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Misconception: Muhammad (PBUH) Wrote The Quran

In addressing this misconception, it is interesting to note that no other religious scripture claims the direct word of Almighty in toto as clearly and as often as the Holy Qur’an. As the Qur’an clearly says: “If had been written by man, you would have found many discrepancies therein”. At the time the Qur’an was revealed, the Arabs recognized that the language of the Qur’an was unique and that it was distinctly different from the language normally used by the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. The Arabs of that time, by the way, were known for their beautiful poetry and Muhammad was known to be an illiterate man! The Qur’an clearly says that Muhammad was unable to read and write, so if this wasn’t true, certainly his contemporaries would have protested and rejected him. However, there are no reports of this. Certainly, there were people who rejected Muhammad’s message, just like other prophets were rejected, but none for this reason. On the contrary, Muhammad, peace be upon him, had thousands of loyal followers and the results of their efforts spread Islam from Spain to China in just over a century! It is also interesting to note that even though the Qur’an is not poetry, the Arabs more or less gave up writing poetry after it was revealed. It could be said that the Qur’an is the piece of Arabic literature par excellence – and Muhammad’s contemporaries realized that they couldn’t outdo it. Additionally, it is easy to prove that Muhammad did not possess a great deal of the knowledge that is expounded in the Qur’an: such as knowledge of historical events, previous prophets, and natural phenomena. The Qur’an says in several places that Muhammad and his people did not know these things – so, again, if this wasn’t true, certainly his contemporaries would have rejected his claims. Suffice it to say that not only is the Qur’an the most memorized and well-preserved scripture on earth, but it is also unequaled in eloquence, spiritual impact, clarity of message, and the purity of its truth.

Misconception: Islam Degrades Women

Even though many aspects of Islam are misunderstood by non-Muslims, the ignorance, misinformation, and incorrect assumptions that are made in regard to Islam’s treatment of women are probably the most severe. Numerous verses of the Qur’an make it clear that men and women are equal in the sight of God. According to the teachings of Islam, the only thing that distinguishes people in the site of God is their level of God-consciousness. Due to this, many people are surprised to find out that Islamic Law guaranteed rights to women over 1400 years ago which women in Europe and America only obtained recently. For example, Islam clearly teaches that a woman is a full-person under the law, and is the spiritual equal of a male. Also, according to Islamic Law, women have the right to own property, operate a business, and receive equal pay for equal work. Women are allowed total control of their wealth, they cannot be married against their will and they are allowed to keep their own name when married.

Additionally, they have the right to inherit property and to have their marriage dissolved in the case of neglect or mistreatment. Also, Islam does not consider women an “evil temptress”, and thus does not blame women for the “original sin”. Women in Islam participate in all forms of worship that men participate in. Actually, the rights that Islam gave to women over 1400 years ago were almost unheard of in the West until the 1900s. Less than fifty years ago in England and America, a woman could not buy a house or car without the co-signature of her father or husband!

Additionally, Islam gives great respect to women and their role in society — it gives them the right to own property, marry who they want, and many other rights. Also, it should be mentioned that the Prophet Muhammad’s mission stopped many of the horrible practices in regard to women that were present in the society of his time. For example, the Qur’an put an end to the pagan Arab practice of killing their baby daughters when they were born.

Additionally, Islam put restrictions on the unrestricted polygamy of the Arabs of the time and put many laws in place to protect the well-being of women. Today, most of the so-called reforms in the status of women came about after the West abandoned religion for secularism. Even those in the West who claim to follow the so-called “Judeo-Christian tradition” really follow the values of Western liberalism — but just to a lesser degree than their more liberal countrymen. The Myth and The Reality. If women in the Muslim World today don’t have their rights, it is not because Islam did not give them to them. The problem is that in many places alien traditions have come to overshadow the teachings of Islam, either through ignorance or the impact of Colonialization.

Misconception: Islam Is A Religion Only For Arabs

The fastest way to prove that this is entirely false is to state the fact that only about 15% to 20% of the Muslims in the world are Arabs. There are more Indian Muslims than Arab Muslims and more Indonesian Muslims than Indian Muslims! Believing that Islam is only a religion for Arabs is a myth that was spread by the enemies of Islam early in its history. This mistaken assumption is possibly based on the fact that most of the first generation of Muslims were Arabs, the Qur’an is in Arabic and the Prophet Muhammad was an Arab. However, both the teachings of Islam and the history of its spread show that the early Muslims made every effort to spread their message of Truth to all nations, races, and peoples. Furthermore, it should be clarified that not all Arabs are Muslims, and not all Muslims are Arabs. An Arab can be a Muslim, Christian, Jew, atheist – or of any other religion or ideology. Also, many countries that some people consider to be “Arab” are not “Arab” at all — such as Turkey and Iran (Persia). The people who live in these countries speak languages other than Arabic as their native tongue and are of a different ethnic heritage than the Arabs. It is important to realize that from the very beginning of the mission of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, his followers came from a wide spectrum of individuals — there was Bilal, the African slave; Suhaib, the Byzantine Roman; Ibn Salam, the Jewish Rabbi; and Salman, the Persian. Since religious truth is eternal and unchanging, and mankind is one universal brotherhood, Islam teaches that Almighty God’s revelations to mankind have always been consistent, clear, and universal. The Truth of Islam is meant for all people regardless of race, nationality, or linguistic background. Taking a look at the Muslim World, from Nigeria to Bosnia and from Malaysia to Afghanistan is enough to prove that Islam is a Universal message for all of mankind — not to mention the fact that significant numbers of Europeans and Americans of all races and ethnic backgrounds are coming into Islam.

Misconception: Muslims Worship Muhammad (PBUH)

According to Islamic belief, the Prophet Muhammad was the last Messenger of God. He, like all of God’s prophets and messengers – such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus — was only a human being. Christians came to the mistaken assumption that Muslims worship Muhammad by formulating an incorrect analogy – they worship Jesus so they assumed Muslims worship Muhammad. This is one of the reasons that they called Muslims by the incorrect name “Mohammedans” for so many years! Muhammad, like Jesus, never claimed divine status. He called people to worship only Almighty God, and he continually emphasized his humanity so that people would not fall into the same errors as Christians did in regard to Jesus. In order to prevent his deification, the Prophet Muhammad always said to refer to him as “the Messenger of God and His slave”. Muhammad was chosen to be God’s final messenger — to communicate the message not only in words but to be a living example of the message. Muslims love and respect him because he was of the highest moral character and he brought the Truth from God – which is the Pure Monotheism of Islam. Even when Islam was in its very early stages, God revealed that Muhammad “was sent as a mercy to all of mankind” – thus informing us that the message of Islam would become very widespread. Muslims strive to follow the great example of Muhammad, peace be upon him, but they do not worship him in any way. Additionally, Islam teaches Muslims to respect all of God’s prophets and messengers – but respecting and loving them does not mean worshipping them. All true Muslims realize that all worship and prayer must be directed to Almighty Allah alone. Suffice it to say that worshipping Muhammad — or anyone else — along with Almighty Allah is considered to be the worst sin in Islam. Even if a person claims to be Muslim, but they worship and pray to other than Almighty Allah, this cancels and nullifies their Islam. The Declaration of Faith of Islam makes it clear that Muslims are taught only to worship God. This declaration is as follows: “There is nothing divine or worthy of being worshipped except for Almighty Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger and Servant of God”.

Misconception: Muslims Worship A Different God

First of all, there is only One God who created the Universe and all of mankind. Throughout history, people have created false gods in their minds and come up with false ideas about Almighty God, but regardless of this there is still only One True God – and He alone is worthy of worship. Unfortunately, some non-Muslims have come to incorrectly believe that Muslims worship a different God than Jews and Christians. This might be due to the fact that Muslims sometimes refer to God as “Allah”, but also because over the centuries there have been many lies and distortions spread by the enemies of Islam. In actuality, Muslims worship the God of Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus — the same God as Christians and Jews. The word “Allah” is simply the Arabic word for Almighty God and it is the same word that Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews use to refer to God. If you pick up an Arabic translation of the Christian Bible, you will see the word “Allah” where “God” is used in English. For more information on the word “Allah”, please read: Who is Allah? But even though Muslims, Jews, and Christians believe in the same God, their concepts about Him differ quite a bit. For example, Muslims reject the idea of the Trinity or that God has become “incarnate” in the world. Also, the teachings of Islam do not rely on or appeal to “mystery” or “paradox” — they are straightforward and clear. Islam teaches that God is Merciful, Loving, and Compassionate and that He has no need to become man (nor do humans need for Him to). One of the unique aspects of Islam is that it teaches that man can have a personal and fulfilling relationship with Almighty God without compromising the transcendence of God. In Islam there is no ambiguity in Divinity — God is God and man is man. Muslims believe that God is the “Most Merciful”, and that he deals directly with human-beings without the need of any intermediary. Actually, the phrase “In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful” is one of the most repeated verses in the Holy Qur’an. Additionally, the pure and straightforward teachings of Islam demand that Almighty God be approached directly and without intermediaries. This is because Muslims believe that God is completely in control of everything and that He can bestow His Grace and Mercy on His creatures as He pleases – no Atonement, Incarnation or blood sacrifice is necessary. In summary, Islam calls people to submit to the One True God and to worship Him alone.