ISLAM

Islam comes from a derivation "salem" meaning "peace" or "surrender"

Ten Interesting Facts

Early Islamic Culture contributed greatly to some societies through higher education (Morocco), literacy, philosophy, mathematics, art and architecture

There's an empty place next to Muhammad's Tomb (the Honorable Rawdah) reserved for Jesus' burial, once he returns to kill the Antichrist and rules for 40 years, then dies. They reject his resurrection, because Islam teaches Jesus did not actually die (Surah 4:158) but ascended like Elijah to heaven

Marriage between even First Cousins is not uncommon in Islam. This girl was married at age 9 and divorced at 10. Muhammad's youngest wife, Aisha, was 6 at marriage and 9 at consummation. He was 53.

In Saudi Arabia, UAE, Sudan, Brunei, Qatar and others, people who abandon Islam and convert to another religion may face the death penalty

Islamic law divides food and other products into three different types: 1) Halal (allowed), 2) Makruh (permissible but discouraged), and 3) Haram (forbidden, such as pork, carnivorous animals, certain types of cheese, and anything that causes addiction, such as alcohol).

Muslims Accept that Jesus was Virgin Born, but call him "Son of Mary" to eliminate God as Father
Quran, Surah 19:16-34; 21:91

The Quran teaches Jesus was without sin ["faultless", Arabic: zakiyya], but said Muhammad and all others sinned
Surah 19.19; Surah 47:19; Surah 28:16; Surah 26:82

Muslim literature, including the Quran, affirms Jesus will have a Second Coming
Surah 43:61

Muhammad and Islam never claimed him to perform a miracle
Surah 6:37; 10:20; 13:7

In Islam, marriage is seen as a contract, not a covenant. Muslim faith provides for divorce more easily than Christian faith, but divorce rates in the US are about the same among Christians and Muslims (low 30%)

Things You Should Know

Keep In Mind

• "Muslims" are the people
• "Islam" is the religion itself
• "Mohammedanism" is an older term considered insulting to many Muslims
• "Islam" means 'peace' or 'surrender'
• "Muslim" means "one who submits"
• 15% of Muslims worldwide are Arab

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• Birth rates and world conversion rates make it a fast growing religion
• Muslim women typically keep their family name when married
• Muslims consider Islam a "way of life" [deen] not a religion
• The first US Mosque came to Iowa in 1934 with 1200 now in the US
• About 8-10M Muslims live in the US

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• Except for family, Muslim women are not to touch or shake hands with men
• Dogs, especially dog saliva, is considered especially unclean and require washings when touched
• Menstruation is considered impure to Muslims, and women may not join in public prayers during that time

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• Images or depictions of Muhammad are forbidden and offensive to Muslims
• The strict sexual-visual restrictions of Islam often have the opposite effect
• Tattoos for Muslims are taboo. Converts may keep or remove them
• Females plucking eyebrows for greater beauty is considered forbidden (haram)
• Islam is primary in some 60 nations

Online Muslim Dating Sites like "Muslima" Exist to Connect Islamic Men and Women

US Muslim Ethnicity

Five Pillars of Islam

1. Repetition of the Creed (Shahada)

“There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad (also spelled Mohammed, Mohammad) is His Prophet.”

The ancient Arabic words "al ilah"
(The God) predate Islam. "Allah" is the only Arabic word for 'God.' So even though Arab Christians and Arab Muslims are speaking of two different concepts-meanings of God, they use the same word, "Allah"

2. Prayer (Salat)
1-3-5x a day

An appointed person climbs the minaret 5 times daily and issues four directional (N,S,E,W) calls to prayer

What Happens at Prayer

• Call to Prayer is issued
• People drop everything to pray
• People face Mecca (Makkah)
• People stand as Quran is read
• People bow to give Allah glory
• People prostate up to 3x
• People sit, prayers continue, then end
• These are all done in unison

3. Fasting (Sawm)

Fasting from Food and even Sex, especially during 30 Days of Ramadan

The Muslim calendar is made up of 12 lunar months, each lasting between 29-30 days (or 354 days a year). For that reason, 103 Muslim years are the equivalent of 100 solar years. So, though Muslims celebrate Ramadan annually, it occurs at a different time for those following a solar (or Julian) calendar. Muslims date their years from After Hijrah (A.H.) meaning the migration of Muhammad from Medina to Mecca

4. Almsgiving (Zakat)

Each Muslim is expected to provide 1/40 of his income (about 2.5%) to the poor and needy (giving alms). Some countries take alms as a tax, others treat it as a freewill offering

5. Pilgrimage (Hajj)

Called the Hajj, each able-bodied Muslim is expected to visit the “holy” city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia (and other cities) to re-trace the steps of the Prophet Muhammad at some time during one’s lifetime. Sometimes Muslims will spend their entire life savings in order to be faithful to this requirement

The Kaaba's (Stone Building) cornerstone is the Black Stone, a meteorite believed to fall at the feet of Adam and Eve

Major Pilgrimage Sites

Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Black Stone sent by Allah as Covenant to Abraham & Ishmael, a Sign of Islam's Legitimacy

Medina, Saudi Arabia

Muhammad fled to Medina in 622 and overtook it. He set up the Islamic Caliphate (global rule) and is buried there

Jerusalem, Israel

Islam teaches of the "Night Journey" (Isra and Miraj, from Surah 17:1) where Muhammad rode a mythical winged steed (horse-or-camel-like animal) from Mecca to Jerusalem's temple, ascended to heaven, then returned to Mecca

The problem is that the 621AD journey to the Jerusalem mosque (Masjid al Aqsa) involves a building that did not exist until 691, plus Muhammad's cousin Fatikhe and wife Aisha said it was a vision and not physical. The current teaching developed in 1876, 1100 years later (see note 1)

Who Was Muhammad?

The earliest mention of Muhammad was a Greek history writing about the Arab invasion Syria, rejecting him, saying God's prophets do not come leading invasions "with sword and chariot"

Most Information about Muhammad began to be written about 4-5 generations after his death at age 63

Muhammad

• Born in 570 to a widow who died when he was 6, and raised by his uncle
• At 25, he married a wealthy 2x divorced widow
• After her death, he married a total of more than 15 women, plus concubines in his harem, some taken as slaves
• He reportedly visited all his women in a single night (the prowess of 30 men)

Muhammad

• Had 7 children, all with his 1st wife
• Originally, Ubu’l-Kassim, he renamed as "the Praised One" (Muhammad)
• At 40 in AD 610 in Mecca in the month of Ramadan he reportedly received revelation from Gabriel. He was named God’s Prophet, to correct and finalize the teachings of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus, the Six Great Prophets.

About the Qu'ran

About the Qu'ran

• The Quran (Koran) is not Muhammad's biography-- it helps us understand what was going on in his mind
• Because the Quran is considered "dictated" from God, it appears in Arabic and Muslims expect people to learn Arabic to read it in the original language, each verse is considered a "sign from God"

About the Qu'ran

• Slightly shorter than the NT
• Organized from longer to shorter "Surahs"
• No Muslim challenges the Quran's authority. They consider it the absolute, irrevocable Word of God— the Last Word to Humanity

About the Quran

• It is more like "God" than about God
• Children sometimes memorize the entire book
• It is used as an Arabic textbook
• It is read upon a Muslim birth and quoted at death
• It covers a 23 year period of time

MUSLIM BELIEFS

About Jesus

• Jesus (Isa, Arabic) is said to be a great prophet, second only to Muhammad.
• Virgin Born and Exhibited Miracles
• Muslims teach Christ did not claim divinity
• His death was only apparent— it was Judas Iscariot (or Simon of Cyrene)

About Sin

• People are fundamentally good, not inheriting Original Sin
• Some Muslims teach that Muhammad was sinless, others do not
• After Satan tempted Adam (not Eve), he sinned, but was pardoned
• Each person will answer to God by trying to balance the scale of good and evil

Taboos

• All types of intoxicating drinks are forbidden (wines, spirits, liquors of any type)
• They are not to eat swine, carnivores, rodents, reptiles, worms, etc.
• Having Pets other than Cats (Muhammad loved cats)
• Gambling, Lottery, Games of Chance

Taboos

• Homosexuality
• Staring at the opposite sex or making friends with them, premarital sex
• Eating or washing with your left hand
• Wearing clothes showing knees or higher

Salvation

• Salvation is by works.
• Those faithful to Islam’s sacred law (Shari’a), go to an oasis-like paradise, while sinners go to an indescribable hell and drink boiling water.
• Unfaithful Muslims will go to hell for a time, then will ultimately be liberated by Allah. (Quran 56:1-56)

Salvation

• About heaven, the Prophet Muhammad was heard saying: 'The smallest reward for the people of paradise is an abode where there are 80,000 servants and 72 wives'

Muslim Practices

Understanding Coverings

Different coverings (hijab) are used as expressions of modesty, by women and less often by men. Originally upper class Muslim women wore them, until about 4 generations after the time of Muhammad

6 Types of Hijab

• Hijab: head and neck
• Shayla: head, tucked at neck
• Khimar: head, neck, shoulders
• Chador: head to foot
• Niqāb: Visible eyes with Khimar
• Burqa: mesh screen over face

Hands, face, mouth, and feet are washed by Muslims upon entering the Mosque

More Facts

• Islam has no priests or sacraments
• Women pray outside the main hallway of the mosque, usually a side room
• On the holy day, Friday, the imam leads a sermon; other days he leads prayer
• Mosque (masjid) are "places of prostration"

Controversial Beliefs

Female Genital Mutilation is widely practiced (200M victims by 2016 according to UNICEF Report)

Jihad and Extremist Islam

State Sponsors of Terror

• This is a phrase meaning any nation-state who directly or indirectly facilitates, allows, or fails to prosecute terrorist acts or groups
• The US Government has designated Iran, Syria, and the Sudan as such

Extremist Groups

• There are dozens. Primary ones are:
• ISIS/ISIL (Iraq/Syria)
• Al Qaeda (Yemen, Other)
• Boko Haram (Nigeria)
• Al Shabab (Somalia)
• Taliban (Afghan/Pakistan)
• Ansar al Sharia (Lybia-Tunisia)
• Abu Sayyaf (Philippines)

Jihadist Ideology

Jihadist Ideology

• The World is Divided into Two Spheres:
• House of Islam (Islamic nations, Sharia Law areas)
• House of War (non-Islamic)

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• The Global Goal is to Unite the World into the House of Islam
• It assumes that all Muslims are bound and this identity transcends all other loyalties, even if violence is required

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• The establishment of a global Islamic state is called the Caliphate, ruled by a Caliph, where no legislature or government exists-- only global Sharia/Quran

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• To establish "Ummah" (global Islam), political and military groups exist all over to bring these about
• Examples: Hamas (Palestine) and Hezbollah (Iran and N Iraq), PLO (Fatah), and the Muslim Brotherhood
• The means to this is Jihad (Struggle) in peaceful or violent ways

Nothing is Too Extreme

• Explosives in Children's Backpacks
• Explosives in Kids' bike tubes
• Bombing Weddings
• Public Executions
• Children as Young as 8 have been kidnapped, tortured, & executed

Nothing is Too Extreme

• Torture with electrical shock, beatings, floggings
• Crucifixion, thrown off buildings, burned alive
• Sexual slavery, rape, exile, forced conversion

Islamist Percentages

• A Pew Study showed 13%(Eastern Europe)-76% (South Asia) of Muslim areas held extremist views
• 8% to 99% of Muslim areas want Sharia Law instituted
• This involved 38,000 face to face interviews in 2013

Muslim Infighting

• Muhammad didn't name a successor
• Two factions emerged: Shiite (Shia) and Sunni (and later a third, Sufi)
• Shia want Caliphs and Ayatollahs to be descended from Muhammad's Bloodline
• Sunnis accept any leader of any Muslim heritage and are looking for the "Madhi" a leader to create a Caliphate
• Funding comes from oil sales and the black market sale of stolen antiquities

Q & A

Discussion Questions

• Islam believes in One God, but not a Trinity. Explain the difference.
• Islam believes Jesus is the second-best prophet. Why is it offensive to call Jesus only a prophet?

Discussion Questions

• Christians are not expected to learn Greek and Hebrew, but Muslims are expected to learn Arabic. What do you make of this? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each approach?

Discussion Questions

• What are your concerns about Extremist Islam?
• Islam teaches salvation by 'works' (personal effort), meaning Islam has no savior. How is Christianity different?

Sources

• http://facts.randomhistory.com/islam-facts.html
• http://bit.ly/1mPYZcZ
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/edwardmusiak/11133556913/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/ouadio/12292419565/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/3198997800/

Sources

• http://www.answering-islam.org/Gilchrist/uniqueness.html
• http://www.factslides.com/s-Islam
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/craig-considine/overcoming-historical-amnesia...
• http://www.state.gov/j/ct/list/c14151.htm
• https://lebanonglc.wordpress.com/2014/10/08/expressing-oneself-through-body...

Sources

• (1) http://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/nightjourney.htm and http://religionresearchinstitute.org /mohammad/ascension.htm
• https://www.opendemocracy.net/faith-europe_islam/mohammed_3866.jsp
• http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Fisher/Topical/index.htm

Sources

• https://wikiislam.net/wiki/List_of_Muhammads_Wives_and_Concubines
• Hopfe, Lewis. Religions of the World, 5th ed. New York: MacMillan
• Dribble, R. F. Mohammed. Garden City, NJ: Garden City Publishing, 1926
• http://arabsinamerica.unc.edu/identity/veiling/hijab/

Sources

• https://www.reddit.com/r/atheism/comments/2y1u9n/list_of_things_muslims_con...
• http://www.pewforum.org/2012/08/09/the-worlds-muslims-unity-and-diversity-e...

Image Credits

• https://www.flickr.com/photos/haniamir/1576894929/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/mohammedj/5180004475/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/lain32/8118861878/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/klebtahi/3931316620/

Image Credits

• https://www.flickr.com/photos/brokendrumphotography/2324386385/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/azwegers/6362307027/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/josepcastell/15417550071/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/ninedragons/6769478303/

Image Credits

• https://www.flickr.com/photos/lucadevito/4467077224/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/etienne_valois/15323469835/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/omarsc/7813126052/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/t_abdelmoumen/5221133899/

Image Credits

• https://www.flickr.com/photos/defenceimages/15013106350/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/archer10/7846825950/
• https://www.flickr.com/photos/janodecesare/5327872299/
• Muhammad's Grave By Aiman titi - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14494092