & selling to pilgrims to the Ka’ba (pagan festivals). Muhammad’s preaching threatened this system, which threatened their livelihood. Muhammad’s life was therefore threatened, in jeopardy. A group of assassins plotted to take his life. Muhammad sent a group of 1st Muslims to Ethiopia under the protection of a Christian emperor.

Then In 619, he lost his two greatest benefactors: his uncle died and Khadijah is wife died.

The Story of the Birth of Islam (8):The Yathrib Delegation Come

A Turn of Events: Course of History Changed A delegation from Yathrib (Medina), mostly Jewish,

came to Mecca to inquire about the Prophet being their city’s ruler to help resolve their disputes. This delegation was impressed with his honesty, his sense of justice, and the power of his personality, and some of these Jews wondered if he could be the Messiah

The Story of the Birth of Islam (9):The Muslim Migration (Hijrah)

In 622, the migration (Hijrah) of his followers and himself takes place, from Mecca to Medina. (Islamic calendar begins with this date). Muhammad as the mayor of Yathrib gave him greater clout and influence.

The Story of the Birth of Islam (10):Early Muslim-Jewish Relations in Medina

But consequentially, he did meet resistance from Jewish monotheists, and a division did developed between the Jews and the Prophet Muhammad and his followers. Despite the growing tension and disagreements between the Muslims and the Jews in Medina, (any of the Yathrib Jews who initially wondered if Muhammad was the Messiah later gave up on that idea), both groups being monotheists rallied support against the polytheist Meccans, and waged some battles from 624-629, with the Muslim forces growing each year.

The Story of the Birth of Islam (11):Muslims Conquer Mecca

The Muslim forces grew such that the Meccans dared not stop their coming in 629 to pay respects at the Ka’ba stone. Then, in 630, Muhammad conquered Mecca with 10,000 men. He respected the Ka’ba stone but he destroyed the idols and images. With this symbolic act, the Prophet virtually became the sole leader of the Arabian people.In the last 3 yrs of his life, he sent out Quran reciters to convert the Bedouin tribes of the Arabia desert. He sent messages to surrounding nations inviting them to join the community of Islam. And he married yet new

The Story of the Birth of Islam (12):Muslim Forces Take Mecca

wives, some of which was to strengthen political ties. But Muhammad died in 632, in part apparently from the

effects of being poisoned by a Medinan Jewess about 5 years earlier. And he did not leave a successor. This proved to create a systemic problem splitting Islam basically in two. At time of Muhammad’s death, there was confusion over who was going to lead (an innate problem for personality-driven movements). The Muslim community (ummah) ended up choosing his close friend abu-Bakr to be the successor: caliph. “Caliphate” slide below

Factors for the Spread of Islam (1)Historical and Political Factors

Islam appeared and developed at exactly the right time in history for expansion: a political vacuum was created by the wearing down of the Persians and Byzantines fighting, leaving both sides exhausted

The Persian empire was vulnerable. Persian invasion of the Holy Land 612-615, over-riding the Byzantines

The Byzantine Christian empire was on the verge of collapse from internal corruption and mis-rule, and due to high taxes, the indigenous peoples welcomed the Arab Muslim invaders when they did arrive (632 on)

Factors for the Spread of Islam (2)Islam’s Internal Factors

Muhammad sent out envoys throughout the known world to embrace Islam (an appealing message)

The Arab people were ready for a unifying force (political)

The recitations of the Prophet (later compiled into the Quran) gives license to fighting on behalf of the Apostle of God, Muhammad (militant aspect)

Operating with this faith as the true faith, Islam by use of their armies and military action, exploded outside of Arabia its first 100 years (from 632 to 714 C.E.) expanding to control all the Middle East, North Africa, and even reached southern Spain

The Story of the Birth of Islam (13): Compiling the Quran

Muhammad, being illiterate, did not write any of the Quran, but Muslims memorized the recitations, and his secretary Zayd wrote them down on leaves, stones, bones, or parchment. Tradition says that the third Caliph, Uthman, worked with Zayd to develop an authorized version of the Quran. He destroyed all the variant texts that there gathered from all over.

It contains 114 chapters (suras), arranged by the length of each surah from longest to shortest, not topically or historically.

The Quran The Quran is the Holy

Scripture of Islam. “Quran” literally means “reading” or

“recitation.” The title thus indicates the basic belief that Muslims hold upon this book, that it is a recitation of an eternal Scripture, written in heaven and revealed, chapter by chapter, to Muhammad. The first sura (chapter) also begins with “Recite: In the name of the Lord who created…”

The Quran: The Main Beliefs About it

It’s the eternal Scripture of Allah to be recited; It is the word of God: eternal, absolute, and irrevocable; in reciting

it, a Muslim is reciting the words of God It is believed to be God’s last word to humanity: it says

Muhammad is the “Seal of the prophets” It is said to contain the exact words of Allah to the Prophet from 1st

revelation to end of his life. Recitation of the Qu’ran is an important ritual act and source of

Allah’s blessing because it reproduces divine speech (written in Arabic)

Muslims believe that the Qu’ran can be rendered into other languages but not translated.

On God

Allah is revealed as the sovereign God over the entire universe

Religion of Islam demands strict monotheism and requires its followers to say each day, “There is no God but Allah; Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.” (The Shahadah)

Comparative: Judaism is the other notable religion of all the world’s other religions up to this age that insists on such absolute monotheism.

On God and Other Creatures

Allah possesses the characteristics of power, sovereignty, and majesty; he is also characterized by justice and mercy: He will repay the evil with justice and the righteous with mercy.

While Allah alone is God, he is surrounded and aided by other heavenly figures: angels act as his messengers, & his warriors fight at the side of believers.

Jinn: half way between angels and humans creatures: some are beneficial acting as guardians for humans, others are demons. The leader of the evil jinn is the fallen angel called Iblis (believed to be the Arabic word for the Gk. Word diabolis, trans. as the Devil)

On Sin: Human Condition

Islam believes that humans are born naturally good, but some do not submit to God and make bad choices

Two kinds of Sin:1) Shirk: to associate anyone or thing with divinity except for Allah God

2) Kufr: ungratefulness to God, unbelief, atheism

Predestination and Eschatology

Fatalism and predestination has been used to describe Islam, but textbook says its inaccurate to call Islam a fatalistic religion.

When a person dies, their body returns to the earth and their soul goes into a state of sleep until resurrection day. On that day, the angel of Allah will sound his trumpet.

Heaven and Hell: believes similar to Z., J. and C. The only differences are the features that would appeal to or be tasteful to desert dwellers (e.g. a beautiful garden with flowing water and shade for heaven)

Religious Institutions The Mosque: the mainstay and universal Islamic institution

No Temples: not conducive to nomadic Arabs Any building could be used as a mosque, once taken over

by Muslims & orientated by placing the niche called a Miqrab facing toward Mecca

Muhammad decreed Friday to be the special day of Muslim worship, since the Jews had their Sabbath on Saturday and the Christians had their worship on Sunday.

Imams (no temples, no priests): Mosque leaders of Muslim prayer, and some give sermons

In time, educational institutions known as madrasha developed along side large urban

Religious Institutions, continued

Mosques with their Madrasas served as schools and libraries

They offer Quranic instruction, interpretation, Hadith scholarship, theology, law, etc.

Some of these developed into the great Islamic universities: e.g. al Azhar in Cairo, one of the world’s oldest universities, has long been considered the most

important theological school of the Sunni Muslim world.

The Five Pillars

The 5 Pillars are the Obligations:

1. Repetition of the Creed (Shahadah)

2. Daily Prayer (salaht) 5 times a day

3. Almsgiving/ giving to poor/charity (zakaht)

4. Fasting (sawm) – during month of Ramadan

5. Pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj)

The Sacred Places of Islam

#1: Mecca: The Ka’ba in the mosque#2: Medina: final years of the Prophet#3: Jerusalem at the “Noble Sanctuary,

the Al Aqsa Mosque which includes the Dome of Rock and the Al Aqsa building, together which are on the Herodian Temple Mount built by king Herod late 1st cent. B.C.E.

Islam and Women in Muhammad’s Day

The position of women in pre-Islamic Arabia was very low. A woman was considered property owned by her father, husband, or elder brother. Muhammad raised the status of women “significantly,” Hopfe & Woodward Religions of the World textbook says)

The Spread of Islam (2)

After the death of the Prophet, the movement gathered momentum and moved outside Arabia:

Damascus was taken in 635 C.E. Persia fell by 636 C.E. Jerusalem became Muslim in 638 C.E. Egypt and Caesarea taken in 640 C.E. Within a century of the Prophet’s death, Muslim armies

conquered Palestine, Syria, Persia, Egypt, and swept across N. Africa west and into Spain (711 C.E).

The Spread of Islam (3)

In the next centuries it spread throughout the Middle East and moved into India, China, and Central and Southeast Asia.

The several reasons for this rapid & massive expansion: 1. Belief that Islam was a universal religion/ had wide

appeal 2. Political power vacuum in M.E.: Arab Muslims seized

the opportunity to dominate the region 3. Byzantine Christian rulers had mistreated and abused Jews & Arab Christians, therefore, the Muslim

conquerors were received not as invading army but deliverers.

Historical Highlights of Islam

c.a. 570 C.E. birth of Prophet Muhammad 610 C.E. Muhammad receives first of series of

revelations 622 C.E. Hijrah (immigration) of Muslim community

from Mecca to Medina 632 C.E. Death of Prophet Muhammad 633-733 C.E. Rapid spread/growth of Islam 750-1258 C.E. Abbasid Dynasty fr. Baghdad, the

Golden Age of Islam

The Caliphate Caliph (Web. Collegiate Dict.) a successor of

Muhammad as temporal & spiritual head of Islam

Not highly structured in part due to Muhammad not leaving a successor or a plan for a successor of his leadership

No priests, no hierarchy Caliphs are the leaders:, literally means “deputy” or

“representative” to rule the Muslims in temporal matters civil and government, militarily and religiously.

The Caliphate is the one central unifying office in the history of Islam

The First Four Caliphs

Abu-Bahr: 632-634 C.E. Umar: 634-644 C.E. Uthman: 644-656 C.E. Ali: 656-661 C.E.

The Muezzin

One who calls the Muslim community to prayer five times a day

The Divisions in Islam (1)Sunni and Shi’a

The Sunnis- lit. means “tradition” the majority branch in Islam who believe the successors of Muh. are to be chosen by the Muslim community (umma); think of themselves as the guardians of Islamic orthodoxy and tradition; the source and authority: the Qu’ran and the Hadith

The Shi’a-a rupture in Islam, began over political dispute of leadership of Islam (from death of Husayn, grandson of Muhammad,680),Shi’a say leader of Islam is through descendency from Muhammad; also theological differences came: divinely inspired imams, Mahdi, and tend to prize martyrdom.

The Divisions in Islam (2)Sufi

Sufis-the mystics, some of

whom have been killed/martyred

by orthodox Muslims, teach that

the early days of Islam was more

concerned w/ true spiritual matters

but as empire expanded, got more

materialistic

Islamic Taboos

Eating of any pork Dogs (also considered unclean) Eating of birds, beast of prey, donkeys, and

mules Drinking Alcohol Gambling Muslim tradition distinguishes between the

allowed (halal) from the forbidden (haram)

Review of Muslim Beliefs

Allah is the only and supreme, sovereign God of the universe,

And Muhammad was the last Prophet to humankind. The Quran is the eternal, exact word of God as it is in

Arabic, recited to the Prophet; it is irrevocable and the last word to humanity.

Believers must submit to the will of God; those who submit are Muslims.

All souls will be judged by God, believers and those who do good to heaven, and unbelievers and those who do bad to hell.

Review of Muslim Practices:(The 5 Pillars of Islam)

Confessing Muslim creed (Shahadah) daily Daily prayer (5 times a day facing toward Mecca) Almsgiving/charity: to poor, widows, orphans, etc. Fasting during Ramadan (1 month long) Pilgrimage to Mecca (at least once in lifetime) Textbook summarizes this religion as private and

simple (contrasted with Roman Catholic Christianity)

Main Muslim Practices

Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca)

Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca)

Muslim Customs: the Hijab: Head coverings for Women

The Ka’aba Today in Focus

Islam: Calendar and Holy Days

Calendar begins with the year of the Hijrah (immigration, 622 C.E.), abbrev. A.H.

Ramadan-the pillar of fasting is the month long Ramadan

Feast of the Fast Breaking (‘Id al-Fitr)-when Ramadan ends, a feast of food, joy, gifts

Feast of Sacrifice (‘Id al-Adha)-a requirement of the Hajj, animal sacrifice

New Year-in month of Muharram, month of Hijrah Birthday of the Prophet Muhammad

Islam in Modern World & Today

Technologically, the Western world had left the Muslim world behind

Islam has not re-attained its Golden age of the Abbasids era Resurgence in the 20th cent: extreme/aggressive missionary

movement in sub-Sahara Africa Indonesia which is the largest Muslim country Recent years expanding in Western Europe, England, and

the US and Canada Over 1 billion Muslims today around globe Need for Oil and other issues and events that have perked

the interest of Islam in the West.

Islam Today, continued

Islamists actively are engaged to bring Islamic culture and religion to regions they dwell

Now the 2nd largest religion in the U.S. and in many European countries

In most Muslim countries, religious scholars are engaged in the struggle to define a vision of modernity that is based on Islamic values yet compatible with contemporary concepts of human rights and democracy.

Islamic Symbol

Islam: Key Terms (1)

Islam- “submit” Muslim- “one who has submitted to Allah Allah- Arabic simply for “God” Muhammad-the Prophet of Islam, 7th cent. Qur’an-read or recite; Holy Scriptures Hadith-2nd set of Islamic writings authoritative Sunni-conservative division in Islam Shi’a-more radical div. In Islam, claim descendency

Islam: Key Terms (2)

Sufism-the mystical branch within Islam Wahhabi-very conservative, strict modern Arabia movement Ka’ba-black meteorite stone at Mecca enshrined Mosque-the centers for prayer/study Imam-mosque leader of prayers/recitations Caliph-a Muslim ruler, lit. means “deputy” Martyrdom-the giving of one’s life unto death in the name of

Allah in belief of going to heaven Islamist: one who seeks to est. Islamic states in which the

rule of God is supreme

Islam: Review

Who was the founder, where, what century, and how did the religion come about?

What are the main beliefs? What are the main practices? What is the sacred text and the belief about it? What are the taboos? What are its structures and divisions? What is Islam today?

Islam: Discussion/Study Questions

What other religions appear to have had an influence on Muhammad and Islam?

Specifically, what similar beliefs and ideas from other religions do we find in Islam?

Explain the basis for the textbook relating Muhammad’s role like the Hebrew prophets

What are the main factors for the tremendous growth of Islam in the 7th and 8th centuries?

Discussion/Study Questions continued

What factors do we find in Islam that contributed to it becoming one of the largest world religions?

What is required to being a good Muslim? Distinguish between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims. Might Muhammad being poisoned by the Jewish

matron in Medina led him to utter those severe anti-Semitic statements penned in the Quran?