Recently there has been a lot of controversy surounding Islam in the media. We hear about attacks that’ve been happening around the world and you can’t help but wonder: Is that really Islam? If you don’t know much about Islam, you might judge the religion based on what you hear and see in the media. Before being quick to judge here is a collegiette’s quick guide to Islam.
1. Islam is a Monotheistic religion which believes in a God named Allah and that the last prophet was Muhammad.
2. Muslims believe that Jesus was a prophet but they do not believe that Jesus was the son of God.
3. In Islam, it is prohibited to make a person become Muslim with force and violence. If a person wants to become Muslim, it should be because they truly believe that Islam is the right religion for them.
4. Muslim women are not obligated to wear Hijabs (covering for their hair). The women who do choose to wear a hijab do it because they want to save their beauty for their husbands.
5. Jihad is a misunderstood concept. Jihad is the struggle with oneself against sin. It’s about trying to be a better believer. It is an effort to practice religion in the face of oppression and persecution. The effort may come in fighting the evil in your own heart. An example of Jihad can be that as college students we can be tempted to drink alcohol, but since drinking alcohol is against Islam. Whenever we are offered alcohol this is a Jihad, because we are tempted to drink even though we shouldn’t. In this scenario, we are facing an internal struggling between wanting to drink but also wanting to obey God and not drink.
6. Islam, Christianity and Judaism are much more similar than they are different. We are all so focused on the differences we forget about the similarities. They are all Abrahamic religions and believe in one God. All three also believe in the same prophets and Holy book as well as the 10 commandments.
7. Muslim believe that their sacred book, the Quran, is God’s word as it was revealed to the prophet Muhammad.
8. Muslims don’t drink alcohol or eat pork.
9. Muslim pray 5 times a day.
10. During Ramadan, Muslims do not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset for 30 days.
Keep this guide to Islam in mind collegiettes and share with others so we can all better understand the world around us.