1. Vocabulary, the Five Basic Beliefs and The Five Pillars
Islam Basics
Vocabulary, the Five Basic Beliefs and The Five Pillars
Please use Student Handout 2: Islam Basics to help you take notes with this section

2. Part I: Vocabulary
Islam [iss-LAAM]=the name of the religion founded by Muhammad around 632 CE
Muslim [MOOS-lim]=a follower of Islam. It translates to “one who submits to god.”
Allah [al-LAH]=Arabic word for “god”
Mosque [massk]or masjid [MESS-jid]=Muslim house of worship
Qur’an [kur-AHN]=Holy Book of Islam

3. Five Basic Beliefs of Islam
Belief in one god, Allah. This god is the same as the Judeo-Christian version.
Belief in the prophet, Muhammad and the ones before him (Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus)
Belief in the justice of God, God is fair
Belief in the Imams (or apostles) of God. Shi’ite and Sunni have different views of imams. For Sunni Muslims, imams are worship leaders, but Shi’ites believe that imams are chosen by God to be perfect examples for the faithful and to lead all humanity in all aspects of life.
Belief in the Day of Judgment which is considered the final assessment of humanity by God. Annihilation of all life, followed by resurrection and judgment
Turn & Talk: What other major religions are similar to Islam? What is the evidence that these religions might be connected in some way?

4. Some similarities among Judaism, Christianity & Islam
Belief in one god that is immortal, omniscient (all knowing), omnipresent (present everywhere), and omnipotent (all powerful)
All trace their origins to the biblical Abraham
Main message is to live a moral life in accordance with God’s law
Based in holy text

5. Part III: Five Pillars of Islam
Stop & Jot:
What is a pillar?
What do you think it means if something is considered a pillar of a religion?