Islam: Beliefs about God
I’m beginning to revise the first term’s content with my Higher class so thought I would share some of the material that we’ve been using:
- A skill identification task
- A set of quizlet revision cards
- A podcast episode that we have created together as a class
Skill identification task
The aim of this task is to help pupils to understand the key skills in RMPS and to consider what they might look like within an essay. There is no hard and fast rule about structure, however, the following structure has worked well for candidates in the past. As a reminder – we have three key skills in RMPS:
KU –knowledge and understanding should be factual information that is relevant and accurate.
A – analysis is looking for possible consequences, implications or connections.
E – evaluation is reasoned judgement that specifically responds to the language of the question.
Question: Evaluate the significant of beliefs about God in Islam. (20)
Remember: 20 marks means 10KU, 5A, and 5E. Look through this essay trying to identify those skills.
Within Islam, the most key belief is that God is Tawhid; this means one-ness or unity. He is the absolute and there is nothing that can rival Him. As it says in Surah 2:225 “there is no deity except Him, the Ever-living, the Sustainer of all existence.”
The Qur’an suggests that God has innumerable names and attributes of perfection, but popular tradition teaches that He has 99 names which relate to particular attributes.
One such example is, Al-Qadr which means He is all-powerful. There is nothing that He cannot do even if it means defying human logic.
Another example is, Al-Wadud which means He is all-loving. Everything in life has been provided by Him, and He continues to sustain everything within the Universe.
Muslim’s believe that God is the Creator of all things, reflected by the name Al-Khaaliq. It is believed that He created the Universe and everything in it. He did not require any help to do this, He simple said ‘Be’ and it was.
Muslims believe He is the total provider of all in life, this is reflected in the name Ar-Razzaq. Everything we have is given by Him.
However, equally Muslims believe that just as He gives life, He can also take it away. One of His names is Al-Mumit which means the ‘inflictor of death.’
Muslims believe Allah is immanent. He knows their inner most thoughts and their every action before they do it. It says in Surah 50:16 ‘And We have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him, and We are closer to him than [his] jugular vein.’
Allah is also the ultimate judge. Surah 30: 42-25 refers to the final judgement day and that the righteous will have a seat in heaven. This informs Muslims that Allah is a judge but that they will be rewarded if they submit to him.
However, if they do sin then repentance is possible because Allah is merciful, as it says in Surah 4:110,“And whoever does a wrong or wrongs himself but then seeks forgiveness of Allah will find Allah Forgiving and Merciful”
If Muslims compare anything to Allah they are committing the sin of shirk, therefore they would be careful to only worship God and would avoid any form of idolatry. This might mean avoiding being obsessed with things like money, power, or celebrity.
I think that beliefs about Allah are significant because non-Muslims would not have to worry about any of these things. Whereas Muslims would need to find banks that offer ‘Islamic finance’ that reflect the belief that money shouldn’t have any value in itself. They would also have to avoid becoming obsessed with things like football teams, or celebrities and this could be seen as counter-culture which is difficult for many people who just want to fit in. So it clearly has a significant impact.
As God is the giver of everything, Muslims might develop a deep sense of gratitude towards God. This in turn could motivate them to follow His laws more closely, and try their best to be His representative here on earth.
I think that beliefs about Allah are significant because if all Muslim’s acted as His representative and sought to combat global warming this could make a significant difference. Islam is the fastest growing religion, and there are millions of Muslim’s all over the world, so if they all advocated against climate change and acted to combat it then that would be significant.
However, Muslims might also learn to fear God because they are so aware of His power. They might fear His displeasure and not take all the opportunities they could in life to try new things.
I think that beliefs about Allah are significant because again, this belief changes the way a person behaves. Rather than just going through life making decisions for themselves, they have to consider God’s will. They need to make time to study the Qur’an, and attend Mosque, and to pray. So these beliefs significantly change the lives of believers.
That said, they also know that Allah is loving, and wouldn’t do anything unjust so they might also feel comforted that He is watching and will be there for them in times of trial. They might believe there is no need to fear because they can be confident that they will be rewarded for their obedience.
I think that beliefs about Allah are significant because many Muslim’s are victims of crime for example through Islamophobia, but believing that God will deliver justice ensures that they don’t need to themselves. Unlike non-believers, Muslims can have a sense of comfort knowing that nothing evil will go unpunished eventually.
Being aware that Allah is perfection, also motivates some Muslims to reflect His attributes, so just as He is kind – Muslims seek to be kind. For example, Muslims could express this through the pillar of Zakat – giving to charity. I think that beliefs about Allah are significant because through expressing God’s attributes, Muslims will change the world around them. For example, 24% of children in Scotland live below the poverty line – if Scotland’s growing Muslim population targeted Zakat into solving poverty then this could make a significant impact.
Quizlet revision cards
Podcast
When I previously recorded podcasts, it was always teachers talking with no involvement from pupils. I’m trying a new approach this year but including them more and getting my classes to help script episodes. It would be great to have some feedback – particularly if you listened to the old format – are these more helpful? Which do you prefer? Or any suggestions of what you’d like to hear? Please get in touch – laura@enlightenedrmps.co.uk
