Al-Sadiq & Al-Zahra Schools

Unit K  Islam

Section K1 Beliefs and Values

Terminologies

Tawhid: Muslim beliefs about Allah

Muslims believe that there is only one God, Allah. They believe that God is one, therefore Allah can have no plurals, polytheism is wrong and Christianity is wrong because Jesus was not God's son.

Because Allah is one, he must always have been and always will be and he depends on no one but himself. Because Allah is one, the universe he created must be a unity. This is why following the way of Islam makes Muslims a united community (ummah).

Surah 112 states,

"Say, 'He is God the One and Only, God the Eternal, Absolute; He

begetteth not nor is He begotten; and there is none like unto Him.'

This means that Muslims reject the Christian belief in the Trinity and will not allow anything to interfere with Allah's oneness.

The belief in Allah's oneness is called tawhid by Muslims and is the basis of all their beliefs about Allah. It is also the first part of the shahadah (first pillar, often called the

Muslim creed) - 'I bear witness that there is no god but Allah.'

Muslims believe that as there is only one God, it follows that Allah created everything. According to Muslim belief, Allah created the universe and humans in six days, though many Muslims would claim that one-day for God is not the same as one day for humans and therefore this could fit with the timescale of evolution. However, Muslims do not believe in evolution because everything was made directly by God for a particular purpose, and nothing came into being accidentally.

As the one God who created everything, Muslims believe that Allah has power over everything. (He is omnipotent.) The Qur'an calls Allah the All-powerful. Allah is in control of the universe he made and he has a plan for it. Muslims believe that nothing happens without Allah's consent.

Muslims believe that God is merciful and compassionate. He has not just left humans alone in the world to get on with things. He has sent prophets with holy books to show them how to live their lives and his justice means that they will only be judged on how far they have followed the teachings of the prophets and holy books.

Muslims also believe that God's mercy means that God will forgive people if they do not live up to everything in the holy books. If Muslims feel they have done something wrong, they will pray to God for forgiveness and either fast (sawm) or give money to the poor (sadaqah).

Before they die all Muslims try to confess their sins and ask God to forgive them, so that they will not be sent to hell on the Day of Judgement. The Qur'an and Muhammad say that God will forgive Muslims if they are truly sorry for what they have done and are determined to do better in future. They will not be forgiven if they are only confessing in order to avoid hellfire.

The sin of shirk

As belief in the oneness of Allah is the central belief about God, so the greatest sin a

Muslim can commit is shirk (associating other beings with God). For this reason Muslim mosques have no images and no pictures, only abstract art or calligraphy (beautiful writing of verses from the Qur'an). Some Muslims will not allow photographs as this might lead to shirk. They would especially not allow pop posters or football player posters, because hero worship is shirk.

The ummah of Islam

The oneness of God who created everything means that there must be a oneness (unity) in what God has created. Just as the universe is a unity, so the religious community of Islam should be a unity. This is why Muslims are called the ummah (religious community of Islam), which shows the unity of Islam.

The unity of the ummah is shown in the following ways:

  • when Muslims perform salah and stand in rows shoulder to shoulder, so all are equal.
  • in zakah, where rich Muslims give money to help their poor Muslim brothers.
  • in hajj, where Muslims from all over the world of many races and colours perform the same actions, wear the same clothes and say the same things.
  • the fact that there is only one shari'ah (law) for all Muslims, wherever they live.

There should be no quarrelling or fighting in Islam. Therefore those who do quarrel or fight do not really believe in tawhid.

Islamic teaching on humans as khalifah

The Qur'an says that Allah created Adam to be his khalifah (vice-regent or steward) to look after the world. Allah taught Adam the nature of all things and made the angels bow down to Adam. Muslims believe that this was because Adam had been given free will by Allah, which allowed Allah to teach him the nature of things. As khalifah of the earth with free will, Adam was different from the angels.

Muslims believe that, as descendants of Adam, all humans have been put on this earth to be khalifah for God. They are to look after the world as God intended it to be done, which is by accepting the six beliefs and following the pillars and shari'ah as given in the Qur'an. If this is done properly, then the earth will become the sort of place God created it to be.

Because Allah created people for this purpose, and in his mercy gave them the Qur'an and the examples of the prophets to live by, humans have no excuse for not being good khalifah. Therefore Allah is justified in judging them on the way they carry out their role as khalifah.

Islamic teaching on al'Qadar and human freedom

Al'Qadar (the Divine Decree) says that Allah has a plan for the universe and the power to make that plan come about. Allah will make happen what he wants to happen. Islam teaches that Allah knows what will happen in the future and that what will happen is what Allah wants to happen. Therefore Muslims believe that Allah can interfere with what is happening in the world. They believe that he can protect his faithful servants. This means that whatever happens is part of Allah's plan and even though it might not seem like it, eventually everything will work out all right.

This belief in al'Qadar is why many Muslims use the phrase ‘insh’Allah’ (if Allah wills) a lot. Whatever happens will not be what they want, but what Allah wants.

This causes problems for Muslims because it seems to mean that there is nothing we can do about things and therefore they must leave it all to Allah and just sit back. However, most Muslims believe in both Allah's power and human freewill. Humans have to do what Allah wants of their own free will. Allah knows what people will do but they have the freedom to decide what to do. Most Muslims do not think about the implications and say ‘insh’Allah’ without thinking that it means they are not free.

Islamic teaching on angels

Muslims believe that angels were created directly by Allah, and are made of light and are sexless (though they have male names). They have no freewill and so cannot do evil. The chief angel is Jibrail (Gabriel) who gives God's messages to the prophets. Mikail (Michael) looks after heaven and keeps the Devil out. Israfil is responsible for the Last Day and will sound the trumpet. Izrail is responsible for taking the last breath from the dying.

Most Muslims believe that they have recording angels who write down everything they do for the Day of Judgement, and guardian angels who look after them if they are good Muslims.

Islam teaches that Allah uses angels to communicate with humans via prophets.

Islamic teaching on prophets

Muslims believe that prophets are human beings called by God to give his message to humans. God makes them sinless after they become prophets, but they remain human.

Adam was given the message of Islam as the sign of God's mercy. He showed humans how they should live as Allah's khalifah and so go to heaven, but his message was lost or distorted by humans and so God had to send another prophet, but with the same message.

There were many prophets, but the main ones you have to study are:

Ibrahim who was born into a polytheistic family, but came to believe in Allah and so broke all the statues of the gods in his tribe. He was condemned to be burnt to death for this, but Allah stopped the fire from touching him. Ibrahim had two sons, Ismail (who became the prophet for the Arabs), and Ishaq (who became the prophet for the Jews). Ibrahim was tested by Allah to sacrifice Ismail and the devil tempted him not to. Ibrahim stoned the devil and obeyed Allah. Allah gave Ibrahim a ram to sacrifice, and Ismail was saved. Ibrahim and Ismail rebuilt the Ka’aba, which had been destroyed in Noah's (Nuh) flood.

Isa (Jesus) was born of the Virgin Mary, but was not the Son of God and was not crucified on the cross; someone else died in his place. Isa performed many miracles, was taken directly to heaven by God and will return again at the end of the world.

The work of all these prophets was either forgotten or distorted, so that Islam had become Judaism or Christianity or Arab Bedouin polytheism. At this point Allah decided to call a prophet who would be given the message in a way that could not be distorted so that no more prophets would be needed. This was the prophet Muhammad. Muslims believe that Muhammad performed no miracles except for receiving the Qur'an, which was the final word of God, given to Muhammad in such a way that it could never again be distorted. This was Allah's final word and enabled Muhammad to restore Islam. Muhammad has the same status as all the other prophets.

Muslims are supposed to say Peace Be Upon Him each time they mention a prophet's name.

Islamic belief in holy books

Islam teaches that:

Ibrahim was given Allah's word in the holy book of the Scrolls of Ibrahim.

Musa (Moses) was given Allah's word in the holy book of Tawrat (Torah).

Dawud (David) was given Allah's word in the holy book of Zabur (Psalms).

Isa (Jesus) was given Allah's word in the holy book of Injil (Gospels).

Some Muslims believe that each of these holy books contained the Qur'an, but most Muslims believe they only contained a part of the Qur'an.

Each of these holy books was distorted and so they are no longer the original holy book. Muslims believe the Qur'an is Allah's final word to humans, and so no other holy books are needed.

The belief in Muhammad as the seal of the prophets

What makes Muhammad different from the other prophets is that the Qur'an says that

Muhammad is 'the seal of the prophets'.

Muslims believe that this means:

Adam was given Allah's message, but it was forgotten.

So Ibrahim was given Allah's message, but that was also forgotten.

So Allah gave Musa the holy book of the Tawrat, but that was distorted.

So he gave Dawud the Zabur, but that was distorted.

So he gave Isa the Injil, but that was distorted.

So he decided to give Muhammad his final word, the Qur'an, in a form that can never be distorted. Muhammad received the Qur'an in such a way that it will never be forgotten or distorted and so there will never be a need for another holy book. If there will never be a need for another holy book, there will never be another prophet. This means that Muhammad is the last of the prophets, acting like a seal at the end of Allah's letter to humans.

Because Muhammad is the last prophet there can be, it follows that his life is the last example Muslims have of how Allah wants them to live. This is why Muslims follow Muhammad’s way of life. Also the sayings of Muhammad, the hadith, are the next most holy words to the Qur'an, and are followed wherever the Qur'an is unclear.

The belief in Muhammad as the seal of the prophets means that there can be no more prophets, so anyone claiming to be a prophet must be wrong and there can be no new religions.

Akhirah: Muslim beliefs about life after death

Muslims believe that when people die, their body stays in the grave until the Last Day, when the earth will be ended and everyone will die. Then Israfil will sound the trumpet and there will be a resurrection. All the dead bodies will be raised and will gather on the plain of Arafat for the final judgement.

The judgement will take place in the following way:

  • Everyone will be naked, so that nothing can be hidden, and then each in turn will readout the book of their lives where again no thought or action will remain hidden.
  • Each person will be judged on the basis of how well they have behaved as khalifahs, and will be sent to heaven or hell.

Most Muslims believe in the principle of repentance. (Those who repent of their sins before they die will be forgiven by Allah and will not go to hell.)

No one knows when this will happen, but Isa will come before it happens and kill Dajjal (the beast of evil), and the dead will rise.

Because of this belief about the Day of Judgement, when Muslims die, they are not allowed to have anything taken from their bodies. They are buried quickly and are buried facing Makkah.

Muslims call heaven al'jannah (the Garden). The Qur'an paints a wonderful picture of heaven as a place of gardens, flowers, streams and rivers and a beautiful life in the presence of Allah.

Muslims call hell jahannam (the place of fire). The Qur'an paints a terrible picture of hell as a place of fire and torment where the evil will have their skins burnt off whilst they drink pus and boiling water.

Both heaven and hell last forever, so where people end up is where they will stay.

Further References:

  • Book:                Religion in focus: Islam in today’s world by John Murray

Page         32-33, 40-46, 66-67                                        

  • Book:                Examining Religions: Islam by Ruqaiyyah Waris Maqsood.

Page        24 - 46

  • Book:                CGP- GCSE Religious Studies Revision Guide

Page 86 - 87

 

Past Exam Papers

Section 1        The Beliefs of Islam

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Section K2 Community & Tradition

Terminology

Muslim beliefs about the Qur'an

Revelation means 'divine communication'. Islam teaches that the whole of the Qur'an was given to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) by the angel Jibril. This revelation took place over a period of twenty-three years. Because Muhammad (peace be upon him) could not read or write, he learned everything which Jibril had said to him and his friends wrote it down. Because the Qur'an is the direct word of Allah it cannot be translated without losing some of its meaning. Muslims will never contradict the teachings of the Qur'an. For Muslims, the Qur'an has moral, spiritual and historic truth in its teachings. There is no need to question it or interpret it.

Muslims believe that Allah gave certain prophets his word in a holy book. Musa received the Tawrat, but that was not written down until much later and so was distorted. Dawud was given the Zabur, but that also became distorted. Isa was given the Injil, but that too was distorted. Finally, Allah sent his word to Muhammad.

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The first revelation came when Muhammad was meditating in Cave Hira and the Angel Jibrail ordered him to recite what is now Surah 96 (the Blood Clots). This occasion is known as the Night of Power (Lailat al'Qad'r) and is thought to have happened on 27 Ramadan 610. After this, Muhammad continued to receive direct revelations from Allah.

As he could not read, he dictated them to scribes and their writings were put in a chest. The revelations continued until just before Muhammad died. Muhammad himself sorted out the revelations into surahs, but it was the third Caliph, ...

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