3-2 Notes: Islam and Muhammad

Muhammad Muhammad was born in Mecca into a powerful family in 570 ACE Orphaned as a child Raised by his grandfather and worked in the caravan trade At the age of 25, he married a wealthy businesswoman named Khadija and prospered as a merchant

Muhammad the Prophet When he was 40 years, he claimed a voice called out to him and told him, “You are the messenger of God” Muhammad believed the voice was that of the angel Gabriel He was instructed to and began preaching that there is only one god (Allah) and that other gods must be rejected People who believe in this are called “Muslims” Islam = “peace through submission to the will of God”

Muhammad Begins Preaching Muhammad had little success at first Early Muslims were persecuted by Meccans 622 ACE - Muhammad fled 200 miles north with his supporters to Yathrib This migration is known as the Hijrah Muhammad’s followers renamed the city Medina, which means “city of the Prophet” Muhammad’s teachings won many converts in Medina His simple message to obey God’s will appealed to people - They respected Muhammad as a leader

Muhammad’s Leadership Muhammad was a religious, political, and military leader Meccans and Muslims continued to fight but after several battles the Muslims gained the upper hand 630 ACE - Muhammad and 10,000 Muslims returned to Mecca and forced a surrender of the city Muhammad forgave the Meccans and dedicated the Ka’aba to Allah, destroying the false idols He ruled Medina and united Muslims with other Arabs, including Christians and Jews Made alliance and peace treaties with other nomadic tribes, which helped Islam gain acceptance and spread 632 ACE - Most of Arabia unified; Muhammad dies of a fever

Islamic Beliefs, Practices, and Law: The Qur’an and the Sunnah Islam’s main teaching: There is only one god (Allah), who revealed himself through the Angel Gabriel to Muhammad Muhammad’s followers memorized and recited his teachings, which formed a book called the Qur’an Muslims believe that Muhammad’s goal was to also show how his teachings should be applied to everyday life The Sunnah, Muhammad’s words and deeds, are Islamic guides for proper living Legal thinkers later organized the Qur’an and the Sunnah into a system of law (Shari’a Law) used to decide inheritance and punish criminals

Muslim Daily Life Muslims try to connect their personal and religious lives 5 Pillars of Islam - Faith, Prayer (5 times a day, facing Mecca), Almsgiving, Fasting (during Ramadan), and Pilgrimage (to Mecca) 5 Pillars demonstrate obedience to God Muslims don’t eat pork or drink alcohol Friday afternoons are set aside for worship - People gather in mosques (all mosques face Mecca)

Connections to Judaism and Christianity: People of the Book Muslims trace their religion back to Abraham Jews, Christians, and Muslims all believe that he was a prophet of God Muslims believe that Allah is the same god worshipped by Jews and Christians too Muslims call Jews and Christians “people of the book” because their holy teachings and scriptures are similar to the Qur’an Muslims believe that the Qur’an is the final holy book containing God’s teachings and that Muhammad is the final prophet Followers of all three religions believe in a heaven, hell, and a judgment day

Religious Toleration Muslim law requires that Muslim leaders offer religious toleration to non-Muslims Non-Muslims must pay a special tax and have restricted rights Policy of toleration helped play an important role in the expansion of the Muslim Empire under Muhammad’s successors