Rusty Lean Beltran May 5, 2022

Survey on Western Civilization Delilah R. Labajo

Religious Fundamentalism: Islam and Christianity

Before I discuss the foundation of Islam from its core, I wanted first to elaborate the
essence and principle that clings into the religion of Islam. Religious Fundamentalism is the
approach of various religious groups that look for the obvious or material interpretation of
original religious texts or books that connotes the teachings obtained from this kind of reading
must be used in all social, economic, and political aspects or even as such personal gain.

The foundation of Islam started upon the same text of Genesis or creation of all life and
matter came to be in same teaching of Judaism and Christianity. The actual meaning of Islam
was “peace unto you” from the all-one God—Allah. It consists of the fellow teaching from the
Old Testament upon the Jesus of Nazareth and humans being the descendants of Adam/Eve.
Another prophet that came to be in Islam was Jesus Christ upon which Allah summoned along
with Muhammad.

Upon context, Islam consists of two major faction—the Shia which is 10% and Sunni
Islam that consists of 90% of the total population of Islam. These roots was to define the actual
purpose of Islam as a world religion. When Muhammad became a prophet, he established the 5
Pillars of Islam, these are: shahada or “Profession of Faith” that believes "There is no god but
God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God", the prayer “salat” that Muslims pray 5 times
a day at dawn noon mid-afternoon, sunset and in the evening, the “zakat” or donation in charities
for institutions, the fourth one is the “sawm” or fasting in the holy month of Ramadan of the
Islamic calendar.
 The last would be the hajj or Pilgrimage which at least every Muslim should pray and go
to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia within the place of Ka’ba a cubical structure covered
in black embroidered hangings, is at the center of the Haram Mosque in Mecca.

Before the establishment of Mecca as the holy city of Islam, Medina was the first that
came to be the center of Muslim settlement. By then, many would allow to go to Medina and
Mecca as holy centers of prayers and religious aspects of Islam. From its connotation in the
modern world, it is harsh to comprehend its fundamental aspects as the religion as it was today.
Here, Jews, Christians and Muslims were known to worship at peace. Difference in religion
wasn’t a problem as the stigma clearly was into the open aspect of how society should perceive
Islam.

History judges as its foundation was to break the stigma of fighting the identity of
stereotype as religion of Islam was known to violence. Thousands of years ago that was not the
case, empires began to establish connections like the first military of the Umayyad that splits into
pieces after its collapse whereas brought the age of Muslim interpretations of scientific
processes, evolution, institutions and education.

While Islam expands, empires came into existence like the Ottoman Turks when they
defeated the Christians in Constantinople in the latter of the Byzantine Empire. It became the city
of progress and worship as well as the capital of Islam in the East. The West prevails by being a
rival to the Muslims in Spain when the Reconquista cleansed the Muslim settlements during the
Reconquista period and became successful. The Crusades as to drive the Muslim claim on the
Holy Land for the Jews also laments the relation of Christian/Muslim.

The split of empires of the 14th to 18th century has been the determining turning point of
Islam into a global religion. This settles in the East for thousands of years but also spread in Asia
like India where modern states came after Prince Shah Jahan and the marble temple of Taj Mahal
after his dedication to his wife Mumtaz Mahal.

After the revolution of 17th century and 18th century of states of Islam, it mold the society
towards a global world. Gender roles like women wearing the traditional clothing of face-hiding
like the burka in Afghan, hijab in Arabic and shadur in Iranian/Iraq were also a contextualized
representation of women act and wear their clothing upon the bureaucratic policies of men, not
in-line with the teachings of the Qur’an (the holy book).

The violence started upon the intrusion of Western powers to insert the political will of
each personalities to control and oppress the religion of Islam. As the latter subjects to political
assertion of power, the internal values of Islam began to have a separation in terms of teaching.
The radical Islam started when violence thread of the interpretation of Islam was began to
flourish in different states of the Middle East.

Today, Islam was known to have that stigma of holy war, religious corruption, armed
struggle and political gain. With the recent events, we are being targeted as the religion of peace
crumbles for the future of its ideals and beliefs.

I can put the context of Christianity and Islam in terms of practice like 5 pillars of Islam
in relation with the Holy Eucharist of the Jews and Jesus Christ. The true one God like Allah and
God as a general perception was the common similarity but it had a much deeper sense into that
in which we are being summoned through our daily lives like praying every Sunday and
Muslims praying 5 times a day. There are cultural preferences of Orthodox Christian and
Orthodox Islam as well.

The difference between the two of them was that prophets were less known compared to
Christianity as the Old Testament provides all the views of the prophets from God himself.
Unlike the Christians, the Muslims believe in Muhammad in which is the rightful prophet of God
which the Muslim subdues by praying to him 5 times every day facing the holy city of Mecca.