What’s in a name?  Ilah – god  Allah – proper name for G od  Controversy over use of Allah and if it is the same god as the Hebrew/Christian god  Only religion ‘of the book’ with a specific and personal name for God

The Quran (Koran)  Originally maintained as a set of oral beliefs  Written down late 600’s/early 700’s  Some portions may have been written before the death of Muhammad

Hadith  Oral and written collections of stories about the life and sayings of Muhammad  Many authors, 100’s of 1,000’s of hadith  Tends to be a sectarian issue

The Five Pillars of Islam  1. Shadada – Declaration of Faith  2. Salah - Daily prayer  3. Zakat – Charity  4. Sawn – Fasting during the month of Ramadan  5. Hajj – pilgrimage to Mecca

Sharia Law  Laws derived from the Quran/Hadith/Sunnah  Criminal, civil, and personal matters  Causes concern in countries ruled by secular law and courts

Muhammad (the basics)Muhammad (the basics)  Born around 570 CE near Mecca/Mekka  Orphaned c. 575 CE – raised by uncle, spends time as a merchant with Bedouins  C. 595 CE – married Khadija (1 st wife) – six children – four daughters survive  C. 610 CE – first revelation (Gabriel), tells Khadija, otherwise keeps quiet  613 CE – begins to “recite”  622 CE – Muhammad flees Mekka to Yathrib/Medina  630 CE – Muslim conquered Mekka