Islam Beliefs Flashcards
What does Islam mean?
Islam means surrender/submission/obedience
What does Allah mean?
God is One and only
What does Qur’an mean?
Recital (this is because the teachings were originally said by heart by Muhammad to his followers.)
What is the only sin Allah will not forgive?
Shirk; to regard anything as equal to or more important than Allah
How do Muslims express their belief of Tawhid every day?
In the Shahadah
What is the Shahadah?
An Islamic oath, the Muslim profession of faith
What does the belief in Allah mean for Muslims?
It means that Muslims accept that what happens to them is the will of Allah
What does Inshallah mean?
God willing
What are the six articles of faith in Sunni Islam?
- Tawhid
- Belief in angels (Malaikah)
- Belief that the Qur’an is the most important text in Islam
- Prophethood
- Belief that the Day of Judgement will come
- Belief in the supremacy of God’s will
Explain Tawhid
The belief that there is only one God. He is no made up of any parts
Explain belief in angels (Malaikah)?
Angels are important because God’s greatness means that he cannot communicate directly with humans. He therefore passed messages (Risalah) to his prophets via the angels, who were his first creation.
Explain the belief that the Qur’an is the most important text in Islam
The holy books should be respected, especially the Qur’an, which is a direct revelation from God – it is God’s word.
The word Qur’an means recitation. This is because originally it was spoken and shared orally. Only later was it written down.
Explain prophethood - six articles of faith
All prophets should be respected especially Muhammad as he is the most important prophet. Muslims believe that Muhammad received God’s final revelation to mankind.
The belief in Prophethood means to accept the truth of Muhammad’s prophecies
What does Muhammad’s name mean?
Highly Praised
Explain belief that the Day of Judgement will come
All will be resurrected after death to be judged by God, the good will be sent to paradise and the wicked to hell.
Explain belief in the supremacy of God’s will
Every event is controlled by God. Belief in predestination is key.
Al-Qadr means that everything in the universe is following a divine masterplan. This shows the importance of God’s will, as Allah knows or decides everything that will happen.
What is a Qur’anic quote that supports belief in the supremacy of God’s will?
‘In all things the master-planning is God’s’ (Qur’an 13:42).
What are the five roots of Usul al-Din?
- Tawhid
- Prophethood
- Belief in divine justice (Adalat)
- The Imamate
- Belief in the Day of Resurrection
What is belief in Adalat (divine justice)?
Allah is just and can do no wrong. Humans are accountable to God.
What is the Imamate?
Accepeting the doctrine and authority of 12 official leaders (Imams) who alone have the right to lead Muslims after the death of Muhammad.
Who is an imam?
A person who leads communal prayers
What is the impact of the belief in Tawhid?
- It helps Muslims think of Allah and not themselves, as the centre of life
- They recognise that no-one and nothing else is worth worshipping apart from Allah
- All living things must be respected as all life comes from Allah and belongs to Allah
- The Muslim community must also be one, united and held together by their belief in Allah as Allah is one
What are the key similarities between Sunni and Shi’a Muslims?
- Both believe in the absolute unity of Allah.
- Both believe that Muhammad is Allah’s prophet.
- Both believe that a day will come where all are judged and the righteous go to heaven and the bad to hell
What are the key differences between Sunni and Shi’a Muslims?
- Sunni: Abu Bakr should be the rightful leader (was Muhammad’s best friend) / Shi’a: Ali (Muhammad’s cousin and son-in law) should have been the leader
- Sunni: Pray 5 times a day - 5 distinct prayers / Have 5 prayers but combine some of them - pray 3 times a day
- Sunni: Break their fast at sunset / Shi’a: Break their fasts after sunset, to ensure that the sun is fully down
- Sunni: Recite that there is no God but Allah and Prophet Muhammad is his messenger / Shi’a: Recite that there is no God but Allah and Prophet Muhammad is his messenger + Ali is the friend of Allah
How many names are there for Allah?
99
Why does He have so many names?
Each name reveals something different about Allah. Muslims try and learn all the names so that they can better understand Allah
Give 5 names of Allah
- The Creator (Al-Khaliq)
- The Forgiving (Al-Ghaffar)
- The Giver of All (Al-Wahhab)
- The First (Al-Awwal)
- The Last (Al-Akhir)
- The Judge (Al-Hakam)
- the Just (Al-‘Adl)
What is a Qur’anic quote about Allah’s 99 names?
“The most beautiful names belong to Allah: so call on Him by them.” (Quran, 7:180)
What does immanent mean?
Near
What does transcendent mean?
Beyond this world
What did Allah create angels from?
Light - they’re purely spiritual beginnings
Why don’t angels have freewill?
So that they’re sinless and don’t displease God
What are the roles of angels?
- Some angels record everything a person says or thinks in a book of deeds that gets presented to God on the Day of Judgement.
- Some angels are guardian angels and protect humans from birth to death
What angel announces the Day of Judgement?
Israfil - by blowing his trumpet
Who are the two most important angels?
Jibril and Mika’il
Who is the most trusted angel?
Jibril
What is Angel Mika’il the angel of?
Mercy
What is Angel Mika’il tasked with?
He’s tasked with sending blessings in the form of rain, lightning and thunder.
Why is Angel Jibril important?
He relayed the word of God to Prophet Muhammad and this consequently formed the Qur’an
What is a Qur’anic quote about Angel Jibril and Angel Mika’il?
‘Anyone who is an enemy of God’s angels, Jibril and Mika’il, is also an enemy of God’ (2:98)
Who is the angel of death?
Azra’il
What is predestination in Arabic?
Al-Qadr
What is Al-Qadr?
The idea that God knows or determines everything that will happen in the universe
What do Sunni Muslims believe about predestination?
Sunni Muslims believe that humans have limited freewill and Allah can determine everything that’s going to happen.
What do Shi’a Muslims believe about predestination?
Shi’a Muslims believe God knows what’s going to happen in our future but can’t decide what’s going to happen.
How does believing in Al-Qadr affects the way Muslims live their life?
- It helps them to accept that everything happens due to God’s will and that therefore they must submit.
- They know that they hold moral responsibility for their actions and therefore will strive to follow God’s way and avoid sin so that they can go to paradise
What is Akhirah?
Life after death
What is Barzakh?
Waiting place for Judgement Day
What is Jannah?
Paradise
What is Jahannam
Hell
What are the three questions asked by the two angels in the grave?
Who is your God?
What was your life like?
Who is your prophet?
How is your time in Barzakh if you answer the questions correctly?
If you answer the questions correctly you are made comfortable in Barzakh until the Day of Judgement and you will see the rewards that are to come.
How is your time in Barzakh if you answer the questions incorrectly?
If you answer the questions incorrectly you are tormented in Barzakh until the Day of Judgement and you will see the punishments that are to come.
What occurs on the Sirat Bridge?
Good people pass quickly, bypassing the fires of Hell.
Who knows when the Day of Judgement will be?
Only God
What happens if a person shows remorse for their bad deeds?
God in His mercy will forgive them
What is the significance of Islamic teachings on human responsibility and accountability?
- It gives life ultimate meaning
- Urges humans to take responsibility for their behaviour choices
- Allows good people to accept suffering in their physical life as temporary
What is the impact of belief in Akhirah?
- Encourages Muslims to take responsibility for their actions as they know that Allah will hold them accountable
- Motivates Muslims to follow the teachings of the Prophet and the Qur’an and dedicate their lives to Allah.
- Gives hope to Muslims who suffer as they know that there’s something better to look forward to.
- Helps Muslims to accept unjust situations because they know that Allah will provide justice in the afterlife where everyone will be fairly rewarded or punished.
What is a prophet?
A prophet is a person who speaks the words of God
What does Rasul mean?
Prophet
What does Risalah mean?
Prophethood
What is the belief of Risalah?
The belief that prophets bring the word of God to mankind
Why is belief in Risalah important?
- Prophets brought the guidance of Allah to different nations at different times
- All prophets brought the same message showing that Allah is unchanging
- All prophets brought the message of Islam showing that Islam is the true religion
- All prophets prepared the way for the final prophet, Muhammad
Why does God use prophets?
Because He is so beyond human understanding, the prophets play an important role in helping mankind to understand God
How many prophets do Muslims believe there have been?
Over 120,000 but only 25 are mentioned in the Bible
Why is Prophet Adam important?
- He was the first prophet of Islam.
- He was the first human on Earth.
- He named some objects and God gave him understanding.
- He passed on his knowledge onto humankind.
- He was the first person to repent.
- He built the Ka’aba.
- Iblis refused to bow down to him and was thrown out of paradise.
- He was thrown out of the Garden of Bliss because he was tempted.
Why is Prophet Ibrahim important?
- He rejected polytheism and idolatry and destroyed all the idols people worshipped
- Because he destroyed his people’s idols he as thrown into a fire to be burned alive but he survived and walked out.
- He was willing to sacrifice his son Ishmael as a test from God and because of this at Hajj, Muslims sacrifice an animal to show they’re ready to give up what’s most precious to them for God.
- He and Ishmael rebuilt the Ka’aba.
Why is Prophet Muhammad important?
- He is the greatest and final prophet - ‘the seal of the Prophets’.
- In 610CE, the angel Jibril gave him a message from Allah. These revelations continued for the next 20 years and eventually, these oral teachings were organised and written to form the Qur’an.
- The Sunnah - the actions and traditions of Prophet Muhammad
- The Hadith - The sayings of Prophet Muhammad.
What does iqra mean?
To read or recite
Why is the Qur’an important?
- It is the word of Allah
- It is infallible
- it teaches us how to live together as a community
*It’s unchanged
How do Muslims show the Qur’an is important?
- They perform ablution (wudu) before touching the Qur’an
- They do not place it on the floor
- It’s stored in a high position
- It cannot be under any other books
- They produce calligraphy
- They recite portions of the Qur’an as part of their worship to God
- People will memorise the Qur’an (hafiz) and teach it to others.
What are the five holy books in Islam?
- The Gospel (Injil)
- The Scrolls of Ibrahim
- The Qur’an
- Psalms (Zabur)
- The Torah (Tawrat)
Who was the Gospel revealed to?
Jesus (Isa)
Who was the Scrolls of Ibrahim revealed to?
Ibrahim
Thought to be lost and no longer existing
Who were the Psalms revealed to?
David (Dawud)
Who was the Torah revealed to?
Moses (Musa)
What is the Sharia and where does it derive from?
The Shari’a is Islamic law and it derives from the Qur’an
What does fardh mean?
Compulsory
Why is the Tawrat/Injil/Scrolls of Ibrahim/Zabur important?
- It teaches Muslims how their religion came about (origins)
- It teaches them that the idea of Tawhid has remained constant
- Although the Scriptures except from the Qur’an are distorted they are still God’s word and should be respected.
What problems do the Tawrat/Injil/Scrolls of Ibrahim/Zabur raise?
- It can create confusion
- It can lead them to change faith
- The different views and interpretations of these holy books can lead to conflict betwenn communities.
How do yyou say Satan in Ararbic?
Iblis
