I have a very good friend who grew up in conservative Christian circles in the American South. Whenever she was taught anything about Islam, it was reasons why Islam is wrong and Christianity is right. People loved to point fingers at what we call the Five Pillars of Islam and say, “The five pillars are all about following enough rules to earn salvation.” I am here to say that no, they are not. The five pillars are ways that we show our love to God, and all five of them were present in the Bible centuries before Muhammed was born.
The Shahada, or the confession of faith in one God. “There is no god but God.” Deuteronomy 6:4-5 is known as the Shema, and it was the cornerstone of everything taught in the Bible. It says, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.” In the Injeel, a man asked Saydna ‘Isa what the greatest commandment is. Saydna ‘Isa recited Deuteronomy 6:4-5.
The Salat, or the prayer that we pray 5 times a day facing Mecca. Daniel, one of the prophets in the Old Testament, opened his window towards Jerusalem three times a day to pray.
The Sawm, or month-long fast during Ramadan. Many verses in the Bible point to the importance of fasting, both in the Old Testament and the Injeel. Psalm 35:13 says, “I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting.” Ezra 8:21 says, “I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask Him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions.” And in Matthew 4:2, we see that Saydna ‘Isa fasted in the desert for forty days.
The Zakat, or giving to charity. Malachi 3:10 says, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house. Test me in this,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have enough room for it.” In Mark 12:41-44, Saydna ‘Isa saw a poor widow give less than two pennies into the temple treasury; he was amazed at her gift and said that she gave everything that she had to God.
The Hajj, or the pilgrimage. Any able-bodied Muslim, as finances permit, should make a pilgrimage to Mecca once in his or her lifetime. Psalm 84:5 says, “Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.” It is important to remember our heritage by visiting the places that our fathers visited.
Again, we do not follow the Five Pillars to earn love and salvation from God. We follow them because we love Him.
What do you think? Are there other examples of the Five Pillars in the Bible? Why should we follow the Five Pillars?
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