ISLAM These slides are prepared by Dr. Peter Vardy of Heythrop College, University of London, to assist teachers in schools to introduce Islam to young people. They are not to be regarded as comprehensive and should be supplemented by appropriate reading.

Islam meaning: ‘Submission to God’ Islam is one of the three great monotheistic religions – the others being Judaism and Christianity. Monotheists believe in a single God (Allah) – the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Islam is possibly the most misunderstood of all the world religions – and yet it is one of the fastest growing world religions. In England, within ten years, more Muslims may attend Mosques each week than Christians attend Church, although the Islamic growth rate is now slowing.

Islam Islam accepts Allah’s relationship to Abraham and also that Allah sent his prophets (including Jesus) but it considers that the message of the prophets and of Jesus was distorted by their followers. Islam considers that Submission to God was the goal of all creation – this was the goal of which all the prophets speak. Service of God is the same as Submission and devotion to God. The Qur’an has a unique status as it represents the final revelation of Allah. It is held to be divinely dictated directly to Muhammad who he held to have been illiterate. The Qur’an is held to complement or corrects the distorted versions of God’s revelation found in Jewish and Christian scriptures.

Sura 11: 135-6 “Tell the people, O Muhammad! That to be rightly guided One needs not be a Jew or a Christian The righteous belong to the community of Abraham Who was pure in his worship of God, So were Isma’il, Jacob and the tribes, And Moses, Jesus and the rest. They are all our messengers; We make no distinction between them.” Note the central importance of Abraham – this is vital.

ABRAHAM Abraham is the father of Islam through Ishmael his first born son. Abraham is the father of Judaism through his second son, Isaac and Abraham is the father of Christianity through his faith. The status of Abraham cannot be over-estimated to all three religions. Islam maintains that Ishmael, Abraham’s first born son, lived in the desert and his followers became the ‘hanif’ – believers in a single God who were not Jews or Christians. They wandered through the desert living very simply and valuing solitude and the search for God above everything. Muhammad may have met some of these when he was younger and they could have influenced him – but this is disputed.

HISTORY AND EARLY DEVELOPMENT ISLAM HISTORY AND EARLY DEVELOPMENT

History in the Qur'an The Qur'an does not see Islam as a historical religion, moving from creation, through the prophets, culminating in Muhammad and then on to a final Judgement. There is no idea of a Fall, no idea of original sin and no redemption. Salvation lies only in submission to God and there is no developing idea of God’s revelation through history. In that sense, it does not matter in what order the Holy Qur'an or the Hebrew scriptures are read – as they all contain a single message: Submission to God. The nearest Islamic equivalent to salvation is ‘falah’ – fulfilment of the Divine will in time. This is the aim of all creation. There is a strong pre-destination element in Islam – as there is in Calvinist Christianity.

The Prophet Two seemingly opposed but compatible positions need to be taken into account in understanding Islam: At one level, Muhammad is a man, not in any sense distinct from other men – although Muhammad is considered to be sinless. At another level, Muhammad is the prophet of God and is absolutely central to Islam. The greatest offence non-Muslims can give to Muslims, is to misunderstand the unique place of the Prophet. To understand Muhammad, one also needs to understand the world in which he was born and lived.

MECCA The land which is now Saudi Arabia was and is desert with fertile land on the coast & prominent oases inland. It was populated by many tribes (and within tribes there were clans) – particularly the roving Bedouin and the settled city tribes. One could not survive alone in this environment and loyalty to the tribe was fierce. Often the tribes were at war. The people of Mecca were traders – they organised great caravans and a market where different tribes could trade. But they had one great advantage. At Mecca was the ‘Ka’bah’ a building like a cube which contained the sacred BLACK STONE in its furthest corner – this was a symbol of divine power and is very old. It is believed to have been given by the Angel Gabriel to Abraham.

ABRAHAM AND MECCA Abraham is regarded by Islam as the earliest of the prophets. According to the Qu’ran, Abraham prayed to God to make Mecca safe and to give it to him and his descendents as their home. He and his eldest son, Ishmael, then erected the ‘Kabah’ there as a shrine to Allah. Abraham is the forerunner of the HANIF – worshippers in one God who were found in Arabia before Muhammad. Ottoman miniature 1583. Istanbul

Importance of the Black Stone Every tribe had its local deities in the Kab’ah and this had the advantage of enabling tribes to worship as well as trade at Mecca. There was also a tradition that tribes normally at war could go on pilgrimage to Mecca and they could trade and be safe because of the holiness of the city. Mecca was not originally the focus – Muhammad’s followers initially directed their prayers to Jerusalem. However when Muhammad’s message was rejected by the Jews, Mecca became the new focus. Mecca had always had great symbolic importance as a centre for worship for the wandering tribes.

The ‘Quraysh’ tribe were the custodians of the Ka’bah The ‘Quraysh’ tribe were the custodians of the Ka’bah. This gave them great status but they were also aware of anything that might undermine their status. Muhammad was to present such a challenge. He was an uncomfortable, uncompromising figure – insisting on the worshop of the one true God and calling people away from idol worship.

Muhammad’s LIFE Muhammad was born in 570ce into a powerful clan, but he was himself poor. His father, Abdullah, died before Muhammad was born to his mother, Aminah so any inheritance went to his father’s brothers. Muhammad was sent to live with Halimah, a shepherd’s wife, until he was 6. The painting on the right dates from the 16th century and shows Halimah feeding breast-feeding the infant Muhammad. Note the fire coming from the baby.

Mohammad’s MOTHER’s JOURNEY After Muhammad was returned to his mother, she took him on a journey to the city of Yathrib where his father had died – but she died on the return journey. Muhammad was thus an orphan and was cared for by his uncle, Abu Talib. He took part in his Uncle’s business activities and went with the Caravans to Syria where he met Christians and Jewish thinkers. Muhammad’s life up to the age of 25 is only known in outline terms – there are stories, but they are disputed.

MARRIAGES of MUHAMMAD Khadijah, a wealthy widow, had employed Muhammad to lead some caravans for her. Tradition has it that she was 40+ when Muhammad married hern (he was 25) and he had no other wife till she died. They lived together for 25 years and had two sons, who both died in infancy, and four daughters – only Fatima did not die before her father. The wealth of Khadijah, enabled Muhammad to spend time deepening his spiritual life through meditation in the surrounding hills.(Muhammad. Maxime Rodinson, Pantheon Books, New York, 1971, p. 69) After the death of Khadijah, Mohammed married several wives.

THE CAVE In 610ce (aged 40), whilst meditating in a cave on Mt. Hira outside Mecca, the angel Gabriel appeared and delivered a message from Allah challenging Muhammad to recite a message from God (cf Sura 96). He was in great pain and feared he was going to die. Muhammad was anxious and wondered if he was deranged. He spoke to Khaidjah who consulted a hanif (a worshipper of one God which was comparatively rare at the time) and he confirmed that what Muhammad had experienced was in accordance with messages to prophets recognised by Jews and Christians. Khaidjah supported him from the beginning and Muhammad began to recite the messages he had been given.

DIVINE DICTATION OR REVELATION After the first dictation or revelation in the cave, there were no more for some time. Then the revelations returned and continued throughout Muhammad’s life. At the beginning the passages dictated were more poetic but became more concerned later with what would happen to mankind if they did not listen and also with laws for the new society that was being formed. The Qur'an as it is today is not chronological – it is an assemblage of pieces of dictation over the whole of Muhammad’s life.Most scholars would see the the Qur’an as falling into three stages: Early and late Meccan and Medina.

Muhammad’s message The single most important part of the message Muhammad had to relay was that there is only ONE God. This was a challenging and uncomfortable message of religious reform as it called for the destruction of all the idols – and he had to recite this message to the Quaraysh, the guardians of the Kab’ah and of the idols therein! The Quaraysh quickly realised the threat this posed and ridiculed Muhammad (think of St. Paul in Ephesus!) – so much so that none of the respectable people in Mecca would take him seriously. Muhammad was accused of making up the Qu’ran and seen as a threat to be suppressed.

THE CHALLENGE OF THE PROPHET Muhammad challenged the business and social practices of his society which exploited the poor and needy. He opposed ancestor worship which was strong among the tribes. He challenged the status of Mecca as a place of pilgrimage for believers in many local tribal gods. He emphasised individual responsibility and life after death for each individual – this was great at variance with the communal, tribal ideas of the society of his time. The first converts came from his own household. Early Islam depended on strong family ties – Muhammad gave his daughters to two of of his followers and he eventually married the daughter of another.

EARLY CONVERTS The early converts came from slaves and young people and great pressure was applied to them to renounce the new faith. Some Muslims had to flee from the branch of the Quraysh who opposed Muhammad. Abu Talib (from the Hashim branch of the Quraysh), one of Muhammad’s early followers and protectors, and Khadijah came under intense pressure but they resisted. However they both died within a year and Muhammad was vulnerable and could see no way forward. In 620ce, representatives from the city of Yathrib saw Muhammad and became convinced he was a prophet. They agreed to only worship the One true God and Muhammad chose 12 leaders from Yathrib to become the leaders of the Muslim community in this tribe. He also told his supporters in Mecca to leave and go to Yathrib.

A new threat The Quraysh in Mecca saw Muhammad’s involvement with the Yathrib (the people of the town of this name) as a new threat. The Quraysh did not want him and his disciples to leave their control and to go to the Yathrib (which was the town where Muhammad’s father had died). 40 men from a number of tribes in Mecca agreed to kill Muhammad – but they excluded any representatives of the Hashim tribe who supported him. It was reasoned that the Hashim could not attack all the tribes represented by the 40 in revenge. The 40 stood guard outside Muhammad’s house, but his cousin, Ali Talib, took his place in bed and Muhammad and Abu Bakr were able to slip out of the city and flee to Yathrib. He arrived on September 20 620 ce which, 15 years later, became fixed as the first day of the Islamic calendar.

TRIBAL STRUCTURE The Hashemites who rule Jordan today are descended from the Hashim who supported Muhammad in these early days (although they also formally disowned him and removed protection from him at one stage). In Arabia, loyalty to clan and tribe was and is central – individuals only survived by being members of a tribe. Muhammad had little choice but to make military arrangements immediately to protect his new followers – only by so doing could he have obtained the respect needed by other tribes as they had left their old tribal loyalties to follow Islam. Indeed Islam effectively became a new tribe – albeit one that could be joined by members of any tribe. Yathrib was renamed MEDINA – the city of the prophet. The muhajirun (companions) who had come from Mecca welcomed him and so did the ansar (helpers who aided him to come to Medina) but many did not want him there, including the Jewish population of the city.

Key cities JERUSALEM MEDINA MECCA

TENSIONS The messages of Allah continued to come to Muhammad as he made new rules for the city, and the new rules of the Qur'an had to be firmly enforced. The Jews rejected Muhammad as a prophet and they rejected his teachings. This became a major factor and Muhammad’s initial sympathy for the Jews seems to have abated. The opposition of the Jews caused Muhammad to kill some of them and force others to leave – without any of their possessions. Early Christians saw Islam as a Christian heresy (cf John of Damascus etc.) just as Jews saw Islam as perverted Judaism. However Muhammad came into contact with comparatively few Christians compared to the significant number of Jews.

EXPANSION BY ARMS The new Muslims in Medina sent out armed expeditions to other tribes and these were often well received. However a Muslim raid on a Meccan caravan south of Mecca Muhammad gained the new Muslims much booty and this boosted the new Muslims in the eyes of other tribes. However this raid caused the Meccans to carry out a raid in retaliation – and the Muslims were defeated in this. The Meccans raised money for a larger attack, and Muhammad was defeated at Uhud in 625. Then the Meccans besieged Medina but due to new military tactics used by Muhammas and also due to extremely cold weather, the siege failed.

The decisive HISTORICAL move In 628, Muhammad took 1600 people on pilgrimage to Mecca. The Meccans sent out a force to stop him and the two sides met and talked. An agreement was reached for ten years of peace and to permit the Muslims to return the following year and make the pilgrimage to the Ka’bah. This had a major effect because as Muslims and Meccans mixed, many of the brightest Meccans became Muslims.

ATTACK IN MECCA In 630, Muhammad led a force of 10000 men against Mecca. Mecca surrendered and Muhammad destroyed all the idols in the Ka’bah. He gave a truce to the Quraysh tribe, even those who did not become Muslims. He returned to Medina and used both military force and persuasion to encourage almost all the Arab tribes to become Muslims. Muhammad died on June 8, 632ce. The painting is from the C16th and is from the Siyer-I-Nabi gallery

THE MOSQUE OF THE PROPHET, MEDINA Built over Muhammad’s burial place

MUHAMMAD’s NIGHT JOURNEY The Hadiths say that Muhammad was led by the Archangel Gabriel through seven heavens where he saw Adam dividing good from evil souls. He also met Moses who asked Muhammad how many prayers had to be said each day. Muhammad replied ’50’. Moses then said ‘Prayer is a difficult thing and people are weak’ so Moses allowed Muhammad to petition God to reduce the number to 5 and this became the numbers of prayers Muslims have to say.(Berlin Museum of Islamic art)

Muhammad’s night journey Muhammad is held to have reached the highest heaven in a mystical journey in which he was taken from Medina and then to the ‘outer synagogue’ - later identified as Jerusalem - before ascending through the spheres (this was to influence the British artist William Blake) He first met with previous prophets such as Abraham, Moses and Jesus and then glimpsed the pleasures of Paradise. Finally, Muhammad enjoyed the rarest privilege of all - seeing Allah's unveiled face.

Al-Burak Muhammad is shown riding a fabulous creature called al-Buraq, meaning "Lightning." as he passes through seven heavens on his journey to the presence of Allah. The name was well-chosen because al-Buraq could streak through the sky covering a distance as far as the eye could see in a single bound. Al-Buraq is shown with a woman's head and a mule's body. In other paintings, al-Buraq is sometimes shown with a peacock's tail.

THE ANGEL GABRIEL Unlike the other angels in this painting Gabriel is surrounded by a halo of fire. The halo of fire is a symbol denoting Gabriel's holiness. As the chief of Allah's angelic servants, Gabriel has the honor of leading Muhammad on his ascent through the heavens. Gabriel and Muhammad were not strangers. Gabriel delivered Allah's revelations to Muhammad beginning in 610. Gabriel also appears in the New Testament. In the Gospel of Luke, Gabriel is the angel who announces the birth of John the Baptist to Zachary (Luke 1: 11-20) and the conception, birth, and mission of Jesus to Mary (Luke 1:22.38).

MUHAMMAD Muhammad is surrounded by a halo of fire denoting his holiness and superior status as Allah's prophet. Muhammad's face is hidden by a veil. This is not an artistic oversight. Islam strictly forbids the making or drawing of idols. As a result, Muslim artists never portray Muhammad's face.

Angel gifts The two angels shown in this portion of the painting are bringing special gifts to Muhammad. The angel on the right is bringing Muhammad a cap of honor while the angel on the left is bringing Muhammad a robe of honor. Both gifts are meant to show Muhammad's special status as Allah's prophet. Muslim artists traditionally show Muhammad wearing his green robe of honour.

THE DOME OF THE ROCK The Dome of the Rock encloses the sacred rock where Muhammad began his ascension to Heaven.

EXTERIOR WALL OF THE DOME OF THE ROCK According to Muslim tradition, the rock wanted to join Muhammad on his journey to Paradise. The rock begged the Prophet saying, "O Muhammad, take me along into the presence of Allah." But Muhammad refused and the archangel Gabriel held back the envious stone.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE DOME Scholars suggest that the Sunni Caliph based in Syria, Abd Al-Marik, wanted Jerusalem as an alternative place of pilgrimage to Mecca – he therefore for-bade Pilgrimage to Mecca and the Dome on the Rock and he built the Dome as an alternative. Right: Dome from within Pilgrims had to circumnavigate the Dome in the same way as the Ka’ba in Mecca – again making parallels for the Syrian based Caliph.

INTERIOR OF THE DOME OF THE ROCK The Dome of the Rock is located on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Completed in 691, it is the oldest surviving Islamic sanctuary. The dome is made of wood and it was completely reconstructed and regilded in 1994 (financed by Jordan's King Hussein). The Dome contains 80 kilograms (176 pounds) of 24-karat gold. In the middle ages it was used by the Christian crusaders as a Church but Saladin returned it to use as a mosque.

JERUSALEM Jerusalem is the third most holy city for Muslims, after Mecca and Medina, as it is not only associated with Abraham but was the place Muhammad visited on his mystical journey to heaven. This creates major tensions today between Muslims and Jews. The wailing wall is on one side of the Dome of the Rock Temple area – which is on the site of the former Temple of Solomon.

The Prophet Muhammad says that ‘he is a slave, to whom (the Qur'an) was revealed’ but just as Allah taught Adam the names of animals (Sura 2.31) so Allah taught Muhammad the Qur'an (Sura 96.2). Muhammad was called to preach the Divine word as it has been proclaimed to the prophets and to Jesus – but without the distortions that have been claimed to have crept in. The Qur'an describes the Prophet as illiterate – and this is seen as a virtue and proof that he could not have written the Qu’ran himself. Just as Mary had to be a virgin so she could give birth to Jesus, so The Prophet had to be free from secondary intellectual influences in order to receive God’s word. Muslims have also been aware that The Prophet was fully human. He is, above all, seen as a beautiful model for a Muslim to follow.

VENERATION OF Muhammad Although Muhammad is a man, he is venerated in Islam. The Qur'an itself says: “Verily God and the angels bless Muhammad” (Sura 33.56). He is a blessing sent by Allah on the whole earth – just like the rain is a gift and blessing from Allah (“We have sent him as mercy for the worlds”) (Sura 21:107). The villagers in Iran and Anatolia call the rain ‘rahmat’ (mercy) just as the prophet is ‘rahmatan lil-’alamin’. Muhammad brings refreshment to dried up hearts as rain does to the desert. God is said to offer ten blessings for every one that a person offers of Muhammad. Muhammad, and his family, are always seen as close to a faithful believer who directs his love and trust to Muhammad.

The Last of the Prophets The Qur'an describes Muhammad as ‘the seal of the prophets’, the last of the long line of prophets that began with Adam (Adam is recognised as a prophet in Sura 2:30-9; 7:19-25; 20:117-124). God’s primary covenant is with NOAH and Abraham was the first prophet. Muhammad is held to be the final prophet. He is held by some Muslims to be the paraklet (most praiseworthy) who came to fulfil the message of Christ (Sura 61. 6) Muslims look not just to the Qur'an, but to the ‘Hadith’ traditions concerning Muhammad’s words and actions passed down from very early times. Muhammad so impressed all who met him, that any of his sayings and actions became of decisive importance for later followers. It is this that gave the Hadith its importance. Muslims differ as to the extent to which the Hadith can be interpreted. Many Muslims reject all historical criticism of the Hadith.

HADITH or SUNNA ‘Sunna’ is an alternative word for Hadith and the former gave rise to ‘Sunnis’ – this main group of Muslims paid great attention to these sayings. However the Hadith only became established by about 200 years after Muhammad’s death – prior to this there were ‘siras’ or stories about the Prophet’s life. The Hadith were formed gradually based on rigorous examination of the trustworthiness of those associated with particular stories and they way the stories fitted in to the Qu’ran. There are six groups of Hadith – of which the one compiled by the Bukhari and Al-Muslim are the most reliable. Sharia (Islamic law) depends heavily on the Hadith as well as on the Qu’ran.

Stories developed After the death of the Prophet, many stories about him developed. The tales of his birth were enlarged by, for instance, the appearance of a heavenly light at his birth and ‘The Light of Muhammad’ became a focus for devotion from the 8th century onwards. His birthday began to be commemorated from the 12th century. Hundreds of hymns have been written to commemorate his birth. Muhammad’s praise, sung by every being on earth, is echoed in every branch of Muslim poetry. Possibly the most famous birth hymn is the great Marhaba (‘Welcome’) written in 1410:. . . . . .

Welcome, O high prince, we greet you! Welcome, O mine of wisdom, we greet you! Welcome, A secret of the Book, we greet you! Welcome, O medicine for Pain, we greet you! Welcome, O sunlight and moonlight of God! Welcome, O one who is not separated from God! Welcome, a nightingale of the garden of Beauty! Welcome, a Friend of the Lord of Power! Welcome, a refuge of your nation! Welcome, O eternal soul, we greet you! Welcome, O cupbearer of the lovers, we greet you! Welcome, a darling of the Beloved! Welcome, O much loved of the Lord! Welcome, O mercy for the worlds! Welcome, O intercessor for sinners! Welcome, Prince of this world and the next! Only for you Time and Space was created……

SUCCESSORS TO Muhammad – The RASHIDUN (meaning ‘RIGHTLY GUIDED’ - THE first FOUR caliphs) The status of the successors to Muhammad was not universally agreed and divisions about them has led to the largest split within Islam…… The first CALIPH (person acting in Muhammad’s place after his death) was Abu Bakr (632–634), one of the Prophet’s oldest companions and father of Muhammad’s wife, Aishah. Two years later he died. The next successor Caliph was Umar ibn Khattab (634–644ce) and under him Islam expanded rapidly into other countries. Umar was murdered in 644ce. The third Caliph was Uthman ibn Affan (644-656ce), a son in law of the prophet, next succeeded. However he was from a rival faction in Mecca and was murdered in Medina as the original supporters of the prophet did not accept him.

THE FOURTH CALIPH Ali ibn Abu Talib, Muhammad’s cousin and son in law (he had married Muhammad’s daughter, FATIMA), was chosen by the Medina community in 656ce. However Muawiyah, the governor of Syria, refused to recognise him and called himself the Caliph. The Medina faction could not accept this as Muawiyah came from the tribe that had opposed Muhammad originally. Ali agreed to submit the decision on the caliphate to arbitration. BUT Ali was assassinated in 661 and Muawiyah kept power.

SHIA AND SUNNI MUSLIMS The division between SHI’I and SUNNI Muslims stem back to this time. The SHI’I are the supporters of Ali, They do not recognise the first three Caliphs. The Sunni consider that the first FOUR Caliphs (Ali was the fourth) were all ‘rightly guided’. Sunnis also accept the Caliphate of Muawiyah.

The First Caliphs ABU BAKR d. 634 SUNNI Islam SHI’I Islam regards these As the four ‘rightly guided’ Caliphs and sees this as a ‘golden age’ of Islam when the laws were well kept. 85% of Muslims are Sunni. ‘Sunna’ means ‘usual practice or custom’. SHI’I Islam sees Ali as the first genuine Caliph. Ali Was the Prophet’s son -in-law. Shi’is regard Ali and his descendents as infallible teachers, akin to the Prophet UMAR IBN KHATTAB d 644 UTHMAN IBN AFFAN d. 656 ALI d. 661

THE DISPUTE Ali’s son, Husayn, attempted to establish a caliphate in 680 but he was beheaded and his head sent to Damascus. Thereafter Damascus’ influence ruled… The killing of Husayn is regarded as a martyrdom by the Shi’i who recall it in a passion play each year. The Shi’i regard Ali and his successors as the only true Imams as they are family successors of the prophet. The Sunni respect Ali, but no more than that – and do not see him as a Caliph. It was from this time that Jersualem and the Dome of the Rock assumed importance as this was close to Syria where the Sunni Caliphs were and Jerusalem provided a focus apart from Mecca.

The Shi’i The Shi’i Al-Kazimain mosque in Baghdad The Shi’ites separated from the Sunni in 661 and claim to be a continuation of Islam as it was defined through the revelations given to Muhammad.

THE SHI’I – Contd. The main group of Shi’i are called ‘The Twelvers’ as they accept twelve Caliphs. The last, Muhammad al-Mahdi al-Hujja disappeared in a cave near Baghdad but continued to appear to followers until 940. Since then he has been been held to be hidden and God has prolonged his life. He will finally appear as the MAHDI and usher in a golden age of Shi’i Islam. The hidden Mahdi is still held to inspire the religious scholars of the Twelvers. So for the Shi’i, the one true Imam is the hidden Mahdi. The Shi’i recall the death of Husayn a grandson of Muhammud in 680. They see themselves as a persecuted minority keeping the ‘true faith’ of Islam.

ISMAILIS The ISMAILIS split from the ‘Twelver Shi’i and now form a separate branch of Islam – although are not recognised as Muslims by other groups. Their leader is the Aga Kahn. They have a great commitment to education, particularly of women, and are required to contribute towards a central fund managed by the Aga Kahn which is used to improve social conditions in area where Ismailis live. However Ismailis are a very small percentage of total Muslims…

SUNNI AND SHI’I The split between Sunni and Shi’i is of great importance in Islam. It stems back to Ali and his status but it has considerable political implications today. The Shi’i have always been non-conformist, enthusiastic and more radical than the mainstream Sunni. 80 – 85% of Muslims are Sunni and 15-20% are Shi’i. Shi’i are today largely found in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and Eastern Saudi Arabia. Sunni and Shi’i, however, both share a great deal – commitment to the oneness of God, the status of the Qu’ran and the Prophet as well as most Islamic ethical and religious beliefs such as resurrection and the day of judgement. However, just as with Protestants and Catholics in Christianity, there are also real tensions at times.

The Sunni Caliphs The Sunni see the Caliphs as being in a line running through Muawiyah and based in Damascus from 661 to 759 and then Baghdad and Samarra up until 1258. From 1258 - 1924 there have been a number of Caliphs but they had only limited influence – it is difference about the status of the early Caliphs that are decisive. These caliphs have arisen more from political than religious reasons with the Slajuks, the Timurids, the Turkomans, the Uzebks and the Ottomons. When the Ottomons conquered Egypt in 1517, the remaining Caliph was transported to Constantinople and from there on the Ottomon sultan took the title.

THE SUNNI About 85% of Muslims are Sunni. They believe that the successors of the Prophet were correctly chosen by consensus within the community. They see themselves as descended directly from the teaching of the Prophet – and they maintain that the Shi’i had very few followers in the decades after the death of the Prophet. The Sunni developed much earlier than the Shi’i their Hadith (which differ from the Shi’i) which serve as a basis for Islamic law (Shari’a). Sunni Islam puts much greater emphasis than the Shi’i on the pilgrimage to Mecca. For the Shi’i there are other pilgrimages of equal importance.

THE IMAM For the Sunni, the Imam is simply one who leads services in a mosque – there are, thus, many Imams. The Shi’i consider the Caliph as a religious head who controls all of life including government. Thus in Iran, the Ayotollah has great political as well as spiritual power – because Iran is largely Shi’i. Iraq is ruled by a relatively small Sunni group although Shi’i are in the majority (about 60% Shi’i, 7% Christian, 8% Kurd an 25% Sunni.).

This is a very rough map, but it indicates that Shi’a Muslims are confined to a fairly small area – Iran and Iraq are the centres of the Shi’I although they form a minority in Iraq.

EXPLOSIVE GROWTH Islam grew faster in terms of territory controlled than any other religion in history – largely by conquest by Muslim armies. Between 634 and 644 Muslim armies gained control of the Middle East. Jerusalem fell in 638, Egypt in 641. Islamic armies controlled part of Spain and entered France (until turned back in 732) and to the East they gained control of Persia. The new rulers permitted worship by ‘people of the book’ (Christians and Jews were ‘dhimmis’ or protected, second class citizens) provided they paid the required taxes, but all idol worshippers were punished. Constantinople survived many threats before it finally fell in 1453. HOWEVER Christians could not build Churches, could not evangelise,

St. Sophia, Constantinople/Istanbul The great Christian Cathedral of St. Sophia was transformed into a Mosque after the defeat of Constantinople - it is now a museum.

ISLAM The Qur'an

Because the Qur'an is such a holy book and no pictures are allowed in Islam, the calligraphy is often very beautiful. This is a page from a C1300th Koran.

THE Qur'an The Qu’ran was revealed to Muhammad over many years and was given in 114 SURAS. Each Sura opens with an indication of its origin but some scholars hold that many Suras have mixed origins. The longest Suras are at the beginning and the shortest at the end – BUT there is no sense of chronology. Suras appear to be applied to the particular situation of the life of the prophet and his community. The Qu’ran is written in Arabic poetic form. It was assembled from many sources by amongst others, Muhammad’s secretary - Zayd Ibn Thabit - between Muhammad’s death and the mid 650s. The precise punctuation, and therefore meaning, was a matter of considerable debate for a long period of time after this. There are a number of different ways of reading the Koran, but ordinary Muslims do not concern themselves with this level of complexity.

The Qu’ran as miracle The Qu’ran is written in Arabic and it is held that it cannot be accurately translated into any other language. Interpretation of the Qu’ran is a science in its own right. In the early years, Muslims scholars studied history, language and natural science in order to interpret it. This has given rise to different interpretations – but these are held in parallel, not as competing. The Qu’ran is the only miracle claimed by all Muslims – it is held to be so beautiful that Muhammad defied any poet to try to duplicate it. This miracle is equivalent in status in Islam to the Christian claim of the miracle of the resurrection of Jesus. For such a book to be produced by an illiterate man is, claim Muslims, impossible except by God’s intervention.

The Qur'an is not contextual Given that: The Qu’ran was written over a number of years and messages came to the Prophet in response to particular events in the young Islamic community, and there is no reason why one Sura should appear before another – there is no clear reason for the ordering of the Koran. It would be easy to expect that Qu’ranic rules would be tied to the context and culture in which they arose. But this is not the case. There is no idea in Islam or amongst Islamic theologians that the Koran is in any sense culturally relative. It lays down the final revelation of Allah that applies at all times and in all situations. The lack of historical thinking is vital in understanding Islamic teaching – which is why most Islamic morality cannot change or develop. It is fixed by the clear injunctions of the Qu’ran. However some Sunni modernists and Shi’is would disagree with this.

THE STATUS OF THE QU’RAN Christians differ widely as to how the Hebrew and Christian scriptures are to be interpreted. Some, few, are literalists but most accept that these were documents written by human beings in a particular context and, therefore, biblical scholarship and exegesis are entirely appropriate. Jewish rabbis delight in arguing over many different interpretations of the Torah and rabbinic reflection on the basic text is vital. The Qur’an is in an entirely different position as it is considered to be the word of God dictated by the Archangel. Many Muslims, therefore, reject any interpretation of Qu’ranic scholarship as being offensive to the divine origin of the Book. This means that the truths of the Qu’ran are timeless – they apply at all times and are in no sense culturally relative.

CRITICS OF THE KORAN Christian Biblical Scholars question the historicity of the Christian Gospels and there is no certainty about what what Jesus actually said. The search for the historical Jesus’ has largely been abandoned. All we have is what the young Christian Church said of Jesus. Similar questions can apply to the Qu’ran. Muhammad’s secretary, Zayd Ibn Thabit, collected pieces of the Qu’ran that had been spoken by the Prophet and written down by his followers. It was largely he who compiled the Qu’ran (some say with the assistance of 48 others). This process of compilation obviously raises questions about methodology and accuracy. To a devout Muslim, these questions would be unacceptable and there seems no way of resolving the issue as to how accurate the Qu;ran is to what the Prophet actually said.

THE CENTRAL ISSUES Islam depends on various assumptions. That: 1) Muhammad did indeed believe that the Qur'an was dictated by the Archangel, 2) Allah did, indeed, dictate the Qur'an 3) Allah intended the Qur'an to apply at all times and not just in the circumstances in which it was revealed, 4) Zayd Ibn Thabit was able to accurately collect the various small fragments together into a single volume and this is the volume that we have today. If any of these are rejected, then the basis of Islam itself would be called into question. The fact that the above cannot be proved to be true does not, of course, mean that they may not be true…. Exactly the same applies to Christian claims.

MUSLIMS, CHRISTIANS AND JEWS ISLAM MUSLIMS, CHRISTIANS AND JEWS

‘PEOPLE OF THE BOOK’ Central to Islam is a radical monothesim – commitment to God being One. The greatest enemy of Islam is idol worship. The Qu’ran recognises Jews and Christians as fellow ‘people of the book’ and gives them a place of respect. It appears that the Qur'an modifies this slightly – possibly due to the opposition Muhammad faced from Jews in Medina and elsewhere and also, possibly, because a Jewish wife tried to poison him after her husband was killed by Muslims. Nevertheless throughout much of its history Islam has shown tolerance of Jews and Christians (generally far more, let it be said, than Christians have been tolerant of Muslims!). BUT…..

APPARENT TOLERANCE BUT…. Islam shows apparent tolerance of Judaism and Christianity BUT there is no idea of freedom of religion in Islam. If someone leaves Islam (for instance to convert to Christianity) then the death penalty is imposed for men or a life prison sentence is imposed for women. Muslims, therefore, can find it difficult to engage in inter-religious dialogue as they are certain that they have God’s truth and every other religion is wrong or, at most, a partial and distorted insight into truth.

Respect for Torah and Gospels, but.. Although the Gospels and Torah are respected, Islam claims they provide an inaccurate accounts of Abraham, Moses and Jesus. The Gospels and Torah are accepted in so far as they are in accordance with the Qu’ran, where the former differ, they have been tampered with. Thus Jesus was indeed born of a virgin as the Christian Gospels say – this is affirmed in the Qu’ran. The Virgin Mary is held in high veneration in Islam as the virgin mother of the prophet, Jesus.

TORAH, GOSPEL AND Qur'an The Qu’ran speaks of both the Torah and the Gospels containing ‘light’ “And in their footsteps we sent Jesus, the son of Mary, confirming the Law that had come before him: We sent him the Gospel; therein was guidance and light and confirmation of the Law that had come before him…” (Sura 5: 49) The Qur'an is the perfection and completion of the Torah and Gospels. “It was we who revealed the law of Moses; therein was guidance and light. By its standard have been judged the Jews, by the prophet who bowed to Allah’s will, by the rabbis and doctors of the law…” (Sura 5:47)

ALLAH AS LIGHT The Light of Muhammad became a centre for mystical veneration from the 8th century ce onwards (referring to the stories of the light at his birth). Muhammad himself was also the Light – and it is held he cast no shadow as he walked as he was pure light. Allah is light, the lights of heaven, earth and the cosmos – the first light and the source of all light. Allah is absolute truth and the source of all truth. This light also shines through the Torah, the Gospels and the Qu’ran which are pure truth – but only the Qu’ran is unmediated, a direct Word from God. The light of true faith enlightens the one real way to Allah.

The Unbeliever (Kafir) The term ‘kafir’ means ‘ungrateful’ and later came to be used as ‘unbeliever’. The Qu’ran rejects both polythesists and the People of the Book in varying degrees: “Those who reject (Truth) among the People of the Book and among the polytheists, will be in hell-fire, to dwell therein for aye, and they are the worst of creatures. Those who have faith, and do righteous deeds – they are the best of creatures.” (Sura 98: 6-8) The Qur'an only describes non-Muslims as ‘unbelievers’ but later Muslim writings applied this term to all who rejected the ‘consensus of the faith’ Allah harshly judges all who reject his truth – humans cannot be allowed to oppose what is for their own good, so if unbelievers cannot be bought to their senses, it seemed reasonable that punishment should be applied even in this world.

Difference of Opinion There is a difference of opinion between two positions: 1) Some Muslims look to the positive references to ‘People of the Book’ and consider that they should be tolerated and are worthy of respect. 2) Others say that because Jews and Christians deny the teaching of the Prophet, they are worthy of condemnation. The Koranic commentary, Tabari (ce 923) comments on Sura 3:110 & 5.77 which condemns those who call the Prophet a liar and sees Jews and Christians to be in this position as they do not accept Muhammad.

LIFE AFTER DEATH In the Qu’ran, heaven and hell are very real: “Those that deny our revelations, We will burn in Hell-fire. No sooner will their skins be consumed that We shall give them other skins, so that they may truly taste our scourge. Allah is mighty and wise. As for those who have faith and do good works, We shall admit them to gardens watered by running streams, where, wedded to chaste virgins, they shall abide for ever. We shall admit them to a cool shade.” (Sura 4.54) The Last Judgement is a ‘great catastrophe’ which no-one can escape (Sura 79 and 34).The Qur’an portrays heaven in sensuous terms (Sura 39 and 60-75)

CENTRAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MUSLIMS AND CHRISTIANS The central difference between Muslims and Christians is over the person of Jesus. Muslims regard Jesus as a prophet sent by God and born of a virgin (they revere Mary) – but certainly not as the Son of God or God Himself. They utterly reject the doctrine of the Trinity as they see this as undermining the unity of God. In fact the Trinity is rejected by the Qur'an. They also consider that Jesus did not die on the cross and someone else took his place. MUSLIMS THEREFORE REJECT THE RESURRECTION.

THE KORAN AND JESUS “They (the Jews) denied the truth and uttered a monstrous falsehood against Mary. They declared: ‘We have put to death the Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, the apostle of Allah,’ They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him, but they thought they did. Those that disagreed about him were in doubt concerning his death, for what they knew about it was sheer conjecture; they were not sure they had slain him. Allah lifted him up to His presence; He is mighty and wise… On the day of resurrection he (Jesus) will bear witness against them.” (Sure 4.158) “People of the Book do not transgress the bounds of your religion. Speak nothing but the truth about Allah. The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, was no more than Allah’s apostle and His Word which he cast to Mary: a spirit from Him” (Sura 4. 171)

ARGUMENTS AGAINST CHRISTIANITY Arguments against Christianity in Islam rest largely on the truthfulness of the Prophet. Once this is accepted, then so is the truthfulness of the Koran. However there are also other arguments which depend on a critical examination of the Christian scriptures. One well known but disputed polemic is the Tuhfa, written by a former Christian monk and convert to Islam (died ce 1425), which maintained that the Gospels are inaccurate and forgeries. Only John, he claims, knew Jesus personally and other other evangelists lied (for instance, he says, Jesus is said to have spent three days in the tomb whereas in fact it was only a day and a half). He also argues against the Incarnation and Trinity.

The Tuhfa’s argument John, the only evangelist who knew Jesus, makes no mention of the Eucharist. This was an invention by the early Christian Church. The miracles of Jesus are totally insufficient proof of his divinity. The arguments against baptism, the Eucharist and the sacrament of penance are very modern… Jesus’ promise of the paraclete that was to come was fulfilled by the coming of Muhammad. (cf for all the above ‘The shorter Encyclopaedia of Islam ed. A.j. Wensinck & J.H. Kramers). This was to be the focus of centuries of Christian/Muslim debate. HOWEVER, many Muslim critics of Christianity seem unaware of modern Christian scriptural studies – these are theologians who would hold to the truth of Christianity and yet recognise the textual difficulties in the Gospels.

CHRISTIANS AND JESUS Jesus will come back before the end of time – but he is only a prophet and the writings of his followers are corrected by the Qur'an. Muslims are directed not to make friends amongst Jews and Christians. However both Christians and Jews can be tolerated in Islamic society AND Jesus is highly respected. The picture below shows Mohammad and Jesus on camel and donkey. (C18th painting)

ISLAM THE SUFIS

THE SUFIS Sufi mystics may well predate Islam – they have been traced back to Hindu sources or possibly to Christian gnostics and neo-platonism. However, in spite of speculation, there is no clear evidence for their existence prior to 800ce. The Sufis may also have been influenced by Christian monasticsm – althogh Islam itself rejects Monasticism completely. Muhammad, after all, had several wives and the Qu’ran praises marriage.

AIMS OF SUFISM The aims of Sufis varied, but the objective of union with God in this life was central. Sufis are widely regarded as the great mystics of Islam, but they are also more than that. The core of the Sufi position is a rejection of ordinary life in the world in order to get closer to God and, thereby, closer to truth and knowledge. The soul is seen as being able to stretch out from the body and approach God. Through leaders such as Ibn Arabi (1165 – 1240) they developed knowledge and practices to try to bring the person closer to God. Their concentration on the individual and not on community led them away from Islamic legalism and they have often been considered to be heretical because of this.

INTENSE LOVE OF GOD Sufis seek no reward other than to know God. God loves the world and Sufis seek to love and worship God in return. The following passages express this: RABIA – a female mystic from Basra (1207 – 1273) “O God. If I worship Thee in fear of Hell, burn me in Hell; and if I worship Thee in hope of Paradise, exclude me from Paradise; but if I worship thee for thine own sake, withhold not thy everlasting Beauty” JALAl AL-DIM RUMI (1207 – 1273) “Lovers, lovers, whoever sees His face, his reason becomes distraught, his habit confounded. He becomes a seeker of the Beloved, his shop is ruined, he runs headlong like water in a river.”

THE SUFI WAY The Sufi way to seeking wisdom involves mysticism, poetry and dance rather than with philosophy. The knowledge given in mystical experiences is held to transcend the knowledge of philosophy as the knowledge of an adult does that of a child. Sufi Masters often communicate using stories (akin to Aesop fables) to try to convey truths. They also recognise that the mystical path is long and hard and utter devotion is required in order to follow it. A divide opened up between orthodox Muslims and Sufis which resulted in the Sufi’s being treated with great suspicion. AL-GHAZALI did most to overcome this rift – but it was never entirely overcome. The rift still exists today in tension between radical Muslims and traditional Sufis and between emphasis on Islamic Law and mysticism.

THE GREATEST THINKERS IN ISLAM

AL-GHAZZALI – (1058 -1111) Al-Ghazali was a brilliant young Professor but, after 20 years, he had studied every kind of law, dogma and belief and, although he was held in very high regard and had a high income, he was dissatisfied. He did not believe in anything at all – neither religion nor the possibility of knowing anything. He has started by being a philosopher using Aristotle’s logic in order to make Islam more philosophically rigorous than it had been. However he came to feel that philosophy led nowhere. In 1095, he felt a fear of judgement and wished to stand correctly before God. He left his teaching post and for 10 years studied the mystical life as represented by Sufism before returning, briefly, to teaching. Possibly Al-Ghazzali’s major influence was to give Sufism intellectual respectability.

AL-GHAZZALI Al-Ghazzali came to see the limitations of the human intellect. He considered that most theologians and philosophers were non-believers and he came to reject all their work that conflicted with the Qur'an. In ‘Destruction of the Philosophers’. He rejected the scepticism of many Islamic philosophers including Avicenna (=Ibn Saud) and this led to an anti-intellectualism in Islam. To submit to God, Al-Ghazzali claimed, came first and was greater than all human knowledge and this submission must be sought no matter what the cost. In this he agreed with the Sufi mystics. Because of the influence of Al-Ghazzali, philosophy came to be treated with suspicion.

IBN-ARABI Ibn-Arabi restored interest in philosophy in Islam but he also helped explain, in Islamic terms, how God could be experienced. God was the only reality and everything in human experience was therefore an experience of God (there are parallels here with the Jesuit idea, from St. Ignatius, if idea of ‘finding God in all things’). The gulf between God and the universe is thus bridged and this made sense to the mystics who could see how God could be experienced in every day life. His emphasis on mysticism and the individual lessened the importance of theology and law as approaches to God Ibn Arabi claimed unity in all religions – he could go so far as to write that love was his only religion. Through mysticism, he claimed, human beings could experience God who shows himself both in nature and in human beings (St. Francis was to take a similar position).

IBN RUSHD (AVERROES) [1126 – 1198] Ibn Rushd (Averroes as he was named in the West) continued in the great tradition of speculative Aristotelian philosophy in spite of the attacks on this tradition by Ibn Arabi. He was probably the last great Muslim philosopher in the Western sense. He grew up in Islamic Cordoba, in Spain, and studied mathematics, law and medicine. In 1195 he was expelled by the local caliph for holding that REASON MUST PREVAIL OVER RELIGIOUS BELIEF. He was allowed to return three years later, just before he died. He held that the main use of religion was to provide rules for ordinary people and he rejected the idea of God creating the Universe – instead holding that behind everything lay God. He also rejected personal resurrection maintaining that the individual soul comes from a unified, universal soul.

IBN RUSHD (AVERROES) [1126 – 1198] Western intellectual thought probably owes more to Averroes than to any other non-Christian individual (except, possibly, for Maimonides in the Jewish tradition) because of his commentaries on the works of Aristotle. Some of these works of Aristotle had been lost in the West and were only kept alive in the great Islamic centres of learning so the commentaries of Averroes were of decisive importance. The great Christian thinker, Albert the Great, who so strongly influenced St. Thomas Aquinas, was himself heavily influenced by Averroes. It was because of Averroes contribution that Aquinas was able to use Aristotle’s philosophy to formulate a distinctly Catholic view of Christian morality and truth.

Jalaluddin Rumi (1207 – 1273) Rumi was a religious scholar until he met a wandering dervish (who worshipped Allah in dance) named Shams al-Din of Tabriz. Shams put a theological question to Rumi that caused Rumi to faint. When Rumi regained consciousness, his spiritual life had been transformed. For a year or two, Shams and Rumi were constant companions. Within three years of their meeting, Shams disappeared. Rumi ceased to preach to the general public and devoted the remaining twenty-six years of his life to training his Sufi initiates and writing divinely inspired poetry.

Rumi speaks of his transformation: “Passion for that Beloved took me away from erudition and reciting the Koran until I became as insane and obsessed as I am. I had followed the way of the prayer carpet and the mosque with all sincerity and effort. I wore the marks of asceticism to increase my good works. Love came into the mosque and said, "Oh great teacher! Rend the shackles of existence! Why are you tied to prayer carpets? Let not your heart tremble before the blows of My sword! Do you want to travel from knowledge to vision? Then lay down your head! If you are a profligate and a scoundrel, do justice to troublemaking! If you are beautiful and fair, why do you remain behind the veil?” (The Sufi Path of Love: The Spiritual Teachings of Rumi, p. 3)

QUOTATIONS FROM RUMI “Theologians mumble, rumble-dumble, necessity and free will, while lover and beloved pull themselves into each other.” (The Essential Rumi, p. 180) “That intellectual warp and woof keeps you wrapped in blindness.”( p 66) “Someone was saying: ‘I have studied so many branches of knowledge and mastered so many concepts; yet I still do not know which concept in man will abide forever. I have not discovered it yet’. If it could be known by means of words, there would be no need for the annihilation of individual existence or for so much suffering. You must strive to rid yourself of your own individuation before you can know that thing which will remain.”(Signs of the Unseen: The Discourses of Jalaluddin Rumi, p. 203) “The great scholars of the age split hairs in all the sciences. They have gained total knowledge and complete mastery of things that have nothing to do with them. But that which is important and closer to him than anything else, namely his own self, this your great scholar does not know.” (The Sufi Path of Love: The Spiritual Teachings of Rumi, p. 148)

QUOTATIONS FROM RUMI (2) "I know everything permitted and not permitted by the Divine Law." How is it you do not know if you yourself are permitted... You know the value of every merchandise, but you do not know your own value - that is stupidity... The spirit of all the sciences is only this: to know who you will be on the Day of Resurrection.” (The Sufi Path of Love: The Spiritual Teachings of Rumi, p. 128) “Since cleverness is your pride and fills you with wind, become a simpleton so that your heart may remain healthy. Not a simpleton warped by buffoonery, but one distraught and bewildered in God.” (The Sufi Path of Love: The Spiritual Teachings of Rumi, p. 224) “You seek knowledge from books. What a shame! ... You are an ocean of knowledge hidden in a dew drop…” (p. 64) “I have lived on the lip of insanity, wanting to know reasons, knocking on a door. It opens. I've been knocking from the inside!” (The Essential Rumi, p. 281) “Mysteries are not to be solved.” (The Essential Rumi, p. 107)

TENSIONS In Islam there has been a continuous tension (as in Christianity as well) between Philosophy and Mysticism. Sufism is the paradigm of the mystical approach – seeking an experience of union with God in praise, worship, dancing and sometimes silence. It uses stories to communicate truths which, it is held, go far beyond the truths of logical. By contrast, Aristotelian philosophy has led many Muslim thinkers to emphasise the importance of reason and rationality. However this path has sometimes been seen to threaten the status of the Qur'an and, therefore, has also been considered unacceptable. Both traditions have been, are and will continue to be important and it is, perhaps, best to regard the tension between the two as creative.

ISLAM BEING A MUSLIM

REQUIREMENTS OF MUSLIMS The requirements of Islam are in a way simple – they can be performed by anyone, irrespective of their station in life. God is just and merciful but requires submission and obedience. Every individual will be judged by God at the end of time. The righteous will be rewarded in paradise and the wicked punished in hell. Because God is just, God requires justice in social relationships – which are an important part of the Qur'an.

NO ORIGINAL SIN Although Islam accepts the story of Adam and Eve, there is no idea of original sin as developed by Augustine in the Christian tradition. Each individual is ‘free’ – although in Islam there is a strong idea that God pre-destines everything. Because Islam has no idea of original sin, a saviour is not need (as is the case with Jesus in Christianity) rather what is required is submission to the will of Allah. Provided a person can recite the Shadah sincerely and lives according to the direction of the Qur'an, salvation is certain. However Islam is not individualistic - community is vital for Islam – Islam is a community of individuals centred on the mosque. The following are the minimum outward requirements for a Muslim…

MINIMUM OUTWARD REQUIREMENTS FOR MUSLIMS THE SHAHADA: Muslims must declare: ‘There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet’ SALAT: As a minimum, Muslims must pray five times a day facing Mecca (not Jerusalem as was the case in the early years of Islam) using prescribed raka’as or postures and recitations. ZAQAT: payment of an obligatory tax to the needy FASTING: Muslims must fast during the month of Ramadan (the 9th month of the Islamic calendar which includes ‘The day of destiny’ when man’s destiny is decided for the next year and also commemorates the dictation of the Qu’ran – usually considered between the 26 & 27 night of Ramadan). PILGRIMAGE: This must be made, if a person is able to do so, once during a Muslim’s lifetime.

THE SHAHADA The opening section of the Qur'an is repeated constantly: “In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. Praise belongs to God, the Lord of all Being, the All-merciful, the All-compassionate, the master of the Day of Doom. Thee only we serve; to Thee alone we pray for succour. Guide us in the straight path, the path of those who Thou hast blessed, not of those against whom Thou art wrathful, nor of those who are led astray.” To recite this with full intention is all that is required to be a Muslim – but it is a very serious act. There is no turning back and renouncing the faith leads to the death sentence.

The Shahada contd. Central to Islam is the second part of the Shahada – it is this that most differentiates Islam as a world religion. Concentration on the oneness of God is important but would be shared by others – it is the stature of the Prophet that differentiates Islam. Muhammad came to be of supreme importance in Islam – thus Muhammad Iqbal wrote in 1932: “You can deny God, but you cannot deny the Prophet!” In India today, the greatest tensions arise when Hindu fundamentalists disparage the prophet – not Allah.

PRAYER Prayers can be made alone or in groups, but prayer in groups is seen as particularly effective. Weekly prayer is at noon on Friday. Prayer must be performed where a Muslim happens to be - at Dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, nightfall and evening There is a strong sense of the importance of ritual in Islam with precise definition of the ritual cleansing actions to be performed before and during prayer. All believers bow several times whilst standing, then they kneel and touch the ground twice with their forehead – this is sign of their submission to Allah. Islam also emphasises strongly that outward actions without corresponding inner states are empty.

PRAYER – contd. Each of the five daily prayers ends with ‘Allahu akbar’ (‘God is great’) and the recitation of the first Sura of the Qur’an. Each worshipper then turns to his neighbour and says ‘alamu alaykum’ (‘Peace be with you!’) There is a distinction between ritual prayer (salat) and petitionary prayer (du'a). Petitionary prayer is also an important element in the spiritual life of devout Muslims. Muslims are called to prayer by the MUEZZIN – an Ethiopian slave, Bilal, was first appointed by Muhammad to call the faithful to prayer.

PRAYER contd. Leon Gerome’s ‘Men at prayer in the mosque in Cairo’ (1824 –1904) shows the gulf between rich and poor worshippers – but they all take part in the same prayer rituals – whether the wealthy man in the foreground, his slaves or the ordinary folk behind….

ZAKAT – Giving Alms The giving of alms was originally a voluntary duty but it rapidly became an effective tax. It is based on the view that all Muslims must share their wealth with each other. The ZAKAT is a religious duty but, in addition, Muslims are also encouraged to give extra amounts (the SADAQA). The Zakat today is a tax in Muslim countries dedicated to helping those in need in their societies.

DISCIPLINE OF THE BODY Islam involves discipline of bodily pleasures – fasting teaches such discipline (and, of course, is also a central part of Christianity in Advent and Lent). Alcohol is forbidden totally as are drugs because both involve loss of control. Sex is forbidden outside marriage but within marriage there is a positive views of sex. In some Muslim countries (Iran is an example), ‘temporary marriages’ are approved and this can allow sex in temporary relationships.

PILGRIMAGE – The Haj Only 10% of all Muslims perform the Haj but nevertheless 2 million go every year. The Haj is also a continuation of what happened to Abraham and Isaac when they made the Ka’ba into the sacred place of worship and peace (Sura 2:119). Today most who perform the Hajj also visit Medina, the city of the prophet. The HAJ is the pilgrimage to Mecca which is compulsory for all those in good health and with enough money.

The Haj Pilgrims dress in identical clothes to show their equality – two seamless pieces of white cloth sown together. During the pilgrimage, no Muslim cuts their hair or toenails or engages in sex.

The HAJ – Contd. Muslims walk around the Ka’bah seven times (the ‘tawaf’). They kiss the sacred black stone and then run between two hills imitating Abraham’s concubine, Hagar, who searched for water in the desert to save Ishmael. From noon on the 9th day until sunset, the pilgrim stands on the Plain of Arafat where Muhammud stood and recited the following verses to indicate that God had completed Islam…. “Today I have perfected your religion for you, and I have completed My blessing upon you, and I have approved Islam for your religion.” (Qur'an Sura 5:5)

The Haj contd. After sunset, the pilgrims set out for Mina, stopping at Muzdalifa where each pilgrim gathers seven small stones which, on the tenth day, at Mina, they add to the towering heap of stones already there. This custom refers to Abraham’s temptation by the devil to go mad when faced by the command to sacrifice his son. Then there is a great feast and any pilgrims who can afford it sacrifice animals and share this with the poor. On the 12th day, the pilgrims return once more to Mecca, circle the Ka’bah seven times and end the state of purity.

THE SHARIA The Sharia is the law of Islam (indeed some say ‘Sharia IS Islam’. It is accepted as law in a few Muslim countries (Sudan, Pakistan and Iran). It is based on the: (1) The Qur'an (2) The Hadith (3) The judgements of the community decided by scholars in Medina. (4) More controversially, by the use of qiyas or analogy.This is used if something arises that is not covered by the first three and an attempt is made to draw analogies to arrive at what the Prophet would have said. There are different schools of Islamic law, some relying on previous opinion, others on the consensus and others almost entirely on the hadith.

SHARIA Contd. To Westerners, some aspects of Sharia law can seem barbaric (such as the beheading of adulterers, cutting the hands of thieves and whipping adulterers (a girl was whipped 100 times in northern Nigeria in 2001 [where Sharia law applied] as she had sex with three men. The men were not punished…) However to devout Muslims, Sharia is based on God’s direct command and obedience to it cannot be questioned. Not all Muslims, however, accept this strict interpretation.

OUTWARD ACTS ARE NOT ENOUGH The Qur'an makes clear that Islam is more than just outward observances: “It is not piety that you turn your faces to the East and to the West. True piety is this: to believe in God, and the Last Day, the angels and the Book and the prophets; to give of one’s substance, however cherished, to kinsmen and orphans, the needy, the traveller, the beggars, and to ransom the slave, to perform the prayer, to pay the alms….” (2: 172) Nevertheless outward observances and rituals are important.

WORLDVIEW Islam is highly positive about the world – The world is created by God and most things are good and are made for human enjoyment. Food and drink (other than alcoholic) is good, sex and procreation between married people is good, money and wealth are good (provided one gives to those in need). The world is in a wonderful place and, in a way, is a foretaste of paradise to come. All that is required is submission to the will of Allah. ‘Inshallah’ or ‘As God wills’ is a very common phrase in most Islamic countries accepting an almost fatalistic determinism. This also provides a structure for life for which, in a post-modern Western world, many yearn.

STRENGTHS OF ISLAM Islam’s emphasis on the singleness of God and the centrality of obedience to God is central to monotheism. There is a great sense of unity in Islam (in spite of the Shi’i/Sunni distinction. All Muslims, wherever they are, recognise the centrality of the Prophet and the Koran. The multiplicity of Churches so common in Christianity does not happen in Islam. In times of crisis, there is a great sense of unity amongst Muslims. Everyone is equal before God. Every Muslim is even buried in the same way. There is a simplicity of worship. Prince and pauper pray alike and together although race and class can in practice be important. The rich share the experience of the poor (whether in fasting, prayer, pilgrimage, etc).

BEAUTY The beauty of fine art is affirmed and themes of nature can be expressed in calligraphy, carpets, mosaics and architecture (but not in religious paintings of people or animals – hence there are no paintings in Mosques). The Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem from where Muhammad is held to have ascended to heaven.

Carpets are often a work of art and can express a prayer as they are works of devotion and dedication. The ‘arabesque’ style has a theological significance bringing together unity and eternity – there are incredibly beautiful examples.

BEAUTY The ultra modern design of the King Faisal mosque in Ruket designed for 10000 believers in the prayer hall and 80 000 on the adjacent land belonging to the mosque. Islamic architecture evolves but remains the same.

ISLAMIC CALLIGRAPHY – OLD TO NEW… Al-Ghaznawi 1177/8 Wijdan Ali 1993 INSERT p. 598

WOMEN IN ISLAM

Women in Islam The Qur'an specifically says that all human beings are equal before God although Muslims are more equal than others and Christians and Jews are second class citizens. When Islam was introduced it represented a move forward for women in the tribal areas of Arabia where women were often treated badly – almost as male possessions. The Quaran limits the number of wives to four and these must all be treated equally. The Qur'an says: “..marry such women as seem good to you, two, three or four but if you feel you will not be equitable, then only one….” (4.4) Women are allowed to own property (when this was not possible in the Christian West) and the Qur'an forbids female infanticide and also forced marriages. Women are seen as supports for their husbands – rather than as independent individuals with the marriage.

EXTRACTS FROM THE QU’RAN ‘If any of you cannot afford to marry a free, believing woman, marry a slave-girl who is a believer.. If after marriage they commit adultery they shall suffer half the penalty inflicted on free adulteresses.’ (Sura 4.25) (The Qur’an seems to accept slavery – and as the Qu’ran is the word of God this is signficant. The main slave traders in Africa were Muslims and twice as many slaves went to the Arab world than cross the Atlantic) ‘Men have authority over women because Allah has made the one superior to the others, and because they spend their wealth to maintain them. Good women are obedient.’ (Sura 4.34) On death, men shall inherit twice as much as women (Sura 4.176) The equality of women can, therefore, be questioned from a Western perspective.

Women contd. Women have to dress so that they do not provide a temptation to men. Muslims differ as to how this is to be interpreted. Some hold that every part of a woman’s body must be concealed – even her eyes. Others accept Western dress provided it is modest. In Afghanistan the Taliban have forbidden women to work, to be educated, to be out on the street unless totally covered – but other Muslims see this as a perversion of the Qur'an. Much depends on interpretation. In some sections of the Qur'an women clearly have a lower status than men – for instance the evidence of two women is equal to one man in a court of law. One problem in Islam is that it is not possible to say that this was a matter of culture when the Qur'an was written – as the Qur'an is the dictated word of God it is not culturally relative.

ISLAM AND THE STATE OF ISRAEL

ISLAM AND THE STATE OF ISRAEL Many Muslims are implacably opposed to the state of Israel. This is NOT, however, the same as them being anti-Jewish. They see Zionism and the State of Israel as movements that are fundamentally unjust. Many Muslims reject the original UN declaration which gave Israel what had been Arab land for nearly 2000 years. Still more, they reject U.S. and European support of Israel when Israel has occupied territory by force of arms against quite explicit United Nations rules and refuses to restore any of this territory. Many Muslims see the West (which is predominantly Christian) conspiring with Israel to act unjustly and to deprive Arabs of land they rightfully own. The refugees in the Gaza strip, dispossessed of the their homeland, have come to stand as a symbol for this injustice.

Islam and Zionism “Islam is not opposed to Judaism but regards it as a religion of God… Rather, Islam is opposed to Zionism to Zionist politics and conduct… For its crimes against the individual Palestinian men and women, against the corporate existence of the Palestinians, against the individual Arabs of the surrounding countries.. Islam condemns Zionism. Islam demands that every atom’s weight of injustice perpetrated against the innocent be undone. Hence it opposed upon all Muslims the world over to rise like one man to put an end to injustice and to reinstate its sufferers in their lands, homes and properties… Therefore, the Islamic position leaves no chance for the Zionist state but to be dismantled and destroyed, and its wealth confiscated to pay off its liabilities.” (Ismail R. al Faruqi. 1983)

BACKGROUND TO ZIONISM The establishment of the State of Israel has a long history behind it. The 1917 British ‘Balfour Declaration’ was of crucial importance but, perhaps, of even greater significance was the Holocaust. After the second World War, the world was horrified at the extermination camps and the suffering of the Jews. There was a feeling of corporate guilt and a desire to put things right in some way – this lead to the U.N. declaration giving the Jews a homeland: Israel. BUT what was not considered was that the land was already occupied by Arabs. Due to various complex and disputed events, the Arabs left (or were forced to leave – depending on your viewpoint) and thus became homeless refugees. It is small wonder that the anger of Muslims at this injustice is very great.

TERRORISM AND FREEDOM FIGHTERS One person’s terrorist is another person’s freedom fighter. Nelson Mandela was once labelled as a terrorist – so were many government leaders in Africa. So is Gerry Adams, the leader of Sien Fein. Western countries brand Muslims who fight against Israel as ‘terrorists’, but to other Muslims they may be fighting for Justice. It must also be recognised, that religious convictions are frequently used by politicians around the world for their own selfish interests and that all motives are mixed. However understanding the perspectives of others is part of a process which inter-religious dialogue demands.