Ethical/Moral Teachings

Jihad

Known to the Western world as a “holy war”, jihad is actually something much deeper than that. The actual definition is “struggle”. There are actually two different definitions of jihad. One of them is the obligation each Muslim has to defend their faith and homeland if they are threatened. I believe this is definition that confuses the Western world. When Islamic extremists (Osama bin Laden, Jalaluddin Haqqani) state that they are proclaiming a jihad on a country, what is literally being said is that they are saying there is a struggle between them and the Western world. The greater definition of jihad is the struggle each Muslim faces everyday to fight for their faith. Since the standard nature of a human is to forget the power of God, they are in a constant “battle” to protect their faith.

Shari'ah Law

Since the Quran gives the broad rules for Islam and does not say what should happen to a person if they commit a physical crime, a system had to be created. This system was the interpretation of the hadiths based on the sayings of Muhammad. Called Shari’ah law, this system states the consequences for all physical actions, whether they are criminal or ethical. The interpretation of Shari’ah law changes depending on which part of the globe you are in or who is interpreting it. One example of this is in Afghanistan. The two main competitors for power, the current government and the Taliban, each have different definitions of Shari’ah law. The Taliban have a very strict interpretation of Shari’ah which they believe is the true interpretation of the hadiths. They wish to place their version of Shari’ah into every aspect of life in Afghanistan. 

Religious Experience

Hajj

The Hajj, pilgrimage to Mecca, is designed to be an religious experience for a person as an individual and as a whole. The individual religious experience is when a person travels to Mecca to partake in the worship at the Ka’ba. It is his or her obligation as a Muslim to do this as it is stated in the Quran. The experience is supposed to help make a person become closer to God. When the Hajj is moved to a communal experience, it is meant to make the community come together that does not distinguish people by their racial or ethnic identities.

Ramadan

The holy month of Ramadan is an event that happens once a year where every Muslim that is physically able must fast from sunup to sundown. When a person fasts for twenty eight days, they are supposed to realize that life and everything in it is valuable and should not be taken for granted. When something that is essential to the life of a human and it is taken away from them, they realize that what they have can be taken away from them in an instant. Performing Ramadan can be difficult, especially if it takes place during a summer month. This is why the whole community perform Ramadan. When a person is struggling through Ramadan, they remember that there are a billion other people in the world doing the same thing they are doing which make the experience easier.

Fundamental Doctrines

Sovereignty of God

I believe one of the main fundamental doctrines of Islam is the sovereignty of God because even though Islam is monotheistic like Judaism and Christianity, it places a heavy emphasis on remembering that there is only one God. This can be seen with what is known as the main pillar in the Five Pillars of Islam, the Shahadah. This statement says what is the true principle of God: “There is no god but God”. Unlike Christianity which has made God into three different entities in one being (the Trinity), Islam truly believes that there is only one God and cannot be made into anything less than that.

Human Self

This is another fundamental doctrine because it goes into why it is hard to be a Muslim and stay Muslim. As each Muslim struggles daily with the Greater jihad that every believer faces, they strive to continue to live as God wants them to. However, because of human nature, mankind constantly forgets that God is the supreme ruler and can perform acts against mankind that forget His power.

Day of Judgement

This last doctrine is important because it is the day when every believer is placed before God and judged on every action that they have done in their lifetime. This is the day that decides whether or not a person spends eternity in Paradise or in Hell. What God does during this day is look at every good action a person had committed and every bad actions and makes the person explain every bad action they have done in their lifetime. If He deems that a person has done more good deeds than bad deeds, he allows that person entrance into Paradise. If not, they go to Hell.

Islam Vocabulary

Allah: The One and only God of Islam, He is considered to be the same God that is worshipped by the Jews and the Christians. Believed by Muslims to be the supreme Creator of the universe who was neither born nor can give birth. He is the one who will judge the actions of a person and send the to either Heaven or Hell to spend the afterlife.

Almsgiving: Also known as zakat. One of the Five Pillars of Islam. One way how the Islamic community strives to be economically just. It is a mandatory “tax” of practitioners that give a portion of their income to either directly to the poor members of their society or to a distribution center that will then take the money and use it to help strengthen the community. The purpose of almsgiving is to remind the members of the Islamic community to not take what they have for granted.

Fasting: Sawm in Arabic. One of the Five Pillars of Islam. Mainly observed during the month of Ramadan. Practicing Muslims must refrain from eating, drinking, and other bodily pleasures from sunrise to sunset. Those partaking are not allowed to alter their schedule and must go through the day as they normally would.

Five Pillars: Main practices and values in Islam. What each Muslim must do in order to gain favor in the eyes of Allah. Five Pillars are Shahadah (confession of faith), Zakat (almsgiving), Salat (prayer), Sawm (fasting during Ramadan), and Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca).

Hadith: Collection of stories and sayings of Muhammad. Provides examples of proper method to live and gives Muhammad’s understanding as his role as God’s messenger. 

Hajj: One of the Five Pillars of Islam. Explains what one must do during the pilgrimage to Mecca. Says one must worship at the Ka’ba and rededicate themselves to Allah. Must be performed at least once in a person’s life if they are able to go. Makes all believers realize that they are part of a larger community.

Jihad: “Struggle” in Arabic. Does not mean “holy war” as interpreted by modern society. Two different types of jihad: lesser and greater. Lesser jihad is the expectation that Muslims will defend their faith and homeland from attack. Greater jihad is the inner battle that each person has inside of themselves to continue to follow Allah and live up to his expectations.

Koran: Holy text of Islam. To Islam as the Bible is to Christianity and the Torah to Judaism. Given to Muhammad by God through the angel Gabriel. Gives God’s final divine revelation since it is His direct words, not like the Bible and Torah which are divinely inspired. Was originally solely an oral tradition until it was written down under the reign of the third Caliph. 

Muhammad: The prophet of Islam. Chosen by God to reveal His message to the people of world. Given the Quran though revelations by God over a number of years. Is considered to be the last of a long line of prophets that include Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. Given the title “the Seal of the Prophets” to symbolize that he is the last credible prophet and that everyone after him that claims to have received revelations from God are speaking false statements

Prayer: Salat in Arabic. One of the Five Pillars of Islam. Must be said five times a day everyday with a mandatory community prayer at a mosque every Friday. Individual prayer must be done facing Mecca and be the only thing one thinks about when performing the act.

Rituals

Lifetime Rituals

• Birth
• Naming ceremony
• Giving a person a name before God to recognize their place before Him
• Saying of shahadah to newborn
• Pronouncing that the newborn has been born into the Islamic faith
• Starting the person down the road of Islam
• Circumcision
• Doing what is stated in the Quran 
• Following the rules that have been set forth by Allah
• Marriage
• Dowry
• Signifying what will be given to the husband and what will be given back to the bride should a divorce take place
• Zawaj
• Contract and ceremony
• A list of promises that must be kept during a marriage
• If it is broken, a woman has the right to divorce her husband
• Ceremony signifies the bonding of two people like the bonding between God and his people
• Death
• Cleansing of body/ Ritual dress
• Showing respect for the deceased
• Preparing them for the afterlife 
• Prayers
• Asking Allah to watch over them during the afterlife
• Stating what is said in the Quran
• Burial
• Signifying the act of giving the deceased over to God

Worship

• Following the Five Pillars of Islam
• Salat
• Zakat
• Sawm
• Shahadah
• Hajj
• Living the life that has been stated by Muhammad in the hadiths
• Other acts of individual worship
• Visits to shrines and mosques in different countries
• Saying individual prayers that are not part of Salat

Sacred Texts

Quran

• The holy scripture of Islam
• Divinely created, not divinely inspired like the Bible or Torah
• Was not authored by Muhammad
• Muhammad was just the one that presented it to mankind
• Written in Arabic and cannot be translated as message will be lost in translation
• Not chronologically in order but written based on passage length
• Goes from longest passages to shortest passages
• Gives the rules of Islam and how one should perform the actions 

Hadiths

• The sayings and deeds of the prophet Muhammad
• Made up of stories and fables
• Tell how one is supposed to live their life
• Similar to the sayings of Jesus in Christianity
• Important in Islam although not as important as the Quran since the hadiths were created by man and not God
• Had to be tested for authenticity since people could have made some of the hadiths up