22 The Land of Arabia, the Prophet Muhammad, and the Rise of Islam

Question 1

What was the first ever complete book written in Arabic?

Answer 1

Qur’an

Question 2

Who aided in the process of Christian expansion into the Arabian peninsula?

Answer 2

Merchants, Slaves, and Monastics from Syria, Ethiopia, and Persia

Question 3

What’s the name of the merchant mentioned in ‘the Book of the Himyarites’ that became a Christian?

Answer 3

Hayyan - became a Christian and baptised in Hira

Question 4

Who were known to have preached at the great fairs of Arabia, using their camels as pulpits?

Answer 4

The bishops of Najran

Question 5

Who was the Himyarite king who persecuted the Christians of Najran?

Answer 5

Dhu Nuwas/Dunaas (Jewish king)

Question 6

Which Arabic city was home to the Kab’ah?

Answer 6

Mecca

The Ka’bah housed some 360 representative deities, both Arabic and non-Arabic. One of the deities represented in it was the Arabic high God named Allah, while others were said to be representations of his daughters.

Question 7

Which city was attacked by Abrahah in the year of the elephant?

Answer 7

Mecca

The attack failed and according to the Qur’an, the Ethiopian forces were driven off outside the city of Mecca through divine intervention.

Question 8

Who was born on the year of the elephant (570)?

Answer 8

Muhammad in Mecca

Member of the ruling Quraysh tribe that claimed to trace its lineage back to Ishmael, son of Abraham

Question 9

According to Arabic tradition, who had built the Ka’bah, which contained a mysterious and large black stone?

Answer 9

Abraham and Ishmael

Question 10

What message did Muhammad receive from the angel Gabriel?

Answer 10

The message called upon the people of Mecca to turn away from their idolatry and begin to worship the one true God of Abraham, who was Allah

Question 11

Why was Muhammad’s preaching deemed a threat to the city of Mecca?

Answer 11

The city reaped significant benefits from the worship of the various deities housed in the Ka’bah

Question 12

Where did the Prophet’s followers go to seek refuge?

Answer 12

Ethiopia

Question 13

Which city invited the Prophet to be their ruler?

Answer 13

The city of Yathrib (later named Medina)

Question 14

What were the four communities that the Prophet was told not to exterminate?

Answer 14

Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians, and Sabeans

These four faiths were monotheistic and were founded upon earlier revelations of divine scriptures

Question 15

Who were granted limited legal status within the Islamic state as dhimmi (protected people)?

Answer 15

Christians and Jews

Question 16

What was Jesus called in the Qur’an?

Answer 16

The Messiah, a title no other prophet receives.

He is also called the Word (kalimah)

The Qur’an assigns to Jesus a special role as well in the final resurrection of the dead on the day of judgment.

Question 17

What were the two specific points the Qur’an breaks with orthodox Christian belief regarding Jesus?

Answer 17

According to the Qur’an,

1) Jesus was not crucified; the Qur’an is silent regarding the death of Jesus
2) the doctrine of the Trinity is in error. Jesus was a man through whom God chose to reveal the gospel. Muslims believe the statement that God is three is a blasphemy that Jesus’ followers, the Christians, later introduced.

Question 18

What are the five pillars of Islam?

Answer 18

1) Recite the shahada, witness that there is no God but God and that Muhammad is his messenger
2) Prayer offered five times a day
3) Giving alms to the poor
4) Fasting from sunup to sundown during Ramadan
5) Make pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in his or her lifetime

Question 19

What is one sharp contrast between Islam and Christianity concerning religious leadership in worship?

Answer 19

Muhammad did not establish hierarchical priesthood or sacramental life.

Entry into the Muslim community requires no counterpart to baptism. One simply believes in one God, confesses the faith, practices the five pillars of Islam, and lives a moral life according to the will of God as revealed in the Qur’an.

Question 20

What was the collection of oral traditions of details of the day-to-day life of the Prophet and his companions called?

Answer 20

The Hadith (“reports”)

Have authority in Islam second only to the Qur’an

Question 21

What were some developments affecting women under Islamic traditions?

Answer 21

1) women and men are equal before God insofar as their salvation is concerned, for they were both created from a single soul.
2) Women were granted specific rights and protections that they did not previously have in Arabic culture.
3) Women were regarded (as they often were in Christian societies of that day) as being under the legal authority of fathers or husbands.
4) A man was permitted to marry several wives but did not permit a woman to have multiple husbands.
5) A husband was allowed to divorce his wife but the women were not allowed to.
6) Women were advised to cover themselves adequately for the sake of modesty

Question 22

Which city did Muhammad forbid unbelievers from entering?

Answer 22

Mecca

Question 23

What were the 2 things successfully negotiated by the bishop of Najran for Christians with the Prophet?

Answer 23

1) Extension of political rights

2) Appointment of a Muslim official to oversee financial affairs for their community

Question 24

Who succeeded Muhammad?

Answer 24

Abu Bakr, who took on the title of caliph (“deputy” or “successor”)

Question 25

Who succeeded Abu Bakr and how did he die?

Answer 25

‘Umar, and he was assassinated

Question 26

Who succeeded ‘Umar and was also assassinated?

Answer 26

‘Uthman

Question 27

Who succeeded ‘Uthman?

Answer 27

Ali; nephew and son-in-law of the Prophet

Question 28

What is the Christian counterpart to the concept of the eternal and uncreated Qur’an that is eternally with Allah in heaven?

Answer 28

The Logos that is with God from all eternity.

According to Islam, the eternal Word of God was made manifest most clearly in the pages of the Qur’an, a manifestation most Christians believe has been given in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Question 29

What are two things that can be described about the Qur’an?

Answer 29

1) perfect reproduction of an eternal and uncreated Qur’an that is eternally with Allah in heaven.
2) Cannot be adequately translated into any other language.