What Do Muslims Believe?

Islam Today

By: Val Waldeck

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

The events of September 11, 2001, brought ISLAM to the attention of the nations in a new way. Academic interest in a people with a different lifestyle began to give way to fascination with a religious group who seemed prepared to sacrifice their very sons and daughters in suicidal missions to attain political ends. Some dismissed the movement as a violent religion, focused on attaining world dominion whatever the cost, Muslims and non-Muslims increasingly eyed each other with suspicion in the political arena, particularly as tensions increased in the Middle East. Others argue that Muslims are peace-loving for the most part and that “fundamentalists” are to be found on the lunatic fringe of any movement. Who are Muslims? Where do they come from? Why are they leaving their Islamic states in great numbers to settle in the “West” – a culture so different from their own? What do they believe? Is there any difference between the Islamic Allah and the God of the Bible? Is Islam compatible with the Western way of life? These are questions we shall focus on briefly as we attempt to get a “birds-eye” view of Islam. This is not a commentary on the Islamic Religion, as such, nor an attempt to comment on their political views and actions. It is rather a concise but brief view of their basic history and beliefs.