About Islam
Islamic Theology...
What do Muslims believe in?
The Muslim concept of worship is very broad. Muslims consider everything they do in life to be an act of worship, if it is done according to Allah's guidance. There are also five formal acts of worship which help strengthen a Muslim's faith and obedience. They are often called the "Five Pillars of Islam."
What do Muslims believe in?
- Belief in one God, Allah in Arabic, constitutes the very foundation of Islam. There is no deity except Allah. He is indivisible and absolutely transcendent. God is the Almighty, the Creator and the Sustainer of the universe, Who is similar to nothing and nothing is comparable to Him. Worship and obedience belongs to Allah and Allah alone. Joining other gods with God is an unforgivable sin. Any one who joins other gods with God has strayed far, far away from the Truth.
- Prophet Muhammad was born in Makkah, a city in the present-day Saudi Arabia in 570 C.E. He is a direct descendant of Prophet Ishmael, the first son of Prophet Abraham. Peace and blessings of God be on all His prophets. Muhammad received divine revelations (The Holy Quran) over a period of 23 years in the seventh century of the Christian Era. Muslims believe that he is the last Messenger sent by God for the guidance of mankind until the Day of Judgment. He is the model for humanity of all walks of life to follow until the Last Hour. God sent him as a mercy for the worlds.
- The primary sources of knowledge are the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad. Anyone wanting to live a life in worship and obedience to God should follow these teachings.
The Muslim concept of worship is very broad. Muslims consider everything they do in life to be an act of worship, if it is done according to Allah's guidance. There are also five formal acts of worship which help strengthen a Muslim's faith and obedience. They are often called the "Five Pillars of Islam."
- Testimony of faith (Shahaadah or Kalima)-The first of the five pillars of Islam is the profession of faith in pronouncing of the words that لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله meaning, "There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His Prophet".
- Prayer (Salat)- Each Muslim is required to pray five times daily, in a prescribed manner. The first prayer (Salat al-Fajr) is at dawn; the next (Salat al-Zuhr) is at high noon; then in the afternoon (Salat al-Asr); after sunset (Salat al-Maghrib); and finally at night (Salat al-Isha').
- Almsgiving (Zakat)- Muslims give a small percentage of their annual savings as alms or charity, called zakat to help those who are in need.
- Fasting (Sawm)- Is the ninth month of the Arabian calendar, which consists of twelve lunar months. Therefore, the Arabian lunar month is either twenty-nine or thirty days but never thirty-one days.
- Pilgrimage (Hajj)- The fifth and last Pillar of Islam is the Hajj. It is explicitly stated in the Holy Qur'an that every physically and financially able Muslim should make the Hajj to the Holy City of Makkah once in his or her lifetime.
