What if they were muslim

Jesus was born miraculously through the same power which had brought Adam into being without a father:. Truly, the likeness of Jesus with God is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, and then said to him, 'Be! I have come to you with a sign from your Lord: I make for you out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, and breathe into it and it becomes a bird by God's leave.

And I heal the blind, and the lepers, and I raise the dead by God's leave. Neither Muhammad nor Jesus came to change the basic doctrine of the belief in One God, brought by earlier prophets, but to confirm and renew it.

In the Qur'an Jesus is reported as saying that he came:. To attest the law which was before me. And to make lawful to you part of what was forbidden you; I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear God and obey me. Whoever believes there is no god but God, alone without partner, that Muhammad is His messenger, that Jesus is the servant and messenger of God, His word breathed into Mary and a spirit emanating from Him, and that Paradise and Hell are true, shall be received by God into Heaven.

Hadith from Bukhari. The family is the foundation of Islamic society. The peace and security offered by a stable family unit is greatly valued, and seen as essential for the spiritual growth of its members. A harmonious social order is created by the existence of extended families; children are treasured, and rarely leave home until the time they marry.

Islam sees a woman, whether single or married, as an individual in her own right, with the right to own and dispose of her property and earnings. A marriage dowry is given by the groom to the bride for her own personal use, and she keeps her own family name rather than taking her husband's. Both men and women are expected to dress in a way which is modest and dignified; the traditions of female dress found in some Muslim countries are often the expression of local customs.

The religion of Islam was revealed for all societies and all times and so accommodates widely differing social requirements. Circumstances may warrant the taking of another wife but the right is granted, according to the Qur'an, only on condition that the husband is scrupulously fair. A Muslim marriage is not a 'sacrament', but a simple, legal agreement in which either partner is free to include conditions.

Marriage customs thus vary widely from country to country. As a result, divorce is not common, although it is not forbidden as a last resort. According to Islam, no Muslim girl can be forced to marry against her will: her parents will simply suggest young men they think may be suitable.

In the Islamic world there are no old people's homes. The strain of caring for one's parents in this most difficult time of their lives is considered an honor and blessing, and an opportunity for great spiritual growth. God asks that we not only pray for our parents, but act with limitless compassion, remembering that when we were helpless children they preferred us to themselves. Mothers are particularly honored: the Prophet taught that 'Paradise lies at the feet of mothers'.

When they reach old age, Muslim parents are treated mercifully, with the same kindness and selflessness. In Islam, serving one's parents is a duty second only to prayer, and it is their right to expect it. It is considered despicable to express any irritation when, through no fault of their own, the old become difficult.

The Qur'an says: Your Lord has commanded that you worship none but Him, and be kind to parents. If either or both of them reach old age with you, do not say 'uff' to them or chide them, but speak to them in terms of honor and kindness.

Treat them with humility, and say, 'My Lord! Have mercy on them, for they did care for me when I was little'. Like Jews and Christians, Muslims believe that the present life is only a trial preparation for the next realm of existence. Basic articles of faith include: the Day of Judgement, resurrection, Heaven and Hell. When a Muslim dies, he or she is washed, usually by a family member, wrapped in a clean white cloth, and buried with a simple prayer preferably the same day. Muslims consider this one of the final services they can do for their relatives, and an opportunity to remember their own brief existence here on earth.

The Prophet taught that three things can continue to help a person even after death; charity which he had given, knowledge which he had taught and prayers on their behalf by a righteous child. Like Christianity, Islam permits fighting in self-defence, in defence of religion, or on the part of those who have been expelled forcibly from their homes.

It lays down strict rules of combat which include prohibitions against harming civilians and against destroying crops, trees and livestock. As Muslims see it, injustice would be triumphant in the world if good men were not prepared to risk their lives in a righteous cause. The Qur'an says:. Fight in the cause of God against those who fight you, but do not transgress limits. God does not love transgressors. If they seek peace, then seek you peace. And trust in God for He is the One that heareth and knoweth all things.

War, therefore, is the last resort, and is subject to the rigorous conditions laid down by the sacred law. The term Jihad literally means 'struggle', and Muslims believe that there are two kinds of Jihad. The other 'Jihad' is the inner struggle which everyone wages against egotistic desires, for the sake of attaining inner peace.

Although much simpler than the dietary law followed by Jews and the early Christians, the code which Muslims observe forbids the consumption of pig meat or any kind of intoxicating drink. The Prophet taught that 'your body has rights over you', and the consumption of wholesome food and the leading of a healthy lifestyle are seen as religious obligations. The Prophet said: 'Ask God for certainty of faith and well-being; for after certainty, no one is given any gift better than health!

It is almost impossible to generalize about American Muslims: converts, immigrants, factory workers, doctors; all are making their own contribution to America's future. This complex community is unified by a common faith, underpinned by a countrywide network of a thousand mosques.

Muslims were early arrivals in North America. By the eighteenth century there were many thousands of them, working as slaves on plantations. These early communities, cut off from their heritage and families, inevitably lost their Islamic identity as time went by. Today many Afro-American Muslims play an important role in the Islamic community. The nineteenth century, however, saw the beginnings of an influx of Arab Muslims, most of whom settled in the major industrial centers where they worshipped in hired rooms.

The early twentieth century witnessed the arrival of several hundred thousand Muslims from Eastern Europe: the first Albanian mosque was opened in Maine in ; others soon followed, and a group of Polish Muslims opened a mosque in Brooklyn in In the Washington Islamic Center was founded during the term of President Truman, and several nationwide organizations were set up in the fifties.

The same period saw the establishment of other communities whose lives were in many ways modelled after Islam. More recently, numerous members of these groups have entered the fold of Muslim orthodoxy. Today there are about five million Muslims in America. Freedom of conscience is laid down by the Qur'an itself: 'There is no compulsion in religion'. The life and property of all citizens in an Islamic state are considered sacred whether a person is Muslim or not.

Racism is incomprehensible to Muslims, for the Qur'an speaks of human equality in the following terms:. O mankind! We created you from a single soul, male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may come to know one another. Truly, the most honored of you in God's sight is the greatest of you in peity.

God is All-Knowing, All-Aware. About Saudi Arabia. Islam For centuries the people of the Arabian Peninsula have possessed a strong identity based upon the tenets of Islam. What Does 'Islam' Mean? Who Is Muhammad? What Is The Qur'an About?

Does Islam Tolerate Other Beliefs? What About Muslim Women? How Do Muslims View Death? What About Food? Islam And Muslims What is Islam? Who are the Muslims? Salah: Prayer, is the second pillar. Zakat: Almsgiving, is the third pillar. Sawm: Fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, is the fourth pillar of Islam.

Hajj: The pilgrimage to Makkah, is the fifth pillar and the most significant manifestation of Islamic faith and unity in the world. Understanding Islam Understanding Islam and the Muslims. What Do Muslims Believe? What Is The Ka'abah? What Is The Qur'an? Reaching a well he descended into it, drank his fill and came up. Then he saw a dog with its tongue hanging out, trying to lick up mud to quench its thirst.

The man saw that the dog was feeling the same thirst as he had felt so he went down into the well again and filled his shoe with water and gave the dog a drink. God forgave his sins for this action'.

The Prophet was asked: 'Messenger of God, are we rewarded for kindness towards animals? Faith There is no god worthy of worship except God and Muhammad is His messenger. A translation of the Call to Prayer is: God is most great. God is most great. I testify that there is no god except God. I testify that Muhammad is the messenger of God.

Come to prayer! In addition to gauging broad concerns about discrimination, the survey also asked Muslims whether they personally have experienced a few specific kinds of discrimination within the past year.

Muslims who say they have faced at least one of these types of discrimination has risen modestly in recent years. About a third of Muslims, for example, say they have been treated with suspicion over the past 12 months because of their religion. Nearly one-in-five say they have been called offensive names or singled out by airport security, while one-in-ten say they have been singled out by other law enforcement officials.

In addition, nearly one-in-five U. Experiences with discriminatory treatment are especially common among those whose appearance identifies them as Muslim. The percentage of U. Pew Research Center staff called back some of the Muslim American respondents in this survey to get additional thoughts on some of the topics covered. Here is a sampling of what they said about their experiences with discrimination and the expressions of support they have received:.

I did not know what to do because no one ever called me that. The person was sitting near me, and I remember getting off the bus. No one came to my defense and I did not expect anyone to come to my defense. If you cover your face, people assume you are dangerous. People were worried for my safety, and I did not want to take a chance. I wear the hijab [covering the hair, but not face] now.

This happened a year ago and after that I stopped wearing a niqab. Now, I get questions a lot, but people are not afraid. Even wearing hijab I get that. But with hijab, there is curiosity but not discrimination.

Things have been very good. But sometimes I see someone looking at me funny because of my accent and the way I look, and it makes me a little uncomfortable. But I have a lot of support. Everyone I work with supports me, so I have many people who can help. This is my choice. He supports me. But I wear it because I choose to wear it. This is America and everyone is free to choose to live the way they choose. The relationship between Donald Trump and the U. Muslim opinion on the sitting president has turned dramatically since , when Muslims expressed much more positive views of Barack Obama.

In , near the end of his second term, George W. Bush received approval ratings from U. Respondents in that survey were not asked whether they thought Bush was friendly toward Muslim Americans.

In the new survey, respondents were asked whether Trump makes them feel four emotions — two positive hope and happiness and two negative worry and anger. Muslims express pride in their religious and national identities alike. At the same time, many Muslims say they face a variety of significant challenges in making their way in American society. Fully half say that it has become more difficult to be Muslim in the U.

Muslims who say it has become more difficult to be Muslim in the U. The most common responses include statements about Muslim extremists in other countries, misconceptions and stereotyping about Islam among the U. For full details, see here. These views are largely echoed by U. But tension is not the only thing that defines the relationship between Muslims and the rest of the U.

Six-in-ten U. Muslims say they have a lot in common with most Americans. Three-in-ten say Americans are generally neutral toward Muslims.

Moreover, U. The survey finds a consistent gender gap on several questions about what it is like to be a Muslim in America, showing that Muslim women have a higher level of concern than Muslim men about the place of Muslims in U. For example, more Muslim women than men say that there is a lot of discrimination against Muslims in the U. In addition, more Muslim women than men say Donald Trump makes them angry or worried, and more women than men say both Trump and the Republican Party are unfriendly toward Muslim Americans.

Muslim women are more likely than Muslim men to say that they are dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country and that media coverage of Muslims is unfair. Meanwhile, more Muslim men than women say that they have a lot in common with most Americans and that the American people in general are friendly toward Muslim Americans. Here is a sampling of what they said about what it is like to be a Muslim in the United States in I was very nervous about providing the feedback initially.

It depends on their upbringing, their race, everything like that. I think that we have a lot of different ideals, and we believe a lot of different things.

We also have in common our shared humanity. I feel sympathy for them; empathy as well. But they need to accept this new reality. We have to take extra caution scanning our surroundings — know where we are, who is around and what kind of thoughts they might hold for Islam, about Islam or against Islam. Especially when the Muslim ban was introduced the first time around, I literally felt like the persecution had started.

Because we had read the history of Europe and what happened to the Jewish people in Germany. Although, in most cases, Trump voters held more negative views on demographic groups than other Republicans did, these differences were typically small. Trump supporters also differed from other Republicans in their feelings toward whites by less than half a percentage point.

We similarly see a very modest difference between the two groups in feelings toward gays and lesbians. However, Muslims are the group for which we see the largest gap between Trump supporters and other primary voters. Among Trump supporters, the mean score for Muslims was a cool This suggests that intolerance of Islam is one hallmark of Trump supporters, setting them apart from other Republicans in the electorate.

There are strong limits to what we can infer from these kinds of survey data, however. These data tell us nothing, for example, about how strongly these respondents felt about Muslims. To gain a more nuanced understanding of this difficult subject, it was necessary to speak to Trump supporters, and ask them their views. Surveys with a large number of observations are a vital tool for scholars of political behavior.

These allow us to discern statistical patterns that may otherwise not be obvious to even the most perceptive political observers. However, studies that rely on in-depth interviews, using a smaller number of people, have an important place in the literature. Longer discussions with single individuals can provide new insights into what people believe and why.

After gathering basic demographic information on each subject and discussing their general views on President Trump and his record in office, 19 I began the more substantive part of the conversation by asking them a question about American identity and what being an American meant to them.

Conservative intellectuals, media personalities, and political elites have typically described the American identity as being primarily built upon a cluster of ideas that define the American political culture. These ideas include a commitment to individual liberty, with roots in Anglo-Protestant traditions. Some subjects rejected the idea that American identity is bound to a set of ideals, however. It is more than an idea. Two subjects emphasized their regional, rather than their national identity.

One mentioned his deep roots to the American Midwest and its distinct culture several times. Many suggested being an American implied a broad commitment to certain principles, but they mostly defined these principles in broad generalities.

When pushed, no respondents suggested Muslims were incapable of being Americans, but many suggested they were more difficult to assimilate. Religiosity has long been a key component of the American identity. Multiple British colonies that later joined the United States were established to provide a haven for groups of religious dissenters. Alexis de Tocqueville remarked on American religious fervor.

Although religious identification in the United States has dropped significantly in the last two decades, the United States remains much more religiously observant than most Western democracies. Although Christianity is a key element of the American identity, religious liberty is also a critical aspect of American political culture. People continue to debate what the principle of separation of church and state means in practice, but few Americans advocate for a state religion, or for explicit government efforts to promote or discourage a religious tradition.

Most of my subjects identified as Christian. One was an atheist, another identified as Jewish, but stated that he was not very observant. Two subjects simply described themselves as non-religious but sympathetic to Christianity.

I asked all respondents questions about their religious identity, how religion was intertwined with the American identity, and their thoughts on the possibility of the United States ceasing to be a majority-Christian nation. Most respondents expressed concern about the decline of Christian practices and identification. Many feared that America would become a fundamentally different nation if it lost its ties to Christianity. However, they also acknowledged that religious identity and practice was declining in the United States.

Several subjects acknowledged that the American Founding Fathers were not all conventional Christians, but they noted that they were operating in a culture that was overwhelmingly Christian, and Christian ideals were embedded in the culture. Most suggested that American political culture would be different—and worse—if Christianity were to further decline in the United States.

When discussing the subject of religious change, no subject expressed concern about the growth of Islam or suggested Islam could become a dominant religion in the United States. Every subject focused entirely on the growth of secularism. They treated this as a much more salient topic than the growing number of non-Christian religious minorities.

Although most subjects insisted that they were unwilling to make blanket statements about an incredibly large and diverse faith, most also admitted that the thought of a growing Muslim population in the United States made them uncomfortable. Many also echoed some of the anti-Islam ideas expressed by the more Islamophobic elements of conservative media. Throughout these conversations, subjects often argued that Muslims rejected the concept of separation of church and state, that they are inclined toward separatism and the implementation of Sharia law, and that they rejected key American values.

The subjects who expressed the most concern about Islam due to their understanding of Islamic tenets were also more likely than other subjects to acknowledge the diversity within Islam. This indicates that respondents concerned about Islam sought out some basic information about the religion. Another subject noted that historically there has been a relationship between immigration and terrorism, but this is not necessarily connected to Islam.

Some subjects that supported limitations on Muslim immigration indicated that they were not bothered by Islam as such. Instead, they viewed Muslims as simply being too culturally alien to assimilate well into American culture.

According to him, the racial and ethnic distinction alone made assimilation a challenge. This was the only subject that made a blatant racial argument during these conversations. In fact, no other subject brought up the subject of race at all unless they were stating that their views had nothing to do with race.

Several subjects suggested that Muslim immigration was a bigger problem for Europe than for the United States. Having travelled extensively through the United States and Western Europe, his impression was that the significant Muslim population in states like Minnesota were much better integrated into their local communities than the Muslim population in France, which he perceived as much more segregated from mainstream French cultural and political life.

Another subject made a similar argument:.