World Religions TH 608

1. Chapter Thirteen
Islam

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Pre-Islamic Arab Religions
• Islam began among the Arabian desert
people during the seventh century C.E.
• These people had already been exposed
to Christianity, Judaism, and possibly
Zoroastrianism
• The religion of the Arabian people before
Islam was likely polytheistic

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Pre-Islamic Arab Religions
• The pre-Islamic religion was animistic
• Gods and spirits were found in items in
nature
• Those spirits could be placated or asked
for help

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Pre-Islamic Arab Religions
• The city of Mecca became a place with
holy animistic associations
• Mecca also included the “black stone,” a
holy object of veneration that was likely a
meteorite
• The black stone was surrounded by an
enclosure called the Ka’ba

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The Life of Muhammad
• Because Islam is a younger religion, there
are more details available about its
founder – Muhammad
• Born in 570, Muhammad was raised by his
uncle and was illiterate
• Muhammad started to work and travel in
caravans and went to Mecca.
• While there, he was exposed to many
religions

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The Life of Muhammad
• Muhammad became concerned about the
fate of his people, who worshiped a
multitude of gods and goddesses
• He also became concerned with social
justice
• Muhammad married Khadija, the owner of
the caravan. Khadija’s wealth allowed
Muhammad to spread his message.

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The Life of Muhammad
• During a period of meditation, the angel
Gabriel brought Muhammad a revelation
from God
• Muhammad would continue to receive
revelations from God for the rest of his life
• Muhammad became convinced that there
is only one God, called Allah, and that he
himself was the last prophet

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The Life of Muhammad
• Muhammad began to preach this
message, and his first convert was his
wife
• Muhammad spread his message of
reciting the Qur’an, which was the holy
message of God
• Islam began to spread after the death of
Muhammad’s wife

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The Qur’an
• The Scripture of Islam is called The
Qur’an, which means reading or recitation
• Muslims believe that the Qur’an is a
recitation of an eternal Scripture, written in
Heaven and revealed by God to
Muhammad
• Verses from the Qur’an are memorized
and recited

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Religious Institutions
• The Mosque
– Because of their originally nomadic life, Islam
is not centered on gathering in a temple for
worship
– Muslims are required to pray at the mosque
one day per week
– Mosques also serve as important places of
study

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Religious Institutions
• The Five Pillars:
– Repetition of the creed
– Daily prayer
– Almsgiving
– The fast of Ramadan
– Pilgrimage to Mecca

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The Spread of Islam
• Within a century of Muhammad’s death,
Islam became a unifying force for Arabian
people
• Muslim armies swept across the middle
east, North Africa, and Spain. They spread
the faith as they went.

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The Spread of Islam
• There were several reasons for the mass
appeal of Islam:
– Universal
– Wide appeal
– Created in a corrupt and cruel world
• In the 700s, the Muslims conquered Spain
• In the eleventh century, the Muslims
extended to India and China

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The Caliphate
• Islam is not highly structured like the
Roman Catholic Church
• The caliph was the deputy or
representative in religious affairs
– It is the one central and unifying office in
Islam
• There are ongoing disagreements about
the succession of caliphs

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Variations Within Islam
• Sunnis
– The majority of Muslims are Sunnis
– They base their practices on the Qur’an and
on traditions concerning the community
• Shi’ites
– The rift began as a political dispute over
leadership, which took on theological
dimensions

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Islam in the Modern World
• Following the caliphate of Baghdad, Islam
settled down to a relatively peaceful
existence
• While Europe was moving out of the
medieval period, many Muslim
communities were still pre-industrial
• Islam’s isolation from the rest of the world
ended in the early part of the twentieth
century

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Islam in the Modern World
• By the twentieth century, transportation
allowed outsiders into Muslim areas
• WWI caused the breakup of the Ottoman
Empire
• The discovery of natural resources of oil
and other items furthered Muslim contact
with the rest of the world

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Muslim Calendar and Holy Days
• Feast of Fast-Breaking
– This feast comes after the fast of Ramadan
• Feast of Sacrifice
– Commemorates Abraham’s willingness to
sacrifice Isaac for God
• New Year
• Birthday of the Prophet Muhammad

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Islam Today
• Islam has become an increasingly
important political force
• Many emerging nations are also Islamic
nations
• Some of those nations are important to
the world economy because of their stores
of natural resources

20. Islam Today
• Islam is also growing again
• Missionary work in Africa is spreading the
faith. Immigration is another factor.
• Islam is now the second most popular
religion in the United States
• It remains to be seen whether Islamic
countries that rely on ancient religious
traditions can continue in the modern
world
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