Questionable Teachings of Islam: One Billion People
Deceived
The Islamic Prophet, Muhammad
The belief that there
is no God but "Allah" and Muhammad is God's Final Messenger comprises
the main tenet in the Islamic statement of faith (Sahada).
Additionally, Muslims are obligated to stop to pray five times throughout
each day (Salat) at designated times - facing in direction
toward Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Muhammad taught that Islam was to
be established throughout the world as the true religion and that
the Jewish and Christian religions had strayed from the truth of God.
Muhammad
was born in Mecca in the year 570, Common Era (CE).
His lineage
was that of the Quraysh tribe, one of the most prominent and powerful
in Arabia at that time. Muhammad never knew his father, Abd' ibn Allah,
who died prior to Muhammad's birth and his mother died when he was
approximately six years old. He was then left to be raised as an orphan
by his grandfather who died a few years later and thereafter
continued to be raised by an Uncle, Abu-Talib, a brother of Abd'
ibn Allah.
Throughout his early years, Muhammad had been exposed
to various forms of religious belief. The Quraysh were one of 360
pagan tribes who made annual pilgrimages to Mecca to pay homage to
their particular deity. The gathering place was the Ka'ba where idols
representing each of the 360 gods were displayed. The Quraysh god
was known as "Al' ilah" which in the Arabic language means "The God."
It is said that Muhammad participated in worship at the Ka'ba as a
youngster.
Muhammad grew to become highly regarded as being astute
in business matters and, at the age of twenty-five, was hired by a
wealthy widow, Khadijah, to transport her caravans of merchandise
to other cities. As a result, Khadijah was so impressed with how Muhammad
handled her business affairs that she took an affectionate liking
to the new hire and expressed her desire to marry him. Muhammad
was fifteen years younger than Khadijah at the time of their marriage
and she bore four daughters and two sons to Muhammad. Both sons died during
infancy, three daughters died during his lifetime and his fourth daughter,
Fatima, died shortly after Muhammad's death in the year 632.