Huston Smith Reading Part I

Islamic Background: What aspects of Islam are important for us to understand?

1. The Arabian empire was one that was greater that the Roman empire
2. The empire expanded exponentially greatly because of their religion Islam
3. Allah comes from the definite "al" meaning the and the word "Ilah" meaning God
4. God created the world and after it human beings. (Adam then Noah then Shem then Abraham...)
5. Divergence between Christianity Judaism and Islam begins with the Koranic and biblical accounts of what happened with Issac and Ishmael 

Summary: The Arabian empire was a great empire larger than the Roman empire. It was so successful in expanding because of Islam. This religion really has a lot in common with Christianity and Judaism, so followers of those religions were greatly accepted. Allah is The God and there is only him and he does not need any help.

The Seal of the Prophets: How did Muhammad come to be the Prophet?

1. There were prophets before Muhammad but he was their culmination, which is why he is called "The Seal of the Prophets". No valid prophets will follow him
2. Mecca desperately needed a deliverer because it was a very chaotic place and  they had a lot of wars and disagreements. This is because they were living in a world full of ignorance. 
3. Muhammad understood human suffering forma very early age because he experienced death at such a young age.
4. Muhammad's revelation came to him in Mount Hira. He proclaimed as the angel had to him to and that began his life spreading the word of God. 
5. While he did gain many followers, there were also people who wanted him out because he threatened their polytheistic way of life. These people tried everything to drive Muhammad and his followers out of the city from petty insults to trying to persecute them. 

Summary: Muhammad's life started out with tragedy, but this only helped him to understand human suffering. Living in a world full of ignorance caused him to frequently seek to be alone and this led to his revelation on Mount Hira. This started his life as a prophet and earned him the name "The Seal of the Prophets"

The Migration that Led to Victory: How did Muhammad's banishment ultimately lead to their victory?

1. With Muhammad's life in danger, he and some of his followers migrated to the city of Yathrib, a city that was in need of someone who could unify them. 
2. The migration to Yathrib became known as the Hijira. 
3. Muhammad became more than just  spiritual leader, he became a statesman.
4. The Meccan's did not give up on trying to persecute Muhammad and the Muslims. The two went back and forth several times. Ultimately, the Muslims won because they believed that the angels were fighting on their side. 
5. Muhammad, who left Mecca and a fugitive, now returned as a conqueror and showed mercy to the city and his persecutors. 

Summary: With Muhammad forced to leave Mecca, he traveled to Yathrib, where he was welcomed as not only a spiritual leader but also a statesman. he ruled over these people for several years and gained countless followers. He was forced to face the Meccan's several times but in the end the Muslims came out on top an his great compassion and mercy that he showed towards his persecutors only allowed him to gain more followers.

Commentary: Brandon and Sydney

 Khalifah: is steward of the world of Allah. The idea of taking care of the world is very important to Muslims. Their surrounding environment helps them to create a better understanding of the universe and that humans are second to Allah in creation. It also remind them that Allah is the creator of the universe and he is in charge of everything so humans are only responsible for the earth. It also shows that Muslims have to remember that they are accountable to Allah on Yawm al-din.

 Imam: is faith in God. It is also the term for a religious leader.The Imam leads islamic prayer ad services and they also provide community support and spiritual advice.Imams relate to Umma, the Muslim community. For each of the five daily prayers, the Imam is present at the mosque to lead the prayers. Among Shia Muslims, the concept of Imam takes on a more central clerical position.

 Ulama: is a body of Muslims scholars or religious leaders. This body helps people interpret the Qur'an. This means they are getting perspectives forma  bunch of different people rather than just one person. Their knowledge is respected and people seek their help and expertise.

A Muslims ultimate goal is to get to Paradise. Their daily lives are affected by them striving for this goal. For example Khalifah has the idea of taking care of the world so it can be a better place for other people. They confess their sins daily and devote themselves to prayer 5 times a day.Muslims seek to avoid sin to insure that they make it to Paradise. This is because they believe that no one is truly guaranteed a spot in Paradise and when Yawm al-din, or judgement day, is upon us that no one can know for sure if they will enter Paradise or not. What is done on earth is what ultimately determines who is accepted into Paradise with Allah and who is not. In order to be as sure as possible that they will be able to achieve entrance to Paradise, Muslims worship (salah) Allah and acknowledge him as the only God.

Explicit rules contribute to building a relationship with Allah. Rituals such as the required prayer five times a day in a way force Muslims to have some sort of relationship with God through the communication to him through prayer. Also Ramadan helps to build Muslims' relationship with Allah.During this ritual Muslims are required to fast from dawn till dusk to cleanse the body of food which is viewed as a distraction. In turn this is suppose to make them closer spiritually to Allah than they were before. The lack of food is to show Allah that Muslims can separate themselves form the attachments that humans develop with the things of the world and that they can give all of their focus to him.

Part II: Doctrines and Beliefs Quiz

Moody's Group:

• Statement: "All of the above terms symbolize the different levels of leadership in the Islam faith."
• Why did you focus on the leader aspect of these terms? Answer: They represent the religion because in terms of Islam the Qur'an is not translated so that can create a loose understanding so leaders influence practice of the religion. 
• Why is the Qur'an not translated? Answer: There are benefits on both sides (+/-). If it is translated it could be practiced by more people and the word of God would be spread. Other might argue that the meaning of the words will be altered if it is translated by man. 
• Why do different interpretations matter? Answer: Everyone of the same religion generally has a common belief. Different interpretations can lead to branches of that religion or a different religion altogether.
• Why does it matter that a new religion could be formed from an old one? Answer: It is ok because there will always be people who don't like certain aspects of a religion seek to create something that works for them. Conflict will also impact this because different religions will think that they are right but its how they handle these conflicts that shows maturity and devotion to that religion. 
• Conclusion: Leaders help to provide a universal front for a religion and are suppose to unify the purpose for everyone. Altering that purpose can cause conflict bu they way it is handled is what shows true devotion to a religion. 

Chapter 4: Islam for Idiots

Question Answers:
1. I think that it is interesting that Muslims are content with not personifying God into different shapes or genders. Their belief is that how can you paint something that you have not seen.
2. God of Islam is similar to the Hindu concept of Brahma because Muslims believe that there is only one God and that we are not all a part of God because we are not all creators of the universe because there can only be one.
3. "La ilaha ill Allah" translates into: "There is no god other than God" and it implies that He is the only god without any divisions, partners, or children. It also implies that He is strong enough to help himself and does not need anyone else to help him to divide himself into different parts and perform different tasks. Another implication is that He is not the God of a chosen people and a specific racial or ethnic group cannot claim Him as their own.
4. Muslims cannot blame anyone or anything else for during their time of judgement because the Qur'an says that during this time the false idols that they were worshiping will reject them and say that they were fools in believing in gods of their own making. It also says that they cannot blame Shaytan because he merely suggested the idea, he didn't make them worship the false gods.
5. Islam considers Jesus to be a prophet of God, born of the Virgin Mary,  but the lack of a father during Jesus' creation puts him at the same level as Adam. Muslims do not take Jesus' birth as a sign of godhood or a sign that Jesus was the son of God. Muslims disregard Jesus as the redeemer of sin because they do not believe that he died on the cross, but that God "took Him to himself" and is keeping him in paradise until he is to defeat the anti- christ and because they believe that our faith and actions determine our salvation.
6. The Muslim approach is not to passively look at pictures but to actively participate in knowing the Divine. They use adjectives to describe the nature of God and by studying them they gain a better understanding of who He really is.
7. "He" is used to describe Allah because in the Arabic language there is no word for "it" and so "He" is used instead with a full understanding that Allah is neither male nor female.

Chapter 3: Islam for Idiots

Answers to Questions:
1. It says that we were all born basically good but we have natural weaknesses due to our physical nature. This causes us to desire pleasure and aversion of pain and this is what causes us to fall into sin.
2. The purpose of these stages is to help us come to a realization that God is in fact real and that we ought to move closer to him.
3. It accepts them all because they all point to one goal to achieve harmony and an even higher understanding of God's nature but the Qur'an points out that no previous revelation of God has survived without human alteration or editing.
4. I think the purpose of tawba is to repent for your sins and to ultimately give you a higher understanding of God's power. The sins that you commit in this life must be paid for in this life. This is very similar to other religions, especially Christianity, where Christians repent for their sins.
5. Islam is not a faith of good deeds because living a morally right life and doing good deeds is just a mere sign of your faith. Good deeds are viewed more as an incentive.
6. This sentence means that making the choice to accept Allah while you are alive, promotes living a morally sound life and you can be guided and molded by Allah and not corrupting your soul.
7. Further expanding on fitrah, it can have a lot of meaning in your life if you do not waste it and fill it with meaningless pleasures. Also overtime fitrah develops even more and helps you move through different stages in your life