Islam

Islam is one of the most influential religions in the world, we all know that. But I feel that there are a few misconceptions people have concerning it. While it certainly is a very conservative religion on paper, because it is so widely practiced, I think it's very hard to lay down blanket statements that can be said to accurately describe every Muslim except for the most core tenants of the faith. I've read into the history of Islam a bit, and it certainly has a very fascinating history. I was especially interested when I first found out that the arch angel that I'm named after plays such an important role in not only Christianity and Judaism, but in Islam as well. The arch angel Gabriel, or Jibril as he is known as in Arabic, had the monumental task of dictating the Koran to the Prophet Muhammad. Although, this wasn't particularly surprising considering the fact that Islam shares the same roots with Christianity and Judaism, with it being one of the three Abrahamic religions. I haven't met tons of Muslims in my life, but the few that I have met have left very good impressions on me. My first roommate in college was a Muslim and he and I are still friends to this day. I studied abroad in England with two Muslim women and they were some of the nicest people I've ever met. While I don't agree with every single teaching of the faith that I know of, there are a few tenants that I feel even those who don't practice the faith should strive for because they are simply practices of being a decent human being, particularly the pillar of "Zakat" or almsgiving which states that people need to perform charitable acts that help the less fortunate. Islam is obviously not free of controversy so I will go into that as well. Like any religion, Islam has it's extremists. Organizations such as Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, the Taliban, and ISIS have played a prominent role in global terrorist activity, but I believe that they are simply twisting and perverting the faith to promote their own political agendas, a practice that is most definitely not unique to Islam. I know for a fact that the vast majority of Muslims have disowned such groups and, not to mention, the fact that the vast majority of the victims of these terrorist organizations are in fact the moderate Muslims that live in the areas that they occupy. There's also the controversy of how women are viewed and treated in Islamic countries. Many people believe that the practice of requiring women to wear the hijab is oppressive, and in some ways, I think it is. However, I know that for many Muslim women, especially those living in the west, wearing the veil is their own choice. Not entirely unlike how Nuns cover themselves because of their respective faith. Islam is practiced by billions of people around the world and has been done so for centuries since the days of the prophet Muhammad. It's not going anywhere, and because of this, I think we need to learn to understand the people who practice the faith, and the faith itself. There are good and bad aspects of it, but to say that every Muslim is an extremist, is a ridiculous statement. I believe that the overwhelming majority of Muslims are good and honest people just like the rest of us, and, especially in countries where freedom of religion is part of their constitutions, they have every right to continue to practice their faith in peace.