ISLAM
In the Name of God, The All-Merciful, The Giver of Mercy
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The name Islam and the name of Islam's adherents
Our religious tradition is called “Islam,” which means “surrender” in Arabic. Those who try to surrender their lives to God are called “Muslim,” which means “one who is surrendering.” From our perspective, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad (peace be upon them) were all Muslims, and so were their followers, because they all tried to surrender to God. In the present era, the word Islam usually refers to the religion of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and his followers are called Muslims. back to top |
Prayer
Prayer in Islam is addressed to God alone. The proper name of God in Arabic is “Allah,” but God is known by many names, such as “The All-Merciful,” “The Just,” and “The Forgiving.” God is the creator and maintainer of all that exists, and knows everything that is, is not, and could never be. God is closer to human beings than their jugular veins, and yet greater than anything of which our minds can conceive. God’s signs are found in the heavens and the earth and in our own selves, and they lead the human being to call out to God seeking guidance, mercy, and wellbeing in this life and in the life after death. back to top |
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Highlights of the Muslim liturgical day, week, month, year Each day, a Muslim is called to pray five times, whether alone or in congregation. Each Friday at midday, Muslims gather for the main weekly prayer service, which includes a sermon that encourages the community towards good and discourages them from evil. Once a year, during the month of Ramadan, Muslims abstain from food, drink, and sex from sun-up until sundown. This is meant to diminish our need for material pleasures while also encouraging our spiritual growth. The goal of a Muslim’s life is to remember God at each moment in the best of ways, and all of these practices help us to strive towards this lofty state. back to top |
Revelation Muslims believe that God has been revealing Truth to human beings since the very beginning. All human beings are capable of grasping part of Truth by means of their God-given intellects. In addition, thousands of Prophets (peace be upon them) have been sent to people all over the Earth, teaching human beings to worship God and live ethical lives. Some of these Prophets have been given actual books of revelation, which both clarify obscure matters and contain information about that which reason alone cannot grasp. Over time, however, these revelations became corrupted, because human beings have added to, subtracted from, and misinterpreted the originals as the centuries go by. In order to confirm all previous revelations and provide guidance until the end of time, God revealed “the Qur’an” to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The Qur’an, which means “the Recitation” in Arabic, is a collection of the revelations that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) received from God over the course of 23 years. The Qur’an forms the foundation of Muslim belief and practice, and Muslims have faithfully preserved, memorized and studied its contents for over 1400 years. back to top |
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Clergy and Community There are no official clergy in Islam and no official denomination. Over the centuries, many different scholars and pious people have transmitted the message of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Various interpretations of Islam developed in different places and at different times, but no one person or institution was given the authority to decide who was right and who was wrong. Despite this democratic tendency, the vast majority of Muslims agreed on the foundations of belief and practice, and accepted scholarly disagreement on secondary matters as a healthy phenomenon. Rigorous training in Arabic, the Qur’an, the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and other subject matters is what makes someone a scholar, but all Muslims are encouraged to seek knowledge as much as they are able. Every individual Muslim may choose which scholars they consider authoritative, and leave it up to God to judge who is ultimately right and who is wrong. back to top |
Language and Geography Arabic is the language that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) spoke and in which the Qur’an was revealed. As such, Muslims who are not native Arabic speakers (about 80% of them!) are encouraged to learn Arabic. Arabic has influenced many other languages, which are all important to Islamic civilization, such as Turkish, Persian, Urdu, and Swahili. In all of these languages, there is a rich Islamic literature. As for geography, although the entire earth is considered a mosque, Muslims turn to pray in the direction of Mecca, which is in Saudi Arabia. Mecca is where the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) grew up and began preaching the message of Islam at the age of 40. All Muslims are required to make pilgrimage to Mecca once in their life, if they have the financial means to do so. In addition to the centrality of Mecca, there are many special places throughout the Muslim world that draw visitors seeking spiritual renewal. Just as languages are transformed by the presence of Arabic learning, so too are places transformed by the presence of pious people who remember God abundantly. As the Qur’an states, “To God belongs the East and the West, and so wherever you turn, there is the Face of God.” back to top |
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Setting the Record Straight Islam does not breed violent extremism. People of all religions commit heinous acts, often explicitly in the name of their religion. It is almost always ignorance, poverty, and oppression that lead desperate people to commit violence. Many Muslim religious scholars and political leaders have been at the forefront of fighting extremism, even long before 9/11. Unfortunately, the American media very rarely carries stories about these efforts. Al-Qaeda kills more Muslims than it kills Christians or Jews, but very few people know this fact. Only a recognized head of state can initiate a just war, often called “a jihad,” just as in America the President is the only Commander-in-Chief. A just war from a Muslim perspective cannot involve the harming of innocent civilians, the use of suicide bombings, deploying nuclear weapons, or even uprooting trees! Thus not only is terrorism forbidden in Islam, but many types of modern warfare are considered unethical. The Muslim must oppose evil and oppression, but the ends never justify the means. back to top |
Would you like to know more about Islam? Follow the link below:
http://www.mountainoflight.com/ back to top |
R. David Coolidge
R. David Coolidge is the Associate University Chaplain for the Muslim Community at Brown University. Before Brown, he was the Muslim Advisor at Dartmouth College (2008-2009), and an Adjunct Instructor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, NY (2007).
In 2008, he graduated from Princeton with an MA in Religion, where his studies focused on the interpretation and practice of Islam in 21st century America. In 2001, he received his BA from Brown, with honors in Religious Studies for a thesis entitled "Muslim Perceptions of Hinduism: Al-Biruni’s Kitab al-Hind and Al-Shahrastani’s Kitab al-Milal wa’l-Nihal.”
In addition to his work and studies within higher education, he has been involved with various American Muslim institutions. He has taught courses and lectured for the Muslim Public Service Network (muslimpublicservice.org), the M.E.C.C.A. Center (meccacenter.com), and various Muslim Student Associations throughout the US. He has studied Islam and Arabic at the American Learning Institute for Muslims (alimprogram.com), the Institute of Islamic Education (iieonline.org), Qasid Institute (qasid.com), Nawawi Foundation (nawawi.org), and the Islamic American University (islamicau.org). He has also worked with various Muslim summer camps, such as the Muslim Youth Camp (muslimyouthcamp.org), which has been in existence for about half a century. Lastly, he has published articles in Islamic Horizons (isna.net/Islamic-Horizons/pages/Islamic-Horizons.aspx), Illume Magazine (illumemagazine.org), and the now-defunct Islamica (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamica_Magazine).
Most importantly, he is married to Sumaiya Balbale, a fellow Brown grad (who is also a Harvard MBA), and enjoys watching pro football and listening to heavy metal when he has the time.
In 2008, he graduated from Princeton with an MA in Religion, where his studies focused on the interpretation and practice of Islam in 21st century America. In 2001, he received his BA from Brown, with honors in Religious Studies for a thesis entitled "Muslim Perceptions of Hinduism: Al-Biruni’s Kitab al-Hind and Al-Shahrastani’s Kitab al-Milal wa’l-Nihal.”
In addition to his work and studies within higher education, he has been involved with various American Muslim institutions. He has taught courses and lectured for the Muslim Public Service Network (muslimpublicservice.org), the M.E.C.C.A. Center (meccacenter.com), and various Muslim Student Associations throughout the US. He has studied Islam and Arabic at the American Learning Institute for Muslims (alimprogram.com), the Institute of Islamic Education (iieonline.org), Qasid Institute (qasid.com), Nawawi Foundation (nawawi.org), and the Islamic American University (islamicau.org). He has also worked with various Muslim summer camps, such as the Muslim Youth Camp (muslimyouthcamp.org), which has been in existence for about half a century. Lastly, he has published articles in Islamic Horizons (isna.net/Islamic-Horizons/pages/Islamic-Horizons.aspx), Illume Magazine (illumemagazine.org), and the now-defunct Islamica (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamica_Magazine).
Most importantly, he is married to Sumaiya Balbale, a fellow Brown grad (who is also a Harvard MBA), and enjoys watching pro football and listening to heavy metal when he has the time.
