THE KORAN

The Koran

The Koran

Islam, Judaism, and Christianity

Islam, Judaism, and Christianity all are very alike monotheistic religions. All of which have one all powerful god that says that in order to reach heaven they must act appropriately. Their ideas on what is appropriate are very common belife's amongst each other. Islam, Judaism, and Christianity all come from the same prophet, Abraham, and because of such they are very closely related. One example would be that all three believe that god (allah) created Adam and Eve (Hallah). (Rippin, 2000)

        Islam, Judaism, and Christianity believe that there god created humans differently than animals, and that God (Allah) gave human the power of thought, love, and a soul that can be passed on into heaven or hell. These religions, all stemming from the middle east, from the prophet Abraham and his teachings, all share similar beliefes on how the world was created and how a person should act throughout time. Islam varies slightly on there belife of creation though. Muslims believe that all animals were created by Allah from the water, supporting the evoulution theory. They however believe that humans were created sperately from other animals and did not evolve from apes. These religions are very similar in belife systems and how everything came to be, mostly because of the prophet Abraham(Khalifa, 2000).

Women Status in Society

Women, since the origin of Islam, have benefited from the steps taken by the Koran and the preaching of Muhammad. As basic as these rights are to all people, Arabic society before the sixth century managed to deny women of them. Islam made waves by insisting on the improvement of the female condition, albeit gradual. However, a gradual approach was necessary, considering the moral condition of those newly faithful Muslims(Rahman, 1980). A drastic purging of all of their sinful crutches would have frightened away many early Muslims. God said in the Holy Koran, "And if We willed it for them to either kill themselves or leave their land, only a few of them would.'

Marriage

The Institution of marriage was where Islam made its greatest social contribution. It sanctified marriage, first, by making it the sole lawful locus of the sexual act. The second demand the Koran made on the institution of marriage was that a woman has to give her free consent before being wed. Lastly, without forbidding it, the Koran placed such restrictions on divorce that it became a last resort. Muhammad made it clear that there was nothing worse than the termination of marriage vows(Awde, 2000).

Polygamy

Koran also addresses the issue of polygamy. Having more than one wife was subject to the equal treatment of each wife according to the Koran; if you cannot deal equitably and justly with [more than one wife], you shall marry only one (Smith, 1991). This equality includes love and respect as well as the physical attributes of typical daily life(Cook, 2000). A growing number of Muslim marriages now include a clause, which forfeits the husband's right to a second ...