“Hello, I’m Steve Wyse. Over the hill came a bunch of Northerners and when I saw the whites of their eyes, I fired, and fired, and fired again. I killed 40 northerners before they got me in the thigh. I fought in the civil war, and I’m a rebel.” “Hello, I’m Alicia Dike. I’m a dietician in the United Kingdom. Because of the growing issue of obesity, I drink lots of water, and eat only vegetables and nuts. Some call me a freak. I disagree. I’m a rebel. Now to you, reader, are you a rebel? As you can see, the definition of rebel varies from person to person and from culture to culture. Some think a rebel is bad, some good. Definitions are tricky things. People often disagree over who’s a rebel, but most will agree that a rebel is just someone who stands up for their beliefs, despite any challenges they face. Jesus and Muhammad were rebels; they believed what they wanted to believe through the thick and the thin. Jesus even died for his belief. Muhammad and Jesus started rebellions that indefinitely sparked two major religions, Islam and Christianity. Jesus’s and Muhammad’s rebellion are more similar than different. In a general sense, Muhammad and Jesus’s rebellion are the same, the conditions that caused both are dissatisfaction and a desire for change, their rebellions both sparked the formation of two major religions, and their ideas were not accepted in their communities. But, in a more specific sense, they were different; Muhammad’s rebellion was not only religious but also martial.
MUHAMMAD’S DISSATISFACTION:
Muhammad was dissatisfied with religions as they were. If he was not, he would not have any reason to start a monotheistic faith within a polytheistic-centered Mecca. To add to that, he would not have returned to Mecca a...
... middle of paper ...
...hange from Jesus bowing down to the authority of theRoman Empire. Jesus took the penalty of death, in spite of the challenges it presented. It was a challenge, because no human wants to die, our body resists it with all might.
Jesus was a rebel. Muhammad was a rebel. They both stood up for what they believed, in spite of the circumstances. Jesus and Muhammad’s rebellions were different in that Muhammad used force. They were similar in root; they were both dissatisfied with Judaism and Polytheism, their teachings were frowned upon by certain people, and their rebellions’ were the catalysts for the world’s biggest religions. Muhammad and Jesus’s strong desire for change was the spark to their religious explosion. Their presence is still felt today, in their word, through teachings presented to each generation of children, and in churches and mosques across our world.
Writing about a topic that has been on an upward slope of controversy and criticism within the past two decades, Fred Donner a notable Islamic History professor at the University of Chicago whom has written multiple texts about the origins of Islam, tells the tale of the beginnings of Islam and how it would be shaped into its current manifestation today with Muhammad and the Believers. Donner admirably conveys the early history of Islam and its success to its centrality and “Believers’ Movement” opposed to many western historians accrediting it to the need of social and economic reform. Muhammad and the Believers is split up into five chapters, all of which Donner imparts his main thesis of Islam being a group of believers (mu’minun) opposed
Does such a combination of words as "a war in the name of God" make sense? The main principles, which underlie Christianity and Islam, are those of goodness, kindness, lack of aggression and respecting certain moral laws. Christianity and Islam provide human society with a code of ethics, which totally rejects war because it is something violent, inhumane and cruel. Still, over the course of human history many wars have been justified with religion and with imposing the "right faith". Because of misunderstanding of certain parts of religion or deliberate misuse of it European and Islamic states have often used violence to fulfill their goals.
Throughout his life, the Prophet Muhammad proved to be exceptionally adept at uniting diverse groups, negotiating a series of alliances and loyalty arrangements that spanned religious, tribal, ethnic, and familial lines (Berggren 2009). Among other things, this ability enabled Muhammad to forge a shared identity and found a nascent Islamic state from a diverse and even heterogeneous community (Rahman 1982; Ernst 2003, pp. 87-93). This diversity proved to be both a source of strength and conflict for Islam, and following the death of Muhammad early Islamic communities engaged in extensive debates not only about the nature of his teachings or how to carry his legacy forward, but also about the terms that should be used to define his authority. Although this debate produced a colorful array of movements within the tapestry of early Islamic civilization, this essay offers a critical examination of two particularly distinct perspectives on the nature of prophetic authority: namely, those articulated
Jesus the Christ and Mohammed, no two single men have touched more lives. They founded two related yet separate religions that today seem to become the main stream of society around the world. In the year “0” B.C. near the town of Bethlehem, where Jesus was born. Almost 600 years later in the town of Mecca, the Prophet Mohammed was born. These two events changed the course of history for all humankind.
During this time, Mecca was mostly populated with polytheistic followers. In 610 C.E, Prophet Muhammad, had his first revelations that advance the Islamic culture. His revelations became a way of life for his followers. When the religion started rising in numbers, Muhammad and his followers was exiled from Mecca. When the followers migrated to Medina, Islam began to spread. This religion had much influence in the locations it was practiced in. The Quran is the way of life to its people. The five pillars expressed in the Quran were the religious laws Muslims were expected to follow. They were expected to only accept there is one God and one messenger, Muhammad, pray five times a day, give the poor 2.5 percent of their savings, fast during the month of Ramandan, and pilgrimage to Mecca, where the Holy Ka’ba is located. Besides the religious impact, Muhammad also created a political empire. He united different tribes and customs. Muhammad was very influential that after his death, the religion faced a challenge. They did not have a successor or leader, so many followers left the religion, refused to pay taxes, and wars begun. In the mid- seventh century, the Muslims started wars with the Byzantine and Persian Empires and conquered them. Muslims ruled over many religious groups including Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians. As the Muslims became powerful, they created laws that taxed other religious groups to practice their faith. In the “Pact of Umar”, Christians agreed under extreme circumstances in order to practice their faith. They agreed to not fix the damages done to their churches, to not display any religious ornaments, to not spread the faith, and many more. The Muslims conquered and progressed in
There are two declarations of faith in Islam: That there is only one God and that Muhammad is the Messenger of God. In Memories of Muhammad, Omid Safi explores the ways in which Muhammad – both the historical and spiritual Muhammad – is remembered, commemorated, and contested by Muslims throughout the centuries. Safi focuses on the movements and moments in Muhammad’s life and after his death that for many Muslims best exemplify the teachings of Islam. He succeeds in opening up the dialogue to correct the negative portrayals of Muhammad and the religion of Islam, calling it a “Muhammad problem” in his introduction. Furthermore, he provides a book that is accessible and intelligible to both Muslims and non-Muslims, drawing from historical and spiritual sources, and addresses relevant issues contested between Muslims in relation to other religions, presenting Muhammad as a historical figure and one who is beloved by the Umma.
Throughout history it is evident that many religions have been tried, tested, and, for some, radically changed. Many religions have gone through periods of time in which the way they were run or enforced underwent changes in practice and leadership. In many cases disagreements and differing outlooks among members of certain religions were to blame for these changes. Christianity and Islam are two examples of religions that have experienced changes over the course of their existence. While these religions seem to have little in common at first glance, both have strikingly similar pasts that consist of radical splits due to disagreements among members of the Christian and Islamic churches, resulting in new branches within each religion.
The world had always been full of different religious beliefs, because there is probably no universal explanation of the origins of human creation. Since the ancient times, we all needed a symbol of faith and of the existence of the judge, who sees everything, thus, is always eager to price, or to punish. Depending to the extent to which we’ve followed his commandments. The two religions: Islam and Christianity are highly different, and their followers are people, whose worldview differs from the other’s. However, these two faiths both believe in the existence of the Jesus Christ. It makes the two different religions mystically connected, and create a view of the existence of one God, who has the different names, but, in reality, is unique for all the people. Never the less, the understanding of this significant figure is quite different: Christians believe the Jesus to be the son of the God, while the Muslims believe him to be the God’s messenger, who was born from a virgin mother and performed miracles.
When you are born into a world in which the two biggest religions on the globe are fighting the same battle they have been fighting for a thousand years you start to question the belifs of these two religions. If they both preach peace, why do we get war? I wonder what Jesus or Muhammad would say if they were alive today. Christanity, Islam, and Judaism are three of the most closely related religions in the world because they all see Abraham and other patriarcal figures in the bible as their spirtual ansestors. However, their points of similarity are no guarentee the followers will get along. In fact, most of the religiously motivated conflicts are between Muslims and Christans. All religions have important elements that play a part in the religion itsself these are Belifs, Community, and Central myths. These three topics are the basis of a religion and provide foundation upon which people create new objects, set up a new system of law, or build empires..
The two largest religions in the world, Christianity and Islam, were implemented by two of religions most powerful leaders, Jesus and Muhammad. Without question, both Jesus and Muhammad have affected humanity powerfully. As religious leaders both men laid down the principles upon which Christianity and Islam are founded yet today. However, while Jesus performed miracles and arose from the dead, thus proving to his followers he was God, Muhammad performed no such feats, and made no such claims. In fact, Muhammad’s only claim was that he was the last prophet sent from God.
Renard, John. Islam and Christianity: theological themes in comparative perspective. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2011. Print.
“Even before his prophethood, Muhammad was the judge and referee of the Quraysh at the time of their disputes and crises” for example in one instance a rock had fallen from the sky and the tribes of Mecca all bel...
At the first glance, Islam and Christianity appear to have nothing in common, however; as you go beyond the surface, they appear to have many similarities such as their beliefs of God, their beliefs of life after death, their holy scriptures, and their prayers. These religions, although two entirely different beliefs, share a similar origin. Like many other religions, they both claim to be the one and only true way to God. In order to truly see and understand their similarities, one must date back to the rise and birth of Christianity and Islam. Throughout the course of this essay, I will compare the many facets that show the alikeness between these two growing religions.
When people think about Mecca one of the first things that might come to their heads is the pilgrimage or the black stone. Muhammad is one of the reasons that Mecca is what it is today. Muhhamad was a prophet born 570 in Mecca. He was orphaned as a child and sent to ended up living with his uncle. Muhhamad would get away from everything by going to the desert to meditate. One night while alone at Mt. Hira he was visited by an angel named Gabriel. After this Muhhamad began to accept Allah and started to believe. Some of the things Muhhamad believed was Jihad, holy struggle. He also began to believe you live for Allah. He believed all those who did would be rewarded and the rest punished. Not everyone believed the way Muhammad did. People at first thought that his teachings were a threat to the religious and material order. He was accused of making up what the Angel Gabriel had told him. He got followers from the poor and people who thought they were being unequally treated. Muhhamad took these people and then left and went to Medina to find more followers. He then returned to Mecca later and took over the city and converted everyone to Islam.
I have been somewhat critical of the author at times, but this is only because he opens the door for the reader to think. I would not be able to formulate opinions if he hadn’t questioned whether Muhammad was being a fair and effective leader. After all, he greatly changed the course of history as we know it. Cook’s objective way of looking at Muhammad’s life allows one to attain a clear view of just how deep of an impact he made.