Islam: Origins and views on other religions

surprising for that time in particular, the fledgling movement gathered momentum and rapidly grew out of the Arabic peninsula until it held social and political dominance over the sur-rounding regions of the contemporary Middle East.

This paper will deal with that movement, known as Islam, from its historical beginnings to its relevance to the contem-porary world. The paper will being by giving an overview of both basic Islamic history and belief, and will then turn to an analysis of contemporary Muslim society, with particular emphasis on Islam's view of both Judaism and Christianity. The paper will then conclude with some of the contemporary issues that surround the Islamic world, and the projected concerns that face the Muslim world as a whole.

The prophet Mohammed founded the religious movement known as Islam. The word "Islam" is an Arabic world that means "acceptance," "surrender," "submission," or "commitment." The word itself expresses the attitude of Mohammed, and the tradi-tions of Islam in that each member of the religion commits to an overriding external power, or God (Parrinder 462). However, Islam is more than a religious term, it is a social term of community that is both intrinsically nationalistic and

philosophic in that it exemplifies an inner attitude of humble recognition of the variety of human obligations to both the State and to God

. . .
yings, and values purported by the Prophet himself (Ahmed 3). In essence, the ideal says that there is a necessary belief in prophesy and revelation. In fact, it is through prophesy that Allah (God) gave Mohammed the truth. Thus, the Koran is the highest authority in all matters, both spiritual, legal, social, and political. It has also been said that Islam is the religion of law, and one of the principle characteristics of the Islamic faith is its expression of piety. In fact, the central place of the law in Islamic thought stems from the fundamental nature of Islamic experience itself. This is particularly exemplified in the tradition of guidance. As well, there are moral duties of obedience, called shariah. Shariah is a comprehensive term that means, in essence, human conduct. For example, no human action, without exception, falls outside the word of Islamic law (Nasr 30-35 passim). There are also moral duties, a perceived union with Allah, and the life search for the Divine that must be accomplished through a series of earth-bound activities. These activities involve daily prayers, a certain attitude towards the self and others, and, above all, the desire and willingness to sublimate the individual identity in favor of that
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1518
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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