On the Rise
Covered by desert Little rain, no major rivers
Nomads No permanent home Go from place to place to find food, water, pasture Knew of routes and oases Worked as guides for traders Led caravans of camels and people across the desert
Oases became centers of trade Towns and cities popped up at them Mecca One of these centers of trade
Born on Mecca (570AD) His great-grandfather had been a wealthy merchant Muhammad worked on caravans Went into a cave to pray (610AD) Heard the voice of an angel Said that people had abandoned the true faith Tasked with sharing this message Started Islam Said people would again obey the one true God Muslim = “a person who submits” Muhammad preached that all were brothers and sisters in God’s community People didn’t abandon their pagan religions
Muhammad was invited to Yathrib (622AD) North of Mecca People there regarded him as a prophet This migration of Muslims was called the “hijra” (“the migration) 622 became year 1 of the Muslim calendar Yathrib’s name was changed to Medina “City of the prophet” Became an Islamic center Muhammad returned to Mecca in 630AD Died in 632AD Islam had spread all over Arabian peninsula by this time
Muezzin Man who calls Muslims to worship “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God” “Allah” = God Muslims stop and pray 5x a day Worship facing Mecca Mosque = Muslim house of worship
Declaration of Faith Muslims must regularly declare the belief that there is only one God, and that Muhammad is God’s messenger Prayer 5x a day Facing Mecca Almsgiving Must give to the poor Fasting During daylight hours in the month of Ramadan Pilgrimage Must make pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lives if able
Quran = holy book of Islam Must be written in Arabic Otherwise it’s just a translation of the Quran Contains messages revealed by God to Muhammad Includes the rules of Islam Memorized by many Muslims
Monotheistic = belief in one God Shared by Christianity, Judaism, and Islam “People of the Book” Muslims count Adam, Noah, Abraham, and Moses as part of their religious history Muslims believe Muhammad is the last in the line of these prophets He is “The Prophet” They count Jesus only as another prophet Not the Son of God
Quran teaches men and women are spiritually equal According to the Quran, women could inherit property and receive an education They could not be forced to marry Had the right to divorce
Uthman was assassinated in 656AD He had been the leader of the Muslims Muslims disagreed as to his successor Shiites Smaller group Believed successor should be direct descendant of Muhammad As God would inspire him the same way Believed the Islamic leader should explain the teachings of the Quran Sunnis Larger group Now makes up 85% of all Muslims Believed any truly religious Muslim man from Muhammad’s tribe could lead the community Believed no one man should tell Muslims what the Quran means Believed a group of Muslim scholars could best explain it