[Day 19] The Caliph is the title for the leader of the Islamic Ummah, the worldwide Islamic community or nation which should ideally be ruled by the religious law, the Shari’ah. The word is derived from the Arabic word which means “successor” or “representative.” The early Caliphs in particular were seen as Mohammed’s successors.
[Day 17] Fatimah was apparently a good influence, but her name is also associated with an occult object that has fairly negative influence in the Muslim world. This so-called “Hand of Fatimah” is used by Muslims in amulets, charms and jewelry to ward off evil spiritual influences.
[Day 08] During his life, Mohammed met many people who were at least nominal Christians. He also learned many religious ideas and customs from Jewish clans that were living in the region of Mecca and Medina.
[Day 06] Muslims are found in literally hundreds of different ethnic groups around the world. Possibly three quarters of the world’s Muslims are not from an Arabic background; however, Mohammed’s Arab lifestyle and cultural background have profoundly influenced Islam.
[Day 05] Muslims generally believe that Mohammed is a descendant of Abraham and Ishmael. His grandfather was the guardian of the Kaaba in Mecca (photos above). Mohammed had more than ten wives and concubines after Khadijah’s death (without any other natural offspring). Three other “daughters” lived in Khadijah’s household with Mohammed. Apparently they were from a previous marriage of Khadijah or possibly they were her sister’s children. It is impossible to be certain.
About the 20th and 21st century Islam, its growth and relationship to oil through newly independent Islamic states. Part of the History of Islam series. What Christians should know.
Muhammad (Mohammed or Mahomet) was born around AD570 in Mecca. Mecca was already a shrine city where the Ka\’aba (Cube) was located known as the \”house of Allah\”
This migration, called Hijra in Arabic, started on September 24, 622. This marks the beginning of Islam, and the Muslim calendar starts with this date. In the tenth year of Hijra, 632, Muhammad died. The Shia (or Shiites) and the Sunnites became the two major groups within Islam.
The era of the four Medina-based Caliphs or "Rightly Guided Caliphs". Three of the four were assassinated. The four caliphs were more political figures than spiritual leaders. The Shiites, the followers of Ali, the fourth caliph and first convert to Islam, became strong opposer’s of the Umayyads …
The next fourteen hundred years (see previous article) are a remarkable story of dynasties and empires struggling for power across the globe. We begin with the Umayyad Dynasty and end with the European colonization of the Muslim states in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
