“Complete, trusting surrender to God” Essay

Although the Quran, its sacred text, was but revealed to their Prophet Muhammad more than than vanadium centuries subsequently the terminal of the Nazarene, Islamics trace the beginnings of Islam to the time of Abraham. correspond to them, the series of revelations of the Quran which started in 610 CE in a cave in Mount Hira, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, marked only the renaissance of a religion which sank into insignificance when the people of Mecca jilted the mo nonheism preached by Abraham.The Islamic claim further states that being the original religion, it provided the foundations for the suppuration of Judaism and Christianity. (fisher. 2005. Islam) Since the time of the first revelation in Mount Hira, Islam has rapidly heavy(p) to become the second-largest religious denomination in the land, next only to Christianity, claiming a sideline of almost twenty percent of the worlds population. However, its egress has been temporarily slowed down, particularly in the United S tates, by the effects of the American war a seducest little terrorism which is evidently directed against Moslems.This U. S. -orchestrated anti-terrorism war, coupled with the dearth of knowledge about Islam, has severely alienated the Moslems from the rest of the non- Islamic world. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Yusuf (n. d. ) give tongue to that majority of the Muslims are convinced that term the U. S. govern manpowert has been blaming terrorism on Islam for age, it was the 9/11 incident which dealt the most telling blow on the credibility and paper of their religion. This was because the international media was able to depict that m each Muslims around the world rejoiced after that incident.The truth is, however, that majority of the Muslim world was saddened by that incident and the repercussions it caused. They would equivalent to tell the world that terrorism is non an official policy of Islam and that, in fact, Muslims withal consider terrorists as enemies of their religi on. He laments the fact that When a wild Christian does something terrible, e truly bingle in the West knows it is the actions of a mad man because they wee some knowledge of the core beliefs and ethics of Christianity.When a mad Muslim does something evil or foolish they assume it is from the religion of Islam, not because they shun us but because they boast neer been told by a Muslim what the teachings of Islam are wholly about. Muslims are also complaining about the port non-Muslims invariably confuse them with Arabs. According to them, while most Arabs are Muslims, less(prenominal) than 20% of Muslims have Arab blood. (Almuslimin. org) Allah is the only authority of this religion.Muhammad was only the messenger and oracle with whom he entrusted the sacred texts foretelled the Quran in a series of revelations and who, three years after the first revelation occurred, preached them to the people check to his instruction and his entrust. However, Muhammad was the exerci se model for all Muslims. His life story and his sayings were saved in the hadith for every Muslim to learn from and emulate. The central teachings of Islam are oneness of immortal and of humanity visionaryhood and the compass of Islam human relationship to the divine belief in the unseen life and belief in the Last Judgment.(Fisher, 2005. Islam) Islam teaches that there is only one God. This is why the first quarrel spoken to a Muslim infant are the words of the Shahadah la ilaha ill-Allah Muhammad-un Rasulu-llah ( on that point is no perfection but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God). God may be called by more names, but all the attributes assigned to those different names adjudge up the totality of the One God. They contend that there must be absolute unity among all men of all races because they are all brothers under the one God, and no one race should consider itself the elect race.Islam teaches that the individual should be one with God, therefore his or her tho ughts and deeds should always be inspired by God. This oneness of God and of humanity was very emphatically expressed by Abu Hashim Madami, an Indian Sufi sage, when he state that There is only one thing to be gained in life, and that is to reckon God with each breath and there is only one acquittance in life, and that is the breath drawn without the remembrance of God. (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 373) All the prophets from Abraham to Jesus Christ are honored, but they maintain that Muhammad was the last prophet sent by God with the final message.This direction, therefore, that the Quran sums up all the messages from God so Islam should complicate all religions, including Christianity and Judaism which also trace their roots to Abraham. They think that God created the existence for a purpose and set down laws to govern everything. For this reason, man could subsist in peace only if he recognizes these laws and abide by them. They turn out the existence of the angels, particula rly Gabriel, whom they credit with bringing the messages of God. They believe that Satan exists but as they believe that there are saints.For them, the Last Judgment means that dead Muslims are allowed some rest before being raised from the grave for the final reckoning, after which the sinners and the unbelievers are sent to hell. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Their basic practices constitute of what they call the Five Pillars of Islam, namely Beliefs and witness Daily prayers Zakat Fasting and Hajj. every(prenominal) Muslim, without resorting to the use of force or intimidation, are obliged to spread the words of Islam so that other people may know about it, complete it, and use the knowledge to guide them in choosing their faith.Prayers should be recited five clock a day while facing the direction of Mecca. It is believed that requiring every Muslim to face Mecca symbolizes unity among the devotees of Islam around the world, while the daily prayer emphasizes Islams teaching that e very Muslim should remember God everyday of his or her life. Zakat, the third pillar, means spiritual tithing and almsgiving. Muslims are enjoined to help the poor by donating part of their annual income to charities of their choice.The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for example, channels its contribution through and through the Islamic Relief Organization which aids people around the world regardless of their religion. Every year, the first Quranic revelation is celebrated with a month-long fast called Ramadan. All able Muslims are needed to abstain from food, drink, sexual intercourse, and sess from dawn to dusk. Although fasting during Ramadan is an obligation, fasting, per se, is advised from time to time because it provides an individual with a Transparent Soul to Transcend, a Clear Mind to think and a Light Body to move and act. The last Pillar the hajj is a pilgrimage which is expected of every Muslim who is financially and physically surefooted even only one time during th eir lifetime. Their pilgrimage destination is Mecca, where their holiest insane asylum, the Kabah, is located. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Muhammad, whose name was taken from the Arabic word hamada which means to adulation, to glorify, was born in Mecca, Western Arabia, in 570 CE to Abd bin Al-Muttalib and Amina bint Wahb. (Kikim Media. n. d.) His parents were believed to be descendants of Abraham and Hagar, the Egyptian slave who mothered Abrahams son, Ishmael. The story goes that Abraham fled to Mecca with Hagar and Ishmael after his wife, Sarah, also gave stand to a deflower boy (Isaac) and became extremely jealous of Hagar and Ishmael. Abraham later built the Kabah, Islams holiest sanctuary and now the destination of pilgrims during the hajj, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, with the assistance of his son, Ishmael. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) The birth, life, and demise of Muhammad squeeze the world of Islam differently.His birth in 570 CE also signaled the rebirth of Islam which sank into u nimportance for centuries when the people of Mecca rejected Abrahams monotheistic Quran religion. His life as a preacher which began three years after the start of the revelations resulted to a rejuvenated Muslim world. The flight of the Muslims to Medina (or the hijrah) which he orchestrated in order for them to escape persecution from the detention of the Qurayshites of Mecca was what strengthened Islam as soon as they had make upd in Medina. This later enabled them to raise a strong army to capture Mecca from the Qurayshites.However, while he re-established Mecca as the holy sanctuary of Islam, Muhammad himself chose to live in Medina. While his birth signaled the rebirth of Islam and his life rejuvenated their religion, his death in 632 CE in Medina caused a split in the Muslim world between what we now call the Shia and Sunni Muslims because of the issue of succession. Most of the surviving Muslims believed that although Muhammad was able to tell his chase what to do after hi s death, he failed to appoint his successor. Thus, the majority decided to settle the issue of succession by election.However, there was a minority assort who insisted that it was not true that Muhammad did not name his successor because of a subject area that some weeks before he died, Muhammad held his son-in-law Alis hand and uttered the followers words Whoever I protect, Ali is also his protector. O God, be a fellow to whoever is his friend and an enemy to whoever is his enemy. (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 380) The issue of succession was ultimately decided according to the wishes of the majority by election but the two crews have never reconciled up to this day.The Shia Muslims now form the majority faction in Iran, while the Sunnis are the majority in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, Union African countries, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Central Asian countries of the former Soviet Union, and Indonesia. (page 378) Their place of hero-worship is called a mosque. When I interviewed Bonsan Go, a student from Indonesia, he draw a basic mosque as A square building with a clarified box-type space in front which serves as an extension. It has a dome on the center-top of the main building and a turret or a low-toned ornamented tower or a tower-shaped projection on another building.Inside, you will fine a division (usually a length of fabric) which separates men from the women. There are no tables, chairs, or figurines inside the mosque. I thought, maybe, Mr. Go descri make do a traditional mosque which used to be an Islamic architecture with a dome and one or two minarets. However, the more recent ones especially those constructed in the United States have chosen to go without the dome and the minarets. The more modern mosques have also done away with the curtain-like division which separates the men from the women.I have located one such mosque in Urbana, Illinois. A photo of this mosque is shown below This is the Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center at 10 6 S. Lincoln, Urbana, Illinois. It is signally an Islamic architecture with the arches found in front, but without the dome and minarets of immemorial mosques. Their website (http//www. prairienet. org/cimic/) announces that the mosque holds congregational prayers five times during the day, the first session being at 545 in the morning and the last at 730 in the evening.The center also offers Arabic classes and is open to visitors any day. CIMIC Newsletter is published bimonthly. In my interview with Bonsan Go, I was able to gain some insights on how a lay Muslim understands and practices Islam. About the hajj, Mr. Go describes it as the symbol of unity between the Muslim Ummah and the Oneness of Mankind. According to him, this has to be done at least once in a lifetime and is very important because it is one of the five pillars of Islam. He utter that the hajj is obligatory for all Muslims who can afford it financially and physically.It is also important that the money spent fo r the hajj comes from hard work and not from corruption. He also talked about the Sunnis and Shiites. He described the Sunnis as following the teachings of Muhammad, imitating his every actions and words while the Shiites believe that Hadhrat Ali was the real successor to Muhammad because he belonged to the family of Muhammad. He further said that the Shiites call their leader an imam while the Sunnis call their leader a caliph, just like they do in Indonesia where the great majority of the Muslims are Sunnis.On the question of marriage, he said that a Muslim is not obliged to have several wives. However, once a man decides to do so, he can only connect as much as four times and he is required to grapple all of them equally and see to it that all his wives maintain pure relationships all around. The Muslims, according Mr. Go, have never worshipped Muhammad. It is Allah that they give praise to. He considers it very disturbing that most people tend to play off the position of Muh ammad with the one who created him. He said that to worship Muhammad instead of Allah is considered a great sin in Islam.On jihad, this was what he said jehad is not a declaration of war against the enemies of Islam but a melodic line and a struggle in the path of God. Commitment to God involves lading to sacrifice ones time, energy and wealth to promote the overcompensate cause. It may be necessary at times to give ones life in order to preserve TRUTH. Before we part ways, he told me that he is deeply saddened by the war on terror being waged by the United States and is targeted at Muslims. He said that the U. S. governing has categorized all Muslims as terrorists and as such, must not be trusted.He said that the claim that Islam, as a religion, supports the activities of terrorists is definitely not true because even a Muslim like him hates terrorists. In the domain of the beliefs and teachings of Islam and Christianity, Fisher (2005) has shown us the similarities between the two religions. They are both(prenominal) monotheistic, they have their own prophets (Jesus and Muhammad), and both religions trace their roots to Abraham. Islam and Christianity teach their followers to treat their fellowmen with fairness and both religions profess anti-violence sentiments.The Muslims are making this especially clear at every opportunity, enough reason for them to feel very staidly towards the U. S. -led anti-terror war. The central beliefs of Islam are also very identical to the central beliefs of Christianity they both believe in the brotherhood of men, in the angels, saints, even in Satan, and in the Last Judgment. If a split occurred between the Shia and Sunni Muslims after the death of Muhammad, a great schism likewise rocked the Christian world when the roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church parted ways in 1054.Sadly, however, Fisher has also shown us that both Islam and Christianity have chosen the options of wars of aggression and occupations during the archean days for the purpose of spreading their doctrines and widen their spheres of influence. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity Islam) However, if Fisher (2005) has shown that Islam and Christianity have many similarities, they also differ in some aspects. The first difference is kinda basic. While Islam revolves around Allah as its God and only authority, Christianity, as a faith, is based on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Muslims disagree with Christians in this regard.They do not believe that Jesus is a son of God. To them, Jesus, like Muhammad, was only a prophet and messenger of God. Another glaring difference between the two religions occurred in connection with the death of Jesus and Muhammad. While Muhammad died peacefully in his bed because of some illness, his death divided the Muslim world into the Shia and the Sunni Muslims. Jesus, on the other hand, died a violent death (he was tortured and crucified), but his death strengthened and un ified his people. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity Islam).References Almuslimin. org. (n. d. ). Who Is Muhammad? (Retrieved frame in 9, 2007 fromhttp//drupalmalaysia. org/Islam/Muhammad) CIMIC. (n. d. ). Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from http//www. prairienet. org/cimic/) Fisher, M. P. (2005). Christianity. lifespan Religions, Sixth Edition (pp. 284-361). Prentice-Hall. Fisher, M. P. (2005). Islam. Living Religions, Sixth Edition (pp, 362-416).Prentice-Hall. Kikim Media. (n. d. ). The Life of Muhammad. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from http//www. pbs. org/muhammad/timeline. html. shtml) Yusuf, S. H. (n. d. ). A Time for Introspection. (Retrieved March 9, 2007 from http//www. masud. co. uk/ISLAM/misc/shhamza_sep11. htm) .