Islam Religion History
Islam is the monotheistic religion based upon the teachings of the prophet Muhammad. Muhammad was a 7th century Arab political and religious figure who taught Islam, or “submission” of oneself completely to God. It is another of the Abrahamic religions, and those who follow its beliefs are known as Muslims or those who “submit to God” completely. In Arabic, God is known as Allah, and today there are nearly 1.8 billion people across the globe that believe in Allah and are considered followers of Islam. It is the second largest religion in the world, particularly popular in the Middle East.
To Muslims, Allah is believed to be revealed in their holy book the Qur’an, which are Allah’s teachings as passed through Muhammad. These words and deeds that are taught in the Qur’an are believed to be Allah’s fundamental beliefs, and the source of the practices of Islam. Sunnah are the words and deeds of Muhammad, and these words and deeds are the incarnation of Allah’s beliefs for the right life. Muhammad is not actually considered the founder of the religion of Islam, but more as the restorer of the original religion as practiced by Abraham, Jesus, Moses and the other profits.
Islamic belief states that Jews and Christians distorted the original revelations of God by interpreting the text falsely and altering it throughout history. This is the bedrock of major religious conflict and angst amongst all the Abrahamic religions. We see ramifications of this disagreement in our political and social climate throughout history and today.
There are many core practices that are involved in Islam, and that includes adherence to the Five Pillars of Islam. These Five Pillars are believed to unite the Muslim community, as well as the adherence to Islamic Law or Sharia. Sharia touches upon pretty much every aspect of daily life and living in an Islamic society. Such items that are fully ruled upon are diet, banking, war, welfare of the people, and family life. There are a number of major denominations of Islam, and most Muslims follow at least one of two of the major denominations. The Sunni denomination accounts for 85% of the religions, while the Shi’a denomination accounts for the other 15%.
The break in these denominations took place in the 7th century following major disagreements in the Muslim community about political and religious leadership. Although Islam has been prominent throughout history, a recent influx of wealth to the Islamic nation in the past century has led to a strengthening of Islam, as well as further conflict and disruption within it.
