WORLD
RELIGIONS: Figures and Terms
|
Person or Term |
Identify |
Religious Importance |
|
Shahadah |
-the
Islamic creed which states: “There is no God but God and Muhammad is the
Messenger of God” |
-this
is the Islamic declaration of faith -it’s
the first Pillar of the Islamic faith -this
creed captures the main Islamic belief |
|
Ka’bah |
-a
cubed-shape building [found in Makkah] that Abraham had built under divine
inspiration –Abraham
dedicated it to the One God |
-at
first Muslims believed the Ka’bah was filled with idols -but
then the Ka’bah was recognized by Muslims to be the House of God -to
this day, Muslims’ daily prayers are said in the direction of this cubical
sacred structure -thousands
of Muslims and Muslim pilgrims often worship around the Ka’bah in Makkah |
|
Muhammad |
-Muhammad
means ‘highly praised’ -he
was born in 570 CE into the leading tribe Quraysh of the town of -his
father died before he was born and his mother died when he was six-years-old -he
was raised by his uncle/guardian Abu Talib -at
the age of 20 Muhammad met a wealthy widow named Khadijah and married her -in
the year 610 CE Muhammad was meditating on -for
the next 3 years Muhammad received a series of revelations -during
these times of revelations he began preaching about Islam, saying he was the
Messenger from God -he
converted many people, including his wife, to become Muslim -in
612 CE although lots of people were being converted to Islam, many people
were also opposed to the Islam religion and the persecution of Muslims began
to occur -in
616 CE Muhammad’s wife and uncle died -in
622 CE Muhammad fled to north Medinah due to increasing persecution (which is
an event known as the hijrah) -Muhammad
spent the rest of his life preaching about Islam -he
then returned to Madinah where he came down with a fever and died in June of
632 CE, at the age of 63 |
-Muhammad
is the founder of Islam and is believed by Muslims to be the Messenger of God -Muslims
believe the central figure in the emergence of the religion of Islam was the
Prophet Muhammad -Muhammad
lead -Muhammad’s
revelations were later assembled to form the sacred text of Islam called the
Qur’an |
|
Abraham |
-he
is one of the seven prophets who received the Scriptures from God |
-he
is mentioned frequently in the Qur’an -he
taught people to abandon idolatry -he
gave people a sense of their religious and moral responsibilities |
|
Jihad |
-non-Muslims
translate jihad as “holy war” but it literally means “striving” |
-it
represents striving to obey the commands of God -jihad
enabled there to be a solidified position of Islam in Madinah and allowed
Islam to spread into Makkah after the three battles occurred against Madinah
and Makkah concerning Muhammad and his teachings against polytheism |
|
Caliph |
-the
first four leaders of the Muslim community were called the “Rightly-Guided
Caliphs”, or Rashidin -all
four of the caliphs were close companions of Muhammad -they
possessed a great knowledge of the Qur’an and they proved themselves to be
loyal to their Islam faith |
-their
significance was their ability to hold the Muslim community together despite
the existence of internal political conflict -by
WWI, however, they [caliphs] were abolished with the birth of the |
|
Day
of Judgment |
-Muslims
believe that every person’s soul lives on after they physically die and it is
then that their soul faces judgement, which is known as the Day of Judgement |
-Muslims
believe that when a soul enters its afterlife, God will reconfigure the
person’s physical body so he or she can stand before Him and be judged -God
will judge people’s actions by their intentions and motives -then
He’ll send him or her to -Muslims
believe that -Hell
is a destination that can be avoided by submitting to God and obeying His
orders |
|
Five
Pillars |
-the
Five Pillars, which were established in the Qur’an, are: 1) Shahadah [Declaration of
faith] 2) Salat [Mandatory prayer
five times daily] 3) Zakat [Mandatory
aimsgiving] 4) Sawm [Mandatory fasting] 5) Hajj [Mandatory pilgrimage
to Makkah] |
-these
Five Pillars are obligatory practices which are required for every Muslim -Muslims
place an immense amount of emphasis on upholding the tenets of their faith,
and this is demonstrated through the Five Pillars |
|
Imam |
-a
Muslim prayer leader -delivers
a sermon just before Friday prayers and after the Eid prayers -he
speaks from an elevated platform called a minbar |
-an
imam is not considered to be the Muslim equivalent of a priest -often
imams have occupations outside the mosque and simply act as one of the
members of the community who leads prayer |
|
Ramadan |
-the
fast celebrated during the month of Ramadan |
-it
enables Muslims to draw closer to God and develop spiritual patience and
perseverance |
|
Eid
al-Fitr |
-known
as “The Festival of the Breaking of the Fast” -is
held on the first day of the tenth month of the Islamic year -Muslims
celebrate this day with great joy and they participate in giving gifts, family
gatherings, and in giving donations to the poor |
-it
celebrates the end of the fasting month of Ramadan -it
marks a period of spiritual and moral renewal for the Muslim community |
|
Eid
al-Adha |
-is
known as “The Great Festival of Sacrifice” -is
held on the tenth day of the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar |
-this
festival commemorates Abraham’s submission to the will of God and his
willingness to sacrifice his son Ismael |
|
Night Journey |
-Muslims believe that before Muhammad fled
Makkah, he went through two special experiences known as the “Night Journey” and the
“Ascension” -the
“Night Journey” involved Muhammad, accompanied by the Angel Gabriel,
travelling on a winged horse from Makkah to -it
is in Makkah where it is said that Muhammad ascended through the seven
heavens and met previous prophets and God |
-Muhammad was profoundly affected by both
experiences [including the Night Journey] |
|
Polygamy |
-the practice of having more than one wife at
a time |
-under certain circumstances, Islam allows a
man to have up to four wives -this is intended to provide an opportuity
for women to marry in societies where there are more women than men and it’s
also intended to provide an opportunity for widows to remarry -for modern Western society, this is one very
controversial aspect of the Islamic tradition |
|
Qur’an |
-the
sacred book of Islam -the
word Qur’an means “recitation” -seen
as God’s word and not Muhammad’s word even though Muhammad conveyed it -Muslims
believe the book is comprised of God’s actual words, and therefore, humanity
should learn and understand the revelations that were sent to Muhammad to
form this book -it’s
made up of surahs [chapters] along with agats [verses] -every
surah except for one chapter begins with the words, “In the Name of Allah,
the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful” |
-the
holiest book of Islam -the
main Islamic sacred text -Muslims
are to recite certain parts of the Qur’an often |
|
Hadith |
-are
Islamic traditions based on the teachings and sayings of Muhammad -there
are three kinds of Hadith: 1) sayings directly
associated with Muhammad 2) an action or practice of
Muhammad’s 3) Muhammad’s silent approval
of someone else’s actions |
-they
are the second source of law for Muslims [the Qur’an is the first source] -the
Hadith literature further clarifies Muslim religious practices such as prayer
and almsgiving |
|
Shi’ah |
-an
Islam sect -known
as the “party of Ali” -the
Shi’ahs believe that prior to the death of Muhammad, the Prophet chose his
son-in-law [Ali] as his successor -however,
in reality Ali was not chosen to be his successor and instead Abu Bakr was
chosen -the
Shi’ahs believe that after the death of Muhammad, a series of infallible
leaders called Imams were to take charge of Islam and guide the community |
-both
the Shi’ah and the Sunni believe that Muhammad is the Prophet of God [this is
their core belief] -the
Shi’ahs are a small but noticeable group within Islam -they’re
dominating politics and religious life in Iran and are symbolizing a vocal
minority in Iraq, East Africa, India, and Pakistan |
|
Sunni |
-an
Islam sect -the
name is derived from the word sunna, which means “well-trodden path” -they
believe in building consensus within the community in order to arrive at a
just and equitable society -Sunnis
follow the four schools of Sunni law: Hanafi, Shafi’I, Hanbali, and Maliki as
well as the traditions of the Prophet Muhammad |
-both
the Sunni and the Shi’ah believe that Muhammad is the Prophet of God [this is
their core belief] -about
85% of the world’s Muslims are Sunnis -Sunnis
have emerged as the most influential group in Islam |
|
Hijab |
-a
headscarf worn by women of the Islam faith |
-it’s
worn as a sign of modesty -this
particular dress code is not obligatory, but is recommended by the Qur’an |