Religion week 3
Leave a comment31 January, 2016 by sofiathebandlover
Islam
– Developed in the Arabic peninsula in 600s
– Sees Adam as the first father and Abraham as the stem father
– Islam = peace
– God has created everything and man’s life lies in the hands of God
– Through the prophet Muhammed God showed his will
– In all times people have been chosen to be prophets and to show God’s will
Who is a Muslim?
– People who live according to the message of the confession
– Person that celebrates Muslim traditions and holidays
– 1,4 billion Muslims around the world
– 10-15% of the Muslims are Arabic
– Europe 15 million
– 300 000 in Sweden
Monotheistic Religion
– God is 1 and the all mighty creator
– God is merciful, fair and forgiving
– Allah is the Arabic word for God
– Love of God and love between people is needed for a good life
– No one could be put next to God and therefore no person could be divine
– No evil power could be equal to God
Muhammed
– Born 570 after our time, Arabic peninsula
– Poor early orphan boy
– Caravan driver in his 20s for the widow he later married
– In his 30s he was a respected merchant in Mecca
– In his 40s he had his first revelation
– Gabriel, an angel – preached the word of God and explained that God had chosen Muhammed to be his prophet
– The followers started to increase but also his enemies
– He had to move to Medina
– There the first Muslims congregation started – um ma
– Muhammed made deals with tribes because he was threatened by the leaders of Mecca
– By his death 632 Muhammed had united the entire Arabic peninsula
Being a human in Islam
– Every man is equal no matter the position in the society
– The human is supposed to cherish the world and create good living conditions for others
– The only thing that separates the humans in the eyes of God is the degree of faith that shows after death
– The Quran shows a paradise that only exists for the believer
– If you make mistakes but feel sorry for that, you will be forgiven because God is merciful
Holy Scripts
– Quran = The plan of God
– Through the history God has let the message be known through prophets Abraham, Mose, Jesus
– The people had through history confused the message but Muhammed came with the right message
– Since the Quran was given in Arabic it is considered to be the best language to give expression to God’s will
– The Quran is divided into 144 chapters that starts with a tribute to the mercifulness of God
– They are of different length and sorted by length
– Gives knowledge of God, of the beauty and wisdom we can discover in the creation and about people’s responsibility and for life and each other
– Muslim’s view the Quran as a guide to a good life
– Sunna = completes the Quran
– Oral set of rules = stories of the life of Muhammed, his doing and actions in various situations
Directions
– After the death of Muhammed who should be the leader
– Sunni or Shia
– The majority wanted the leader to be chosen by the Muslims
– Others claimed that God had already chosen Muhammed- the leader should then be the closest relative to Muhammed
– They demanded that Ali who was the cousin of Muhammed and married to Muhammad’s daughter Fatima, should lead the Muslims
– The followers were called parti ali or shia
– Ali was proclaimed Khalif but was killed
– The two groups proclaimed different leaders and the split was a fact
– The difference between the two groups is mostly the view of religious leadership
– Sunni
– 90% are Sunni
– They believe that the revelation is fulfilled through the Quran and the sunna
– The leader of Islam should cherish this truth, interpret it and preach it
– Imam-leader of the mosque. Anyone can become aan Imam
Shia
– 10% are Shia
– Iran and south of Iraq
– First leaders are called Imam and have an important role as guides
– Ali is considered the first Imam
– Directions – Imamits – there has been 12 Imams
– The 12 is considered hidden and shall return at the end of time to the world as savior – Mahdi
– Until then law-educated people serve as leaders and priests – most carry the title ayatollah
– The interpretation of the Quran could be very free
– Since Ali and his son Hussein died in a struggle for the right belief they are considered martyrs
Everyday life
– Most important is to be a good person
– Cherish the creation according to the will of God
– And there are a set of rules showing a person how to live
– With the help of the Quran and the Sunna have a set of rules been phrased
Sharia – laws or guide to how to practice your religion
– Family law
– Power issues
– War
– But also food and clothes
– The rules on what halal- permitted and haram- forbidden varies between different schools and different cultures
Food
– Most Muslims won’t eat meat from pigs or drink alcohol
– According to the Quran it is forbidden to eat food with blood, pig meat, and animals that died on their own
– For meat to be okay to eat, the animal should be emptied for blood
Five pillars
- The confession – shahada
- Whisper into a newborn child
- Last a person wants to hear
- The first part is God is one – monotheism
- The second part that Muhammad is the last prophet
- Prayer – salat
- Most important thing for the Muslim community
- Strengthens and inspires the man to a good life
- You can pray together in the mosque or in other places
- Purity is important and the person that is praying usually washes face, hand, arms and feet before reciting the Quran
- The direction Mecca
- Prayer hours follow the sun
- Dawn, afternoon, at night, after sunset, and when darkness comes
- The prayer in the afternoon is considered the most important one
- It could be hard for a Muslim to pray as many times in Sweden – Pray many prayers at the same time
- Charity – zakat
- Share with the poor is a basic thought of Islam
- Every Muslim is to give to charity
- Zakat – purifying
- Fast – sawn
- Ramadan is the month of fast
- During the day – no eating or drinking. When the sun sets – eat
- If you don’t have the possibility to fast you could add days after the end of the fast or give charity
- It is an attempt to come closer to God
- It is a practice in self-discipline and reminds the human that she is dependent on God
- Pilgrimage – hadjj
- Many Muslims try at least once to come to Mecca
- This you do the second week of the last month of the Muslim year final month
- Every year 2-3 million people come to Mecca
- The pilgrims dress in a white dress that symbolizes purity
- No matter if you are rich or poor you dress the same way
- The rituals are performed in a decided order and under the pilgrimage you are reminded of the events that links to Adam, Abraham and Muhammad
In the mosque
– Place for prayer
– Place for God, education and togetherness
– Library, classrooms, rooms for conversation
– Rooms for ritual cleaning before prayer
– Near the entrance take off your shoes
– Prayer rooms carpets
– Direction towards Mecca is shown by a niche – mihrab in one of the walls
– Prayer calls from a minaret
– Friday prayer is the most important one
– The Imam could preach about news and in that give guidance how to live your life as a Muslim
– No music in the mosque
– But the recitation from the Quran is rhythmical and meditation like
– In traditional Islam women can teach both men and women but only lead the prayer for women
– According to rules women and men shouldn’t pray in immediate closeness of each other
– Usually the women pray behind the men or up in stands
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