My Life in the Religion and How I Share My Ideas Related to Islam - Essay Example

Islam Islam is among the major religions of the world and was founded in the seventh century in the Arabian Peninsula by Prophet Muhammad (Levinson 3). The religion’s spread started when he was 40 years of age and began preaching the revelations God had shown him. Prophet Muhammad is regarded by followers of Islam as the perfect and last of God’s messengers. The followers, known as Muslims, refer to their God as Allah. The religion, which is strictly monotheistic, calls for its adherents to voluntarily surrender to Allah’s will. The faithful display submission to Allah by disallowing polytheism, obeying His commands and living by the words of the holy book known as the Quran (Brown 185). This paper will discuss my life in the religion and how I share my ideas and leave with the world. I was born in a family that has always been part of the religion. I have always been encouraged by my family’s commitment in the way it attended the five prescribed daily prayers. I am glad I followed suit in the teachings of Islam and took up the challenge of to reading the Quran. As a Muslim, the faith has taught me that human beings exist for the core purpose of serving and loving God. The faith has also taught me that Allah is the only God and comparable to none (Quran 112:1-4). The words of the Quran are of divine origins that Allah revealed from Himself. It contains His words which already existed before creation and can, therefore, not be subtracted, added or amended (Brown 185). Unlike it is wrongfully believed by non Muslims, the Quran is not made up of Prophet Muhammad’s words because it was there before him. To enable Muslims get a deeper insight and understanding of the Quran and the life of Muhammad, a collection of traditions, known as Hadith, was compiled into comprehensive literature by various people. Muslims, just like Jews and Christians, believe that in death, the spirit departs from the body then waits for resurrection on judgment day (Quran 21:19-20). The three faiths’ doctrines on heaven and hell, angels, the devil, morals and the last judgment are very similar. This forms a strong basis of sharing the ideas of religion with the world. The best way of working with the world and conveying my ideas of religion is by convincing non Muslims to shun the stereotyping that every Muslim is an extremist or terrorist. There is a whole lot of genuine Muslims around the world that can be considered mainstream. It is my duty and responsibility as a Muslim to take an oath, follow the Five Pillars and uphold the Six Beliefs. However, as most will rightfully argue, even extremists and terrorists carry out these exercises. I try to make the world know my belief in the idea that to be extreme is dependent on how passionately individuals carry out the religion’s practices. I believe that the best opportunities to hijack genuine Islam present themselves in the shift from belief into practice. A few examples exist that can explain this idea. For instance, the practice of islamofascism, which refers to Muslims who employ totalitarian methods and thrive on terrorist means (Brown 187). The practice tries to put capitalism, democracy, human rights, modernization and individuality to an end starting from certain nationalities then globally. On the other hand, Islamism describes a worldwide revival movement among Muslims seeking to install Islamic laws, known as Sharia, and theocracies in place of secular governments by use of peaceful means (Brown 186). Although I would not really label it Zionism presented in a Muslim version, it ought to be credited for attempting to achieve its cause peacefully. It is very similar in principle to the Muslim Brotherhood of 1928 (Malcolm & Lewis 124). Islamism may fall into either category of practice or belief. Another idea of the Islam religion I attempt to make the world understand is the controversial term, Jihad. Within the Islamic thought, Jihad is any type of struggle, fight or war in the name of the religion and faith. It is used as a medium to spread Islam, the truth and fight for right while condemning wrong. The teachings of Muhammad tell Muslims of two types of Jihads (Malcolm & Lewis 125). One is termed the little jihad, denoting a struggle with an individual’s attackers, and the other is the greater jihad involving an individual’s purification through a fight for right. Both are holy wars. From the Quran, Muslims get three types of Jihad. One is war with a visible foe, the other against the devil and finally with oneself. Through these explanations, I share the idea that the practice of Jihad means good deeds, an armed defense, individual struggle and holy war for the greater good of the Muslim faithful. I quite agree that the factor tainting the cause of Jihad is Jihadism. Jihadism may be termed as the religion of the Jahiliya, which refers to the pre Islamic ages in the Arabian Peninsula (Levinson 114). Literally, the term Jahiliya means ignorance. Jihadism was developed as an element of Islamic extremism by the Pakistanis and the Taliban. Through its extremist beliefs, the Taliban believes it is the true Islam and that there will be a Plague of God that will kill non Jihadists while the Jihadists will be rewarded in life and in heaven. Such are the ideas that should be averted if Islam is to be separated from extremism. Jihadism may also be viewed as Islam Fundamentalism which is a literal, hard line perception of the world through the Quran’s eyes. It portrays Islam as being at war with Christians and Jews for dominance of the world in God’s cause. Fundamentalists believe they are waging a holy against the West in the same manner early Muslims fought against cities rejecting the prophecy of Muhammad (Levinson 115). Another effective way of giving the world positive ideas on Islam is using examples of some renowned political leaders of the Muslim world. Consider Turkey and the secular philosophy in its politics known as Kemalism. Kemalism was developed from the ideas of Turkey’s first President and it has six pillars aligned to realism. The key aspect of the philosophy is that it possesses an active, balanced and neutral approach towards the running of religious institutions and their affairs. It advocates and works for nationalism with no racism, approaches foreign affairs without expansionist ideologies and embraces economic growth by technology and modernization. The office of religious affairs analyzes religious principles that may bear political implications and may modify them in a balanced manner for the nation’s good (Malcolm & Lewis 126). A further example that may be used to communicate positive Islam is Indonesia. Indonesia, which is the largest Muslim state in the world, came up with a political philosophy called Pancasila in 1945. The philosophy, which condemns all forms of ethnic and religious hatred, was aimed at resolving conflicts between Muslims and Christians. It encourages its people to consider each other as children of God who must be treated with dignity and respect regardless of religion. The philosophy often extends to human rights applications and campaigns for humanity that is civilized and just. The state of Indonesia has also banned communism and atheism and has often been involved in war against factions of al-Qaeda, a well known extremist and terrorist outfit (Malcolm & Lewis 126). In conclusion, using the above examples, I may preach the ideas of Islam as a religion that will be accepted by the world if only all those who profess it could take the teachings of the Quran to be divine revelations of God and not as campaigning to be the superior faith. The task faced by authentic Muslims is to disown the doctrines of the extremists and practice the teachings of the Quran as a book that requires the world to love and serve God. It is my will to make the people of the world understand that we are all the creations of the same God, and we are serving the same God. Once a particular religion begins seeking supremacy over others, it is no longer serving the will of God but of man and worldly interests. Works Cited Brown, Daniel. New Introduction to Islam. New York: Blackwell Publishing, 2003, pg. 185-187. Print. Levinson, David. Encyclopedia of the World Cultures. New York: G. K. Hall & Company, 1994. Print. Malcolm, Peter & Lewis, Bernard. The Cambridge History of Islam. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pr 21, 1977, pg.123-125. Print. The Quran. Print. Read More