www.islamicbulletin.

com

='

In th e arne of God , Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Africa are Mu slim , while sign ificant

What is Islam? min orities are to be found in th e
Islam is not a new religion , but Soviet Union, China, North and
the same truth tha t God revealed Sout h America, and Europ e.
through all His proph ets 10 every
people. For a fifth of th e world's
populatio n. Islam is both a religion What do Muslims
and a complete way of life. Musli ms
follow a religion of peace, mercy,
believe?
and forgiven ess, and the majority Muslims believe in O ne, Uniq ue,
have no thi ng to do w ith the Incompara ble God ; in the Angels
extremely gra ve eve n ts whic h have created by Him; in the pro phets
come to be associate d with their throu gh who m His revelation s were
faith . brought to manki nd ; in the Day of
Jud gement and ind ivid ual account-
abi lity for actions; in .od 's complete
Who are the authori ty over huma n desti ny and
I' Muslims? in life after death. Muslim believe
in a cha in of prophets starting w ith
On e bi Uion peop le from a vast range Adam and includin g I oah, Abra -
of races, nati onalitie and cultu res ham , Ishmael, I aac, Jacob , Joseph,
across the globe - from the Job , Moses, Aaron , David , olornon.
southern Philippines to Nig eria- Elia . Ionah , John the Baptist, and
arc uni ted by their common I larnic Jesu s, pea ce be upon them . But
faith. About 18% live in the Arab God ' final message to man , a recon -
wor ld ; the wo rld's largest Muslim firmation of the eternal message and
commun ity is in Indonesia; sub- a summing-up of all that has go ne
stantial part s of Asia and mo st of befo re was revea led to the Prop het
Mu ham mad ;:- through Gabriel.
LEH III the Na me u( God, Most Gracious,
M os t Merciinl , Praise be to God, '111<'
Chcrishc r 111111 usta iner uf tire World s;
Most Gracious, M ost Mercii u): Ma ster
How does someone
of the V ay of Juds ell/Pll t. TI,e(' do we
toorship, Alld TIIlIIt' aid we seek. Slun»
become a Muslim?
us th e straigh: wall, 1111! w ay of th ose Oil Simp ly by sayi ng ' there is no god
tohtnn Tho u ha st hes tmoed TIIY Grace,
TI' 05e w ho se Ipo r tio n) Is not iorath, apart from God , and Muha mm ad
A"d tcho go no t as t ra s] . is the Messen ger of God .' By th is
declara tion the believer announces
11115 Ol ~'" i"g c11afJlt'r of TIlt' Qurllll, tile his or her faith in all God 's me sen -
Fatiha , is cm tra in Islamic1'my..r, I!
co"talllS til,' cssenc« of Till' <..!lITlln a"d IS gers. and the scrip tures they
said al til,' start of u \'r.'l Frayer. brought.
www.islamicbulletin.com

What do es 'Islam'
mean?
The Arabic wo rd 'Islam' simply
mean s 'submission' , and de rives
fro m a word mea ni ng 'peace'. In a
religio us context il mean s com plete
submission to the wi ll of God .
'Moham medan ism' is th us a misn o-
me r because it sugges ts tha t Mus-
lim s worsh ip Mu hamm ad ~:: ra ther
than God . 'Allah ' is the Ara bic nam e
for God, which is used by Ara b
Muslim s an d Ch ristia ns alike.

Why do es Islam often

seem strange?
Islam may see m exotic or eve n
extreme in the modem world . Per-
hap s this is because religion docs
not dom inate everyday life in the
West tod ay, wh ereas Muslims hav e
religion always upp erm ost in their
min ds, and make no d ivision
between secula r and sacred . They
believe that the Divi ne law , the
Shari'a, s hould be taken very ser-
iously, wh ich is wh y issu es related
to religion are still so importan t.

Do Islam and
Christianity have
different origins?
No. Toge the r with Jud aism , they go
back to the pro phe t and patri arch
Ab raham , and their th ree prophets
are d irectly d escended from h is so ns
- Muhan;m ad ~ from the eldest ,
LEFT. Muslims prrltllll~ ill [crusalem outside
the mosoue of AI Aqs.' uiith lite Ot'me of Is hma el, and Moses an d Jesu s ,..~
the Rock ill vit~/l l'l'r,;l/Ii. from Isaac. Abrah am estab lish ed the
ABOVE. Beneath the DOllie is the fock [r on: settlemen t which today is the city of
wlti,11Multa/1/lI/ad ascended through the Makkah, and buil t the Ka' ba
St'L\'1I lieaicns to 11t ~ Dioine presellce. towa rds wh ich all Muslim s turn
R1r . A M omccilIl ;11 I' raya when they pray.
 www.islamicbulletin.com

no rth, mar ks the beg in n in g o f the

Who is Mu slim cale nd ar.
Muhammad? Afte r sev eral years. the Pro ph e t ~~
and h is follo we rs we re able to return
M uh ammad f:t was bo rn in Milk- to Ma kkah, w he re the y forg ave their
kah in the yt'df 570, at a ti me when en em ies a nd es tablis hed Isla m
Christianity was no t ye t fully es tab- d efin itively . Before the Prophet sa
lish ed in Euro pe . Since h is father d ied at the age of 6) , the grea ter pa rt
d ied bef ore h is birth, and his of Arabia W<l S M uslim, and wi thin a
mot her sho rtly afte rw ard s. he was cen tury of his d ea th Islam had
raised by h is un cle from t he sp read to Spai n in the West a nd as
res pected trib e o f Quraysh. As he fa r Eas t as C h ina .
grew up, he became known for hi s
truthfulness, gen eros ity a nd
sinceriry.so tha t he was s ought
after for his ability to arb i tra te in
dispute s. The his tori ans d escribe
h im <IS calm and meditati ve.
Mu ha m mad ~ W <lS of <I deeply
religious nature, and ha d lo ng d e tes-
ted the d ecadence of his society. It
became hi s habit to medi tate from
li me to time in the Cave o f I li ra ne ar
the s ummit o f Jabal al- Nur, the
'Mo un tain o f Ligh t' ne ar Makka h.

How did he become a

proph et and a
messenger of God?
At the age of 40, w hi le en ga ged in a
meditative retreat, M u ham mad ?::
received h is first revelation from
God th ro ugh the Angel Gabr iel. Th is
revelat ion. w hich contin ue d for
tw en ty-th ree years. is kn o w n ...s the
Qura n.
• As soon as he bega n 10 recit e the
word s he hea rd from G abri el, an d to
prcech the tru th wh ich C od had
What is the Ka'ba? •
revealed to him, he a nd h is sm all
g ro up of followers suffered bitter
Th e Ka'ba is the place of wors h ip a sa nf tu<l ry established by Ad am . pe rsecu tion , w h ich grew s o fierce
which God commande d Ab raham God com ma nde d Abraham to sum" that in the year f',22 Cod g a ve the m TOr TII~ Mmml"ilJ of l.l,lIht Il,har Gabriel
and Ishmae l to bu ild over fo ur mon all man kind to v is it this place. the co mmand to em igra te . Th is ,~lII e It' MIlIW":I>wd,
thousand yea rs ag o. Th e bu ilding an d w hen p ilgrim s go there tod ay even t, th e HiJra, ' migr at io n', in A1IU·"~. Tile P't'I'!I~"S .~ I(lS</ue, M ;dmah; til,·
wa s cons truc ted of s tone un wh at they say 'A t Thy se rvice, 0 Lor d ', in which the y lef t Makkah for the city ,'.>mr mdicmcs. Ihe pl"r~ wl!!"r,' his halN '
man y believe was the ori gi na l site of res po nse to Abraham 's sum mo ns . o f Madi nah so me 260 m iles to the 'Itnl al1du.'llc,-c lie I$/""i,',j
 www.islamicbulletin.com

Ho w did the spread of

Islam affect the
world?
Am on g the reason for the rapid a nd
peacefu l sprea d of Isla m wa th e
sim plicity of its do ctrine-I sla m ca lls
fo r faith in on ly One Go d wo rth y
o f worsh ip . It a lso repeated ly
instructs mall to use h is po wers 0 1
in tellige nce a nd obser vation .
Within a few yea rs, grea t .ivili-
za tions and uni versities wer e flour-
ishing , for acco rd ing 10 till'
Prophct ! ' ,'seeking kn owled ge i
an obliga ti n fo r every M u lim man
and wo ma n' . Th e s nthe is o f
Eastern a nd W tern id eas a nd o f
new thou gh t with old , bro ug ht
about gre at a dva nce in me d icine,

-
mat he matics, p hysic , ast ro nom y,
ge og ra p hy, a rc hi tec ture , a rt, litera-
tu re, and history . Ma ny cruci al s s-
I rn uch a a lge bra , the Arabi c
numerals, a nd also th COIK ' p t o f
the zero (vital to the advance m n t o f
mnthcrn at irs). wer e tra ns miu zd to
medi eval Europe from I lam . a p his-
tica tcd inst rum ent s whi ch wer e 10
make po sible the Eur o pea n voy-
ilges o f di. m ve ry we re d eve loped ,
in clu d ing the a strolabe, th e quad -
rant and goo d na vigat io nal maps .

1 I' 'Iil) M atia), lurllll . EXTHl \ 1I LI H /11/"111-

,'g ; /1/I1('11 IS il/ Caira, f !lSP/. f Ail LHT,
UQVI I'll,' d-.:lll w lIlI W ltll/1i /'li 5 ill -':!1
O/Is"rlmo"/, 1",1ill. BEW \\' : 5111/1fl A,,'b m
1I;/T(I'WIII,'; Io<flll /. Ll f l : 1hldi/ ioual lll~tllod
ujstud», ,lil11llriiflllia . ABOVE, TII~ PrUI" rd
said, . ' ".:k kl/owl~dS" ', l 'lI ;/1 10 Chma: 1'11<'
HlI/ Sl'~/I I/w"1u <' 1m ' lnult tn l ire ",\'11 /1,
(:,'/11II I'y.
 www.islamicbulletin.com

'TIll' truthfu l and trusty bllSilleSSII/II I1

is associated with the prophets, 1/11' What are the 'Five
saints. and th e marturs, ' Pillars' of Islam?
'Pow erful is 1/01 he w ho kn ocks the TIley are th e fram e work o f the
other dOWlI, indeed potoerfu! is he Muslim life: fa it h, pra ye r, co nce rn
toho COl/trois himself ill II fit of IIllger. ' for the need y, self- p urificat io n , and
'Cod does /101 j udge according 10 the p ilg rima ge to Makkah for those
yo ur bodi es and appea ran ces but wh o a rc a b le.
Il l' SCIIIIS yo ur hearts and looks into
YOllr deeds.' FA IT H

'A "WIl walkillg al ong 1/ path felt Th ere i no go d wort hy o f worship

1Jery Ihirsl y. Reaching a we ll Ill' exce p t Go d a nd M u ham mad is His
descended int o it, drunk his fi ll and messen ge r. T h is d eclara tio n o f fa ith
ClIllle up. Then Ill' saw a dog ioith is ca lled the Shahada, a s im p le
its tongue hlll/gillg 0111, Iryil/g 10 lick fo rmu la wh ich a ll th e fa ith fu l p ro -
up ntud to qu ench its thirst . The nounce . In Ara bic, the first pa ri is
II/Il/I -mv that the dog was [eeling the
{a ilaha illa'Llah - ' the re is no
sallie thirst as he had {ett so he ioent god I' .cep t Cod '; ilaha (go d ) can
lime it provi des gu idl' linc . for ,1 jus t dOWI/ into the well again and filled re fe r to a n th in g w h ich w e may be
Wha t is the Qumn ? . o iety. proper human co nd u I a nd his shoe toith wa fer and galle the te mp ted to p u t in p lace o f Cod -
d n C LJ u i l,lbll' I'CO 110 111ic svs tern dog II drink. Cod [orgaue his si ns for wealth , po wer, a n d the like . Th e n
Th e Qu ran is.l recor d of th . e xact
thi s action,' TI,e Prophet -- w as co mes illa'Ualr : ' exce p t Cod', th e
wo rds reve aled by ud thro ugh the
asked: 'M essenger of Cod, ~(;re w e so urce of a ll Cr ea tion . T he eco n d
All gl'l ,ah ril'l lo the l'ro phe t
Mu hamllwd · . It W .I S memorized
A re there any other rewarded for k indn ess towards ani - pa rt of th e Shuluuta is lvlulwlIl/1/adllll
msuiu' Llah: 'M u ha m m ad i th e
by Muham mad ~ a nd th 'II d ie- sacred sources? mals?' Ill' said, 'There is a rewa rd for
me sse nge r of God : A m essa ge o f
ta ted to h is o rnp aruo ns. and kindn ess 10 euen j Ii1Jillg thing.'
Yes, th ' ~ W /l /{l, the pracrio -and g ui da nce has co me thro ug h a ma n
writ ten d'IWIl by scribes, who
exam p ic of lhe Prophet <:<: , is the like o u rselves .
cross-ch e ked It duri ng h is lifetnn e . From the haditli collectio ns of
s 'com! au thoritv for Muslim . . l\ SEW W Sha ha da i Il 5,Ti/"'d otvr el/ lra l/c, ' III
ot nne word nl its 11.1 cha p te rs, Bukhari , Muslim, Tirmidh i and
liadllli is a rdia l;lv transmitted report Oltonmn Ttlp/illpi Palace (lltc 1/1II5['UI/l CO l/-
5"ms, has been lh'lIlg xl over th Bayhaq i Iilills a 1/U11/11t'iw m l~/ tlr,' ('rvp/iel. all/Vl/S
cen tu ries, so tha t the Qu ran IS III
of wh.u the Prop he t ~::- sal d . did. or
a pproved . Bl'Ill'f III III , 111111111" part otherIrensur/,s), ISltll/ lm /.
c cry detail the uniq ue and rmraru -
of the lslami .. laith.
(IlUS tex t whi h W.1S reveal e-d to
MlIh. IIT1T11,ul fLlllril'l'n cen turies
.1gO. Examples of the
Prophet's sayings
What is th e Qurm! TIl > Pro p het i!: said
nbou t? 'Gil d luis 1/11 IIIaClI 01/ 01/(' 1/ ·110 luis
1111' Qur.m . Ih 1,1... 1 rc vcah- I Wllld III I/O /lII' r (l/ Jo r ot hers.'
God, is th e prim source o f vverv
'N OlI" " ('/011 Inily " "'lI'lll' ~ unt il hr
Muslim's Iaith and practice. It Je.lls
w ishes [ar lus broth..r u -lutt hc
wi th .1111hc subject whi h xinccrn
tuis hr« /i,r ltitn cl], '
us ,15 human b nngs : wisdom, doc -
trine wors hip, and law, bu l ils b,lSic 'I I,' 11,1/(1 cat» his {ill trhi!«his lll'igh-
Itwme I~ the reliltiu l1shlp bctWCl'1l uo,. XIJI' ~ wII/w III {(Jot! is 1101 a
,LId .1Ild Ilis -rC,lIUTl' . AI Ih l' S.lm~ ')('/;'7'1'/:' I
 www.islamicbulletin.com

ABOV E: New Mn ll:o, L1. .A. Pmyer call

[r om AlJiql/lII Mosqlle

A tra n slation of the all to Pra ye r i :

God is most grea t. God is mo st great.

God is most gr eat. God i mo st great.
[ tc tily that th er e is no god excep t Go d.
I Ie stify tha t th er e is no god except Go d.
I test ify th at Mu ha m ma d i th > messenger of od .
I test ify tha t Mu ha m m ad i th me. senger of God .
Come to p raye r! Co me to p rayer!
Corne to succe ss (in th is life a nd
th e He reafte r)! o rne to s ue e !
God is mo st grea t. Go d i m ost grea t.
There i no go d exce p t Go d .

RI HT : COllrtyard of Grcai M o ~qll'·. Herat,

fs/ rallis/all
 www.islamicbulletin.com

3 T HE 'ZA KA T' A piou s person may also gi ve as

O ne of the most importa nt pri n- much as he or she pleases .1S SlIrlllq ll,
ciples of I lam is tha t all things and does so preferably in secret.
belo ng to C od , an d th at wealt h is Althou gh th is word can be trans-
there fo re held by human beings in lated as ' voluntary cha rit " it has a
trust, The wo rd zakat means both wider mea ning. The Pr phet - 'a id
'p urificatio n' an d 'g rowth'. O ur po - '1'l'1'1I m eeting !l0llr bro thrr toith II
ses sions are purifie d by etting cheeriu ! [ace is chari ty. '
a -ide a proport io n for those in ne d ,
an d, like th e pruning of plants, this
cutting back balances and encour-
ages new growth .
E.1 h Mu lim calcu lates his or he r
own :Ilklll in d i i Iually. Frill st
purposes th i involves th ' pay ment
each year of tw and a half pe en t
of one's capital .

AIlOVE ; Karl/ilia, Nigeria.

Z I' lv\YEI{
ulat is the nam e for the obliga to ry
prayers whi ch are perform ed five
times a day, a nd are a d irect lin k
between the worship per a nd Co d .
There is no hiera rchical authority in
Islam , a nd no priests , so th e prayers 111l' Prophet sa id: 'Chllrity is
are led by a learn ed pers on w ho a ncccssitu for 1'l'l'm \111~/illl.' III'
know s the Qu ran , chosen by the l 'IIS asked: ' l VI/tI1 if 1I1'I'rSOIl 1111
congregation . Th e e five prayers nothing?' TIll' I'ropht'f replied :
co nta in verses fro m the Qu ran , and 'JIt' should u -ark uiith his 011'11
arc sa id in Arabic, the language of lutuds Ii" his I'I'III'/il IIl1d tlteng] ' 1'
the Revelation , but perso na l su ppli- something 0111 Ilf 'lIch earnings ill
cation ca n be offered in one's ow n cluiritu. ' tt« (/JII/'all/llll~ asJ..,'d:
language. ' l \'II,' t if II ' is 1101 able I" cork?'
Prayers are sa id at dawn , noo n, nil' I'ro/,III'I suid: 'JiI' should
mid -aftern oon , s unse t and nigh tfall, hclp puor /IIUlllcedYI'crsoll ",' The
"r. ,
and thu s determ ine the rhyth m of , T
r -'
,
f Compnmou« [urthcr asked ' \ vh«I if
the enti re da y. Althou gh it is prefer - lu : cunnot do etvn that?' I},I'
ab le 10 worship togethe r in a Prophet said 'f it' shuult! III:':l'
mosqu e, a Muslim may pray almo st
A BOVE: Persiall m ih rab , wllielt indicates
IIl'~ dir ectio n or
prayer. Oller A1uslims
,I
/ll '\ I I.'~'I i.""" Ilze /l I'''Io~1 1]",";11, ' ,,'illtlll
, ~ 'I, ' .v . l "1m
othcr« 10 do good. ' 17'l' 011/1'1111-
an ywhere, such as in fields, offices, p rll yeri lOll'arris [erusatcm, but dur ing II,e ion s said '\VI"rt if III' la cks tltat
factories and un iversities. Visitors to Prophet'« lifetime il wa~ ell/Hlged 10 1'1\J 'I I I '1 It, lit I ; 'r_" ,,,11/ III' , 1",/,/, I II!-tJ !' 71Il' Prophet , slIid '1/1'
MaU ah. From the minbar, the pulpit, the \ 1./111 1Il .1 1.. .) :""lIi, 111//11/1" 111'1 trriitrn
the Mu slim wo rld are struck by the imam wlz o lead» the prayergzt'es lit e ermoll '''''11''.1 ' 11'" '" tlu: -tul« "'111/'1'" 111".1 1/1
sh ould check himscl] (mill d"illS ''1,11,
centrality of p rayers in daily life. at th.. Friday 110 011 commllluly prayers. /'.'/ ill,111'//"10', '171111 is 11150 clta rit u.'
www.islamicbulletin.com
 www.islamicbulletin.com

4 HIE FAST 5 P IL GR IMA G L (Hajj)

Every year in the mo nt h vf Ra ma- Th e an n ual pi lgrimage to Ma kkah -
d an , all Mu sli ms fas t from first lig h t the Hajj - is a n ob liga tion o n ly for
u n til s u nd ow n, abs tai n ing from those w ho ar e ph ys ically an d fina n -
food, d ri n k, an d sex ua l relat ions. cially able to perform it. Ne ve rt he -
Th ose w ho are s ick, elderl y, or o n a less, a bout tw o mi llion people go to
jo u rney, an d w o men w ho a n~ preg - Mak kah each yea r from every co mer
na nt or n ur si ng are permitt ed to of the glo be p rovid ing a u n iq ue
brenk th e fast a nd make u p a n eq ual op po rtu n ity for thos of d iffe re nt
nu m ber o f d ays la te r in th . yea r. If na tio ns to me t (In anot h er.
th e y a r physically u na ble to d o th is, t Ithou gh I la kka h i always filled
the y m us t fee d J n edy person for w ith visi tors, the annual l /ajj b gi ns
l'\'Cry da misse d. Ch ild ren begin to in th e tw elfth mon th of the Islam ic
fast (an d to o bserve the pr, ye r) fr rn ye a r (which is luna r, not olar ,
pu b erty, a lthoug h ma n y sta rt -a rli cr, that Hllij and Ra mada n fall so m e-
Alth oug h the fast is mos t benefi - times in su m me r, so me times in
cia l to the he alth, it is reg a rded prin - w in te r). Pilgrims wear s pec ial
cipally as a method of self- clo thes: SIm ple ga rmen t w h ich
pu rifica tio n. By ult in g onese lf off s trip aWilY d istinctions o f class and
from worldl y c rnf o rts , vcn f r a cultu re, 0 that all s t.md 'qual before ,\ 1l0 v r" Pligrill/ ; prayill g III ttu: 1I1(I; tj l/ t' ill
s ho rt tim e, a fastlllg person ga llls od. lvll1k~·IIII ,
true .ympath y w ith th ose w ho '0 C E~ !U{; l'ilsrill/ 1,'1/IS,
hung ry as w ,II <IS g ro\ th in one's HFLOW P I/SUII/S Ilmll' {rOIl/IlIl 011.'1 111l' lIw ld .
sp iri tua l life .
TIle ri tes of the Hajj, wh ich are of
A braharn ic ori g in, include ci rcling
the Ka' ba se ve n tim es , and goi ng
se ven tim es be tw ee n the mo u n ta in s
of Safa an d M arwa as d id H aga r
d u ring her search for wa te r. The n

-
the pi lg rims tand together o n the
wi d e p lain of Arafa a nd jo in in
p rayers fo r Go d 's Io rgi ven e s, in
wh a t is ofte n tho u gh t of as a pre-
view of the Las t Judgemen t.
In pr evio us ce n tu ries th Hajj was
a n ard uous u nde rtaking. To da y,
however, Saudi Ara bi a provid es
mi llio ns of peo ple wi th wat e r,
m od e m tra ns port, a nd the most
up -to-d a te health facilities.
TIle close of the Hajj is m ark ed by
a fest ival , the Eitt al-Adha, w h ich is
celebra ted with p rayer s and the
exch a nge of gifts in Mu slim co m m u-
n ities eve rywh e re. Thi s, and th e Eid
1I1- Fil r, a fea s t-d ay com memo ra ting
the en d of Ramad an. a re the mai n
festi va ls of th e M us lim calenda r.
 www.islamicbulletin.com

She said: '0 Illy Lord! How shall

What do Muslims I hllve a 5 0 11 tok en 110 man lias
think about Jesus? tou ch ed m e?' He sa id: 'E I'll so; God
creates toluu He w ill . Whell He
Mus lims respe ct and revere decrees II thing, He sllys / 0 it, "Be!"
Jes u s 'l:: ,and awai t h is Seco nd and it is.' (Q u ra n . 3= 42'7)
Co ming. 1111'1' co ns ide r hi m o ne of
the g rea tes t of God 's messen ge rs to Jes us ' .= W ,lS born miraculous ly
ma n kin d . A M us lim nev er refers to th ro ugh th sa me po wer whic h
h im s im ply as 'le u ', bu t always ha d bro ug h t Ada m :.:, in to be ing
adds the phrase ' upon him b e w itho u t a fathe r:
peace '. 1111." Q u ran co nfi rms h is vi r- Tntly, the lik eness of [esus with God
gi n b irth (a cha p ter of th e Q u ran is is a - the likeness o f dum. Ile ere-
e n ti tled ' Ma ry' ), and Ma ry is con- atetl him of dust, and IIII'll said 10
side red th e pure t w oman in all him, 'Be!' and he WIIS. (Y 59)
creation . 1111." Q ura n descri bes the
Annunciat ion as follows: Durin g his prophetic mission jt' 5LJ:;
- perfo rmed many m iracles .
'Behold!' lilt' A nge! said, 'God has T he Qu ran te lls u s tha i hi' said :
chosen 1/011, un d purif ied yOIl, and
c/WSI'II yOIl above I
I/II/ ioIl S. 0 Man} ,
"I'u ionten of a//
God gives yOIl
I /11/ 'I' CO li /(' /0 .'10 11 u iith II s ign from
yOllr Lord: I I1Il1ke for yOIl alit of
d ay, as it we rt', th e f igllre of II bird,
good lIeW5 of II toord from JJ ill~, 1111/1 breathe int o it IIl1d it becom es
w hose numc shall be 1"1' Me Sill" , II bird by God's le live. And 1 heal th e
Does Islam tolerate ABOV E: Mosque oi Omar /IIul h/ndl of the
Holy Sepllichre, [erusalem. Wirellilremlillh
[esus 5 0 11 of Mary, l IOII OYl' d i ll this
wo rld II l1d the H erest[t er, untl aile
blind, ami I he lepers, and l ra ise the
dead by God's leaue. (:1 :41 )
other beliefs? Omllr look [erusalemfrom IIII' ByZlIllIIllI'S, of those brough t near 10 God. 111'
he mststed all ellullllg tile Cll y unth ollly 1/ slutll 'peak 10 1"1' people f ro111 his I eithe r M uhamma d ;~ nor jes u s
The Q u ra n says : God forbids yOIl nnall llUmber of his comllll1riolls. . - la me to cha nge th e basi d oc-
cradle II l1 d ill m aturitu, II l1 d shull be
1101, toith regards 10 th ose who fight Proclaiming 10 the IIlhabll/llllS that their tri ne of th e belief in One Go d ,
of the righ teous.'
yo II 11 01 for [your] [aith nor dri e yo II h ues and properly Wer(' safe, alld tha! Ihl'/r bro ug h t by ea rlie r pro p he ts , bu t to
0 11 1 of YO llr homes, [rom dmlillg places of worship would lIellerbe II/ kell confi rm a nd re ne w it. In th e Q uran
kindb] III/d jllstly toith th em: for God [ramthem, he asked Ihe Clms liall llllirinrch
SoplrrOllll/S 10 accompallY him all a visit !»
jes us v. is r po rted as saying th a t
looeth th ose iolto lire [ust . he cilme:
(Q u ra n, £'0 : ) . all lire 1:01.11 places.
71,e Patriarch inuited him 10 pralj ill the 10 at tes t the law tohich w as before
It is o ne fun ction of Islamic la w to Churd ! of Ihe Holy Sepulchre, blll 'I,l' me. A nd 10 IIIl1ke latoful 10 yOIl purt
pro tect th e pri vileged s tatus of m in - preferred 10 pray outside its gates, sayillg
tha! if Ire accepted, later gellerallol's of
of tnha I w as fo rbidden YO II; I have
o rities, a nd th is is w h non-Muslim co 111 I' 10 110 11 w ith a s ign [rom yOllr
A-III-,Ilm ~ illig III lise tus action I/S 1/11 , Cl/ ,,'Io
places of wors hip have flo uri s hed all Lord, so j'ear God IIl1d obey M e. (3=50)
IlIrll it into a mosque, About' is tile mosque
over the Isla m ic wo rld . His to ry pro- buil! all the 51'01 tuhere Omar did pray.
vides man y exa m p les of Mu slim The Pro phet Muha mm ad ~ sa id :
toleran ce tow a rds other fai ths : w he n
the calip h O ma r e n tered [eru sale rn Ill GHT: ArcorcJi'lg 10 tslatn, 1111111 is 1101 bam WllOever bel ieves there is 11 0 go d bill
in the ye a r 634. Isla m gran ted free- 111 'original sill' He is God's vicegerent on God, 1110111' u iithou t partner, thai
do m o f wo rsh ip to all religi ou s com - earth, [ ve'll child 15 bom until the Iitra, ' /I I ,\o1U/1/1II111I11d ~ is His l1Iessl?1Igel;
illllale dlSFositioll lowards Vlrt ll e. thai [esu s is th e sero au t an d ntes-
m u nities in the cirv.
k·'lowledge. and I,e/Hlly. lslanrconsiders seliger of God, His w ord breathed into
Islam ic law also 'p em l its no n - itself 10 be the 'p rimordial religion', d in
Mu slim m ino rit ie to , et up their Mllry and /l spiri t t'lIl/l1IlItillg f rolll
aJ-ha nif; II seeks to rel ll n! 111111110 hi~
own courts , w hich implem e nt arigl1lal, lrue lIaltn e illwhiri! he is ill l1il1l, alld tI/tll Paradise alld Hell lire
fa m ily laws d r,PNn u p by th e mi n- harmO/llj wllh erealioll. l1lsTJired 10 do good. Im e, shall be receiued III! God illto
o ri tie s th emselves . alldcollfirlll/llg Ihe O,/elless of God. 1it'llvell. (Harlillt fro m Bukh ari )
 www.islamicbulletin.com

·'
Why is the family
so important to
Mu slims?
. 1eIa rnil . is the fo und at io n of Is-
lam ic societ y. The pc .1Ce and
sec u rity offe red b. .. s table fa m ily
u n it is great ly value d . and s n as
essential for the s piritua1 zrc\ th of
its members. A harmo nio us social
o rde r is creat ed by h i .tcn • of
e tend ed fa milies ; ch ild r n a re
treasured . and rarelv leave ho me
un til th lime they many .

AIlOV[ Af,,,hmll sti1ll. I HI 1<1155111 . (\[lOW ;

['ok/stall . RIGI I!" c.\~III1 . !-A I( I<IC HI ElIslmlil.
/\ IlU VI" Morocw .
 www.islamicbulletin.com

What abo ut Muslim

women?
( lam sees a wom an , wh ether sing le
or ma rried , as an indiv idual in her
own righ t, wit h the right to own and
d isp o e of her property and e<:J m -
ings. A marriage do wry is given by
the groo m to th e b ride for her own
personal use, and she keep s her own
fam ily nam e rath er than tak ing her
hu sband 's.
Both men an d women are
expected to dr ess in a wa y w h ich is
mod est an d dign ified ; the trad ition s
of female dr ess found in some
Muslim cou ntries are often the
express ion o f local cu tom s.

The Messenger of Go d ;~ sai d:

'T"L' 1II0 t perfect ill fait " 11 1110llgs1

bclieuers is Ill' toho is [JCSI ill
JllII/II/('r and kinde st to "is w ife.'

Can a Muslim have Is Islamic marriage

more than one 'w ife? like Christian
Th e religion of Islam wa s revealed matriage?
for all societies an d all times and 0
A Mu lim marri age is no t a 'sacra -
accommod ates wid ely d ifferin g
m ent' , b ut a simp le, legal ag reement
soci al requi rem en ts. Circums tances
in wh ich either pa rtner is free to
ma y warran t the tak ing o f anothe r
incl ud e con d itions. Ma rri age cus -
wi fe b u t the righ t is g ran ted, acco rd-
tom s th us va ry wid ely from co untry
in g to the Qu ran , on ly on con d ition
to cou n try. As a result, divorce is
that the hu sban d is scru pulo us ly
not com mo n, altho ug h it is no t fo r-
fair.
bid den as a last resort. Accord ing 10
Islam, no Muslim g irl can be forced
to m,ln)' agains t her w ill: her
(l O CKWISE MIISIII II.'; {m ill Turkcsmu, 5((Jt par en ts will sim ply suggest yo u ng
land, Saudi Ambln. D"Il l'II1,-k . £.'181'1 men they think may be su itabl e.
 www.islamicbulletin.com

If tJ,t'Y seek peace, then seck y OIl

[-]ow do Muslims peace. Ami tru st in God fo r HI' is th e
treat the elderly ? 01/1' that heareth 1//111 knouieth all
th i ngs. (8:61)
In the Islam ic world th ere are no old
War , the refore, is th e last resort,
peop le's hom es. The s train of caring
and i ubject to the rigoro us condi -
for one's paren ts in thi s most d iffi-
tion s la id d own bv the sacred law .
cult time of th eir lives is con sidered
Th e term ji lrad liter ally mean ' tru g-
an ho nor and blessing , and an
gle', and lus lim s bel ieve that the re
op po rtunit y for great s p iritual
are tw o kind s o f ji lrad. Th e ot he r
gro w th. God as ks that we not on ly
'jilrad'i the in ne r s truggle w hic h
p ray for our parents, b ut act wi th
everyone wages against egotistic
limit less compassion, remembering
d esires, for the sak e of att ain ing
that w hen we were help less ch ild ren
th ey preferred us to themselves.
What do es [slam say in ner peace.
[oth ers are p ar ticular ly honored : about war?
the Prophet .: ~ taught that ' Parad ise
lies at th e feet of m others'. When
Like Ch ristian ity, Islam pe rmi ts What about food?
fighting in se lf-defence, in defen ce
they reach old age , Mu slim pa ren ts Althou gh mu ch s im pler tha n th e
are treated rn ercifullv, with the sa me of re ligion, or on the part of those
d ietary law followe d by Jew s and th e
kind ness and selfles sness.
who have bee n expelled forcib ly
ea rly Ch ris tians , th e code w h ich
from their homes. It lavs down strict
In Islam , serv ing one 's parents is a M usli ms ob se rve forb ids the con-
nil es of com bat wh ich' includ e pro-
du ty second only to pr ayer, and it is su m p tion of pig mea t or an y kin d of
h ib itio ns against harm ing civ ilian
th eir rig ht to expect it. It is con intoxicating dri n k. Th e Prophet
and agai nst destroying crops, trees
s idc red d esp ica ble to exp ress any tau g ht that 'you r body h as rig h ts
irr itati on w hen , th ro ugh no fault of
flow do Muslims and livestock. As Muslims see it ,
ove r you ', an d the consumptio n of
in justice would be triu m ph an t in
th eir ow n, the old beco me di fficult. view death? th e world if good men were not
who lesome food an d th e lead ing of a
health y lifesty le are seen as religio us
The Q ura n says: YOllr Lord lias prepared to risk the ir live in a
Like Jew s an d Ch ristia ns, Muslims ob ligations.
com manded that yOIl toorship 110111' rig h teous cau se . The Quran sa y ':
believe tha t the pre ent life is o n ly
[II/t Him, and be k ind to p arents . If The Prophet ;- aid : 'A sk God for
a tria l pre paration for the ne xt figll l ill IIII' cause of God ilgaillsl
either or bo th of tI'ClII reach old age realm o f existence . Basic articles o f certaint u [o f faith ] 11 /111 uiell-being;
tI' OSI' toho fig ht yO Il, but do 1101
toith yO Il, do 1I0 t say 'uf]' t o them or faith include: the D.1Y of Ju lgerncnt, for aj ter certaintu, I/ O one is gil't." til ,!!
transgress limi ts. God do es 1101 loue
chide them, bill speak 10 them ill re surrection . 11,'.1ve n an d Hell. gift better than healt h!'
term s of honor IIII/i kindness. Treat
transgressors. (2: J( )
Wh e n a t\ uslim d ies. he or she is
them with humilitu, and say, 'My wa shed , u<; u.,lly b. a fam ily
Lord! TIi/VI' lIIer cy 0 11 1111'11I, f or I J".y mem ber, vrap ped III .1 clean wh ite
did care f or IIII' tohen l WilS little'. clo th, a nd bu ried \ -ith a sim p le
( l T 2 -'I) pr;'lyt'r preferab ly the am day.
Mus lim s ro n id e r th i ~ o ne of the
fina l se rvice thev C.1I1 d o for th eir
r elatives, an d an 'o pp urtu n ity to
remem be r th eir o w n bri ef existence
here on ear th . I'he Pro p he t ;-
taught tha t th r e things l , n con tinu e
to help a per<;on even aft e r d ea th;
charity w h ich he ha d g iv n, kn owl -
edg , wh ich he had tau rht a nd
p raye r: o n the ir iehalf by a
rig h teous ch ild .
 www.islamicbulletin.com

..-,
)

Cultural
div ersity
reflected
in Mosqu e
Architecture
AHOV~ The l/l/ h~'rS t t ll Mosque of iii Id ull
Itns been n em lrr 0-1':;'1'11111I: since tltc IImr
969. Studellts attend fr01l1 ~11I Ul W the"lIIls-
lnn uorli! RIGHT' Ncu : Mrxlco, U.S.A .
FA R RI HT Iml/. EXT REM E RIGHT: 1\1fali.
 www.islamicbulletin.com

Islam in the United se ttled in the ma jor in d us tria l cen-

ters where the y worshipped in h ired
States rooms. The earl y twentiet h cen tu ry
witnessed the arri val of everal hun-
It is almos t impossible to generalize dr ed thou sand Mu slim s from
abo u t American Mu slims: con verts, Eastern Europe : the first Albanian
im m igran ts, factory workers , do c- mosque was opened in Main e in
tors ; all are making their own con tri- 1915; o thers soon fo llowed , and a
bution to Am eri ca's fu tu re. This gro up of Polish Mu slim s ope ne d a
com plex com m u n ity is un ified by a mosque in Brooklyn in 1928.
com mo n faith, un derpinned b y a In 1947 the Wash in gton lslarni
cou n try w ide network of a thousand Center was found ed during the term
mosq ues. of Pres id ent Truman. and se ve ral
Muslims were ear lv arrivals in nat ionwide organi zations w ere se t
No rth Am erica, By the eigh teen th up in the fifties. The same peri od
cen tu ry th ere were ma ny thou sands sa w the es tablish me n t o f othe r com-
of 'hem , working as slaves on plan - mun iti es whose lives wer e in man y
tat ion . Th ese earl y com mu n ities , ways mod elled after Islam. More
cut off from thei r heri tage and fami- recent ly, numerous members of
lies, inevi tab ly lost their Islami c these g roups have en tered the fold
identity as time we nt by . Tod ay of Muslim or thodoxy. Today there
rn an v Afro-American Muslims p lay are about five million Mu slims in
an import ant role in the Islami c America.
com m un ity.
The nineteenth cen tu ry. however, IUCI I I . ..\ 60':( & n .\: I El : rill' 1"/1111//(
Cultuml CCIII..,. Wn.,lt illg/o// Cl<:
saw the begin ni ngs of an influ x of
Arab Muslim s, most of w hom BELOW- L,'ndi// ~ f'11!c,li"illlr ,".1//"lilll
III'X COIl . L"II i', ,,ill ,', }\('I/I//cl;.'/.
Hotu does Islam
guara ntee human
rights?
Freedo m of consc ience is laid d own
by the Quran itself: ' 11/1'1'1' is 110
compu lsion ill religion '. (2:256)
Th e life and p roperty of all citi-
zens in an Islam ic s tate are con -
sidered sac red wh eth er a pc ' o n is
Mu slim or not.
Racism is in c rnp rehen ible to
• Iuslims, for the Qu ran speaks of
h uman eq uali in the foil wi ng
terms:

o mankind! IV... created you / 1'11111 (I

sing !« 5011 1, male (lilt! [enui lc, ~ /I/(I

uuuic yO Il into nat ions (11/1/ t Tl/J('S, so
that yo u may COllie to kno v 0111' .
an othe r: Trulu, tile 1II 0 St h onared oJ
yo u in God's' sig/l t is th e greatest .
of you ill piety. God is A ll-K nouiing,
All-Aware. (4lP3 )
 www.islamicbulletin.com

Islam in the United se ttled in the m a jor industria l cen-

ter s w here th ey w o rsh ipped in h ired
States roo ms . Th e ear ly tw en tie th ce ntury
wi tne ssed th e a rriv al of several h un -
It is alm ost im possible to ge ne ralize d red th ou san d Mu s lims from
abo ut Am erican Iuslirn s: conve rts, Easte rn Euro pe : th e firs t Alban ian
im migra n ts, facto ry w orkers, do c- mosqu e was o pe ne d in Ma i ne in
tor s; all are maki ng thei r o w n con tri- 1915; o th e rs soon followed, and a
bution to Ame rica 's fu tu re . 111 is gro u p of Polish Mu slim s opened a
co m ple x com m un ity is u nifi ed by a mosqu e in Broo klyn in 1928.
co m mo n fai th, un de rp inned by a In 1947 th e Wa shi ngton Is lam ic
co untrywi de net w ork of a th ousan d Ce nte r w as founded du ri ng th e term
m o q ues, of President T rum an, and se ve ra l
Mu s lims w e re early arrival s in natio nw id e o rgan iza tio ns we re s e t
No rth Am e rica . By the ei gh teen th u p in th e fifties. 111e sa me pe riod
ce n tu ry th er e were ma n y th o usands s aw th e esta b lishm ent of oth er com -
of the m, w orkin g as s lav es on p lan - mun ities w hose lives were in ma ny
tati on s. These earlv co m m un ities , wa ys mo de lled after Isla m . Mor e
cu t off fro m thei r herita ge and fam i- recen tly, num ero us m embers of
lies inevi ta bly los t th e ir Islamic th ese g rou ps h ave en te red th e fo ld
id e:llity as ti n", e wen t by. Tod ay of M usli m or tho doxy . To d ay the re
ma ny A fro- Am er ica n Mu sli ms p lay are abo ut five m illio n Mu slims in
an im po rtan t ro le in the Islam ic Am erica .
comm u n ity.
Il lC I \'I : ,\H ( lVL & ("1':\"1m The r~/IlIH1(
The n ineteenth cen tury. however,
Clll tlll11l ( "/ll cl , ~"" Il ~/';IISt(i / 1 LX
saw the beginn in gs of an in flux o f
Arab M usl ims, mo s t of whom BELOW Lcadl/l,\ [J1l1..stiuinn MIlslilll
SlIrgt'(lll , U1/II~"illt', J-:t'IItlIcky.
How does Islam
guarantee human
rights?
Free d o m of co nscience is la id do wn
b r the Q uran itse lf: 'There is no
compulsion in relig ion '. (2:256)
The life a n d p roperty of all citi -
ze ns in an Isla mic s ta te a re co n-
s ide red sa cred wh ether a pers o n is
usli m or no t.
Racism i inco m re hen ib le to
• luslirns, fo r th e Q uran speaks of
hum an eq ua lity in th e follo w ing
term s:
o niankindl \\'e created y OIl [rom 11
si ngle 5 011 1, 11/111(' and [cma le, l1/11i
made I/ VII into nations and tribes, S II
that y~llI /lillY come to knoui 0 111' •
another: Trulu, tire mo st honored II/
y OIl ill God 's' sight is ,the gn·lIll'sl .
of yO Il ill p iet y. God ts A ll-Knou iiug,
All-Awn re. (4< P} )
 www.islamicbulletin.com

a manktnd! We created yOIl from a

• ill,~/c0111, male and [enutle , and
made you into nations and tribe , so
that you may come to knoto Jl C
anotlu r. Truly , ttie 11I0 I honored of
THI' "I L ~IJ M WOR LD you ill God's 'igJrI i. the grea test o!
Ih ,' Mushrn pnpulanon 1)( the wor ld IS ar ound o m billio n . Mo~ r Musllmor;, 11 \,("l~.lq ~lf }\.uc1..: hl
1(l ' (If ~u~ h m .; Ilvl' In the In ~1 1 .1n . . ubom trnem , 2U' , in ' Ut1S.l hllr dn A t ti ca, l " In e;., tulh r .l "'l YOll ill piely. God IS All-Knotuing,
1\...1.1. IS' in rh\' A r...b world, lO'.. In the ~ )'l: lc t Un io n a nd Ch m., Tu rkev, h omlind . \ 1 ~h .,," i!ll l.ln
{·lI l11Ni.... HI' of the non- Arab .'vliJ J lt.' t.J::o t Alt h ()lJ~h ther e H i' M lJ ~ h m m'"tJ n l l ~ rn .111""10,1 All-Aware . (Q ura n. 49: 1))
t' \ "l' r y .He.' . Ind ud ln): I,llin An wr il"l an d AUfol r.Jliol. th'Y .11 1 most n urncrou« In rh", ~(,.l\'ld
Unio n. In d l.t. a nd o-m ral "' !r lr J I he ll' ;)lV ~ rm lho n Mu s lim...In the Um lt"J S IJ IL'"

I'HutOC RAPH IC SO U '~C F.s Chester l.h:, l lt~ Lib rarv '\. e, 4. Ahs l.1H Du ncan r;• .2H t ~l.l mi ( Tt'xts
S~ ;o,:l r.:t~ 'J, • • , ... ,"i I ii, 15. :l ;,
lR, hi . ::!" JJ • .l.'. .!~, 14: ~·I · b l.Hnir l"'rL·.... I\)~\.·nc\' S. 2,\. ::t1. RoJ.:md $~
S••H n.J \.11 t:h.1 U ~1 '4 . ; 1. 1) . 2-1.16. 14 : Pe n -r ~ lunJ N " 1'I , 9. I;;. zz, :..t. 25, "7. 21' !~.) 1­
-I. n, u t, tj ,
A. Cas h 14 Sha m ..-d-d in Tll",Il ,Hutcr 1 ~ l),I'I.' il.! Run naclc.. 22 Sygm.I :7