A brief introduction to some facts about Islam, followed by a description of life in Arabia before Islam.

1. Islam Introduction
Robert D. Patton
Missionary to Suriname

2. Islam – Introduction:
Pre-Islamic ArabiaPrayer

3. Islam
 Rapidly growing religion
 Dominates in 52 countries
 Total population of Islam – about
1,000,000,000 – 1/6 world population
 Only 20% in middle east.
 The largest Muslim country is Indonesia

4. Muslim Population Worldwide

5. Islam
 Rapidly growing in Europe – now the second
largest religion in Europe
 However, only a small percentage of
missionaries have been working with Muslims

6. Islam
 Expanded from Arabia into both eastern and
western Europe for centuries
 Dominated North Africa, the middle east and
Central Asia
 Extended to Indonesia, Philippine Islands

7. Islam
 It is tied with 7th century Arabian culture,
and is a deification of that culture.
 You cannot separate the culture and the
religion – they are tied together in politics,
family structure, food, clothing, religious
rites, etc.
 Ideal – live like Muhammed; make the whole
world Islamic

8. Islam – submit
 Islam = submission of body and soul to Allah
 Muslim = those who submit
 Pre-Arabian – one who submits even knowing
that they will die (Fighting in the Alamo). The
hero dies
 Difference – in Christianity, He died for us

9. Islam – submit
 Terrorists in the eyes of many Muslims are true
Muslim heroes who die for their faith
 Caliph = successor; but they are also Amirs, or
military leaders

10. Islam – Arabian Culture
Before Muhammad
Dr. Robert Patton
Missionary to Suriname, South America

11. Arabia ArabiaMuhammad
 Land area 1/3 size of continental USA
 Dry, little rain or agriculture
 Nomadic life – Bedouins
 Tribe run by head of families – sheik
 Moved their herds – also plundered caravans

12. Pre-Islamic Arabia
 No real government – and no law and order
 Major restraint is fear of reprisals & vendettas
 Only protection was from the tribe
 Thus strong family ties

13. Arabian law
 Tribe would protect their members, even when
they had committed a crime
 Failure to protect was despised
 ‘asabyya – tribal spirit – dominated
 Similar to many primarily oral cultures

14. Warfare
 Ceaseless warfare – intertribal warfare
controlled the population
 War was a “dangerous sport”, a chance to show
their skill at archery, the sword, riding the
horse
 Heroism & glory for the tribe

15. Plundering caravans
 A way of life
 Often paid off for protection
 Manslaughter – blood for blood. You paid back
with their blood, or occasionally with
property…

16. Code of ethics
 Muru’ah – manly virtue, with duty, devotion to
what must be done
 Sometimes men would join other groups for
profit or to avoid restrictions

17. Code of ethics
 Conflicting statements about women –
 some said they were free with minimal restrictions;
 others say that they were virtual slaves

18. Arab characteristics
 Many described as arrogant, conceit, boastful,
vindictive
 Love of plunder
 Lack of political discipline until Islam
 The leader in a fight was leader only till the end
of the fight, and sharing of booty
 Drunkenness common

19. Women
 Sometimes buried female infants alive
 Women were sex objects
 If a man died, his son inherited his wives,
except for his own mother

20. Women
 No limitation to number of wives
 Many women were prostitutes and flew flags
over their dwellings

21. Desert life
 Women were a liability financially
 Infant babies were often buried alive

22. Marriage – 4 types
 As now – betrothal, dowry and marriage
 Nikah al-istibda Husband sends a wife to
another man, first making sure she is not
pregnant, and holds himself from her until she
is pregnant from another man. He did that to
seek a noble child.

23. Marriage – 4 types
 Marriage considered raht – woman visited by
less than 10 men. She would call the men and
name the father; they could not refuse
 Prostitution – she would call a person to decide
who most likely was the father; he could not
refuse
 Muhammad eliminated the last 3 types