Islam : The LARGEST 'practiced' faith of the world?

[FearGod]

Well hi ,

So which is the largest "practiced" faith of the world? Numerically , Christianity is number one...but does it hold most influence on the globe? I think not.

I think that Islam has now become the largest practiced faith of the globe. Whereever Islam exists , it plays a central role in the society. Even secular Turks are very practicing Muslims generally. On the other hand , Christianity in the Europe is almost a dead religion. No one really cares about it or its teachings. Westerners are 'least practicing' people , according to the Gallop Survey on religiosity.

Even Adherents.com says that they have no reason to reject the assertion that there are more practicing Muslims than practicing Christians..

Also , even in the West , Muslims are way more practicing than Christians. There are way more 'practicing Muslims' by % than practicing Christians in most Western countries

So in the light of all these facts , I think that today , Islam is the most influential religion of mankind ...

It has become the largest practiced global faith of the planet...

What is your say on this?

i do agree Islam is the largest practiced religion, the pictures are stronger than words

 

[Trey of Diamonds]

What does it matter?

 

[teeta01]

What does it matter?

Nothing , I just wanted to look at it from a different perspective.

Christianity is considered to be the largest faith of the world..but in reality , it is Islam now ...Atleast , thats what I thought and hence opened this thread...

 

[teeta01]

Is Islam practiced more than Hinduism? I'm not sure.

It is. Islam is an organized religion that is present almost EVERYWHERE on the globe... Even Argentina in South America has a community of over 1 million Muslims or so...and over-whelming majority of Muslims practice their faith and Islam plays a central role in its followers' lives...So hence I would conclude that Islam is practiced more than any other religion...Hinduism included.

Also 'Christian' is a very generic term. There are Christian societies who are very traditional, while some nations specifically in western Europe have become much more loose in religious tradition.

I know...

Also, there is no monolithic Islamic influence over the world at the moment, as the 'Muslim Ummah' is highly divided and ripe with civil wars and strife between different Muslim nations.

I know...though "civil wars" is a bit over-blown part of your post. Out of 57 Islamic countries or so..how many are facing a civil war? Uhh Iraq (thanks to invasion) , Syria , Afghanistan ( a global war) , and probably Sudan etc?

I

f you look at Islamic global influence, the record is not flattering either, as many of the strongest Islamic nations are dependent on the US, others have been invaded by western coalitions. Etc. the situation is far from how you present it.

What do you mean? I wasn't talking about political influence etc. I just said that Islam is the largest practiced faith of the world now. It doesn't mean that I was saying something like "Islam is ruling the world" etc ...I guess you misunderstood the purpose of my thread.

In addition, what does 'most practiced' accomplish for you? perhaps another perspective is that other religions adapt?

I'm not a Muslim :no:

 

[teeta01]

Plus : I have edited my OP ...

 

[PMderry]

I don't know that I agree. I think that Islam has particular commandments that are practiced daily, by even Muslims who have no relationship with God. We have a rule and a ritual for almost everything: Step with your right foot into doors, eat with this hand, wipe with this hand, dont wear nailpolish because of this, wear this outfit becuase of this, pray at this time, say these words at this time, etc. But these things dont really make someone a Muslim.

My grandmother is a wonderfully devout Christian and shared with me a great point that her pastor made this last Sunday at church, and coincidently enough, I had been reflecting on the same thing even before she mentioned it. 60% of Americans call themselves Christians. How many of us can say that 60% of Americans are actually having a living relationship with Christ, though? Definitely not 60%. The number of Christians who have an actual living relationship with Christ is probably much smaller than those who say they are Christians. The same thing applies to Muslims. I think that many Muslims have a relationship with Islam, but how many of us have a relationship with God? The two are not one and the same. Following Islam, praying 5 times a day, eating zabiha, wearing hijab, growing a beard, going on hajj, fasting during Ramadan, paying zakat, etc. are all things that one can do without faith. How many of us pray our daily salah and actually FOCUS on God during those prayers? I can be the first one to raise my hand and say that I rarely ever focus on God during salah. I space out and think about anything BUT God. Most of that stems from the fact that I am not an Arabic speaker and, therefore, cannot focus on the words themselves and their meanings (which is why I find more peace when I am laying in bed just TALKING to God at night than when I am actually doing fajr prayer or maghrib or isha.)

Islam means surrender and having full submission to God. How many Muslims have done that? How many Muslims have a dialogue with God 1-on-1 every day? How many of us walk down the sidewalk and just talk to God in our heads? How many of us have an actual relationship with God Himself, and not just Islam as an organized faith?

Islam is a culture. It is not just a religion, it is a full out complete 100% way of life. When one converts to Islam, their entire life changes. This applies to ALL Muslims regardless of where they live. It may seem like these Muslims have a relationship with God, but just because they go through the motions and follow the rules doesnt mean they do. You can be the most "Muslim-looking" person on the outside and have absolutely no relationship with God at all on the inside. I was a Muslim for years before I developed a TRUE relationship with God.

So, no, I dont believe that Islam is the most practiced. I think that the culture of Islam is adhered to, but the actual relationship with God can be very lacking in the Muslim community--in ANY religious community. The Muslim community has countless faults, things that we wouldnt struggle with as much if we truly did have that love for God.

 

[Trey of Diamonds]

Nothing , I just wanted to look at it from a different perspective.

Christianity is considered to be the largest faith of the world..but in reality , it is Islam now ...Atleast , thats what I thought and hence opened this thread...

One thing you will find plenty of here is different perspectives.

 

[paarsurrey]

I don't know that I agree. I think that Islam has particular commandments that are practiced daily, by even Muslims who have no relationship with God. We have a rule and a ritual for almost everything: Step with your right foot into doors, eat with this hand, wipe with this hand, dont wear nailpolish because of this, wear this outfit becuase of this, pray at this time, say these words at this time, etc. But these things dont really make someone a Muslim.

My grandmother is a wonderfully devout Christian and shared with me a great point that her pastor made this last Sunday at church, and coincidently enough, I had been reflecting on the same thing even before she mentioned it. 60% of Americans call themselves Christians. How many of us can say that 60% of Americans are actually having a living relationship with Christ, though? Definitely not 60%. The number of Christians who have an actual living relationship with Christ is probably much smaller than those who say they are Christians. The same thing applies to Muslims. I think that many Muslims have a relationship with Islam, but how many of us have a relationship with God? The two are not one and the same. Following Islam, praying 5 times a day, eating zabiha, wearing hijab, growing a beard, going on hajj, fasting during Ramadan, paying zakat, etc. are all things that one can do without faith. How many of us pray our daily salah and actually FOCUS on God during those prayers? I can be the first one to raise my hand and say that I rarely ever focus on God during salah. I space out and think about anything BUT God. Most of that stems from the fact that I am not an Arabic speaker and, therefore, cannot focus on the words themselves and their meanings (which is why I find more peace when I am laying in bed just TALKING to God at night than when I am actually doing fajr prayer or maghrib or isha.)

Islam means surrender and having full submission to God. How many Muslims have done that? How many Muslims have a dialogue with God 1-on-1 every day? How many of us walk down the sidewalk and just talk to God in our heads? How many of us have an actual relationship with God Himself, and not just Islam as an organized faith?

Islam is a culture. It is not just a religion, it is a full out complete 100% way of life. When one converts to Islam, their entire life changes. This applies to ALL Muslims regardless of where they live. It may seem like these Muslims have a relationship with God, but just because they go through the motions and follow the rules doesnt mean they do. You can be the most "Muslim-looking" person on the outside and have absolutely no relationship with God at all on the inside. I was a Muslim for years before I developed a TRUE relationship with God.

So, no, I dont believe that Islam is the most practiced. I think that the culture of Islam is adhered to, but the actual relationship with God can be very lacking in the Muslim community--in ANY religious community. The Muslim community has countless faults, things that we wouldnt struggle with as much if we truly did have that love for God.

I agree with your above paragraph.
Reading and understanding Quran is having a conversation with God also in a sense.
Do you agree?

What religion you follow now?

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

One thing you will find plenty of here is different perspectives.

I don't think so ...

 

[Trey of Diamonds]

I don't think so ...

Sure you do, but I have noticed a lot of them are more quiet these days. Kind of sad really...

 

[PMderry]

I agree with your above paragraph.
Reading and understanding Quran is having a conversation with God also in a sense.
Do you agree?

What religion you follow now?

I sort of see the Qur'an as a phone conversation in which you can only hear one end. The Qur'an is God speaking to Muhammad and the only end of the line that we are getting is God's end. Thats why the Qur'an can be so difficult to interepret unless you know the background information of what was going on with Muhammad. God directly addresses issues that Muhammad deals with at that specific time which makes some parts of the Qur'an specific to THAT moment, and some parts of the Qur'an timeless.

So yes, in some ways I do agree that the Qur'an is like having a conversation with God, but I also believe that we can have regular conversations with God too. He answers, but He answers in our hearts and in our conscience and not in words through angels like He did with Muhammad. Reading Qur'an is spiritually fulfilling, but not even as spiritually fulfilling to me as simple prayer.

And my religion is still Islam. I simply meant that I followed Islam without having much of a relationship with God before. Now I follow God and Islam just naturally follows.

 

[paarsurrey]

I sort of see the Qur'an as a phone conversation in which you can only hear one end. The Qur'an is God speaking to Muhammad and the only end of the line that we are getting is God's end. Thats why the Qur'an can be so difficult to interepret unless you know the background information of what was going on with Muhammad. God directly addresses issues that Muhammad deals with at that specific time which makes some parts of the Qur'an specific to THAT moment, and some parts of the Qur'an timeless.

So yes, in some ways I do agree that the Qur'an is like having a conversation with God, but I also believe that we can have regular conversations with God too. He answers, but He answers in our hearts and in our conscience and not in words through angels like He did with Muhammad. Reading Qur'an is spiritually fulfilling, but not even as spiritually fulfilling to me as simple prayer.

And my religion is still Islam. I simply meant that I followed Islam without having much of a relationship with God before. Now I follow God and Islam just naturally follows.

Background information or the context of a verse is always mentioned in Quran; the context is often or always provided in some verses up and down of the verse in question.

 

[PMderry]

Background information or the context of a verse is always mentioned in Quran; the context is often or always provided in some verses up and down of the verse in question.

Thats not what I'm talking about. The verse's relationship with the surrounding verses is touched upon, but the goings on in the life of the Prophet is rarely mentioned. That is why so many verses in teh Qur'an are used improperly. People don't apply them to the past to see how they apply in the present and future.

A great example is that of polygamy. Polygamy is granted to our religion because of the extremely low living standards that divorced and widowed women had in Pre-Islamic Arabia. A divorced and widowed woman was stripped of all of her rights and fell to the responsibility of her mother in law. This is why the Prophet had 11 divorced and widowed wives and only 1 virgin. To set an example. The Qur'an simply says that men can have 4 wives, it doesnt say WHY. You must go back to the times and look for that yourself. There are plenty of other examples of things from the Qur'an that are used in todays world without any understanding of why they wre there in the first place. You must go back and understand the life of the Prophet to answer that question. Businss transactions needing more women per man is another example, tactics of war, even the very rules that the Qur'an demands of its followers have their roots in the goings on of the Prophet.

 

[paarsurrey]

Thats not what I'm talking about. The verse's relationship with the surrounding verses is touched upon, but the goings on in the life of the Prophet is rarely mentioned. That is why so many verses in teh Qur'an are used improperly. People don't apply them to the past to see how they apply in the present and future.

A great example is that of polygamy. Polygamy is granted to our religion because of the extremely low living standards that divorced and widowed women had in Pre-Islamic Arabia. A divorced and widowed woman was stripped of all of her rights and fell to the responsibility of her mother in law. This is why the Prophet had 11 divorced and widowed wives and only 1 virgin. To set an example. The Qur'an simply says that men can have 4 wives, it doesnt say WHY. You must go back to the times and look for that yourself. There are plenty of other examples of things from the Qur'an that are used in todays world without any understanding of why they wre there in the first place. You must go back and understand the life of the Prophet to answer that question. Businss transactions needing more women per man is another example, tactics of war, even the very rules that the Qur'an demands of its followers have their roots in the goings on of the Prophet.

Marrying more that one wife is not a commandment in Quran; and it is not a basic tenet of Islam.
So why go in the past?
If a situation arises that one has to marry more than one wife; the teaching is there in Quran as how to do it and how to behave with them.

 

[PMderry]

Marrying more that one wife is not a commandment in Quran; and it is not a basic tenet of Islam.
So why go in the past?
If a situation arises that one has to marry more than one wife; the teaching is there in Quran as how to do it and how to behave with them.

And yet, it still proves my point that one must look into the past in order to truly understand why God says what He says in the Qur'an. Just reading the Qur'an cover to cover isn't giving you the full story. You also need to apply it to what was going on with the Prophet.

That was the whole point of that example. I never said it was a commandment. Im actually very against polygamy.

 

[FearGod]

And yet, it still proves my point that one must look into the past in order to truly understand why God says what He says in the Qur'an. Just reading the Qur'an cover to cover isn't giving you the full story. You also need to apply it to what was going on with the Prophet.

That was the whole point of that example. I never said it was a commandment. Im actually very against polygamy.

you are against polygamy,but is polygamy bad for all cases.
What do you think ?

 

[PMderry]

you are against polygamy,but is polygamy bad for all cases.
What do you think ?

In a world suffering from overpopulation, we have no use for polygamy. Polygamy was practiced because divorced and widowed women, in Pre-Islamic Arabia, were pretty much slaves to their mother in law. A woman was literally property (husbands could gamble away their own wives to other men) and, once the woman was married, her rights belonged to her husband who could do whatever he wanted with her. If he divorced her, she was left destitute. Polygamy was implimented in order to save these women from destitution (which is why Prophet married 11 divorced/widowed women vs. 1 virgin wife), to create political ties between other tribes, and to create more Muslims.

If a Muslim country does not allow a woman to have any kinds of rights, polygamy isnt what they need. They need a brain, a heart, and someone to properly read the Qur'an to them. The creation of more Muslims should be done via dawah instead of having 4 women give birth to children at the same time since our planet is already overpopulated.

All in all, the reasons for polygamy in Islam are outdated and unnecessary. Not only that, but Allah warns any man who chooses to take on more than one wife. The Qur'an states that no human being can treat each wife equally since we are naturally prone to pick favorites. Basically, the Qur'an itself states you MAY have 4 wives, but do so at your own risk becuase if you mess up, it's your punishment and humans will naturally mess up with something like this. In other words: dont marry more than one wife unless theres no other options:

3.​

[FONT=Monotype Corsiva,Brush Script MT]And if you fear that you will not deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry those that please you of [other] women, two or three or four. But if you fear that you will not be just, then [marry only] one or those your right hand possesses. That is more suitable that you may not incline [to injustice]. (Qur'an Surah Al-Nisaa verse 5)[/FONT]

[FONT=Monotype Corsiva,Brush Script MT]And you will never be able to be equal [in feeling] between wives, even if you should strive [to do so]. So do not incline completely [toward one] and leave another hanging. And if you amend [your affairs] and fear Allah - then indeed, Allah is ever Forgiving and Merciful. [/FONT](Surah Al-Nisaa, v. 129)

 

[FearGod]

In a world suffering from overpopulation, we have no use for polygamy. Polygamy was practiced because divorced and widowed women, in Pre-Islamic Arabia, were pretty much slaves to their mother in law. A woman was literally property (husbands could gamble away their own wives to other men) and, once the woman was married, her rights belonged to her husband who could do whatever he wanted with her. If he divorced her, she was left destitute. Polygamy was implimented in order to save these women from destitution (which is why Prophet married 11 divorced/widowed women vs. 1 virgin wife), to create political ties between other tribes, and to create more Muslims.

If a Muslim country does not allow a woman to have any kinds of rights, polygamy isnt what they need. They need a brain, a heart, and someone to properly read the Qur'an to them. The creation of more Muslims should be done via dawah instead of having 4 women give birth to children at the same time since our planet is already overpopulated.

All in all, the reasons for polygamy in Islam are outdated and unnecessary. Not only that, but Allah warns any man who chooses to take on more than one wife. The Qur'an states that no human being can treat each wife equally since we are naturally prone to pick favorites. Basically, the Qur'an itself states you MAY have 4 wives, but do so at your own risk becuase if you mess up, it's your punishment and humans will naturally mess up with something like this. In other words: dont marry more than one wife unless theres no other options:

3.​

[FONT=Monotype Corsiva,Brush Script MT]And if you fear that you will not deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry those that please you of [other] women, two or three or four. But if you fear that you will not be just, then [marry only] one or those your right hand possesses. That is more suitable that you may not incline [to injustice]. (Qur'an Surah Al-Nisaa verse 5)[/FONT]

[FONT=Monotype Corsiva,Brush Script MT]And you will never be able to be equal [in feeling] between wives, even if you should strive [to do so]. So do not incline completely [toward one] and leave another hanging. And if you amend [your affairs] and fear Allah - then indeed, Allah is ever Forgiving and Merciful. [/FONT](Surah Al-Nisaa, v. 129)

i do agree that they can't be treated equally at least in means of feelings,but let me imagining some scenarios.

A man was married to one woman and after 10 years of marriage she wasn't ever pregnant,he want children that he suffer every day thinking about children,what best choice,through her away such as divorcing or keep her with love and marry another woman so he can achieve his dream of having children,some men may accept to live with a sterile woman for ever without any complaint,but i think there should be some will suffer without children.

Another case,his woman was sick and she won't be able to have normal sex relationship with her husband,what best choice do you think,through her away such as divorcing or marry another one but still keep an eye on his first wife with full respect.

 

[PMderry]

i do agree that they can't be treated equally at least in means of feelings,but let me imagining some scenarios.

A man was married to one woman and after 10 years of marriage she wasn't ever pregnant,he want children that he suffer every day thinking about children,what best choice,through her away such as divorcing or keep her with love and marry another woman so he can achieve his dream of having children,some men may accept to live with a sterile woman for ever without any complaint,but i think there should be some will suffer without children.

Another case,his woman was sick and she won't be able to have normal sex relationship with her husband,what best choice do you think,through her away such as divorcing or marry another one but still keep an eye on his first wife with full respect.

First scenerio: Adoption. There are TONS of children who are rotated around in the system because they are never adopted. Too many babies without parents. Our own prophet was an orphan. Before forcing your own wife to be considered "second best" by marrying a fertile woman (doesnt matter if you dont see it that way, she probably will), adopt babies who have no parents.

Second case: It is forbidden to marry a second wife just for sexual purposes so if all the husband wants is sex, tough luck. In my honest opinion, if the wife is too sick to be a wife at all and gives FULL CONSENT to the marrying if the second wife, then it is up to the family. The choice rests in the first wife's hands, though. She was the first wife. Shes the one who needs to be ok with it. Polygamy needs to be something that is MUTUALLY 150% agreed upon (and honestly, I know very few women who are open to sharing their husbands. Husbands, put yourselves in our shoes and imagine if you'd share your wife with another man) and if they give complete consent, then whatever.

I dont judge what other couples do in their own homes. If someone wants to have 100 wives and all 100 of those women are up for it, then more power to you. My issue is when men assume it's their duty and their right to take on as many as four wives without any kind of consideration for the wife that they already have. I am a jealous woman. I'd have HUGE issues if I had to share my husband. I'd honestly rather be divorced than ever share my husband. Muslim men are jealous men and are protective of their wives but do they assume that women arent? That we lack somehow in protectiveness? Before taking on another wife, imagine if your wife asked if she could take on another husband. Some men dont like to put this into perspective.

At the end of the day, polygamy is dangerous Islamically and, in my opinion, is outdated and the punishment for not treating all wives the same is too great to be messed with. As they say in Pakistan: a man with two wives is like a man with his feet in two boats.

 

[paarsurrey]

First scenerio: Adoption. There are TONS of children who are rotated around in the system because they are never adopted. Too many babies without parents. Our own prophet was an orphan. Before forcing your own wife to be considered "second best" by marrying a fertile woman (doesnt matter if you dont see it that way, she probably will), adopt babies who have no parents.

Second case: It is forbidden to marry a second wife just for sexual purposes so if all the husband wants is sex, tough luck. In my honest opinion, if the wife is too sick to be a wife at all and gives FULL CONSENT to the marrying if the second wife, then it is up to the family. The choice rests in the first wife's hands, though. She was the first wife. Shes the one who needs to be ok with it. Polygamy needs to be something that is MUTUALLY 150% agreed upon (and honestly, I know very few women who are open to sharing their husbands. Husbands, put yourselves in our shoes and imagine if you'd share your wife with another man) and if they give complete consent, then whatever.

I dont judge what other couples do in their own homes. If someone wants to have 100 wives and all 100 of those women are up for it, then more power to you. My issue is when men assume it's their duty and their right to take on as many as four wives without any kind of consideration for the wife that they already have. I am a jealous woman. I'd have HUGE issues if I had to share my husband. I'd honestly rather be divorced than ever share my husband. Muslim men are jealous men and are protective of their wives but do they assume that women arent? That we lack somehow in protectiveness? Before taking on another wife, imagine if your wife asked if she could take on another husband. Some men dont like to put this into perspective.

At the end of the day, polygamy is dangerous Islamically and, in my opinion, is outdated and the punishment for not treating all wives the same is too great to be messed with. As they say in Pakistan: a man with two wives is like a man with his feet in two boats.

I said Islam/Quran does not command to marry many women or polygamy; it was a cultural problem which was solved by Islam/Quran.

Moreover, it is not a basic tenet of Islam.