Critical Investigation of the Religion of Islam

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Critical Investigation of the Religion of Islam

Option 2: Explores exclusivism, prejudice, and oppression in religious communities

Introduction

Religion is among the most contentious issues, not only in the United States but also in the world. The existence of many religions, culminating into diverse faiths, making the inclusivity of people in the community more complicated. Today's community entails diversity on many grounds, and the main difference is how people observe and hold faith regarding religion; these differences in beliefs yield exclusivism. Nonetheless, this does not mean people with the same religious beliefs do not practices prejudice and oppression among their close religious allies. For example, since the inception of the Islamic religion in 613 AD, spearheaded by Muhammad and preaching in the Mecca region, Ball and Haque (2003) notice that exclusivism is still prevalent with religion in the contemporary world.

What is the exclusivism of the religion community based on?

The exclusivism of religion is grounded on faith. People's beliefs continue to control the most significant part of how interactions are fructified in communities (Meister, 2011). The more diverse the communities are in terms of faith; the more people tend to depict and express exclusivity among each other. For example, Jeffrey et al. (2016) discussed the formation of the five pillars, Shahadah, Salat, Zakat, Sawm, and Hajj, which were essential in the Islamic religious teachings. This pillar created a significant variation of religion; it was evident to notice Muslima and non-Muslim in a community based on how well they adhered to the stipulated pillars.

This created a unique situation where every person within the Muslim community felt united based on the number of religious rituals and practices, they had to accomplished to be considered fully compliant with the Islamic faith. Additionally, Jeffery et al. (2016) believed that Muslin had to be a true follower of faith and that only happened with one observed all the five stipulated pillars. “Devout Muslims generally aim to observe all of the pillars, but as with every religious tradition, there are variations in levels of observance” (Jeffrey et al., 2016. P 418.)

How are they instructed to treat others?

The Islamic religion has always been vocal towards the unity and well-being of its members through the preaching of peace amongst themselves. This general accord was shared by instilling religious doctrines that favored unity and collaboration. According to Goforth, Oka, Leong & Denis (2014), Muslims are taught from an early age how to interact and collaborate during players and other integration in line with their faith. One of such uniting factors resulted from the doctrines of the five pillars that every person who associates with Islam had to adhere to....