1 2 Understanding Islam Through History Through Theology and Through Daily Life Second Edition 2013 Roland Müller Understanding Islam by Roland Müller Copyright © CanBooks 2013 Printed in Canada All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced and transmitted in any form by any means - electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or any other - except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Sources Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Trans- lation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Ver- sion, copyright @ 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are from the Holy Bible, New International Ver- sion, copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permis- sion. All rights reserved worldwide. Other books by the same author: • The Messenger, the Message and the Community • The Man from Gadara • Missionary Leadership by Motivation & Communication • Missions: The Next Generation • Honor and Shame, Unlocking the Door • Tools for Muslim Evangelism ISBN: 978-1-927581-01-8 Further orders: http://canbooks.ca http://stpt.ca Table of Contents Acknowledgements Abbreviations Understanding Islam Through History 1. The Importance of Arabia in History and God’s Plan 2. The Nabataeans, Merchants of Arabia 3. Abdul Mutalib, Rebuilding a Lost Empire 4. Muhammad, the Prophet 5. Expansion of Islam 6. Codification of Islam 7. The Spread of Islam 8. Islam Today Understanding Islam Through Theology 9. Islamic Authorities (Qur’an) 10. Islamic Authorities (Hadith & Histories) 11. Islamic Beliefs (Iman) 12. The Duties of Islam (Diin) 13. Varieties of Islam 14. Muslim Objections Understanding Islam Through Daily Life 15. Modern Jahiliya 16. The Muslim Family 17. The Spiritual World of Muslims 18. Paradise 19. A Nomadic Religion 20. Understand and Sharing with Muslims Acknowledgements This book has come about through thirty years of exposure to Islam and Muslim people. A comment made here, or a tidbit dropped there, opened up subjects for further research. It would be impossible to name every person who said or did something that helped in compiling the research. Besides those who provided input on sources and subjects, there are those who have quietly encouraged me along the way, often without their knowing it. They are as important as the others. Then there are those who had a direct impact on the production of the manuscript. Here I must thank Jennifer May, Eldon Bottger, Tilda Dafoe, Dave Ginter, Melissa Tomblin, and others. Without their eyes and comments this manuscript would have remained a dismal collection of notes full of spelling and grammar errors. A special thank you must go to Colin Bearup who provided the bulk of chapter fourteen, taken directly from his book: Keys, The Gospel for Muslims. And then there is you, of course, the reader. Books without readers are just space fillers, waiting for the recycling bin. And I do hope that one day this book will end in a recycling bin. I look forward to the day when the need for this book has ceased, and every knee has bowed, and every tongue has confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord. Abbreviations Abu Daood Sunan of Abu Dawood, with reference to volume and hadith number Ali Maulana Muhammad Ali’s translation of the Qur’an (1917) Asad Muhammad Asad’s translation of the Qur’an, 1980 Bukhari Sahih al-Bukhari, with reference to volume and hadith number Ishaq The Life of Muhammad, Translated by A. Guillaume, by Ibn Ishaq, with reference number to the section in the Arabic text. Oxford University Press, 1955,1967 KJV King James Version of the Bible NIV New International Version of the Bible Pickthall Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall’s translation of the Qur’an (1930) AlTabari The History of Al-Tabari, State University of New York Press series with reference number to the section in the Arabic text Yusif Ali Abdullah Yusuf Ali’s translation of the Qur’an (1934) 6 7 Understanding Islam (Through History) 7 Chapter One The Importance of Arabia in History and God’s Plan Introduction Every day, five times a day, almost a billion Muslims bow down and recite a prayer to Allah, given to them by Muhammad, their prophet. Every day, five times a day, they face a black rock in far off Mecca and submit themselves afresh to the religion of Islam. Every day, five times a day, they bow as a corporate group, all around the world, to express their solidarity as followers of Islam, for whom Muhammad is their prophet, and the Qur’an is their scripture. And every day, their numbers grow. Islam is now considered by some to be the greatest challenge that the Christian church is facing all around the world. Next to evangelicals, no other religious group is growing at such a rapid rate. Not only is the population of Muslim countries expanding, fervent Muslims are sharing their message all around the world. Most cities in the world now have mosques or Muslim places of prayer. While many Christians feel inhibited about sharing their faith, Muslims are often bold and excited. As a community, they reach out to those around them, offering support and encouragement to those that need it. In a time when the West is struggling with broken families and sexual immorality, Muslims uphold their strict code of conduct as an example of what true religion should be. Even China has its Muslim groups. The first Muslims arrived in China around the time of the death of the prophet Muhammad. Since then Muslim merchants have spread their religion and founded communities along China’s coasts8 and along the Silk Road trade route through Central Asia. 9 Sometimes it is hard for us to grasp just how large and important the Muslims are. Unlike many other people who have a Christian church among them, there are millions of Muslims who have no Christians near them. Many Muslims have never met a Christian. Most have never seen a Bible. Many will pass into eternity having never heard the gospel, simply because no one cared enough to go and tell them. On the other hand, most Christians have never reached out to Muslims and have no idea what Muslims believe and how they are different from Christians. That is where this course will help. It is designed for Christians everywhere who want to become more aware of Islam and the specific needs and opportunities that exist when ministering to Muslims. This book is the one of several aimed at helping Christians reach out to Muslims. Each book has a very specific aim and purpose. This book, Understanding Islam, introduces the student to the religion of Islam. The Messenger, the Message and the Community highlights some of the struggles that exist when doing evangelism and church planting among Muslims. The online Toolbox provides students with Bible-based tools and other resources that have proven effective when ministering to Muslims. We trust that God will use these books to inform and prepare Christians as they reach out to Muslim people everywhere. Arabia The land of Arabia is a vast place with rocky plains, rugged mountains, burning deserts, and huge sand dunes; all of it without rivers and virtually unknown to the outside world until recent years. Three great deserts exist in Arabia. All of them are barren wastelands, the Syrian Desert is in the north, the Nafud Desert is in the interior, and the Empty Quarter is in the south east. Each of these deserts consists of extremely hot, dry spans of barren rock and sand. Each of these deserts is formidable, except to the few nomads who live in central Arabia. The Syrian Desert in the north is a flat plain covered with sand and pebbles. Travelers as early as Abraham would journey around it rather than try and pass through it. (Genesis 11:31) 9 The Nafud Desert in the center of Arabia alternates between fields of rock and fields of sand. It is known to some of the Arabs as “God’s Anvil.” Its particularly harsh environment makes it a place that even nomads avoid if possible. From an airplane, it appears as rivers of rock flowing in fields of sand. The Empty Quarter in the south of Arabia is filled with great sand dunes. It is known as the Empty Quarter because it is just that, empty, and avoided by nomads because it is almost impossible to pass through let alone live there. Along the west side of Arabia lie mountains, great piles of silent rock surrounded by a sea of desert. Blistering hot during the day, and bitterly cold during the night, their valleys are home to some greenery and wild life. And yet, for all this barrenness there is some life. Rain visits these deserts several times a year. Most of the rain is quickly absorbed into the sand, but sometimes there is enough water to encourage plants to rise, flower, produce seed and then die. Sometimes there is enough water to provide patches of green for a few weeks. After it rains, some of the rain water collects in rocky areas and valleys. The places where the water collects and life can exist are called oases. Sometimes the water source is surrounded by small bushes; sometimes there is a grove of trees. Small groups of Bedouin often huddle around these oases. These nomads carefully watch the sky for indications of a burst of rain.