Chapter 9 Islam

Islam:

• Different people coming from different places, looking different were all participating in the same spiritual ritual unity.
• There was a lot of diversity in people.
• Muslim had a very big presence in the United States, 8 million muslims, 1,200 mosques.
• Christianity and Islam emerged more from the margins of mediterranean and Middle Eastern civilizations.
• The spread of Islam was very big and important.
• it continued in the modern era their was around 22% , 1.2  billion people who identified themselves as Muslims.
• Mecca was home to people from various tribes and clans and it also housed exiles, refugees, foreign merchants.
• However Mecca had wealth but it was only held by a few people.
• Muhammad Ibn Abdullah believed that he was Allah's messenger to the Arabs, He believed that he was the one that was going to bring them a scripture that they could understand.
• The message of Quran was made into five requirements that were known as the pillars of Islam.
• A lot of changes started happening after Muhammad's death in 632.
• Arab empires were built: islamic community wanted wealth and wanted to make a profit out of the trade routes.
• People were able to practice their own religion as long as they paid tax (jizya).
• Conversion to the religion was not an easy process.
• Allah made men superior to women, and good women were obedient
• Polygyny was permitted, men were limited to four wives, He had to treat them all equally
• Women in general had to follow strict rules and were very limited when it came down to doing whatever they wanted.