ISLAM

What stories indicate that the “Light of Prophecy” rests on Muhammad?

When did Muhammad receive his first revelation?

What is the night that Muhammad received his first revelation called?

What was Muhammad’s initial response to the vision?

What was Muhammad’s reformist message and how did it challenge the status quo of tribal culture at the time?

What is thought to have happened on the ‘Night Journey’ or the ‘Night of Ascent’?

Why did Muhammad and his followers emigrate to Medina?

What is the name of the Muslim community?

Who are the Shiites; and, who did they think should succeed Muhammad as leader of the Islamic community?

Who served as the first leader of the Muslim community after Muhammad?

Who were the Rashidun or the ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs’?

When did the Rashidun reign and what did they accomplish?

Who is the significance of Muhammad’s cousin Ali and his sons Hassan and Husayn?

The weakness of what empires allowed Islam to expand and consolidate itself?

Why, when, and how did Islam flourish in Spain?

When was the Umayyad Dynasty?

When was the Abbasid Dynasty?

In what ways do the practice of Shiite and Sunni Muslims differ?

Why did Sufism originated and how did it acquire its name?

What are the major elements and practices of Sufism?

What is Islamic sacred scripture called?

How is it organized?

Why is the Quran written in Arabic?

What is understood by the ‘Greater’ and ‘Lesser’ Jihad?

What are the Shari’ah’s sources?

How is Shari’ah lived out in terms of marriage and dietary laws?