As Islam spread around the world after its inception in the 7th century, different muslim communities experienced unique circumstances that resulted in distinctive histories, languages, religious practices, customs, and culture. This lesson will draw from theoretical frameworks introduced in the Globalization & Diaspora lesson to address diversity within global Islam today.
Objectives:
- identify different Islamic communities worldwide
- recognize modern Islam as a global collection of different Muslim communities
- situate a contemporary Muslim community within its unique social and historical context using terms and concepts from Globalization & Diaspora Studies.
Global
There are approximately 1.6 billion Muslim people worldwide with the largest populations in Indonesia, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. Some experts estimate that almost half of Africa’s population identify themselves as Muslim, and more than one million people in Canada, three million in Great Britain and six to seven million in the United States identify as Muslim.
Two major branches Sunni and Shi’a
All Muslim people recognize the authority of the Mohammed as the last Prophet. Yet, Sunni Muslims accept that the first four caliphs were the true successors to Muhammad, and Shiite Muslims believe that only the caliph Ali and his descendants are the real successors to Muhammad. Shiites deny the legitimacy of the first three caliphs. Today, Shiite Muslims have a considerable presence in Iran, Iraq and Syria, and Sunnis make up nearly 90 percent of Muslims worldwide. Divisions between the two groups informs sectarian conflict today. To learn more, watch the video below
Wahhabi: This Sunni sect, made up of members of the Tameem tribe in Saudi Arabia, was founded in the 18th century. Followers observe an extremely strict interpretation of Islam that was taught by Muhammad bin Abd al-Wahhab.
Alawite: This Shiite form of Islam is prevalent in Syria. Followers hold similar beliefs about the caliph Ali but also observe some Christian and Zoroastrian holidays.
Nation of Islam
The Nation of Islam, abbreviated NOI, is a predominantly African American political and religious movement, founded in Detroit, Michigan by Wallace D. Fard Muhammad on July 4, 1930. Today, the core membership is estimated to be between 20,000 and 50,000. Its stated goals are to improve the spiritual, mental, social, and economic condition of African Americans in the United States and all of humanity. Its official newspaper is The Final Call. (It should be noted that the Southern Poverty Law Center tracks the NOI as a hate group.) To learn more, visit the official website, https://www.noi.org/ , and watch the video below.
Kharijites: This sect broke from the Shiites after disagreeing over how to select a new leader. They are known for radical fundamentalism, and today are called Ibadis.
Sufism
Sufism is a mystical Islamic belief and practice in which Muslims seek to find the truth of divine love and knowledge through direct personal experience of God. It consists of a variety of mystical paths that are designed to ascertain the nature of humanity and of God and to facilitate the experience of the presence of divine love and wisdom in the world. Islamic mysticism is called taṣawwuf (literally, “to dress in wool”) in Arabic, but it has been called Sufism in Western languages since the early 19th century. An abstract word, Sufism derives from the Arabic term for a mystic, ṣūfī, which is in turn derived from ṣūf, “wool,” plausibly a reference to the woollen garment of early Islamic ascetics. The Sufis are also generally known as “the poor,” fuqarāʾ, plural of the Arabic faqīr, in Persian darvīsh, whence the English words fakir and dervish. to learn more, watch the documentary on sufism below.
Readings:
- Islam in Africa
- Islam and Islamic Groups: A Worldwide Reference Guide
- Islamic Relief worldwide
- Muslims & Islam, Pew Research
- The Four Sunni Schools of Thought
- Mapping the Global Muslim Population, Pew Research
Writing Assignment: To analyze and understand diversity within contemporary Islam, select a contemporary Muslim community and use terms and concepts from the Globalization & Diaspora lesson to situate it within its unique social and historical circumstances in order to contextualize how the community is different from others. The community can be a local mosque or religious group, a political association, a cultural group, online community, etc.
- Select a unique Muslim community.
- Locate scholarly sources about the community.
- Identify how the community is different from other Muslim communities
- Review the history of the community to determine how the unique characteristics emerged (ie diaspora, ideological movements, interactions with other religions and cultures, etc. )
- Develop a thesis statement
- Organize data and write body paragraphs to support the statement (cite in-text)
- Write Introduction and Conclusion
- Format sources.
(700 words and at least two scholarly sources properly formatted and cited in text; post in discussion, and respond to at least two other student posts)