Introduction to the History of Islam
Prague, Czech Republic
March 2002
Declare God’s glory among
the nations, His marvelous deeds among all peoples. (I Chronicles 16:24)
As believers we are under
mandate to express our faith to all peoples. We can do this best when we have
an enlightened understanding of the peoples around us with whom we work and
live. This three-part lecture series is meant to be a brief introduction to the
religion of Islam including a history and understanding of Islamic society.
Introduction: Please note the
quote from Winfried Corduan, Neighboring Faiths, Intervarsity
Press
I. Life of Muhammad the Prophet
A.
Born in Mecca (Makkah) in the Arabian peninsula about A.D. 570.
1.
Father died before Muhammad’s birth; mother died when he was six years old;
raised by his grandfather and an uncle, Abu Talib.
2. Until age 25 Muhammad was a poor, illiterate camel
driver.
B.
Married his employer, a wealthy widow named Khadija in A.D. 595.
C.
At age 40 he began to have visions while meditating in a cave (A.D. 610).
1. It is said that the Angel Gabriel spoke to him words
from God and told him, "Recite".
2. He began to recite these prophetic utterances and
gathered a group of
followers. Khadija was his first convert.
3. After his death the revelation Muhammed recited were
written down in the
Quran (recitation)
4. In 622 Muhammad and his band fled from Mecca to
Medina.
a. This is known as the hijra and is the beginning
of the Islamic
calendar.
b. The year A.D. (Anno Domini) 2002 is A.H. (Anno
Hegirae) 1422.
The Islamic Calendar is based on a lunar month which
makes a
year
approximately 11 days shorter than our Gregorian Calendar year.
5. Muhammad died in Medina at the age of 62 (A.D. 632,
A.H. 11).
II. Arabia in the time of
Muhammad
A. The Arabian peninsula was a significant thoroughfare
for commerce and extensive
cross-cultural interaction.
B.
Their indigenous religion was a mixture of polytheism and animism.
C. Mecca was a prosperous city which attracted many
pilgrims. Some of the religious
attractions
were the Ka’ba (a cube shaped shrine containing a sacred meteorite) and the
sacred well, Zamzam.
D. From one point of view, Muhammad’s mission was to
fight idolatry and eliminate
it. Of course, this did not make him popular among
those who were profiting from
the local religion.
E. It is often noted that there was considerable
influence on Muhammad from the two great monotheistic faiths. He called Jews
and Christians "People of the Book".
III. The Spread of Islam
A. In approximately the last 25 years of his life,
Muhammad established the Islamic
community (umma) in Medina, built the first
mosque, organized an army, began
to unify the separated Arabian tribes, and was their
prophet, ruler, judge,
commander in chief and prayer leader.
B. By A.D. 650 Islam had conquered the cities of
Damascus, Antioch, Jerusalem,
Caesarea, Alexandria, and, in addition, the Persian
Empire had fallen to Islam.
C. By A.D. 715 they had swept across North Africa and
into Spain.
D. All of the above cities and nations were, at
least, nominally Christian. J. Herbert
Kane, A Concise History of the Christian World
Mission, Baker, explains that the
church
in those regions was numerically large but spiritually weak. Some of the
contributing factors were that it was not truly indigenous, they did not have
the Scriptures in their own language, and the church had lost its missionary
zeal to extend the faith.
E.
Muslim progress into Europe was stopped by Charles Martel at the Battle of
Tours
A.D. 732. About this time Islam also entered India and advanced into Central
Asia.
F. Many believe The Crusades (seven in all) between A.D.
1095 and 1272 were a
failure and continues to contribute to hostility
between Muslims and Christians.
G. Another wave of Islamic expansion occurred in the 13th
and 14th centuries led by
the Ottoman Turks and the Mongols of Central Asia.
H. There has been a resurgence of Islamic influence and
expansions since World War II. The "petro-dollar" is financing the
building of Mosques and Islamic Centers all across Europe and the Americas.
IV. The Major Sects of Islam
and Folk Islam
A. Shi’a
Muslims After Muhammad’s death Muslims
were divided over leadership.
The Shi’a believe that leadership was passed on to his
cousin, son-in-law, and
first male convert, Ali, and to his sons after him.
Shi’as make up about 10% of
the
world’s Muslim population. Iran is the only state that is officially Shi’a, but
they also live in other places.
B. Sunni
Muslims Sunni Muslims comprise about 90%. They believe God has given
leadership
and insight to religious scholars who in turn keep the community on the right
path.
C. Folk Islam Many of the ordinary believers (whether Shi’a or Sunni) practice a type of "Folk Islam" which tends toward animism. Corduan respectfully says (page 89), "The common nomad or villager may be occupied mainly with warding off evil spirits. Facets of Islam such as the five pillars may become subordinated to this animism and may come to be thought of as tools for dealing with the spirits rather than aspects of submission to Allah in their own right."
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