Five Pillars

Posted on May 7, 2004 in Myths & Mysticism

Islam speaks of five “pillars” which all believers must hold in to be a member of the religion and the community. In the last two years, I have heard many claim that the belief in jihad is essential to Muslim belief. The Five Pillars make no insistance that people kill for the faith. What they do ask is this:

1. That you declare that there is no God but Allah and Mohammed is his prophet.
   
2. That you pray five times a day.
   
3. That you share your wealth with the needy. (For most Muslims, this means 2.5 % of one’s wealth each year.)
   
4. That you fast from dawn to dusk during Ramadan.
   
5. That, if you are able, you make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in your life.

As in Christianity, culture has played a role in distorting the message of Islam. It does not serve to identify Islam as an “evil religion” except to attempt to replace it for the purpose of enlarging the coffers of Christian simonists and others who want Muslims to worship (or not worship) in their way.

One should fight with Muslims as one should fight with Christians: return to the roots of the religion and ask them why they are perverting it with hatred. Our goal should not be to eradicate Islam, but to provoke the compassion upon which the true religion is founded.