| Term | Definition |
|---|
| How did Islam begin? | Muhammad was born into a powerful Meccan family. One day when he was meditating in Mecca, because of his great interest in religion, a voice called to him.The voice was of the angel Gabriel. She told Muhammad he was a messenger of Allah. He began to teach the beliefs of Allah which led to the beginning of Islam. |
| Why is 622 CE (Hijrah) an important year in the Muslim faith? | Muhammad decided to leave Mecca in 622 because his people were attacked. He moved with a small band of supporters to the town of Yathrib (Medina), over 200 miles north of Mecca.While he was there he gained followers/supporters so Islam grew and was maintained. |
| What are the five pillars of Islam? | The five pillars of Islam are the duties Muslim believers have to carry out. Alms, Faith, Fasting, Pilgrimage, and Prayer. |
| Explain the 2nd pillar of Islam. | Faith: Following the statement "There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah". |
| What purposes do the five pillars serve Muslims? | The purpose of the Five pillars of Islam is that they ensure that Muslims live their religion while serving in their community. |
| What's the Qur'an? | The holy book of Muslims. This is where the revelations are collected and written in Arabic. (similar to bible) |
| How and why did the Qur'an help spreading the Arabic Language? | The Qur'an is written in Arabic and Muslims consider this version the only true word of Allah. Also wherever Muslims carried the Qur'an, Arabic became the langauge of worshipers and scholars. Muslim artists were not allowed to draw living things and people because of Allah being the only god so they drew calligraphy in Arabic. |
| Explain the 5th pillar of Islam. | Prayer: Praying five times a day facing toward Mecca. Assembling at a mosque, Isamic house of worship, or wherever they find themselves. |
| Explain the 1st pillar of Islam. | Alms: Muslims give Alms (money) for the poor through a special religious tax. |
| Explain the 3rd pillar of Islam. | Fasting: During the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, Muslims fast between dawn and sunset. Reminding Muslims that their spiritual needs are greater than their physical needs. |
| Explain the 4th pillar of Islam. | Pilgrimage: All Muslims physically and financially able to perform the hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, should at least once. |
| What crisis did the community face after Muhammad's death in 632 CE? | Mulsims inspired by the message of Allah believed they had a duty to fulfill by carrying his word to world.They lacked a clear way to choose a new leader. This eventually divided the Muslim world. |
| How was the crisis of the community solved? | Relying on ancient tribal custom the community chose a loyal friend of Muhammad, Abu-Bakr. He was later known as the first caliph, meaning successor or deputy. |
| Who were the rightly guided caliphs? | Abu-Bakr and the next three elected caliphs- Umar, Uthman, and Ali. They all knew Muhammad. |
| Why are they known as the rightly guided calpihs? | A caliph meaning a supreme religious and political leader in a Muslim government. They used the Qur'an and Muhammad's actions as guides to leadership. |
| Define jihad. | Striving, it can refer to the inner struggle against evil. It's also used in the Qur'an to mean an armed struggle against unbelievers. |
| What did caliph Abu-Bakr do in the name of jihad? | Abu-Bakr invoked jihad and applied the meaning of jihad to encourage and justify the expansion of Islam. |
| Why were the Muslims successful in spreading Islam and expanding their empire? | The muslim armies were well disciplined and expertly commanded while the Byzantine and Asassanid empires were weak. This made it easy to take them over. The people of those empires did not support the state religion because they weren't being treated well by their government. So they readily welcomed the new religion of Islam because it offerred equality and hope with no poll tax to Muslims. Muslims allowed conquered people to follow their own religion but Christians and Jews still had to pay a poll tax. Therefore some of these people converted to Islam so they wouldn't have to pay taxes. |
| How were the conquered people treated by/in the Muslim empire. | Muslims allowed conquered people to follow their own religion. |
| What are the main differences between the Sunni and Shi'a (Shi'ite) Muslims? | Sunni believe the first four caliphs were "rightly guided" where Sh'i'a believe that Ali, the Prophet's son-in-law should have succeeded Muhammad. Sunni believe that Muslim rulers should follow the Muhammad's example where Shi'a do not recognize the authority of Muhammad's example believing muslim rulers should be descended from Muhammad. Sunni claim Shi'a have distorted the meaning of various passages in the Qur'an while Shi'a claim the same of the Sunni. |
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