I. Islam – What you need to know:

A. Muhammad (A.D. 579 Mecca – A.D. 632) – is the founder of the religion of Islam.

1. Regarded as a messenger and prophet of God.

2. The messages from God to Muhammad became the Quran (Koran); the holy

book of Islam.

3. The followers of Muhammad and his teachings are called “Muslims”.

B. The 5 Pillars of Islam (as established in the Quran; the holy book of Islam)

1. Profession of Faith (Shahada) – “Allah is the only God and Muhammad is his

messenger.”

2. Prayer (Salah) – Muslims pray five times a day facing the city of Mecca

(Muhammad was born in Mecca which is a city in Saudi Arabia; Muslims in the

U.S. face east to pray towards Mecca).

3. Paying Alms (Zakat) – Muslims are to make donations to charity; especially

during the Rhamadan.

a. Rhamadan is the 9^th month in the Islamic calendar and is the month in which

Muhammad began to receive the revelations from God that form the

basis beliefs in the Islamic religion.

4. Fasting (Sawm) - No eating or drinking during the daylight hours of Rhamadan.

5. Pilgrimage (Hajj) – All Muslims are required to make on trip (hajj) to Mecca in

their lifetime.

6. Is “jihad” the sixth pillar of Islam??:

a. jihad – a term in Arabic (the most common language in the Middle East) that

means “struggle” in Arabic.

b. There are two definitions/meanings for jihad Islam:

1) “a struggle with one’s conscience”; the daily struggle to live by the

teachings of Islam.

2) “armed conflict”; defending Islam from those who are attempting to harm

it; “a holy war.

****The “Sixth Pillar” Explained …

Most Muslims believe that jihad is a “struggle with one’s conscience”, not a “holy war” to

defend Islam from enemies. Only extreme groups (like al Qaeda), teach that jihad is a sixth

pillar in Islam.

C. There are 2 groups in Islam

1. Islam is divided into two main groups – Sunni and Shia (also spelled Shite).

2. How are these two groups different …????

a. When Muhammad died in A.D. 632, he named no one to succeed him.

1) Sunni

a) Largest group in Islam; about 80% of the worlds Muslims are Sunni

b) Sunnis believe that the leaders of Islam do not need to be related to

Muhammad.

c) Important Sunni cities;

(1) Mecca, Saudi Arabia – birthplace of Muhammad

(2) Medina, Saudi Arabia – burial place of Muhammad

d) Osama bin Laden, and his supporters, are a Sunni

2) Shia

a) The minority group of Islam

b) Shia believe that the leaders of Islam must be related to Muhammad

c) Important Shia nations:

(1) Iran - largest Shia population

(2) Iraq – location of the Shia holy cities Karbala, Najaf

(3) Pakistan

d) Important Shia cities:

(1) Mecca, Saudi Arabia

(2) Medina, Saudi Arabia

(3) Karbala, Iraq – in 680, the Shia (Ali ibn Abi Talib) leader was

killed by Sunni forces at a battle in Karbala; many Shia conduct a

hajj to Karbala each year during “Ashura”

(4) Najaf, Iraq – Muhammad’s grandson (Husay ibn Ali), also killed

by Sunni forces in Karbala, is buried in Najaf.

b. Throughout Islamic history there has been fighting between the Sunni and

Shia that has often led to discrimination and the execution of one group by

the other.

***And don’t forget … add this:

Christians: (The 3 Main Groups)

Roman Catholic

Protestant (Martin Luther started the break up of the Catholic Church …. “The Reformation”)

Eastern Orthodox