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Front Cover Photo: More than one million Muslims from all over the world praying together at the Haram Mosque in Makkah.
Back Cover Photo: The Prophet Muhammad’s
Mosque in Madinah.
In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Second Edition
I. A. Ibrahim
| General Editors | Science Editors |
| Dr. William (Daoud) Peachy | Professor Harold Stewart Kuofi |
| Michael (Abdul-Hakim) Thomas | Professor F. A. State |
| Tony (Abu-Khaliyl) Sylvester | Professor Mahjoub O. Taha |
| Idris Palmer | Professor Ahmad Allam |
| Jamaal Zarabozo | Professor Salman Sultan |
| Ali AlTimimi | Associate Professor H. O. Sindi |
Darussalam
Houston
Copyright
Copyright © 1997, 1996 I. A. Abu-Harb.
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This entire book, as well as more information on Islam, is available online at:
www.islam-guide.com
2nd Edition -3rd Printing
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 97-67654
ISBN: 9960-34-011-2
Published by Darussalam, Publishers and Distributors, Houston, Texas, USA.
Contents
TITLE PAGE
| Chapter 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Some evidence for the truth of islam . 5 | ||
(1) The Scientific Miracles in the Holy Qur’an . . . . . . . . . . 5 A) The Qur’an on Human Embryonic Development . . 6 B)The Qur’an onMountains.. ... ... ... ... ... .. 11 C) The Qur’an on the Origin of the Universe . . . . . . 14 D)The Qur’an ontheCerebrum .. ... ... ... ... .. 16 E)The Qur’an onSeasandRivers. ... ... ... ... .. 17 F) The Qur’an on Deep Seas and Internal Waves . . . 20 G)The Qur’an onClouds.. ... ... ... ... ... ... .. 22 H) Scientists’ Comments on the Scientific Miracles in theHolyQur’an . ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. 27
(7)The PhenomenalGrowth of Islam.. ... ... ... ... .. 40
| Chapter 2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| some benefits of islam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 41 | ||
(1)The Door to EternalParadise... ... ... ... ... ... .. 41
(2)SalvationfromHellfire.. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. 42
(3)Real Happinessand Inner Peace ... ... ... ... ... .. 43
(4)Forgivenessfor AllPrevious Sins .. ... ... ... ... .. 44
A Brief Illustrated Guide To Understanding Islam
Chapter 3
general information on Islam. . . . . . . 45
What IsIslam?... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 45 SomeBasicIslamicBeliefs .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 45
1) Belief in God. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 45 2) Belief in theAngels.. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 47 3) Belief in God’sRevealedBooks. ... ... ... ... . 48 4) Belief in the Prophets and Messengers of God . . . 48 5) Belief in theDayof Judgment... ... ... ... ... . 48 6) Belief in Al-Qadar ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 48
Is There Any Sacred Source Other than the Qur’an? . . . . . 49 Examples of the Prophet Muhammad’s � Sayings .. ... . 49 What Does Islam Say about the Day of Judgment? . . . . . . 50 How DoesSomeoneBecomeaMuslim?. ... ... ... ... . 52 What IstheQur’an About?... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 54 Who Is the Prophet Muhammad �?.. ... ... ... ... ... . 54 How Did the Spread of Islam Affect the Development of
Science? .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 56 What Do MuslimsBelieveabout Jesus? . ... ... ... ... . 57 What DoesIslamSayabout Terrorism?.. ... ... ... ... . 59 HumanRightsandJusticein Islam .. ... ... ... ... ... . 61 What IstheStatusof Womenin Islam?.. ... ... ... ... . 63 The Family inIslam.. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 64 How Do MuslimsTreatthe Elderly?. ... ... ... ... ... . 64 What AretheFive Pillarsof Islam?.. ... ... ... ... ... . 65
1) The Testimony of Faith.. ... ... ... ... ... ... . 65 2) Prayer. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 66 3) Giving Zakat (Support of theNeedy) ... ... ... . 66 4) FastingtheMonth of Ramadan.. ... ... ... ... . 67 5) The Pilgrimage to Makkah .. ... ... ... ... ... . 67
Islamin theUnitedStates. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 68
For MoreInformationonIslam.. ... ... ... ... ... ... . 69 For Suggestions and Comments on This Book . . . . . . . . . 70 For Further ReadingonIslam. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 70 References ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 71
3
This book is a brief guide to understanding Islam. It consists of three chapters.
The first chapter, “Some Evidence for the Truth of Islam,” answers some important questions which some people ask:
- Is the Qur’an truly the literal word of God, revealed by Him?
- Is Muhammad �1 truly a prophet sent by God?
- Is Islam truly a religion from God?
In this chapter, six kinds of evidence are mentioned:
1) The Scientific Miracles in the Holy Qur’an: This section discusses (with illustrations) some recently discovered scientific facts mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, which was revealed fourteen centuries ago.
2) The Great Challenge to Produce One Chapter Like the Chapters of the Holy Qur’an: In the Qur’an, God challenged all human beings to produce a single chapter like the chapters of the Qur’an. Ever since the Qur’an was revealed, fourteen centuries ago, until this day, no one has been able to meet this chal
lenge, even though the smallest chapter in the Qur’an (Chapter 108) is only ten words.
(1) These Arabic words � mean, ‘May God exalt his mention and protect him from imperfection.’
A Brief Illustrated Guide To Understanding Islam
3) Biblical Prophecies on the Advent of Muhammad �, the Prophet of Islam: In this section, some of the Biblical prophecies on the advent of the Prophet Muhammad � are discussed.
4) The Verses in the Qur’an That Mention Future Events Which Later Came to Pass: The Qur’an mentioned future events which later came to pass, for example, the victory of the Romans over the Persians.
5) Miracles Performed by the Prophet Muhammad �: Many miracles were performed by the Prophet Muhammad �