Lesson 2: The Five Pillars of Faith

Big Ideas addressed in this lesson:

· Islam is a religion and a way of life in which the primary goal is to serve Allah to enhance the life of the individual and the community much like Judaism is a religion and way of life that seeks to serve God in the betterment of life on earth.

· At the core of Islam is the notion of tawhid or Oneness of the universe and among all living creatures.

Questions addressed in this lesson:

· How do Muslims serve Allah/God?

· What happens if a Muslim sins or does not serve Allah?

· What are the differences, if any, of how Muslims in different parts of the world serve Allah?

· What are the texts that guide Muslims in their service of Allah?

· What is the concept of tawhid or Oneness?

· How does tawhid guide and influence the practice and perspectives of Muslims?

Knowledge:

· Iman(faith)

· Qur’an

· Sunnah(way of life, as in the way of life practiced by the Prophet Muhammed)

· Shariah(Islamic law, not so different from Jewish halakha)

Text to be used:

· Selections from the Qur’an

· Have a copy of the Qur’an available. Recommended translation is “The Koran Interpreted,” a translation by A.J. Arberry

· Excerpt from Islam for Dummies by Malcolm Clark

Overview of Session:

I. Questions from last session – 15 minutes

II. Introduction of context of Five Pillars of Faith and Five Pillars of Practice – 5 minutes

III. Text study 2: Elias’ text and selected Qur’an texts – 65-75 minutes

IV. Wrap-up: 5 minutes