key teachings of islam

Question 1

Al-Ikhlas: “He is Allah, The One and Only; Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He has no children, Nor was he born; And there is none like him.”

Answer 1

• Idea of tawhid (oneness of Allah)
• Allah doesn’t have a father so there isn’t any higher being than Allah
• No one can be compared with Allah
• He was there in the beginning, before anything else was made
• Nothing caused Allah, he’s the cause of everything else

Question 2

“Only what God has decreed will happen to us. He is our Master: let the believers put their trust in God.” Qur’an 9:5

Answer 2

Allah wills everything to happen, so everything happens for a reason and you need to trust him - supremacy of God’s will

Question 3

“God does not change the condition of a people [for the worse] unless they change what is in themselves.” Qur’an 13:11

Answer 3

God is just and loving, so won’t make anything worse for someone without reason or if they didn’t do anything wrong

Question 4

“Praise be to God, Creator of the heavens and earth, who made angels messengers with two, three, four [pairs of] wings.” Qur’an 35:1

Answer 4

Belief in angels is in the 6 articles of faith for Sunni Islam, and also God is omnipotent as he created everything

Question 5

What are the 6 articles of faith?

Answer 5

They’re for Sunni Islam, and are:

1. Only one God (Tawhid)
2. Belief in angels (who are God’s messengers)
3. The Qur’an has the most authority in Islam
4. Muhammad is the most important prophet
5. Everyone will be judged on the Day of Judgement
6. The supremacy of God’s will

Question 6

What are the 5 roots of Shi’a Islam?

Answer 6

1. Tawhid
2. Muhammad was the final prophet; all his revelations are true
3. God is just and wise and will hold humans accountable for their actions
4. The twelve Imams are the leaders of Islam and guard the truth of the religion without error
5. After death, they’ll be resurrected to be judged by God

Question 7

What are the five pillars of Islam?

Answer 7

1. Shahada - profession of faith. the belief that there is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God
2. Salah- prayer, which should be done 5 times a day
3. Zakah - giving 2.5% of savings each year to the poor/charity
4. Sawm - fasting during the month of Ramadan
5. Hajj - pilgrimage to Makkah that every Muslim should try to make at least once in their life

Question 8

what are the 10 obligatory acts?

Answer 8

they’re for shi’a islam, and are:
- salah - prayer
- sawm - fasting
- zakah- charitable giving
- khums - 20% tax on income once all expenses are deducted, half to charity & half to shi’a religious leaders
- jihad
- Amr-bil-Maruf - encouraging people to do what is good
- Nahi Anil Munkar - discouraging people from doing what’s wrong
- Tawallah - to be loving towards friends of God, including Muhammad & Imams
- Tabarra- disassociating from enemies of God

Question 9

what is Amr-bil-Maruf?

Answer 9

one of 10 obligatory acts, encouraging people to do what is good for them

Question 10

what is Nahi Anil Munkar?

Answer 10

one of 10 obligatory acts, discouraging people from doing what’s wrong

Question 11

what is Tawallah?

Answer 11

one of 10 obligatory acts, to be loving towards the friends of God, including Muhammad & the Imams

Question 12

what is tabarra?

Answer 12

one of 10 obligatory acts, disassociating from the enemies of God