Overview of Islam
Islam is a monotheistic religion founded by a man named Muhammad in seventh-century Saudi Arabia. Muslims believe that the angel Gabriel appeared to Muhammad in a mountain cave and delivered a message from the one true God ("Allah" in Arabic). The Prophet Muhammad dedicated the remainder of his life to spreading this message, which is recorded in the Qur'an, Islam's sacred text.
In 622 AD, the Prophet fled north to the city of Medina to escape growing persecution. This event is celebrated by Muslims as the hijira ("flight") and marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. Eight years later, Muhammad returned to Mecca with an army and defeated it easily. By Muhammad's death, 50 years later, the entire Arabian Peninsula had come under Muslim control.
Today, Islam is the second largest religion in the world. The word "Islam" means "submission," reflecting the religion's central tenet of submitting to the will of God. The sacred text of Islam, the Qur'an, was written in Arabic within 30 years of Muhammad's death. Muslims believe it contains the literal word of God as gradually revealed to Muhammad by the Angel Gabriel over the course of 20 years. Islamic practices are defined by the Five Pillars of Islam: faith, prayer, fasting, pilgrimage and alms.
Islam and the West have had a rocky relationship for centuries, and in recent years the tension has only seemed to escalate. The ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine is religiously charged, and various hijackers, suicide bombers and terrorists have identified themselves with Islam and its doctrine of jihad. Many Muslims, however, have denounced this radical minority as violating both true Islam and the true meaning of jihad, and Islam continues to be the fastest-growing world religion.
