Essay on "Historical Islamic Faith"

Essay 5 pages (1607 words) Sources: 5

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Islamic faith

Islam was founded by Muhammad (April 26, 570 -- June 8, 632), somewhere around 630 A.D., with the purpose of assisting people who were confused regarding spirituality. The religion's leader initially secured its well-being through associating it with the concept of a political power and emphasizing the fact that it could also exercise economic and political activities. Muhammad claimed to have had a series of revelations for approximately 22 years, from 610 to 632 A.D., and used these visions as a material for writing the Koran. The fact that Islam is one of the youngest religions did not stop it from experiencing significant progress and it is presently recognized as the second largest religion.

Muhammad was particularly concerned about how people viewed him and he did not want them to believe that he was supernatural. He emphasized the fact that there was only one God and that he was chosen to be His prophet. Muhammad's reluctance to accept immoral behavior fueled him in going against Arabs living in Mecca. The Islamic calendar starts on July 16, 622, the moment when the prophet lost his main supporters in Mecca and performed the hegira by fleeing to Yathrib. Yathrib was later named Medinat an Nabi (City of the Prophet) in order to honor Muhhamad and the prophet came to rule over the city, both from a political and from a religious point-of-view. The moment when Meccans attacked Medina stands as one of the most important points in the history of Islam, as Muhammed's victory virtually reinforced the Muslim camp. The fight between Meccans and Muslims lasted until 630 and ended as Muhammed entered Mecca destroying all the idols with the exception of the Black Stone in the Kaaba, the main temple. Muhammed decided that the Kaaba should be the most important location for all Muslims and it is from that time on that the people who follow Islam everywhere direct their prayers to the temple. The prophet set a series of teachings and laws meant to guide Muslims in their struggle to act in accordance with spirituality and to prevent them from committing unethical acts. The Qur'an and the Sunnah (Muhammed's teachings) are intended to present Muslims with an understandable lesson regarding how they should behave. Depending on a series of historical factors, certain Muslims have developed a different culture in comparison to mainstream Muslims. The Sunni and the Shia branches of Islam are acknowledged as two of the main groups of Muslims.

Sunnis are named this way because they are convinced that the Sunnah should be the foremost set of teachings influencing the Muslim world. This is possibly because the Qur'an suffered several alterations through time and many of those living contemporary to Muhammad added passages that they considered essential regarding Islam and the prophet. The Sunni consider that the Hadith, the general form of the Sunnah teachings, should be provided with more attention, as it is responsible for generating Qur'anic laws. Also, the Sunni believe that the Shariah, "a combination of legal interpretations of the Qur'an and the Sunnah" (Ridenour, p. 79), needs to be respected by all Muslims. Shariah means law and "it includes prohibitions against eating pork and drinking alcoholic beverages, as well as punishments for stealing, adultery, apostasy (denying Islam) and blasphemy (saying anything derogatory about Islam or Mohammed)" (Ridenour, p. 79). The Sunni consider that there are no visible representatives following Muhammad and individuals representing Islam have to interpret and apply laws in the Sunnah when they act. Imams do not have to be hereditary leaders in order to lead a mosque in Sunni tradition, as any Muslim who is worthy to be appointed Imam apparently deserves the job. Sunni Muslims consider that it would be irresponsible for someone to take up the role of an Imam for the simple fact that the respective individual is a relative to Muhammad. The world Sunni originates in an Arabic expression meaning "the one who follows the traditions of the prophet."

In contrast to Sunni Muslims, Shi'a Muslims consider that it is essential for a religious leader to be connected to Muhammad through blood. Furthermore, most Shi'a Muslims believe that their leaders are divine in character and that their authority should not be contested, regardless of the circumstances. In spite of the fact that some of the traditions they respect are different, the two religious groups generally consider each-other to be true Muslims. The term Shi'a originates in the historical expression "shi'atu Ali," which means "followers of Ali." Ali was Muhammad's cousin and Shi'a Muslims believed that he was the principal individual to act in accordance with the prophet's laws while Sunni Muslims were against this and considered that blood had nothing to do with divine blessing. The majority of Muslims consist out of Sunnis, as approximately 85-90% of the religion's followers belong to the Sunni branch. Although they are the second largest Muslim group, Shi'a Muslims only represent about 10-15% of the religion's followers, with Iran and Iraq being recognized as Shiite countries. Society has had trouble understanding the difference between Sunni and Shi'a Muslims, especially considering that terrorism has recently came to be accepted as a global threat. Whereas the general public previously considered that Shi'a Muslims were primarily responsible for expressing anti-Western beliefs, Osama bin Laden's 9/11 attacks created much confusion because of the fact that he was admittedly a Sunni Muslim. It was then that the world understood that it was not religion that fueled terrorists, as they were actually motivated by false beliefs and disturbed thinking.

There are five concepts that Muslims use with the purpose of supporting Islam and a true Muslim needs to act in accordance with all of them in order to express his or her faith toward God. Muslims call these concepts the Five Pillars of Islam, most probably in order for people to understand that the acts practically fortify the religion. Even with the fact that Shi'a Muslims also respect the ideas that the pillars put across, Sunnis are more concerned about living compliant with these acts.

The First Pillar relates to some of the most important concepts in Islam and to how it is very important for Muslims to believe them. The Islamic world refers to it as the shahadah and it is part of a more general context speaking about how there is only one God and Muhammad is His messenger. "These words are the first whispered to a new baby. A Muslim who is dying will say them, if they are able to speak. Muslims say them when they wake up in the morning, before they go to sleep at night and at every prayer" (Penney, p. 14). These words also have to be recited by a person who wants to convert to Islam and are considered to be a statement of belief.

The Second Pillar of Islam is called Sadat and is represented by the five daily prayers that Muslims have to perform, in the morning, at noon, at mid-afternoon, at sunset, and at evening, before going to sleep. It is customary for them to stop whatever they are doing when it time to pray, stand in a clean place, and face toward the Mecca while praying. Kneeling and bowing is performed in a prearranged manner, as only by acting in agreement with the ceremony will a Muslim be able to perform the Sadat properly.

The Third Pillar is called Zakah and refers to the fact that Muslims should not hesitate about assisting people in need. A Muslim is expected to donate 2.5% of the money that he or she has left after having taken care of his or her basic needs every year. Those who are reluctant about giving money to the poor are apparently acting against Allah. Donations are… READ MORE

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