Introduction to Islam 1 Meaning of Islam 2

Introduction to Islam 1. Meaning of Islam 2. Belief in God & Islam since man’s creation 3. Islam & other religions 4. Development of Islam By Diallo M A, October 2011 1

I. Meaning of Islam 1. Linguistic meaning of Islam: The word Islam comes from the root word Salama From Salama derives: A. Istislam = submission B. Salama = purity C. Salam = peace 2. Idiomatically, Islam is a combination of the 3 altogether. Islam then means, complete obedience and surrender to the orders and commands of Almighty God which will ultimately bring inner peace.

II. Points to note Muslims make up to 1. 6 billion of the world population. Muslims are in all countries and are from different backgrounds. Muslims believe that every human being is born pure and clean by nature, ready to submit to Almighty God. Muslims believe that every human being is born without any inherited sin. Almighty God created human beings to worship Him alone on His terms & conditions, He made everything else subservient to human beings.

II. Points to note (cont. ) The the belief in Almighty God imprinted in the inner soul of all children of Adam. Muslims believe that every human being is free to chose his/her faith without any compulsion, Islam being an action of the heart. Muslims believe that all human beings are equal in the sight of God, there is no supremacy whatsoever based on gender, color, social or economical status. It is a duty upon every Muslim to seek knowledge.

II. Points to note (cont. ) Muslims believe that God created human beings and gave them the free will to chose between right and wrong with influencing our choices. Muslims believe that justice should be established, even if one has to struggle for it. Muslims believe that all sins can be forgiven except the worship of created beings instead of the Supreme Creator. Muslim believe that salvation is attained through faith & good deeds.

II. Belief in God & Islam since man’s creation Who Is Allah (Almighty God)? Allah is the proper name of Almighty God in the Semitic languages (mother tongues of Moses, Jesus & Muhammad, peace be upon them all). The word “Allah” is an attribute of Almighty God that means peace, it has neither gender nor number; it is unique. It is unlike the western word “God” which can change to “god”, “godfather”, “goddess”, etc. Almighty God is The Supreme Being, Master of the universe, Creator of everything that exist, He has no partner, no son, no daughter, etc. He is unlike His creation. Allah is Unique, omnipotent, Omnipresent, Absolute, Eternal, etc. He has 99 such attributes that only fit Him and no physical description fits Him. Islam is the religion taught by all Prophets of Allah: Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, etc. (peace be upon them all). Muslims believe in the teachings of all of these prophets & messengers.

III. Islam & other religions The basic message of Islam is to call to the Oneness of Almighty God and to direct all worship to Him alone. Allah and His creation are different entities, therefore human beings has the obligation to worship Him and avoid worship of His creation directly or indirectly. Islam focuses on the Originator of everything while other religions direct worship to intermediary beings or objects. Other religions as practiced today are developed by their followers themselves not as divinely revealed by Almighty God.

III. Islam & other religions (cont. ) Islam is not named after anyone which makes it stand alone, unlike Budhism (G Budha), Judaism (Judah), Hinduism (Hindus), Christianity (J. Christ), Confucianism (Confucius), etc. Almighty God sent messengers at each age to preach the same message but this message was distorted and finally lost over time. God finally sent prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to reinstate His message and make it unchangeable till the day of judgment.

III. Islam & other religions (cont. ) The 6 Islamic beliefs (or 6 Pillars of faith) 1. Belief in Almighty God (Allah) 2. Belief in the Messengers of God 3. Belief in the revealed books 4. Belief in the Angels 5. Belief in the Day of Judgment 6. Belief in the divine destiny

III. Islam & other religions (cont. ) Five deeds also known as “ 5 Pillars of Islam” 1. Declaration of faith (or Shahada) 2. The 5 daily obligatory prayers (or Salat) 3. Fasting the 9 th Lunar Calendar (Saum Ramadan) 4. Financial obligation on the rich (Zakat) 5. Pilgrimage to Makkah (Hajj)

IV. Development of Islam is practiced today in all corners of the earth. It started its development at the time of the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) when he wrote letters and sent envoys to different Kings, rulers and head of States of his time calling them to surrender to the commands of Allah. The massage of Islam revealed itself so appealing it touches the hearts and minds of all those who came into contact with it, so it growth was inevitable.

IV. Development of Islam (cont. ) The exemplary behavior of the early Muslims and through trade and the spread of knowledge, Islam rapidly reached territories beyond the Arabian Peninsula to all other geographical locations. It is unanimously agreed that Islam is now the fastest growing religion in the world and is going beyond all boundaries. For further clarification and follow up, please contact: Kowloon Masjid Dawah Committee <km. dawahcomm@yahoo. com. hk> Diallo M A: poukou@gmail. com Useful websites: islamreligion. com or irf. net