Five Pillars of Islam Questions

1. Why is the pronouncement of the shahada central to a Muslim’s identity and
practice of the Islamic faith?


The pronouncement of shahada is cental to a Muslim’s identity and practice of the Islamic faith because it is the affirmation of the belief of one God and His prophet. Such as the National Anthem unifies spectators along with opposing teams during a sporting event, the pronouncement in one true God does the same.


2. How does the practice of the salat both mentally and physically help Muslims to
live in obedience to the will of Allah?


The pronouncement of salat is central to a Muslim's identity and practice of the Islamic faith because slat(prayer) unifies Muslims all over the world. For example, during the five times Muslims pray during the day, they are to face the holy city of Mecca. This unifies all that pronounce salat. God commanded the prophet Muhammad to pray five times a day thus making prayer a central practice because Islam is submission to the will of God. Prayer mentally rests Muslims.


3. In what ways does the practice of zakat influence Muslims as a community of faith? In other words, what does this practice say about the Muslim community and its commitment to the poor and marginalized?

The practice of zakat shows that Muslims are a people of giving. Muslims have made a commitment to helping their fellow human beings by donating 1/40 of their total income to the poor. This may seem small but with millions of Muslims doing this the whole world can benefit from their example.


4. How does the practice of sawm both mentally and physically help a Muslim to live in obedience to the will of Allah?


I must say that the pillar of sawm is my favorite pillar because it is the one that I am most intrigued by. Sawm is fasting. I find especially admirable that Muslims fast during Ramadan to personally experience what it feels like to be hungry. This is both a mental and physical way Muslims live in obedience to the will of Allah.


5. Why do you think that the hajj is a pillar of the Islamic faith? How is this practice similar and different from other world religions?

I believe that the hajj is a pillar of Islamic faith because Muhammad performed a hajj known as the hijra. Also, Muslims pry to the kabba in Mecca everyday therefore it is only fitting to visit the center of their faith. This practice is similar to other world religions because all religions have holy sites and all world religions have pilgrims. It is different from other world religions because unlike Christians going to St. Peter's Basilica and walking around, Muslims go to Mecca for many days with specific events for each day and all rituals must be done correctly.

6. What do you think are some of the challenges of practicing a life in relationship to the Five Pillars?

Some challenges to living a life in relationship to the five pillars would be finding time to practice salat. In such a busy world where we barely have enough time to ourselves I believe that it would be hard to find time to pray five times a day at specific times. Another challenge would be taking the hajj because it is very expensive to travel to Saudi Arabia.