Towards Understanding Islam

Allah

       From the Arabic words for "the" (al) and "god" (ilah) came the proper noun Allah (el'-eh) which is the focus of Islam.  The equivalent of "God" in the English language, and "Dios" in Spanish, the Arabic term "Allah" is used by Muslims and Arab Christians to address the Deity.  Allah is the God; not a God, for there is only one.  Whereas "God" is a very vague term in English and can be used by different people to signify different things¾even among Christians the word can imply a deity either akin or separate from the concept of Trinity¾according to the teachings of the Quran and the sayings (sunna) of the Prophet Muhammad, the name "Allah" has a very specific usage.

       1400 years ago when word spread that there was a man in Arabia claiming prophethood, there came to Mecca many people seeking Muhammad.  It was upon the inquiry of the nature of Allah by a Christian deputation that the chapter of the Quran entitled The Purity of Faith was revealed:

[O ye who believe] proclaim that He1 [God] is Allah, the one and only; Allah, who is the eternal and absolute.  He begets not, nor was He begotten, and there is nothing to compare unto Him.  [Quran 112:1-4]

The Quran often refutes the notions of the Jews, Christians, and pagans of seventh century Arabia and today.  Islam takes strong exception to the Christian tenet that God begot a Son (John 3:16), and countless passages of the Quran are directed at suppressing this idea; virtually every time Jesus is mentioned in the Quran, he is designated as "Christ Jesus, the son of Mary", implying that Jesus is not to be designated as the son of God.  The strictly monotheistic ideals which Muhammad propagated are reflected in the second chapter of the holy book of Islam:

Allah!  There is no god but He, the living, the self-sustaining, the eternal.  Slumber seizes Him not, nor does He sleep.  His are all things in the heavens and the earth... and He feels no fatigue in guarding them, for He is the most high and supreme in glory.  [Quran 2:255]

In this passage the Quran also identifies its displeasure with the Judeo-Christian doctrine that God rested on the seventh day of Creation (Genesis 2:2).

       The Quran is very particular in its portrayal of Allah as an absolute, all-knowing, all-powerful, and ever-present God.  Among the passages which best represent the concept of God in Islam is this verse from the 59th chapter (sura):

He [God] is Allah, besides whom there is no other god; it is He who knows all things both hidden and exposed; He is most gracious and most merciful.  He is Allah, besides whom there is no other god; He is the sovereign, the holy one, the source of peace and perfection, the guardian of faith, the preserver of safety, the exalted in might, the irresistible and supreme.  Glory be to Allah!  High is He above the partners which they [those who believe in divine Trinities] ascribe to Him!  He is Allah, the creator, evolver, and perfector.  To Him belong the most beautiful of names; all that is in the heavens and the earth does declare His praise and glory.  He is the exalted in might, the wise.  [Quran 59:22-24]

The 59th sura contains only a few of the Ninety-Nine Divine Attributes of the Quran.  These famous names are the collection of terms¾such as "the most gracious", "the supreme", etc.¾which are found throughout the Quran and Traditions of the Prophet in reference to God.  The Divine Attributes of the Holy Quran supplement the passages from suras 2, 59, and 112, and provide a comprehensive definition to the Scripture's only divine proper noun, Allah.

       One of the peculiarities of the Holy Quran is that it never refers to Allah as "Father".  Allah alone knows the wisdom in this, but some of the reasons are perhaps obvious.  Although it is a beautiful attribute, the word "father", when used as a reference to God, conjures up earthly pictures; together with "Son" and "begotten", the term attributes to God Almighty the lower animal function of sex.  Moreover, "Father" has assumed strong connotations of Christianity.  When a person speaks of God as the Father, one inevitably speaks of the Son and Holy Ghost, as well.  However, the concept of a God manifested in three different