Islam Key Points:

Islam means submission to the will of God

Quran is the holy book
Muslims are the followers of Islam and they believe the Quran is the collection of the
word of God as transmitted to and recorded by prophet Muhammad via the angel Gabriel
in the eight century
After the death of the prophet, he became known as the seal of the prophets, that is the
final prophet of god in a lineage beginning with Adam.
Muslims consider their religion to be the culmination of the Judeo-Christian tradition
that began with Abraham.
Muslims consider Jews and Christian to be people of the book who were given gods
revelation.
The religion of Islam shares the same roots and the same god as Judaism and
Christianity and thus may be considered to be a relative
The Quran is comprised of 23 books of Surah
The Qurans message can be revealing gods will for humanity to create a just society
and institute a variety of social reforms, including the status of women.
An important text is also the Hadith, everything the Prophet said and did.
The sharias a religiously based secular law.
Sharias governs in several predominantly Islamic countries today.
Islam was first established in the Arab countries of the Middle East.
The largest number of Muslims in the world now lives in Asia, India, Afghanistan,
Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Sufism is more personalistic and less legalistic than other aspects of Islam.
All Muslims are required to observe the Five Pillars of Islam, pray five times a day,
fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, giving alms and making pilgrimage to Mecca
at least once in ones lifetime.
Islam opposes the use of gendered imagery for the divine.
Most Islamic art is nonrepresentational.
The essay by Bouthania Shaaban points out that the first person to believe in the truth
of the prophet Muhammad was a woman, as was the first person to be martyred for the
cause of Islam.
The prophet had 11 wives.
Women were central to the very establishment of the Islam.
Gender is a central concern in the Islam.
Many passages relate to womens bodies, how they should behave and how men
should behave in relation to women.
The Quran grants women certain rights that they did not have in the previous Arab
culture.
It gave women certain property, inheritance, and marital rights they were previously
denied.
Women are still regarded as lesser than men in certain areas, including divorce, value
of their legal testimony.
The hadith and Sharia limit womens status and rights.
Menstruation is considered pollution and women menstruating are prohibited to attend
masque, praying and touching the Quran until their period is over.
Female circumcision is a widespread practice in Islamic countries.
In some Muslims societies, women are kept in purdah (hidden, in their home and
behind veils)
Women must be accompanied by a male relative at all times
Mosques are segregated at all times. With women seating behind men.

Women unlike men are not required to observe all of the five pillars of Islam regularly
Women are the majority of participants in spirit cults because women are more
connected to spirits than men are.
Female circumcision is not mentioned in the Quran but it is in the Haddith and
Sharia and is accepted by all but one of the schools of Islamic law.
Islamic scholars and writers have most likely ignored the contributions of women.
The Quran states that men are a degree above women.
Men can marry up to 4 wives while women can only have one husband.
If a woman wants a divorce she must petition the courts in order to obtain the divorce.
Muslim men can marry any woman from any religion while woman cannot marry
outside their faith.
Veiling women (hijab) is one of the primary concerns in Islam even though Muslim
women have spoken in favor of the hijab because they obtain a certain degree of
independence, autonomy and respect.
Womens education in the Islams primary purpose is to prepare women to become
better mothers and citizens, not for their empowerment.
Men hold all religious and legal institutions.
Only a few women in Egypt teach the Quran to other women.
In turkey women have been recognized as mullahs (low ranking religious officials)
and in Iran women have been recognized as mojtaheds (high ranking religious officials)
but they are not allowed to have followers.
There are several important women in the history of Islam including Mohammeds
wives and Abraham, Mary, the mother of Jesus and the mother of Moses.
Muhammads wives have a special status in the Quran
Rabi a al adawyya al qaysyyia is best known for her emphasis on unselfish love for
Allah. Rabias life demonstrates how religious vocations provide women in early Islam
with alternatives to domestic lifestyles as wives and mothers.
In North Africa, Lalla Aisha Manoubia is regarded as patron saint of the city of Tunis
in Tunisia.
Since the 20th century, women have established organizations to improve their
position in society, these includes both secular such as the Union of Egyptian Women in
1923, as well as religious groups like the Egyptian Muslim Womens Association in 1936.
There are Islamic Movements in Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and the Taliban in
Afghanistan who advocate restricting womens rights in conformity with a conservative
view of the Quran.
The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 1996 and severely restricted the rights of
women.
The Taliban violate womens basic human rights. They deny women from freedom,
from appearing in public without a male figure, forbidden from taking buses or taxis and
prevented from obtaining a passport without the authorization of a male relative.
In the spiritual life there was no female or male saint, the sainthood was bestowed
equally upon women and men.