Existence and Nature of God 2 Islam Unit 1: Nature of God Teacher’s note: You may wish to point out to students that in the photo of the inscription the part that looks like a ‘wl’ is Arabic for Allah. Photo: © markjhandel. This image is reproduced under the terms of the Creative Commons License. A copy of the license can be read at this address: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Flash activity (these activities are not editable) Accompanying worksheet(s) Teacher’s notes included in the Notes page

Learning objectives What we will learn in this presentation: What Islam teaches about Allah What these beliefs might mean to a Muslim How Allah’s existence has been shown in Islam Learning objectives

Why do you think angels are important to Muslims? In Islam, angels are considered important messengers. For example, the angel Jibra’il showed himself to Muhammad in order to reveal the words of Allah. These are recorded in the Qur’an. Muslims also believe that angels: are created from light do not take human form Teacher’s note: Students might suggest that angels are important to Muslims because they testify of Allah, bringing his messages and in so doing prove that He exists. Photo: © Monkey Business Images, shutterstock.com rarely show themselves are present at all times, especially during prayers. Why do you think angels are important to Muslims?

Messengers The Messengers of God, also known as prophets, are believed by Muslims to pass on the words of Allah. They were men of integrity and purity, who were sent by Allah to spread His teachings and generate followers. Muslims believe Islam began with the first prophet: Adam. Muhammad was the last prophet sent by Allah. He was called the Seal of the Prophets because he brought the final and perfect message from Allah. This simply confirmed the previous messages. Teacher’s notes: Allah sent more than one prophet because the prophets before Muhammad usually created followers for a time and then a generation or so later their message would be forgotten. Thus Muslims believe Allah used numerous men to bring the same message over and over again to ensure it was not forgotten. You may wish to give your students a full list of the prophets of Islam and raise the point that some of the prophets are also key men in both Judaism and Christianity. The prophets of Islam include: Adam, Idris (Enoch), Nuh (Noah), Hud, Salih, Ibrahim (Abraham), Ismail (Ishmael), Ishaq (Isaac), Lut (Lot), Ya’qub (Jacob), Yusuf (Joseph), Shu’ayb, Ayoub (Job), Musa (Moses), Harun (Aaron), Dhu’l-kifl (Ezekiel), Dawud (David), Sulayman (Solomon), Ilias (Elias/Elijah), Al-Yasa’ (Elisha), Yunus (Jonah), Zakariyya (Zechariah), Yahya (John), ’Isa (Jesus), Muhammad. Image: © Tamer Yazici, shutterstock.com Why do you think Allah sent more than one prophet?

What do the prophets show? Each of the prophets received messages from Allah and had specific work to accomplish. Muslims believe these messages show a number of things about Allah: He cares about His creation enough to send a warning voice. He does not leave the world without knowledge of Him. Photo: © Nevit Dilmen. This image is reproduced under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. A copy of the license can be read at this address: http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl.html He wants people to be happy as they submit to His will. Muslims believe the fact that the prophets received Allah’s messages proves that He exists.

Nature or existence of Allah? Image: © emo O, shutterstock.com

The existence of Allah Worksheet: This activity is accompanied by the worksheet The existence of Allah in the Existence and Nature of God worksheet pack. Image: © Romashkin, shutterstock.com

Noughts and crosses Teacher’s note: The questions asked in this activity cover material found in all parts of the presentation Existence and Nature of God – Islam. Image: © SanCaj’s, shutterstock.com