Islamic belief is based on the following six fundamental articles of faith:

Belief in God.   This includes the following beliefs:

• Belief in God’s existence. The existence of man and the entire universe is not a mere accident or the product of chance. This universe and everything that is in it manifests and points to the realization of a Creator.

• Belief that God is the Creator, the Sustainer, the Owner of the Universe and its contents, the provider of everything, the Giver of life and the Causer of death.

• Belief that God is the only One who has the right to be worshipped.

• Belief in God’s names and attributes which befit His Majesty. He does not resemble His creation, God says in the Qur’an: “There is nothing like Him”

 

Belief in the Angels

Angels are creatures created by God for specific functions in this  world. They are normally invisible and they have no free will; they do as  God commands them. They are not to be worshipped. Angel Gabriel was responsible for conveying the revelation to the prophets. Two angels are  assigned to every human being to record their good and evil deeds. Another  angel accompanies each human being encouraging him/her to do good deeds. Others blow the human spirit into the fetus when it reaches the end of the fourth month and others take the human spirit at the time of its death by God’s permission. There are other angels that have other responsibilities too many to enumerate in this small booklet.12

 

Belief in the Scriptures

This article of faith refers to belief in all the scriptures revealed by God to His messengers in their original form. These scriptures form the enlightenment which the messengers received to show their people the right path of God. All the revealed books call to the worship of God alone and avoidance of worshipping other than Him or others besides Him. However, due to the difference between nations in time and locations, there was some difference in the canonical teachings (Law) between scriptures according to the wisdom of God. Muslims believe in the previous books mentioned in the Qur’an: the books of Abraham (Suhuf), the Scripture of Moses (Torah), the Psalms of David (Zaboor) and the Gospel of Prophet Jesus (Al-Injeel). However, long before the advent of Prophet Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon him), they had all been lost or distorted by later generations over the centuries. They were polluted with myths, superstitions, idolatry and irrational philosophical beliefs, carrying contradicting thoughts. Hence, the original scriptures are no longer in existence. A brief historical review, for example, of the evolution of Christianity from pure monotheism into tritheism within the first 400 years after Jesus’ departure clearly illustrates this  process of degeneration.13

 

The Qur’an

 However, God, the Most Compassionate, didn’t leave man to go astray without an unadulterated reference. Indeed, He revealed the Qur’an  and promised to preserve it as the final revelation for humankind for all times. It is the word of God which He revealed to Prophet Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon him) through the Angel Gabriel. It was revealed in parts over a period of 23 years. The Prophet Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon him) dictated the revelation to his companions who wrote it down during his lifetime on palm leaves, parchments, bones, flat stones, etc. In addition, the Qur’an was committed to heart by many of Prophet Muhammad’s companions. One year after the death of Prophet Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon him), the first Caliph, Abu- Bakr, instructed the Prophet’s companions to collect the whole Qur’an in one volume. The third Caliph, Uthman, prepared several copies from the original text and sent them to the major centers of Islamic Civilization. From that time onwards, more than 1400 years ago, the same Qur’anic text has been in use with the exact wording, order and language (Arabic). Not a single word from its 114 chapters has been changed since it was revealed. Indeed, God promised in the Qur’an to preserve it forever.

He said: “Verily, I have sent down the Qur’an, and indeed, I will guard it from corruption.”14 (15:9)

An essential point to understand about the Qur’an is that it is a miracle both in its revelation and content. At the time of the revelation and  since, there have been those who have denied the divine and miraculous nature of the Qur’an saying that Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon him) was either taught by others or that he wrote it by himself! In order to counteract this claim, God lays down a challenge to the whole of humankind saying:

“ If you are in doubt concerning what I have  revealed to My slave (Muhammad), then produce one chapter like it  and you may call on your helpers beside Allah, if you are truthful.”

(2:23) These are from the prophecies which the Qur’an foretold as no one from the time of the Prophet (mercy and peace of God be upon him) until this day has been able to produce the like of one chapter or even a verse of the Qur’an.

 Belief in the Messengers of God

This article of faith addresses the belief that God conveyed His message through selected human beings. These individuals, called prophets and messengers, were selected by God to be examples of how the scriptures were to be understood and implemented. God sent to every nation a prophet(s) to convey the message that He alone was to be worshipped and any thing worshipped along with Him or besides Him is false. The Qur’an mentions the names of only twenty-five of the prophets while indicating that many others were not mentioned by name. The first of these prophets was Adam and the last was Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon them all). Every prophet was sent to a specific people for specific periods of time except Prophet Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon him) who was sent to all people until the Final Hour. The proofs that Muhammad (mercy and peace of God be upon him) was a messenger of God are more than a thousand; all are mentioned in his biography. The greatest proof is the miracle of the Qur’an, which couldn’t have been conveyed but by a messenger. Indeed, mention of Prophet Muhammad’s coming can be found in the books of the Bible in spite of the changes which have taken place in their texts (See Deut. 18:18, 18:15; Isaiah 29:12; Songs of Solomon 5:16; John 16:12-14 & John 14: 15-16).

 

Belief in the Last Day

Islam teaches that this life is but a test of conduct for man to see whether or not he will follow the commands of God. In the Hereafter, people will be resurrected and stand before God for a just reckoning of their worldly deeds and actions. People with good deeds will be generously rewarded and warmly welcomed to the heavens of God. However, those with bad records will be punished and cast into Hell. People have been given knowledge of right and wrong, instinctively and through revelation, and they must choose their path in this short life. Their choices in this life will ultimately determine their places in the eternal life to come. God says in the Qur’an:

“Whosoever has done an atom’s weight of good will see it, and whosoever has done an atom’s weight of evil will see it.”

(99:7-8) Belief in the Day of Judgment implants in man’s heart the consciousness of God, impelling man and society at large to obey Him sincerely without any external pressure.

 

The Belief in Predestination  It includes the belief in the following:

1.  God knows everything. His knowledge is not bound by time. Past, present and future are all known to Him.
2.  Everything which takes place is already written in a book called: The Preserved Tablet.
3.  God has created everything, including the actions of people, the good and the bad, but He commanded people to do good deeds and forbade them from doing evil.
4.  One must believe that everything that happens in this Universe is happening with God’s permission, and nothing can take place against His will.

It should be noted that God’s prior knowledge of things does not mean that human beings have no choice. Human beings choose, but God knows their choices prior to their choosing and action.