- The word Islam derives from the word Salam, which means peace but in a secondary sense it also means surrender. The peace that comes from surrendering ones life to god. Those who adhere to Islam are known as Muslims.
- Islam follows the bible to the extent of the banishment of Ishmael and Hagar from the tribe. This is where the accounts diverge. According to the Koran Ishmael went to the place were Mecca was to rise and his descendants became Muslims. On the other hand followers of Isaac who remained in Palestine gave rise to the Hebrews who were later called Jews.
- Muslims believe Mohammad is the prophet through who Islam reached its definitive form. He is called the seal of the prophets because no legitimate prophet will succeed him.
- Mohammad born is 570ad, both parents died while he was small and adopted by uncle and raised affectionately. At the age of twenty five, married a wealthy widow fifteen years his senior. Seeking solitude, Mohammad began to frequent a cave on the outskirts of Mecca. The desert jinn were irrelevant in his quest, except for one deity, Allah. Through all night vigils Mohammad became convinced there was only one god, the one and only, Allah.
- In 610bc on the night of power, Mohammad, while lying on the floor of the cave, saw an angel in the form of a man. Proclaim said the angel, Mohammad protested he was not a proclaimer, but the angel persisted, proclaim.
- The leaders Mecca were determined not to have any of Mohammad’s proclamations, so they began to ridicule him. When this proved ineffective, they turned to threats and prosecution. Mohammad continued to preach adjourning listeners from every side to abandon their evil ways and prepare for the day of reckoning. The hijra was called because they needed a strong impartial leader.
- Mohammad’s role in medina was one of administration instead of preaching. There followed a struggle with the Meccan’s for the mind of Arabia. The Meccan’s attacked medina and for several years victory changed hands and eventually turned in Mohammad’s favor.
- The kaba is a cubicle temple supposedly built by Abraham, which he rededicated to Allah and consecrated it as Islam’s geographical center. Mohammad accepted the cities mass conversion and his followers went on to conquer Armenia, Persia, Syria, Palestine, Iraq, N. Africa, Spain, and even crossed into France.
- The meaning of the word Koran means recitation. Mohammad called it the standing miracle because he himself could not have produce a book that provides the grand plan of all knowledge and at the same time is grammatically perfect and without poetic peer. All Muslims are convinced of this and defies all belief. The words came to Mohammad in manageable segments over twenty-three years through voices that that sounded at first like reverberating bells, but gradually condensed into a single voice that identified itself as Gabriel.
- The Koran judges the old and New Testament as having two defects that itself is free of. First The Hebrew and Christian bible record only portions of truth. Second they are partially corrupt in transmission which explains the occasional discrepancies in their accounts and parallel ones in the Koran.
- Everything in Islam is centered on god, and all Muslims see monotheism as Islam’s contribution to its entirety. Although Muslims fear Allah, Allah is also known for his compassion and merciful ways.
- The five pillars of Islam regulate the private lives of Muslims in their dealings with god. Creed refers to confession of faith. Canonical prayer is to voice the gratitude that one feels for its life. Charity, those who are comfortable should share with the unfortunate. Observance of Ramadan, the holy month in the Islamic calendar and is to commemorate the revelation of the Koran and the exodus from Mecca. Finally pilgrimage, at least once in their lifetime, every Muslim who is physically and financially able is expected to journey to Mecca. Muslims must not gamble, steal, lie, and eat pork, drink intoxicants, or be sexually promiscuous.
- The first approach is love. A woman saint by the name of rabi’a and discovered in the solitary vigils lasting sometimes all night noted that gods love was the core of the universe. Second is ecstasy, literally to stand outside oneself. It says different and unusual experience left them so engrossed in ecstasy, which left no margin for awareness. Third is intuitive discernment bringing knowledge but of distinct sort. Heart, visual, and mental knowledge. Mysticism breaks through the boundaries that protect the faith of the typical believer, it moves to confined regions that although fulfilling for some, carry dangers for those unprepared for the teaching.
- Islam needs to learn how to distinguish between modernization and westernization. It also has to realize unity that is latent in Islam when the forces of naturalization work against it. Islam also needs to learn how to hold on to the truth in a pluralistic, revitalizing age.
