Islam: Islam And The Beginning Of Islam

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Islam was formed in 622 CE on the Arabian Peninsula. "Islam" is an Arabic word that means "acceptance," "surrender," "submission," or "commitment," and is closely related to the Arabic word for peace (salaam; in Hebrew, shalom). Adherents or followers of Islam are called Muslims, literally, those who make peace. Muslims are those who surrender to the will of God (Allah, in Arabic) in every aspect of their lives and enjoy the resulting peace with God and each other. Today there are about 1.5 billion Muslims. The prophet Muhammad gave the name Islam to the religious movement he founded thus creating Islam that we know today.
There are several events that could be considered the beginning of Islam, including the life of Muhammad, or the Hijra. If we seek the beginning of Islam in a sacred event, then perhaps it lies in the Night of Power (laylat al-qadar), when Muhammad received the call to be God's messenger. In the Islamic worldview, the origins of the faith lie in God’s initial creation of the universe and everything in it, Including the First Parents, Adam and his wife. For a time, all creatures lived in perfect peace, but then the First Parents were tempted by Iblis and disobeyed God's rules. As a result, Adam and his wife were banished from Paradise, though God reassured Adam that the banishment was temporary. God promised to send messengers to Adam and his progeny, and these messengers would bring God's guidance.
One of God's most important messengers was Abraham (Arabic, Ibrahim), who was called by God to leave his home in Ur (in present-day Iraq). Abraham (whose name means "Father of Many Nations") is revered in the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as the ideal model of pure faith in the one true God. Abraham...

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...aled through the use of the first person plural ("we"). The original, divine version of the earthly book is considered coeternal with God, either in heaven or in the mind of God. Translations into other languages, removed from sacred Arabic words and sounds, are not the literal word of God, and are classified as interpretations. All Muslims memorize verses from the Arabic Quran because verses from the Arabic Quran are required to be recited in the daily ritual prayer. The ritual prayer has remained in Arabic despite the fact that most Muslims live out of the Middle East this allows Muslims a sense of great unity throughout the world because the liturgy of worship has never changed. The most devout male and female Muslims- even those who are not know as religious figures of Islam- will memorize the entire Quran in Arabic those that do so are known as hafiz or hafiza.

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