Arabic word which means "submission to the will of
which means "peace". As such, the religion
of Islam teaches that in order to achieve true peace of mind and surety of
heart, one must submit to God and live according to His Divinely revealed Law.
The most important truth that God revealed to mankind is that there is nothing
divine or worthy of being worshipped except for Almighty God, thus all human
beings should submit to Him.
The word "Muslim"
means one who submits to the will of God, regardless of their race, nationality
or ethnic background. Being a Muslim entails willful submission and active
obedience to God, and living in accordance with His message. Some people
mistakenly believe that Islam is just a religion for Arabs, but nothing could be
further from the truth. Not only are there converts to Islam in every corner of
the world, especially in England and America, but by taking a look at the Muslim
World from Bosnia to Nigeria, and from Indonesia to Morocco, one can clearly see
that Muslims come from many various races, ethnic groups and nationalities. It
is also interesting to note that in actuality, more than 80% of all Muslims are
not Arabs - there are more Muslims in Indonesia than in the whole Arab World! So
though even though it is true that most Arabs are Muslims, the large majority of
Muslims are not Arabs. However, anyone who submits completely to God and
worships Him alone is a Muslim.
Continuity of the Message:
Islam is not a new religion because "submission
to the will of God", i.e. Islam, has always been the only acceptable
religion in the sight of God. For this reason, Islam is the true "natural
religion", and it is the same eternal message revealed through the
ages to all of God's prophets and messengers. Muslims believe that all of God's
prophets, which include Abraham, Noah, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, brought the
same message of Pure Monotheism. For this reason, the Prophet Muhammad was not
the founder of a new religion, as many people mistakenly think, but he was the
Final Prophet of Islam. By revealing His final message to Muhammad, which is an
eternal and universal message for all of mankind, God finally fulfilled the
covenant that He made with Abraham, who was one of the earliest and greatest
prophets. Suffice it to say that the way of Islam is the same as the way of the
prophet Abraham, because both the Bible and the Qur'an portray Abraham as a
towering example of someone who submitted himself completely to God and
worshipped Him without intermediaries. Once this is realized, it should be clear
that Islam has the most continuous and universal message of any religion,
because all prophets and messengers were "Muslims",
i.e. those who submitted to God's will, and they preached "Islam",
i.e. submission to the will of Almighty God.
The Oneness of God:
The foundation of the Islamic faith is belief in the
Oneness of Almighty God - the God of Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus. Islam
teaches that a pure belief in One God is intuitive in human beings and thus
fulfills the natural inclination of the soul. As such, Islam's concept of God is
straightforward, unambiguous and easy to understand. Islam teaches that the
hearts, minds and souls of human beings are fitting receptacles for clear divine
revelation, and that God's revelations to man are not clouded by
self-contradictory mysteries or irrational ideas. As such, Islam teaches that
even though God cannot be fully comprehended and grasped by our finite human
minds, He also does not expect us to accept absurd or demonstrably false beliefs
about Him. According to the teachings of Islam, Almighty God is absolutely One
and His Oneness should never be compromised by associating partners with Him -
neither in worship nor in belief. Due to this, Muslims are required
to maintain a direct relationship with God, and therefore all intermediaries are
absolutely forbidden. From the Islamic standpoint, believing in the Oneness of
God means to realize that all prayer and worship should be exclusively for God,
and that He alone deserves such titles as "Lord"
and "Savior". Some religions, even though
they believe on "One God", do not make all
of their worship and prayers for Him alone. Also, they also give the title of "Lord"
to beings that are not All-Knowing, All-Powerful and Un-Changing - even
according to their own scriptures. Suffice it to say that according to Islam, it
is not enough that people believe that "God is One",
but they must actualize this belief by proper conduct. In short, in the Islamic
concept of God, which is completely based on Divine Revelation, there is no
ambiguity in divinity - God is God and man is man. Since God is the only Creator
and continual Sustainer of the Universe, He is transcendent above His creation -
the Creator and the creature never mix. Islam teaches that God has a unique
nature and that He is free from gender, human weaknesses and beyond anything
which human beings can imagine. The Qur'an teaches that the signs and proofs of
God's wisdom, power and existence are evident in the world around us. As such,
God calls on man to ponder over the creation in order to build a better
understanding of his Creator. Muslims believe that God is Loving, Compassionate
and Merciful, and that He is concerned with the daily affairs of human beings.
In this, Islam strikes a unique balance between false religious and
philosophical extremes. Some religions and philosophies portray God as just an
impersonal "Higher Power" who is
uninterested, or unaware, of the life of each individual human. Other religions
tend to give God human qualities and teach that He is present in His creation,
by being incarnate in someone, something - or even everything. In Islam,
however, Almighty God has clarified the truth by letting mankind know that He is
"Compassionate", "Merciful",
"Loving" and the "Answerer
of Prayers". But He as also emphasized strongly that "there
is nothing like unto Him", and that He is high above time, space and
His creation. Finally, it should be mentioned that the God that Muslims worship
is the same God that Jews and Christians worship - because there is only one
God. It is unfortunate that some people mistakenly believe that Muslims worship
a different God than Jews and Christians, and that "Allah"
is just the "god of the Arabs". This myth,
which has been propagated by the enemies of Islam, is completely false since the
word "Allah" is simply the Arabic name for
Almighty God. It is the same word for God which is used by Arabic-speaking Jews
and Christians. However, it should be clarified that even though Muslims worship
the same God as Jews and Christian, their concept of Him differs somewhat from
the beliefs of other religions - mainly because it is based completely on Divine
Revelation from God. For example, Muslims reject the Christian belief that God
is a Trinity, not only becaue the Qur'an rejects it, but also because if this
was God's true nature, He would have clearly revealed it to Abraham, Noah, Jesus
and all of the other prophets.
The Qur'an:
The Arabic world "Al-Qur'an"
literally means "the recitation". When used
in regards to Islam, the word Qur'an means God's final message to mankind that
was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. The Qu'ran, sometimes spelled Koran,
is the literal the word of God - as it clearly says time and time again. Unlike
other sacred scriptures, the Qur'an has been perfectly preserved in both its
words and meaning in a living language. The Qu'ran is a living miracle in the
Arabic language; and is know to be inimitable in its style, form and spiritual
impact. God's final revelation to mankind, the Qur'an, was revealed to the
Prophet Muhammad over a period of 23 years. The Qur'an, in contrast to many
other religious books, was always thought to be the Word of God by those who
believed in it, i.e. it wasn't something decreed by a religious council many
years after being written. Also, the Qu'ran was recited publicly in front of
both the Muslim and non-Muslim communities during the life of the Prophet
Muhammad. The entire Qur'an was also completely written down in lifetime of the
Prophet, and numerous companions of the Prophet memorized the entire Qur'an
word-for-word as it was revealed. So unlike other scriptures, the Qur'an was
always in the hands of the common believers, it was always thought to be God's
word and, due to wide-spread memorization, it was perfectly preserved. In
regards to the teachings of the Qur'an - it is a universal scripture, and it is
addressed to all of mankind, and not to a particular tribe or "chosen
people". The message that it brings is nothing new, but the same
message of all of the prophets - submit to Almighty God and
worship Him alone. As such, God's revelation in the Qur'an focuses on
teaching human beings the importance of believing in the Unity of God and
framing their lives around the guidance which He has sent. Additionally, the
Qur'an contains the stories of the previous prophets, such as Abraham, Noah,
Moses and Jesus; as well as many commands and prohibitions from God. In modern
times in which so many people are caught up in doubt, spiritual despair and "political
correctness", the Qur'anic teachings offer solutions to the
emptiness of our lives and the turmoil that is gripping the world today. In
short, the Qur'an is the book of guidance par excellence.
The Prophet Muhammad 
:
Unlike the founders of many religious, the final prophet of
Islam is a real documented and historical figure. He lived in the full light of
history, and the most minute details of his life are known. Not only do Muslims
have the complete text of God's words that were revealed to Muhammad, but they
have also preserved his saying and teachings in what is called "hadith"
literature. This having been said, it should be understood that Muslims believe
that the Prophet Muhammad was only a man chosen by God, and that he is not
divine in any way. In order to avoid the misguided wish to deify him, the
Prophet Muhammad taught Muslims to refer to him as "God's
Messenger and His Slave". The mission of the last and final prophet
of God was to simply teach that "there is nothing divine
or worthy of being worshipped except for Almighty God", as well as
being a living example of God's revelation. In simple terms, God sent the
revelation to Muhammad, who in turn taught it , preached it, lived it and put it
into practice. In this way, Muhammad was more that just a "prophet"
in the sense of many of the Biblical prophets, since he was also a statesman and
ruler. He was a man who lived a humble life in the service of God, and
established an all-encompassing religion and way of life by showing what it
means to be an ideal friend, husband, teacher, ruler, warrior and judge. For
this reason, Muslims follow him not for his own sake, but in obedience to God,
because Muhammad not only showed us how to deal with our fellow human beings,
but more importantly, he showed us how to relate to and worship God, worship Him
in the only way pleasing to Him. Like other prophets, Muhammad faced a great
deal of opposition and persecution during his mission. However, he was always
patient and just, and he treated his enemies well. The results of his mission
were very successful, and even though his mission started in one of the most
backward and remotes places on earth, within a hundred years of the death of
Muhammad, Islam had spread from Spain to China. The Prophet Muhammad was the
greatest of all of God's prophets, not because he had new doctrines or greater
miracles, but because the results of his mission have broght more human beings
into the pure and proper belief in the One True God than any other prophet.
The Islamic Way of Life:
In the Holy Qur'an, God teaches human beings that they were
created in order to worship Him, and that the basis of all true worship is
God-consciousness. Since the teachings of Islamic encompass all aspects of life
and ethics, God-consciousness is encouraged in all human affairs. Islam makes it
clear that all human acts are acts of worship if they are done for God alone and
in accordance to His Divine Law. As such, worship in Islam is not limited to
religious rituals. The teachings of Islam act as a mercy and a healing for the
human soul, and such qualities as humility, sincerity, patience and charity are
strongly encouraged. Additionally, Islam condemns pride and self-righteousness,
since Almighty God is the only judge of human righteousness. The Islamic view of
the nature of man is also realistic and well-balanced. Human beings are not
believed to be inherently sinful, but are seen as equally capable of both good
and evil. Islam also teaches that faith and action go hand-in-hand. God has
given people free-will, and the measure of one's faith is one's deeds and
actions. However, human beings have also been created weak and regularly fall
into sin. This is the nature of the human being as created by God in His Wisdom,
and it is not inherently "corrupt" or in
need of repair. This is because the avenue of repentance of always open to all
human beings, and Almighty God loves the repentant sinner more than one who does
not sin at all. The true balance of an Islamic life is established by having a
healthy fear of God as well as a sincere belief in His infinite Mercy. A life
without fear of God leads to sin and disobedience, while believing that we have
sinned so much that God will not possibly forgive us only leads to despair. In
light of this, Islam teaches that: only the misguided despair
of the Mercy of their Lord. Additionally, the Holy Qur'an, which was
revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, contains a great deal of teachings about the
life hereafter and the Day of Judgment. Due to this, Muslims believe that all
human beings will ultimately be judged by God for their beliefs and actions in
their earthly lives. In judging human beings, Almighty God will be both Merciful
and Just, and people will only be judged for what they were capable of. Suffice
it to say that Islam teaches that life is a test, and that all human beings will
be accountable before God. A sincere belief in the life hereafter is key to
leading a well-balanced life and moral. Otherwise, life is viewed as an end in
itself, which causes human beings to become more selfish, materialistic and
immoral.
Islam for a Better Life:
Islam teaches that true happiness can only being obtained
by living a life full of God-consciousness and being satisfied with what God has
given us. Additionally, true "freedom" is
freedom from being controlled by our base human desires and being ruled by
man-made ideologies. This stands in stark contrast to the view of many people in
the modern world, who consider "freedom" to
be the ability to satisfy all of their desires without inhibition. The clear and
comprehensive guidance of Islam gives human-beings a well-defined purpose and
direction in life. In addition to being members of the human-brotherhood of
Islam, its well-balanced and practical teachings are a source of spiritual
comfort, guidance and morality. A direct and clear relationship with Almighty
God, as well as the sense of purpose and belonging that ones feels as a Muslim,
frees a person from the many worries of everyday life. In short, the Islamic way
of life is pure and wholesome. It builds self-discipline and self-control
thought regular prayer and fasting, and frees human-beings from superstition and
all sorts of racial, ethnic and national prejudices. By accepting to live a
God-conscious life, and realizing that the only thing that distinguishes people
in the sight of God is their consciousness of Him, a person's true human dignity
is realized.