MSA at Old Scona Academic

In the Name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful

What is Islam? Is it a barbaric, misogynistic faith best left behind with desert Arabs centuries ago? Is it a political ideology that glorifies violence and terrorism? Is it a primitive world view incompatible with modern values and scientific understandings?

In an oral tradition that perhaps best codifies the ethos of Islam, the Prophet Muhammad * is reported to have said, “The Muslim is one from whose tongue and hand other Muslims are safe (salima); and the believer is one whom people trust (amana) with their blood and their wealth; and the warrior is one who wars against his ego in obeying God; and the emigrant is one who emigrates from errors and iniquities.”

In reality, Islam is none of the things mentioned at the beginning of this article. Directing the lives of over one billion adherents, the religion of Islam seeks to connect us, the creation, to God, the Creator, by tranquil submission. These values are enshrined in the testimony of faith, “There is no god but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God.”

We pray that the following links will benefit those who wish to learn more about this beautiful faith.

Who is God?

• One God, Many Names (online PDF) by Dr. Umar Abd-Allah
• The Belief in God by Shaykh Shahidullah Faridi

Who is the Prophet Muhammad ?

• In Praise of God – The Prophet ’s Birthday (BBC World Service) by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf
• The Ethical Standard of the Prophet Muhammad (online PDF) by Imam Zaid Shakir
• You Should Know this Man (YouTube)
  
• Recommended Book: Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources by Dr. Martin Lings

What is the Qur’an?

• Educational Resources
• Recitations of the Qur’an (select the name of a reciter)
• The Inimitable Qur’an by Hamza Tzortzis
  
• The Noble Qur’an Translation (online)

What is Islam?

• BBC – Religion & Ethics – Islam
• Letter to Christians in the Ukraine by Shaykh Nuh Keller
• MECCA – About Islam
• Understanding Islam and the Muslims
• Recommended Book: Islam and the Destiny of Man by Charles le Gai Eaton
• Recommended Book: Islam in Focus (online PDF) by Hammudah Abdalati

Who are the Muslims?

• Becoming Muslim by Shaykh Nuh Keller
• I am a Muslim! (YouTube)
• Freedom from Fear (YouTube)
• Muslim Heritage – Discover 1000 Years of Missing History
• Recommended Book: A Muslim in Victorian America: The Life of Alexander Russell Webb by Dr. Umar Abd-Allah
• Recommended Book: The Autobiography of Malcolm X as Told to Alex Haley by Malcolm X and Alex Haley
• Recommended Book: Scattered Pictures: Reflections of an American Muslim by Imam Zaid Shakir

*Traditionally, Muslims append this genuflexion to the Prophet Muhammad ’s name as an expression of love. From Arabic, the sentence roughly translates to, “May God bless him and give him peace.”