ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITY: CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS Session 5: The Doctrines of Islam

The main doctrines of Islam are the Five Pillars of Faith.

1. The Creed: “There is no God but Allah and Muhammed is His Prophet 1. The Creed: “There is no God but Allah and Muhammed is His Prophet.” This is said 17 times each day by over 1 billion Muslims. The Islamic concept of God is as an impersonal, unknowable Person. He is a God of judgment, not of grace. He is the author of both good and evil. This is done to bear witness to the faith. 2. Prayer: five times each day facing Mecca Prayer is repetitious praising Allah on a non personal basis. There are no intercessors aiding prayer as with the Holy Spirit. This is done to ask for forgiveness.

3. Alms: Giving to the poor 3. Alms: Giving to the poor. Voluntary and non-voluntary giving of 1/40th of income This has an effect in that not enough is provided for social needs. 4. Fasting: 9th month for 30 days. Refrain from eating during daylight for a month. Celebrates the date of the first revelation of the Koran to Mohammed.

5. Pilgrimage: Once in a lifetime trip to Mecca- performance of rituals to be a necessary part to salvation. This is done to commemorate the plight of Ishmael at the well of Zam Zam. (Circle the Kaabah seven times. Throw stones at a pillar representing Satan)

Articles of faith in Islamic belief include the following: 1. Death during jihad guarantees eternal life. 2. Marriage is required for every Muslim. 3. God is not the Father and Jesus is not the Son. 4. Sura 4:171 “Jesus was only a messenger of Allah. Far is it removed from His transcendent majesty that He should have a son.” 5. The crucifixion is denied. Sura 4:157 “They slew him not nor crucified, but it appeared so unto them.” 6. Man is sinful only by his actions not by his nature since sin is lack of obedience to Allah.

7. Salvation must be earned by obedience to Allah and works of faith. 8. There is no redemptive act out of love on Allah’s part to himself redeem sinners. 9. There are four inspired works, (Torah, Psalms, Gospel, and the Koran) but the former three books have been corrupted by Christians and Jews. 10. There are six great prophets (Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammed). The last and greatest is Muhammed. (28 prophets, 313 messengers)

11. In the final days of resurrection and judgment, all will be assigned to heaven or hell based upon the balance of good deeds outweighing bad deeds. Each will be judged and assigned, but no true Muslim will remain, if so consigned, in hell forever. 12. There is a strong belief in predestination understood as all good and evil proceeds from divine will. This is the doctrine of fate or Kismet. It produces a fatalistic ideology. 13. Angels are good not evil. Their primary task is to record the good and evil deeds of man for evaluation at the last judgment.

The major difference between Christianity and Islam though is a living Savior and a dead prophet.