Islam

shahadah

"to witness or declare"; first pillar of Islam, confession of faith, "There is no God but the God and Muhammad is the messenger of God," allows one to become a Muslim

Islam is the fastest growing religion in North America and Europe True or False

True

Muslims believe that the Quran is taken from an Arabic tablet that preexists with God in heaven. True or False

True

No prophet has played a greater role in any world religion and in world politics than Muhammad True or Flase

True

The Umayyad dynasty was responsible for the emergence of imperial Islam. True or False

True

To create a more distinctive identity for Islam when the Jews did not willingly convert, Muhammad changed the direction of prayer. True or False

True

majlis al-shura

a consultative assembly of senior members to select leaders and governments

ijtihad

a reinterpretation of Islamic law to meet the needs of the modern world, promoted by Islamic modernist reformers

ayatollah

a senior religious leader among Shiah Muslims

caliph

a successor to Muhammad who served as political and military head of the community

shaykh

a teacher in the Sufi tradition, whose authority is based on direct personal religious experience

dar al-Islam

a vast land or region of Islam

Which of the following does NOT necessarily describe a Muslim? a. an Arab who follows God b. one who is to carry out God's will in history c. God's representative on earth d. one who seeks to create a socially just society

a. an Arab who follows God

Which of the following is NOT one of the Five Pillars of Islam? a. jihad b. declaration of faith c. prayer five times daily d. almsgiving

a. jihad

The hijra is a. the emigration of the early Muslim community from Mecca to Medina b. the annual pilgrimage to Mecca c. the first victory of the early Muslims against the Meccans d. a Muslim holiday commemorating Abraham's sacrifice of Ismail

a. the emigration of the early Muslim community from Mecca to Medina

mufti

an Islamic legal expert

qiyas

analogical reasoning, the third source of Islamic law

As Christians look to Jesus and the New Testament and Jews look to Moses and the Torah, Muslims look to a. Muhammad and the hadith b. Muhammad and the Quran c. Muhammad and the Quraysh d. Muhammad and the Shariah

b. Muhammad and the Quran

Which person from the Hebrew Bible is NOT considered part of Islam's genealogy? a. Abraham b. Sara c. Hagar d. Ismail

b. Sara

Marriage according to Islam principles can best be described as a. a sacrament b. a civil contract legalizing intercourse and the procreation of children c. the sale of the woman to her husband in exchange for a dowry d. an informal agreement between two individuals

b. a civil contract legalizing intercourse and the procreation of children

Muslims are required to fast from dawn to dusk during the month of Ramadan, abstaining from a. prayer, food, drink b. food, drink, sex c. sex, alcohol, meat d. eating pork, beef, or fish

b. food, drink, sex

Which of the following is NOT true of Muhammad's relationship with the Jews? a. he expected them to be his allies due to shared prophets and revelations b. he forcibly converted them to Islam c. he recognized them as a separate community, but politically allied to the Muslims d. he allowed them to maintain cultural and religious autonomy

b. he forcibly converted them to Islam

Which of the following describes pre-Islamic Arabian society and religion? a. monotheistic b. polytheistic tribal c. karmic in its understanding d. nuclear family life normative

b. polytheistic tribal

Muhammad saw his relationship to the religion of Islam as that of a. founder b. prophet and reformer c. creator d. messiah

b. prophet and reformer

When the Jewish population of Medina did not convert to Islam, Muhammad instituted which of the following? a. forbade Jews to pray at synagogues b. abolished the Jewish celebration of Yom Kippur c. changed the direction of prayer from Jerusalem to Mecca d. all of the above e. none of the above

c. changed the direction of prayer from Jerusalem to Mecca

What means did Muhammad use to defeat the Meccans and unite the tribes of Arabia under the banner of Islam? a. force only b. diplomacy only c. force and diplomacy d. none of the above

c. force and diplomacy

"The disaster," as it is known in Muslim literature and consciousness, that triggered a period of doubt and self-examination in the 1970s was about a. losing large numbers of Muslims to Christianity b. losing the Crusades c. losing major territories, including a holy city, to Israel d. losing military machinery

c. losing major territories, including a holy city, to Israel

A condition of dhimmi, or having protected status, was a. agreeing to pray five times a day b. tithing 10 percent of income c. paying a special tax d. wearing distinctive garments

c. paying a special tax

"Islam" means a. the pilgrimage to Mecca b. God c. submission or surrender d. monotheism

c. submission or surrender

The first four successors to Muhammad in Sunni Islam are called _______.

caliphs

Muslims believe that the Quran is the _______ of the earlier revelations given to Moses and Jesus.

completion or last or final

ijma

consensus about an issue from the majority of religious scholars who represented religious authority

The proportions of Sunnis and Shiahs are a. 60 percent Sunni, 40 percent Shiah b. 70 percent Sunni, 30 percent Shiah c. 80 percent Sunni, 20 percent Shiah d. 85 percent Sunni, 15 percent Shiah

d. 85 percent Sunni, 15 percent Shiah

The Crusades were actually launched by a. the masses b. the ulama c. Muslim fundamentalists d. Pope Urban II and Christian rulers

d. Pope Urban II and Christian rulers

Which of the following was a role played by Muhammad in the early Muslim community? a. arbiter and judge b. political and military leader c. merchant d. all of the above

d. all of the above

Muslims believe all of the following about the Quran EXCEPT a. it was revealed to Muhammad over a period of twenty-two years b. it is the eternal, uncreated, final word of God c. it shares the same mother source as the Jewish Torah and the Christian Evangel d. it is a chronological account of human history

d. it is a chronological account of human history

In America and Europe, Islam is a. not growing b. growing slowly c. the second fastest growing religion d. the fastest growing religion

d. the fastest growing religion

bida

deviation from past tradition

Mahdi

divinely guided one; an eschatological figure who Muslims believe will usher in an era of justice and true belief just prior to the end of time

hajj

fifth pillar of Islam, the pilgrimage to Mecca that every Muslim who is physically and financially able is expected to make at least once

Shiah

followers of Ali, fourth caliph and Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law; this major branch of Islam was a minority from its beginning and operated from a worldview based on suffering, oppression, and being victims of injustice; believes that the imam or leader must be a direct descendant of Muhammad's family and is a religiopolitical leader

At the age of _______ while on a private retreat at Mount Hira, Muhammad received the first revelation.

forty

The four official sources of Islamic _______ are the Quran, the Sunnah, qiyas, and ijma.

law

masjid

literally means "place of prostration," another term for mosque

Islam

literally means "submission" or "surrender"

fiqh

literally, "understanding"; Muslim jurisprudence, or the human interpretation of God's divinely revealed law, sharia

mujaddid

literally, a "renewer" of Islam; may be a caliph, saint, teacher, scholar, or another influential person; one who practices tajdid

jihad

means to "struggle" or to "strive"; generally means the obligation of all Muslims to fulfill God's will, as well as armed struggle to defend oneself, community, or religion when under attack

Islam belongs to the family of _______ religions, along with Judaism and Christianity.

monotheistic

Traditionally, on Fridays the noon prayer is a congregational prayer that takes place in a _______.

mosque

fatwa

official legal opinions or interpretations of Islamic law

dhimmi

one of three choices given to conquered non-Muslims was to become "protected people," or dhimmi, by paying a special tax

Muslim

one who bears witness that "There is no God but the God and Muhammad is the messenger of God"

imam

one who leads the prayer and is paid to look after the mosque, generally at larger mosques

mosque

or, masjid—"place of prostration"

Five times a day in many cities around the world, the muezzin calls Muslims to _______.

prayer

salat

prayer or worship five times a day, the second pillar of Islam

minbar

pulpit that the Friday sermon is preached from

Islamic mysticism began as a _______ movement.

reform

The Islamic modernist _______ failed to produce a systematic reinterpretation of Islam, creating space for activist organizations to emerge.

reformers

khutba

sermon that is a special feature of Friday prayer

Quran

the Islamic book of scripture, as revealed to Muhammad over a period of twenty-two years; considered to be the very word of God; the primary material source of Islamic law

muezzin

the chosen person who calls the faithful to prayer five times daily from the mosque's minaret

ibadat

the division (one of two) of Islamic law that concerns a Muslim's duties to God, consisting of obligatory practices

muamalat

the division (one of two) of Islamic law that concerns a Muslim's duties to others, including regulations governing public life

hijab

the headscarf worn by many Muslim women

Ramadan

the ninth month of Islam's lunar calendar; the month-long fast is the fourth pillar of Islam

purdah

the seclusion of women

hadith

tradition, narrative stories about what Muhammad said and did that make up the Sunnah

The Quran affirms the _______ birth of Jesus.

virgin

_______ is considered the sacred language of Islam in which Muslims pray and recite the Quran.

Arabic

Allah

Arabic word for God; originally, the high god over a pantheon of tribal gods, became the one, true God with the teachings of Muhammad

The _______ were launched by the Christian Pope Urban II and Christian rulers for mostly political reasons.

Crusades

After ten years of preaching, Muhammad and his followers moved from Mecca to Cairo. True or False

False

During a pilgrimage to Mecca, men and women are segregated during worship. True or False

False

Islam's formative period was the time just before Muhammad was born. True or False

False

Islamic modernism saw no distinction between the unchanging laws of God and social legislation or regulations. True or False

False

It is more important in Islam to participate in almsgiving than to believe in God and Muhammad True or False

False

Muhammad used only force to defeat the Meccans. True or False

False

Muhammad was born around the same year as Jesus. True or False

False

Muslims believe, like Jews and Christians, that Islam is the newest of the monotheistic traditions. True or False

False

Of the three major monotheistic religions, only Judaism and Christianity share a belief in one God. True or False

False

The Quran denies that Jesus was a prophet or has any special status. True or False

False

The largest Muslim population in Western Europe is in Germany. True or False

False

The sacred language of Islam is Greek. True or False

False

The term "Sufism" comes from the dance, whirling dervish, that Sufis are known for. True or False

False

The ulama are Shiah peasants. True or False

False

There is only one source of Islamic law—the Sunnah. True or False

False

sharia

Islamic law

During Muhammad's Night Journey, the site from which he ascended to heaven into the presence of God was _______.

Jerusalem

______ is the third holiest city of Islam, after Mecca and Medina.

Jerusalem

People of the Book

Jews and Christians, as people who shared the same God as Muslims, were automatically entitled to receive protective status (dhimmi) when their territory was conquered by Muslims

According to Islam, the People of the Book included _______ and _______.

Jews, Christians

_______ _______ became the most prominent and popular Muslim public figure in America and globally in the twentieth century.

Muhammad Ali

hijrah

Muhammad's emigration from Mecca to Medina in 622

Muslims believe that the _______ is taken from an Arabic tablet preexisting with God in heaven.

Quran

hudud

Quranically prescribed crimes and punishments

One of the Five Pillars of Islam is fasting during the month of _______.

Ramadan

_______ refers to Islamic law as found in the Quran and also means the "right" or "straight" path.

Shariah

The _______ consists of hundreds of thousands of stories, or hadith, about Muhammad.

Sunnah