'Islam is the second religion of the book Essay\r'

'Incident every last(predicate)y, the term: â€Å"People of the platter” comes from the Qur’an which cites both Judaism and Christianity, sacred beliefs which came before Islam, as having sectionalisation of its origins in the prophet of Abraham. In this, we force out entrance a respect for the a nonher(prenominal) religions; a respect which is lost on the comprehension of a vocal nonage of Muslims and as a result, a perception that Muslims hate only other religions. This is err mavenous and dangerous assumption for both sides.\r\n effect in Islam requires that a convert commit in but ch international ampereion paragon, the revelations which he has destinen to his quite a little from his n matchlesssuch(prenominal)s, his messengers and chiefly, the prophet Mohammad whose literary works from 610AD until his death in 632 AD dish outed to indite the sanctum sanctorum book of Quran. It is a ex reposition view and cardinal that is seen as the closely important: That thither is no â€Å" theology but Allah and Mohammad is his prophet. ” This is required of all those deprivation to consider themselves Muslims and followers of Mohammad and his teachings. There argon an estimated 1.\r\n6 billion Muslims with an annual offset rate which evanesces all other religions in the institution. Muslims argon spread all e actuallyplace the world but ar exceedingly concentrated in the Middle East. Pakistan is the or so heavily populated uncouth of Muslims and raze the States has an estimated seven to x gazillion Muslims in the country. Muslims believe that the Koran is the true vocalize of immortal and was made much(prenominal) by a visitation of the angel Gabriel to the prophet Mohammad. Angels ar described in the Koran as: â€Å"messengers with wings. Two or leash of four pairs. He adds to macrocosm as He pleases.\r\n” This is a aboriginal belief as well as the fact that Mohammad, disrespect his extensive ness in the religion of Islam, is not considered a graven image of whatever kind. Neither is Jesus who, despite being highly regarded in the ordained teachings of the locomote fourteen centuries, is considered to be only a man and a prophet of God’s, although his greatness is not to exceed that of the prophet Mohammad. God is a primal theme of the religion and his is referred to as: â€Å"God, the integrity and only(a) and Only: God, the eternal, Absolute, He begetteth not, nor is He create; and on that point is none like unto him.\r\n” It is in like manner a rally theme of Islam; the daytimetime of Judgment. Similar to the Christian belief in predestination, many Muslims believe that people argon predestined as to whether they exiting degrade heaven or enter stone on the Day of Judgment. That is not to give voice that an individual does not contrive the emancipation to choose, rather that God, from the beginning of time, knows the destination of ev ery somebody who ever existed, or who volition ever exist. In this fervor, the message of a complete submission to God is central as well as to the belief in Islam.\r\nDisbelief and a reverse to submit to the pass on of God ar one of the main offenses which, according to the Koran, will result in a person, on the Day of Judgment, going to hell. The latter is one of the main appeals that individuals book for Islam as in many countries with a high community of Muslims, the living conditions ar less than subscript and people peppy a very tough existence. Lastly, one of the or so important and central teachings of Islam is called the â€Å"Five Pillars of Islam. ” There ar quintette virtually major aspects of Islam which individuals ar strongly encouraged to observe.\r\nThe first is belief in Mohammad as the prophet of God and that the spoken communication of the prophet which are located in the Koran are the literal word of God. The second is taping in the pl eader of Mecca, phoebe bird times a day. The third is the grownup of alms or charity to the poor and needy. The quaternary is fasting during the month of Ramadan in which one must not eat or drink from dusk to dawn. The finishing is called the hajj or a pilgrimage during the poop Islamic month to Mecca at to the lowest degree once in their hearttime.\r\n” The latter will compel one million millions of Muslims, any(prenominal)times two and three million Muslims at a time, to go to Mecca at the same time in order to fulfill their last duty, or pillar of Islam. When asking Mr. Aziz close to the sizeableness of the religion of Islam at heart his own feel, he gave a very passionate and certified response. â€Å"In America, there is a great deal of misconception about the religion of Islam and as a Muslim; it is my responsibility to live in a way that would help to dispel those myths.\r\nAlthough not in the same light, nor with the same amount of spotlight, it is ak in to the puzzle that the Ameri groundwork boxer, Joe Louis had while he was the case heavyweight champion of the world. His manager was overcareful not to check Joe Louis portrayed in a way that would add to the misconceived stereotypes about Afri mint Ameri shags at that time since the last Afri arse America boxer, Jack Johnson, had do the opposite and was shunned by America. ” When asked if he has strand this to help within his own life; the conception of others about him, his ethnicity and his religion, Mr.\r\nAziz had a tangled response. â€Å"There will always be people who will not change their opinions about the Middle East or Islam. I can’t au becausetically help that. However, for three high majorities of people who make the effort to know me, they contrive sometimes come out and state that they were wrong about Muslims, or at least about me. There is calm down a hint of racism within such sentiments. However, it is progress. ” Mr. Aziz thusl y talked to me about his religion. â€Å"In Islam, there are cinque pillars which every Muslim is expected to respect and pursue these pillars.\r\nIn no specific order, these five pillars are to travel to Mecca at least once in your life, to give to charity, to pray five times in the day while facing in the direction of Mecca, to fast during the sanctum Months and to believe that there are no gods but Allah and that Mohammad is his messenger. The last is the most important and is what helps to connect the more(prenominal) than 1. 6 billions Muslims in more than a hundred countries in the world, each one to the other. It is very important to all Muslims.\r\nI confuse not yet at rest(p) to Mecca but I hope to by the end of the decade. I have not always been combineful in the finish of the other four on a daily basis as most people of trustfulness experience a lapse in their corporate trust and devotion. That has happened before. However, I am quick to connect the dots and to reissue myself from whatever vehicle is serving as an impediment to my faith. ” â€Å"Fasting is withal important. During the Holy month of Ramadan, there is to be no eating during sunlight. This is one of the most operose of the five pillars.\r\nThe reason to fast is that it will help to bring the believer contiguous to God through the realization that God is the supplier of everything and that nothing can be done apart from him. We eat his viands and breathe his air. We use his sunlight and are stewards of his world. In comparison with God, man is so small and weak. Sometimes people deflect that. Fasting helps to remind them. ” Mr. Aziz also prays five times a day as well as gives to charity. â€Å"I conjure up up at 5am and pray then as well as at 8am, noon, four pm and before I go to bed at 9pm.\r\nSince I was pinchd to do this and to adhere to the five pillars, this has become a habit of tap and is not really difficult. I bring forward as a child, I reb elled a great deal towards this especially since I wanted to stay in bed. It was not until two consecutive geezerhood, did I sense its difficulty ease and I began to bonk it. ” It is also important to give to charity. This does not solely mean money. There are many people in the world who are very poor and do not have the money to give. To give to charity, or to give alms, means also to be helpful to one’s neighbor.\r\nWhether it is shoveling the snow from an elderly neighbor’s driveway or simply beneficial informing a person at the grocery store that they dropped their purse; these all are examples of charity. ” Mr. Aziz also speaks to the importance that his religion has towards his community. â€Å"Even though here in America, there is an estimated three to seven million Muslims, there are very a couple of(prenominal) where I live and no places of worship. cardinal of the reasons for the latter I believe is caused by the beliefs that the people in the surrounding towns have about Muslims and that we are all terrorists.\r\nTherefore, there have been many attempts, to diffuse any building plans for a mosque. ” How do you step about that? â€Å"It is discouraging to me but me and associate Muslims meet in people’s homes in order to worship and pray. It is similar to the 1st century Christians who were barred from worshiping by the Roman authorities or the Jews who during WWII were not allowed to worship either. We are not nether the same level of persecution but as these other two groups. However, it hush requires some planning. ” â€Å"It is my family and friends which help to lay a intromission of faith within my life.\r\nThere are some Muslims in the surrounding areas. Therefore, the friends that I do have and which practice Islam as well as my family, for more than one reason, provide a structure and metrical unit for me. This is very important. America does not have the same problem with their Mu slim universe of discourse in comparison to the troubles in atomic number 63 because we have assimilated. This is important to a degree. We do not want to become all in all Americanized but in the process, love American sports and the traditions that come with this country. ” So we are then relegated to worship nearly in private.\r\n” It is one of the prices to pay for being a Muslim in America. However, since the majority of American Muslims are doing well in America and wonder this land, we are content to pay some of that price. We are Muslims first however and Americans second. right as Christians have as a major aspect of their identity in which it cannot be separated from who they are, the same can be said about Muslims. ” â€Å"The societal restrictions towards Muslims in America have go up. However, as a Muslim in America, I still feel as though I am a foreigner in a country that I immigrated to legally over twenty years ago.\r\nAmerica has still give n over me more opportunities than my homeland. I just figure forward to the day when I can be truly being considered an America. If I do not live to see that day, I will be pensive but I will carry on happy that I have had such a rewarding and blessed life while living in America. ” Mr. Aziz still continues to work and to support his family. When asked about the faith of his two daughters, Mr. Aziz comments: â€Å"They are eight and ten years old so they are unsalted, but not too young to understand some of the world around them. I hope that I can keep them from experiencing instances of racism or prejudice.\r\nI do not however, that the worst that they percolate in America, is still better than what they could have hoped for in Pakistan. That is why I am hesitant to complain too loudly. I am still able to raise my children, along with my wife, in the ways that we choose. This is a great freedom that America has; its religious freedom. I recently watched a docudrama on Thomas Jefferson and learned that he was instrumental in creating a footing of religious freedom that is present in America. This happened more than two hundred years ago.\r\nYet, I am a receiver of such actions even today. It is very horrendous to me and I am very appreciative. ” â€Å"I am proud to be an American. However, I am also proud to be a Muslim. It seems that in the past few years, especially since 9/11, such sentiments have been seen as an oxymoron. I believe that they are one in the same as America promises religious freedom to all who will practice their religion of survival of the fittest without breaking the law. This is the great gift that America’s forefathers and all who help to maintain such efforts, to contemporary Americans and all who will follow.\r\nIt is the effort of every Muslim, not to be swayed by the fleeting morals of a society but to hold crocked to the faith and teachings of Islam. This is what I am attempting to do. I have not al ways been boffo and have fallen away from my faith from time to time. It is important, just like with anything in life, that once somebody has fallen brusque of their personal expectations, to get right binding up and to try again. Religious faith is an ongoing process and does not dwell while one is alive.\r\n” This is my hope and appeal for me and all others who feel that the law can only go so farther and that a personal relationship with God is paramount in a person’s life.\r\nWORKS CITED Armstrong, Karen Islam: A get around chronicle New York: Random History 2006 Burns, Ken Thomas Jefferson New York: Steeplechase & PBS Films 1997 Miller, James Religions of the World. New York: WW Norton 1987 The Holy Qur’an (2002) New York: Oxford University Press An Interview with Mr. Aziz. put down with his permission on November 1, 2007 and Transcribed on November 4, 2007.\r\n'