World Religion Internet Assignment Do a research paper on a religion of your choice (if you choose Christianity, please choose a specific denomination, i.e., Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, etc.)....

WORLD RELIGION INTERNET ASSIGNMENT
WORLD RELIGION INTERNET ASSIGNMENT


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The Religion of Islam
Name of the student:
Date: 22.07.12
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Abstract
The pivotal endeavor in this paper is to analyze the origin of the religion of Islam which
will include the identity of the individual who actually established the philosophy of
Islam as a religion and the location and the time in which the religion of Islam was
introduced. The discussion in this paper is also going to reveal encompass the issue of
the belief system of Islam and the religion‟s holy books, its sacraments, and its rites and
rituals. Moreover, this paper is going to emphasize also on the locations in which the
religion has emerged as the predominant one. Furthermore, the discussion will also try
to give a fair idea to the reader about the percentage of people in the U.S. who are
presently committed to the religion of Islam in specific and around the world in general.
Besides, the information will also be revealed in the paper about the ethnicity tied to this
religion, particularly in the U.S. Finally, the paper will discuss about the condition of
women in the domain of the religion of Islam and in connection to this the concept of
gender equality in Islam will also be discussed along with its resemblance with the
concept of a cult.
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Origin of Islam
The Arabic word Islam denotes acceptance or surrender and specifically the
surrender to the will of God, Allah. The word, according to Beth Davies-Stofka
(Beginnings, 2012), has a close relation with the peace which in Arabic is called salaam
and which is also known as shalom in Hebrew. The followers of the religion of Islam,
which was approximately founded in 622 CE, are called Muslims and they are the
individuals who have surrendered to the will of Allah prevailing in every sphere of their
lives. It was Prophet Muhammad who founded the religious movement of Islam and
eventually took the role of the founder of the religion.
Belonging to the Quraysh tribe of Mecca, Muhammad is
believed to be the final messenger sent by God for looking
after the well being of human beings. In the period of
Muhammad‟s birth the concept of monotheism was not so
popular in Mecca and polytheism prevailed as a dominant
form of religion. Idolatry was frequently practiced and the
Kaaba itself “was filled with idols that had been placed
there by the different tribes and clans of Arabia” (Stofka,
2012).
But it was Muhammad who in the later years of his life initiated the religious
movement of Islam to abolish the practice of idolatry and to substitute the system with
the monotheistic religion of Islam with Allah as the one and only supreme God to whose
will every human beings must surrender. It was at the age of 40 that „Muhammad fell
into a trance in a cave on Mount Hira near Mecca where he claimed to have heard the
An image of Prophet
Muhammad
http://www.patheos.com/About-Patheos/Beth-Davies-Stofka.html
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angel Gabriel speak to him” (Life of Muhammad, n.d.). And this was the foundation of
his consciousness that he was not sent into this world to lead merely a life of a family
man but had responsibilities to do something for the welfare of the human society. He
started the mission of preaching submission to the will of Allah and thereby, led to the
foundation of the religion of Islam.
Basic Beliefs in Islam
Every religion has its own belief system that acts as the basic foundation of the
respective religion and the religion of Islam is no exception. Being a monotheistic
religion Islam believes in the oneness of God and this concept is known as Tawheed. The
followers of Islam, the Muslims, believe that there is only one supreme God who is Allah
and no other celestial being can be equated to His position. Besides, it is the concept of
Tawheed which “includes the oneness of the Lordship, oneness of Worship and oneness
of Names and Attributes” (The Islamic Bulletin, 2009). The Muslims firmly believe that
the one and only supreme God Allah is the creator of every human being, He is the
provider of all the welfare aspects and is the Commander who guides human beings in
the path of truth and happiness. The followers of Islam should, according to the religion,
only follow Allah and submit to His will alone. The Muslims solely believe that it is only
Allah who is the Perfect God and every aspect of Him, including His names and His
attributes, are all perfect. Moreover, it is the stern belief of the followers of Islam that
perfection is a concept which can only belong to Allah. Furthermore, one of the primary
beliefs of Islam conveys that there can be no angel or human who can share the divinity
of Allah and as per the Holy Quran 18:26, “Allah makes none to share in His decision
and His rule”...