Islam Prayingforindonesia

Islam is a religion of peace and guidance. Islam simply means “Submission to the will of God” (bbc.co.uk). Islam is the youngest of the world’s very large religions-which include: Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism (IntrotoIslam). Islam is the second largest religion in the world; there are approximately one billion followers. (bbc.co.uk) In 2001 a census recorded 1591000 Muslims in the UK, around 2.7 percent of their population. (bbc.co.uk) Traditions of Islam spread widely throughout areas of the middle east and Asia (Scupin 2008b;Sidky and Akers2006) (Pg. 327 World's Religion). By 750 CE, Islam had invaded China, India, along the southern shore of the Mediterranean and into Spain. By 1550 they had besieged Vienna. Wars resulted,

(prayingforindonesia) Islam came into Indonesia in the early eighth century through Banda Aceh. Islam didn’t begin to spread until the thirteenth century. By the sixteenth century Islam had spread through all of Sumatra and Juva. (prayingforindonesia) Indonesian Muslims can be categorized into two main groups, “modernists” who adhere to orthodox Islam while accepting modern advances and education, and “traditionalists” who are more apt to follow local religious leaders. (prayingforindonesia) The leading “modernist” leader is Muhammadiyah; they have branches all over the country and have schools, orphanages, mosques, and clinics. (prayingforindonesia) Most Muslims here are Sunni, a few are Shia . Also another group in Indonesia are the Sufi Muslims. (prayingforindonesia) The Sunni and Shia don’t consider the Sufi to be true muslims because they use mysticism and believe they can have a relationship with God. (prayingforindonesia) Ahmadiyya is another Muslim group, however; Muslim religious leaders don’t recognize Ahmadiyya as true Muslims but as a cult. However, there are 242 groups in Indonesia. (prayingforindonesia) Most Muslims in Indonesia practice “folk Islam”. This means they mix animistic practices with traditional Muslims rites. (prayingforindonesia) For example, before a house can be built, a chicken must be sacrificed for

Islams may have many traditions and rituals, but that is what they believe brings them closer to God. Once again, Islam is a religion of peace and guidance, that is all Muslims ever wanted.

Works Cited

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"Library." Islam Origins, Islam History, Islam Beliefs. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2014.

"World of Islam." History of Islam. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Aug.