WORLD RELIGIONS Islam

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2 : Submission Muslim: One who submits or surrenders Purpose: Bring true religion & salvation to the world (domination) Founder: Muhammad (A.D ) Source of Authority: The Qur an (Recitations) Membership: Approximately 1.8 billion + (second largest) 30 34,000,000 Muslims are born each year 7 million+ Muslims in the US, and over 2000 mosques, ic schools and centers in America

3 Year Began: AroundA.D. 610 Leadership: Caliph (spiritual leader; political) and Imam (leader at Mosque). Sacred Scriptures: The Qur an(consists of 114 sura s; some versions have less sura s). Also the Haddith(narrative) informal record of practices Meeting Places: Mosques. Symbols: The Crescent Moon & Five Pointed Star. RevealedTeachings: Multiple divine revelations provided by Allah to Muhammad in Mecca and Medina. Claim:The true religion given by Allah to Muhammad his prophet All people are born Muslims. People don't convert to, they revert to the religion of their birth

4 History Muhammad A.D 570 near Mecca Arabian religions a mixture of polytheism and animism Small minority of monotheists (the hanif) Mecca a center for religious pilgrimage The Ka ba Muhammad from illiterate camel driver to wealthy merchant Growing interest in the hanif through business contacts A.D. 610 in a cave outside Mecca In a trancehe heard the Angel Gabriel say, Recite!

5 History Visions continued for 22 years Became an uncompromising prophet There is only one God to whom we must submit Day of judgment whether or not peoplehave obeyed Developed a gathering of followers eventually in the thousands A.D. 622 Meccan city fathers felt threatened and drove them from the city to Yathrib(Medina) Visions and recitations continued in Medina only more violent

6 History Returned, captured Mecca and cleansed the Ka ba Begins mass conversions via military conquest A.D. 632 Muhammad dies with no surviving son Caliph Successor Abu Bakr: Father-in-law, Sunna(majority) Ali ibn Talib: Son -n-law / cousin,shi a (faction) The Fitna(Civil War) Bakr, Umar, Uthman, then Ali, then back to Sunni

7 ic Sects There are 2 main branches: Sunni Majority, 80% -90% Mainstream Shi a Follower/Faction, 10%-20%, succession of caliphate Other Sects Sufi -purists The Nation of (American )

8 Nation of -This is by no means original ic theology Timothy (Noble) Drew (Ali) ( ) taught that the white man killed Jesus (who was black) Drew being murdered, Wallace Dodd Fard(WaliFarad Muhammad) propagated his teachings Claimed to be the reincarnated Drew and preached to the poor that salvation can be obtained in discovering black roots as the original keepers of the Kaaba. Disappeared in 1934 Succeeded by Elijah Muhammad declared Fardto be Allah incarnate and founded The Lost/Found Nation of Then, Malcolm X (Malcolm Little), while in prison, discovered Elijah Muhammad s teaching. Advanced NOI powerfully. Developed strong differences with the teachings of Elijah Muhammad and converted to Sunni while on a pilgrimage to Mecca. This conversion angered NOI leadership and assassinated in 1965 by three NOI members Louis Farrakhan (Louis Eugene Walcott)

9 Five Pillars of 1. Shahadah: Confession - There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his Prophet. One becomes a Muslim by saying it publicly. 2. Sawm: Fast, Ramadan ( Month of fasting) 3. Salat:The Muslim is expected to pray five times a day, facing Mecca. The day of public worship is on Friday, when Muslims gather at the mosque. 4. Zakah: Alms/Giving to Poor. Muslims are required to give 2.5% of their income to help the poor or further (mosques, religious schools, jihad) 5. Hajj: Mecca Pilgrimage. required of all Muslims at least once during their lifetimes, provided they have the means to do so

10 The Qur an The Recitations Absolutely fundamental. It is the sacred book of Muslim scripture and is said to be the perfect and eternal word of Allah, the final authority. It is incorruptible. It should be recited in Arabic. Compiled by Uthmanby collecting followers dictations and burning everything that didn t qualify It is divided into 114 chapters, known as Surahs Listed in order of size It is about the size of the New Testament

11 Six Articles of Faith Faith in Allah Allah is absolutely one. Shirk is the greatest sin one can commit assigning partners to God Angels The chief angel is Gabriel, revealed the Qur'an to Muhammad. Each person has 2 angels recording deeds Scripture There are four books Muslims consider inspired: the Torah of Moses, the Zabur(Psalms of David), the Injil, (the gospel of Jesus) and the Qur'an. Prophets The Qur'an lists 25 messengers, including Jesus. Muhammad is the last and greatest prophet. The Day of Judgment On the last day Allah will judge each person according to deeds, sending them to heaven or hell Predestination Muslims believe everything that happens, both good and evil, has been decreed by the will of Allah

12 Attitude Towards Judaism and Christianity: Rejection. Muslims claim that the Bible has been corrupted. God:Allah. Only one God exists (monotheism). Autocratic, impersonal, arbitrary and unknowable Jesus:A prophet; not the Son of God, nor divineyet sinless and will return someday The Christ: Jesus is one of many prophets but waiting for the Mahdi (guided one) Holy Spirit: There is no Holy Spirit Trinity: A heresy since God is one -Tritheism Salvation: Obtained by good works unto Allah and Qur anic guidance grounded in human strength and not grace Man:Man was created out of clay and ought to live in submission to Allah. Man was not created in the Image of God

13 Sin:Man is not sinful. However, when a person chooses to reject, Qur anicguidance and reject righteous direction, forgiveness by Allah is required. Satan:Shaitanis the opposerto man. Fall: All of creation is good (except for infidels; non-muslims). Bible: Muslim scholars claim that the Bible has been corrupted: the Jews, it is claimed, have corrupted the Tanakh(Old Testament) and Christians have corrupted the New Testament. Death: All persons are mortal. Heaven/Hell: The dead will be resurrectedand judged by Allah. Heaven is a place of sensual pleasure.

14 According to the Qur an How the Bible and the Qur an Differ A few examples The Ark of Noah came to rest on Mt. Judi (Sura11:44). The Bible says Mt. Ararat. Abraham s father was Azar(Sura6:74). The Bible says Terawas his father. Abraham did not intend to sacrifice Isaac but Ishmael (sura37: ). The Bible says it was Isaac. Pharaoh's wife adopted Moses (sura 28:8-9), not Pharaoh s daughter as the Bible states. Noah s flood happened during the time of Moses (Sura7:136 & 7:59). The Bible says it occurred way before Mosaic times. Mary gave birth to Jesus under a palm tree (sura19:22) and not in a stable as the New Testament tells us. This is clearly problematic is the Book(s) that came before the Qur an were inspired by Allah... As well as the Qur an is claimed to be inspired

15 According to the Qur an Other Problems The name Muhammad is not mentioned in the Bible yet the Qur an states that he is described in the Torah and the Gospel. Abraham was not a Jew but a Muslim: No; Abraham in truth was not a Jew, neither a Christian; but he was a Muslim Jesus was not a Jew but a Muslim. The disciples of Jesus were not Christians but Muslim. 6 centuries before the time of Muhammad, the disciples of Jesus (according to the Qur an) declared: We believe; and bear thou witness that we are Muslim Muhammaadalso confuses the persons of Saul and Gideon in Sura2:241.

16 Baha i Background It is the youngest of what would be considered a world religion About 6,000,000 followers worldwide, about 300,000 in US ic sect of the Shi itesin Persia (Iran) 1844 MirzaAli Muhammad, a descendant of the founder of, declared himself to be the Bab (meaning gate ) The Babsaid he was the Madhi(Messiah) for whom the Muslims were waiting A manifestation of God. He announced that he was the forerunner of the World Teacher who would appear to unite mankind and bring a new era of peace Was executed in , MirzaHusaynAli, an imprisoned follower of the Bab, declared that he was the manifestation of God promised by the Bab. Most of the Babi sembraced him

17 Baha i Ali took for himself the name Baha u llah, which means the glory of God, and his followers became known as Baha is He spent the rest of his life as a prisoner of the government in various cities, Baha'u'llah wrote over 100 books and letters describing the universal faith. These writings are considered sacred by the Baha'is. At the end of his life he spent several years in exile in the prison city of Akka Died a natural death in 1892 at the age of 75. Leadership of the Baha'is was assumed by the oldest son of Baha'u'llah, 'AbbasEffendi, who took the name 'Abdu'l-Baha', which means the servant of Baha. 'Abdu'l-Baha' proclaimed that he was the only rightful interpreter of the writings of his father and that his own writings carried equal weight to those of Baha'u'llah.

18 Baha i After being freed from prison in 1908, 'Abdu'l-Baha' wrote and traveled extensively, promulgating the Baha'i religion in Europe and North America. 'Abdu'l-Baha' died in Because of a stipulation in his will, he was succeeded by his eldest grandson, ShoghiEffendi, as the leader of the movement. Emphasis of Effendi s leadership was on organizing and establishing local and national spiritual assemblies so the teachings of Baha'u'llah could be propagated throughout the world. Since the death of Effendi in 1957, the Baha'is have been governed by an elected body of Baha'i representatives called the Universal House of Justice. International headquarters is in Haifa, Israel. There are eight Baha'i national temples located around the world, including the American headquarters in Wilmette, Illinois.

19 Baha i Basic Beliefs The oneness of the entire human race is the pivotal principle and the fundamental doctrine of the faith. There must be an independent search after truth, unfettered by superstition or tradition. There is a basic unity of all religions. Baha'i teaches that all religions essentially preach the same message. All forms of prejudice, whether religious, racial, class or national, are condemned. Harmony must exist between religion and science. These two forces must be harmonized.

20 Baha i There is equality of men and women Compulsory education must prevail In addition to universal education, Baha'i teaches that there should be a universal language Extremes of wealth and poverty should be abolished. A world tribunal for the adjudication of disputes among nations should be instituted Work performed in the spirit of service should be exalted to the rank of worship. According to Baha'i, a good society is one in which everyone works at some task (There are no loafers or idlers)

21 Baha i Justice should be glorified as the ruling principle in human society and religion, for the protection of all peoples and nations. Finally, as a capstone to all the teachings of Baha'i, the establishment of a permanent and universal peace should be the supreme goal of humankind. Baha'is believe that the founders of major world religions throughout history were each manifestations of God who taught essentially the same truths and progressively revealed the one true religion. Included in the list of manifestations are Moses, Krishna, Zoroaster, Buddha, Confucius, Jesus Christ, Muhammad, and Baha'u'llah, representing Judaism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity,, and Baha'ism

22 Baha i Doctrinal Beliefs God is unknowable in his essence, but His attributes are revealed by His divine manifestations. Baha u llah taught that the one God and the universe, which is an emanation of God, are co-eternal therefore panentheism Jesus was one of the manifestations of God, in no way superior to the others. He was NOT God incarnate. The Christian concept of the triune God is false. God is one, absolutely indivisible. Salvation is obtained by believing in the manifestation of God in the age in which we live and by following his teachings. Baha'is deny the literal, physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. Baha'is reject the notion of man having a sin nature; all people are born intrinsically good

23 Baha i Critique of Baha i Teachings The Baha i view of God (panentheism) contradicts the teachings of every one of the other great teachers of other religions, whose teachings are supposed to be in harmony. Moses wrote that there is one personal God who created all things. Krishna taught a mix of polytheism and pantheism. Zoroaster was a duelist, claiming that there are two equal forces, one good and one evil, eternally battling each other. Buddha was essentially agnostic; God was not relevant to his teachings. Confucius was a polytheist, but did not emphasize worship of gods. Jesus Christ declared that there is only one true and living God and that He was the incarnation of that God (God the son). Muhammad also said there is only one God, but he cannot have a son.