The two-part Islamic testimony of faith (Shahada) includes firstly the confession to the one God (Allah) and secondly to Mohammed as God’s messenger. Islam is thus strictly monotheistic and prophetic, stands in contrast to polytheism and religious ideas, which do not recognize the appearance of prophets as divine messengers, and is ultimately based on an independent biblical view of the world and people. God is the creator and sustainer of all being; he is omnipotent, omniscient and merciful, the judge of his creatures on the last day after the resurrection. It is completely transcendent and cannot be represented by people, although it also has anthropomorphic features in the Koran. Throughout history he has sent prophets to various peoples; these proclaimed revealed messages in the respective mother tongue. Their content was essentially always the same: a call to believe in the one God, Reminder to obedience to God’s commandments, warning of God’s punishments in this world and in the hereafter for continued sinful action. Figures from the biblical tradition are recognized as prophets. B. Adam, Noah (Arabic Nuh), Abraham (Arabic Ibrahim), Mose (Arabic Musa) and Jesus Christ (Arabic Isa Ibn Maryam or Isa al-Masih), but also people who have only been handed down in the Koran, such as Shu’aib (e.g. Suras 7, 85; 29, 36). According to the Koranic view, Judaism and Christianity were founded by books of revelation which were brought on by prophets; however, Jews and Christians have falsified their respective revelations. However, they enjoy the special status of “writers” (Ahl al-Kitab) who, according to Islamic law, are allowed to maintain their religion under Muslim rule in return for payment of special taxes, exercise it with restrictions and live according to their norms.
According to gradinmath.com, Islam refers to Abraham as a real, devoted monotheist (Muslim), who with his son Ismael (Arabic Isma’il) rebuilt the sanctuary of the Kaaba in Mecca and introduced the rituals of pilgrimage. Mohammed did not see himself as a herald of a new religion, but as a restorer of the monotheistic religion of Abraham. According to the Koran, which Muslims regard as the word of God, Mohammed is the “seal of the prophets”, i. H. the confirmer of all earlier revelations and at the same time the bearer of the final and thus from now on binding for all people. For Muslims there can be no more prophets after Mohammed.
In addition to the two basic doctrines of the one God and his messenger Mohammed, Islam includes belief in prophets and revelations, angels and spirits as well as in the Last Judgment, in the resurrection and the reward or punishment of people. In addition, there is also a general belief in divine predestination for both good and bad (predestination).
According to the Koran, man is endowed with special dignity by God as his representative (Arabic chalifa; hence caliph). In spite of his maladministration, he is by nature neither sin nor corrupt. Therefore he does not need any redemption. Islamic morality emphasizes the moral responsibility of the individual who will be held accountable by God at the Last Judgment and who will end up in Paradise or Hellfire after his actions, but can also hope for the mercy and justice of God. In Islam, irrespective of their subordinate social and legal status, women basically have the same religious duties and opportunities for salvation as men. According to Revelation, all people are equally obliged to live their lives according to God’s rules. Islam knows neither the sacramental mediation of salvation nor a special priesthood. The entirety of God-willed behavior, which is primarily derived from the Koran and the tradition of the prophets (Hadith) is contained in Islamic law, the Sharia, which has been arranged and worked out in detail by scribes and legal scholars. In addition to legal norms in the narrower sense, it includes v. a. detailed cult regulations, but also moral norms and rules of interpersonal behavior. Living in accordance with Sharia law has always been a major obligation for Muslims. As a result, Islam received in a special way and v. a. outwardly the character of a religion of the law, in which right action is valued higher than orthodoxy. Against the dangers of a formalized understanding of religion, v. a. ascetic and mystical currents in Islam repeatedly highlighted its spiritual dimensions. In general, a harmonization of normative and spiritual aspects was then sought.
The “five pillars” (Arabic arcane) of Islam are the cultic duties incumbent on every Muslim: pronouncing the testimony of faith (“There is no deity except God [Allah] and Muhammad is the Messenger of God”) five times a day The ritual prayer to be performed (Salat), the compulsory contribution or alms tax (Zakat), the fasting in the month of Ramadan and the pilgrimage to Mecca in the last month of the Islamic year (Hajj). The believers have to perform the rituals in a state of cultic purity and with a clear intention. Food standards also prohibit the consumption of blood, carrion and pork, as well as anything that can be intoxicating. Gambling and extramarital sexual intercourse are also prohibited. Radical groups have also brought jihad close to basic religious obligations. In practicing religion, Muslims emphasize the community of believers without ignoring individual forms.