Islam

Islam means submission — willing surrender to the one God. Muslims believe God (Allah in Arabic) revealed his will through prophets — Abraham, Moses, Jesus — and finally through Muhammad, whose recitations form the Qur'an. The worldwide community of believers is the ummah.

Ultimate Reality

God is one, without partner, child, or equal — merciful, all-knowing, and all-powerful. He created the heavens and the earth and sustains them; nothing happens outside his knowledge and will. He is both just judge and the Most Merciful, and utterly unlike his creation.

The Human Condition

Humans are God's creatures and stewards on earth, born in a natural state of purity and free to obey or disobey. We forget God and go astray, but no one is born guilty of another's sin; God forgives those who repent.

Knowledge and Truth

Truth comes from God's revelation: the Qur'an, his final and preserved word, and the example of Muhammad in the Sunnah and Hadith. Earlier scriptures are honored, though Muslims hold they were partly altered over time. Reason supports faith but does not sit above revelation.

Right and Wrong

Right action is obedience to God's law, drawn from the Qur'an and the Prophet's example. The Five Pillars frame a Muslim life: confessing the faith, prayer five times daily, giving alms, fasting in Ramadan, and pilgrimage to Mecca once if able.

Human Destiny

At death the soul awaits the Day of Judgment, when God will weigh every person's deeds and faith. The righteous enter Paradise, gardens of delight; the unrepentant face the fire of Hell. God's mercy, Muslims trust, outweighs his wrath.

The Conversation

We share with Muslims a firm confession: one Creator God, the call to prayer and charity, and moral seriousness — and honor for Jesus, though we understand him very differently. Our honest difference is over who Jesus is and whether God has a Son. We state it plainly and respectfully.