What are some of the main doctrines of Islam? How might Muhammad be considered a reformer?
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If you want a general overview : http://www.carm.org/islam/islamic_doctrine.htm\n\nIf you want some more details :\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Pillars_of_Islam.\nYou can follow the links of five pillars and see more descriptions.\n\nYou will find lots of sources in wikipedia as well one this or on net..\n\nProphet Muhammad as a reformer\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad
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Definition\n\nMost Muslims accept anyone who has sincerely pronounced the Shahada, a ritual declaration of submission to God and assertion that Muhammad is the last prophet, as a fellow Muslim. Muslims describe many Biblical figures, such as Musa (Moses) and Isa (Jesus), as Muslims because they submitted completely to Allah, or God.\n\n    * For a list of prophets of Islam, see Prophets of Islam.\n    * For a list of Muslims, see List of Muslims.\n    * For a list of different Muslim sects and divisions, see Divisions of Islam.\n\n[edit]\n\nEtymology\n\nThe singular form of the word Muslim comes from the Arabic plural form 'Al-Muslimīn, from the tri-consonantal root SLM (سَلَمَ), also found in the words Islam and salām (peace). The plural form is instanced in the Qur'an, 22:79, Al-Hajj.\n[edit]\n\nPronunciation and spelling\n\nUntil around the late 1980s, the word was commonly spelled Moslem. The spelling has since fallen into disuse. Muslims do not recommend this spelling because it is often pronounced "mawzlem," which sounds somewhat similar to an Arabic word for "oppressor" (Za'lem in Arabic). The word is pronounced "Mus"-lim in Arabic, but some English dictionaries allow both "Mus"-lim and "Muz"-lim. The word is now most commonly written "Muslim".\n[edit]\n\nOther words for Muslim\n\nMany English-language writers used to call Muslims Mohammedans or Mahometans, meaning "followers of Mohammed," but this terminology is considered incorrect and insulting by Muslims, because Muslims believe it implies that they worship the prophet Muhammad, contrary to the fundamental principles of Islam itself. This terminology is also seen as too similar to Christians as followers and worshippers of Christ. In addition, Muslims believe that the religion of submitting to God (Islām in Arabic) existed long before the birth of Muhammad, making all the prophets before him "Muslims."\n\nEnglish writers of the 19th century and earlier sometimes used the words Mussulman, Musselman, or Mussulmaun. Variant forms of this word are still used by many Indo-European languages. These words are similar to the French, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese words for "Muslim."\n[edit]\n\nArabic terms describing Muslim identity\n\nWhen discussing whether or not someone is a real Muslim, the following terms may be used by those arguing:\n\n    * Mu'min - believer\n    * Fasiq - shameless sinner\n    * Munafiq - hypocrite; professes Islam but does not believe in it (one who professes but does not practice is a fasiq)\n    * Kafir - neither professes nor believes; an infidel\n\n[edit]\n\nDisagreements\n\nThere are some groups that claim to be Muslim, but are not accepted as Muslim by most Muslims. For example, neither Sunni nor Shi'a Muslims accept Ahmedis as fellow Muslims. This is also true of other groups as well. An agnostic of Islamic background may refer to him/herself as a "cultural Muslim", but this is likewise unacceptable to most observant Muslims. Many Sunni regard the Shi'a and the ʕAlawī sects as non-Muslim. There have also been numerous instances in which some Sunni have declared other Sunni to be unbelievers, some Shi'a have declared other Shi'a the same, and so on.\n\nThe act of calling another a disbeliever is called takfir.\n[edit]\n\nSee also\n\n    * Islam\n    * Qur'an\n    * Muhammad\n    * Five Pillars of Islam
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Christianity concept of salvation is to accept Jesus as savior/redeemer. \n\n\nJudaism ( jews ) have no concept of salvation other than live a good life, and hopefully you go to heaven. \n\nIslam doesnt really have a salvation plan for everyone. There are different ways, martyrdom, accepting Mohammed as messenger, and living straight in islam terms, and Islam still has the "Allah wills whom he chooses" clause, so you dont really know for sure, except through martyrdom.
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The Koran considers the Old Testament, and some of the New to be holy texts. It considers itself a religion that builds off of Judaism into something new. Jesus and Muhammad were not the same person. There are a few centuries between the establishment of Christianity and Islam.\n\nSo while both are Holy Texts based on the Abrahamic tradition, they aren't mirror images of each other.
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Sunni Islam is the largest denomination of Islam - the Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jama'ah.\n\nAccording to Sunni thought, Muhammad died without appointing a successor to lead the Muslim community. After an initial period of confusion, a group of his most prominent companions gathered and elected Abu Bakr, the Prophet's close friend and father-in-law, as the first Caliph.\n\nSunnis initially believed that the position of Caliph should be democratically chosen, but after the first four Rightly Guided Calliphs the position turned into a hereditary dynastic rule. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1923, there has never been another Caliph.\n\nShi'a Islam is the second largest denomination of Islam.\n\nShi'a Muslims believe that Ali was appointed by Muhammad to be the direct successor and leader of the Muslims. They regard him as the first Imam, which continued as a hereditary position. The largest group of Shi'a Muslims believe in a total of 12 Imams. The Shi'a Hadiths include the sayings of the Imams.\n\nShite-  member of the branch of Islam that regards Ali and his descendants as the legitimate successors to Muhammad and rejects the first three caliphs.
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Read about the religion first! Convert if you want to. Meaning you agree to everything islam is about. Dont convert if you feel pressured. Do what you feel is right in your heart.
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To become Muslim you have to believe in 5 essential things:\nBelieve in God “Allah” and that he’s the only God and that Mohamed is his prophet.\nTo pray to God\nTo give a specific amount of your money yearly to the poor people.\nTo fast in Ramadan. And fasting means to stop drinking, eating bad doing anything bad from sunrise to sunset.\nAnd to go to Mecca for Hajj at least once in your life if you had the money and the good health to do so.\nIf you did these five things then you’re Muslim. And then, after you become one, you shouldn’t drink alcohol, eat pork, gamble and lots more… so if some Muslim ate pork on purpose I wouldn’t say that he’s not Muslim, I would say that he’s not good Muslim. But if he doesn’t believe in God or that Mohamed is his prophet I would say that he’s not Muslim.\nIf course, saying that Mohamed the prophet of God doesn’t mean that he’s his only prophet. Muslims believe that Muses, Abraham, Jesus and lots of others are all the prophets of God.\n\nI hope that this answers your question
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Who is Muhammad (PBUH)?\n\n    Muhammad (PBUH), was born in Makkah in the year 570, at a time when Christianity was not yet fully established in Europe. Since his father died before his birth, and his mother shortly afterwards, he was raised by his uncle from the respected tribe of Quraysh. As he grew up, he became known for his truthfulness, generosity and sincerity, so that he was sought after for his ability to arbitrate in disputes. The historians describe him as calm and meditative.\nMuhammad (PBUH) was of a deeply religious nature, and had long detested the decadence of his society. It became his habit to meditate from time to time in the Cave of Hira near the summit of Jabal al-Nur, the 'Mountain of Light' near Makkah.\n\nHow did Muhammad (PBUH) become a prophet and a messenger of God?\n    At the age of 40, while engaged in a meditative retreat, Muhammad (PBUH) received his first revelation from God through the Angel Gabriel. This revelation, which continued for twenty-three years, is known as the Quran.\n    The Mountain of Light where Gabriel came to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).\n    As soon as he began to recite the words he heard from Gabriel, and to preach the truth which God had revealed to him, he and his small group of followers suffered bitter persecution, which grew so fierce that in the year 622 God gave them the command to emigrate. This event, the Hijra, 'migration', in which they left Makkah for the city of Madinah some 260 miles to the north, marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar.\nAfter several years, the Prophet and his followers were able to return to Makkah, where they forgave their enemies and established Islam definitively. Before the Prophet died at the age of 63, the greater part of Arabia was Muslim, and within a century of his death Islam had spread to Spain in the West and as far East as China.\n\nExamples of the Prophet`s sayings\n    The Prophet said:\n\n    'God has no mercy on one who has no mercy for others.'\n\n    'None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.'\n\n    'He who eats his fill while his neighbor goes without food is not a believer. '\n\n    'The truthful and trusty businessman is associated with the prophets the saints, and the martyrs.'\n\n    'Powerful is not he who knocks the other down, indeed powerful is he who controls himself in a fit of anger. '\n\n    'God does not judge according to your bodies and appearances but He scans your hearts and looks into your deeds.'\n\n    'A man walking along a path felt very thirsty. Reaching a well he descended into it, drank his fill and came up. Then he saw a dog with its tongue hanging out, trying to lick up mud to quench its thirst. The man saw that the dog was feeling the same thirst as he had felt so he went down into the well again and filled his shoe with water and gave the dog a drink. God forgave his sins for this action.' The Prophet was asked: 'Messenger of God, are we rewarded for kindness towards animals?' He said, 'There is a reward for kindness to every living thing.'\n\nTo to the person who said we do not know if he existed:  Proof lies in Hadith, the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).  The fact that Islam exists today is proof that Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon) existed.
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Lesson #1:\n\nWho is Allah? What is Islam?\nWho are the Muslims?\nWhat do Muslims believe?\n How does one enter Islam?\n=========================================================\n\nWho is Allah? Allah is the creator. The only one. He created all around us in beauty and perfection. He begets not, nor was He begotten, And there is none comparable to him. Muslims use the word Allah in Arabic because it is a special word (it has no plural nor gender. Ie God, Godess, Gods), it means The only worthy of worship. Jesus (Pbuh) used a similar word in Arameic Ellah (or Allah) when referring to God.\n\n\nWhat is Islam? Islam is a way of Life "Not a religion". It is the path Choosen by God for all those who believe in him. Islam litterally means Submission.\n\nWho are the Muslims? The Muslims are the people who submit to God. In arabic the prefix Mu means that some action is taken, in english we use the postfix "er". In english you have the word walk, a person who walks is a Walker. Similarly In Arabic Muslim is the one who Submits his/her will to Allah.\n\n\nWhat do Muslims believe? In God (Allah)\nIn his Angels\nIn His Messengers (From Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, ..... Jesus to Muhammed, PBUT)\nIn his Books ( The Torah, The bible, The Quran, etc)\nIn the  Last Day\nIn divine Pre-destination (Everything happens for a reason)\n\nHow does one enter Islam? Simple bear witness by heart and by tongue that there is no God but God and Muhammed is his messenger! No special ceremony of any kind :)
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There is a serious chasm between traditional Islam and Western liberal democartic values. Islam is a dominating religion, and by that I mean that it has a very linear world view. It cannot accept that other religions might have any validity and their adherents certainly should not be treated as equals with Muslims.\n\nIslam also seeks to impose its requirements on the wider community - calling for separate bathing days in public swimming pools, recognition of sharia courts instead of civil courts, demanding preferred treatment rather than equal treatment.\n\nSince the view of Dar al Islam (the world of Islam) is ever expanding and never contracting - witness Osama bin Laden's demand for restoration of the Muslim Caliphate from the sixteenth century - it will inevitably lead to conflict with the West. That woudl certainly mean the end of the Western 'fabric of life'.\n\nHowever, there is the chance for a modern reformed Islam, as the other major monotheistic religions have 'reformed' so address this problem. If Islam could be wrenched from the literal and warlike readings of the writings of Mohammed, then there is a chance of reconciliation. I think this is slim, but possible over time. Until then, it is, as the questioner says, the head loppers who currently represent Islam and those Muslims who disagree aren't standing up to be counted.
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Muslims believe in the prophets and messengers of God, starting with Adam, including Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and Jesus (peace be upon them).  But God’s final message to man, a reconfirmation of the eternal message, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad .  Muslims believe that Muhammad  is the last prophet sent by God, as God has said:\n\n ((Muhammad is not the father of any one of your men, but he is the Messenger of God and the last of the prophets...))  (Quran, 33:40)\n\nMuslims believe that all the prophets and messengers were created human beings who had none of the divine qualities of God.
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Islam does not need to be reformed, some of the believers in Islam however need to be. (like those who are not willing to reason, terrorists, those who think killing others would take them to heaven.) Such kinds of believers need more education in Islam.\n\nTO answer your question:\n\nOn what grounds then can Islamic scholar can say that a terrorist is not following Islam\n\nI am not an Islamic scholar but I know the answer.\nA terrorist is a person who kills and terrorized others.\nthat is forbidden in Islam. If s/he still does that, than logic would say he is not following his religion\n\n2) On what foundation can a reformist change the understanding of Islam (such as the violent quotes of the Koran)?\n   \n   SOme people including some muslims dont have the full knowledege of the Qur'an. They just take the superficial meaning of the verses. Sometimes they pick and choose the verses they want to follow. \n   This way, they have completely mis-interpreted the Qur'an by not considereing all the related verses.\nSome verses have deeper meaning and need to be interpreted by a person who knoows more about the verse like where, why and when it was revealed. Just taking the superficial meaning will definately lead a person to the wrong way.\n\n    Translation is not the same as interpretation. You can get the best translation of the Qur'an, but you can still mis interpret it if you dont know have much knowlege of it.\n\nTherefore, these people need to be more educated in the Qur'an, explaining to them that some verses cannot just be interpreted that way people want. They have to be interpreted by those who have the knowldge to do so.
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Islam is only a newer version or corrected version of Judaism, Which means, Islam is religion purified. So I think the basic concepts of two religion are originally the same, where as Islam is more recent and also the Holy book of Islam, The Quran is protected from any change by God himself.\n\nTo feel the presence of God, it is required that we admire and glorify him always. \n"Therefore remember Me, I will remember you, and be thankful to Me, and do not be ungrateful to Me. " Quran   2:152.
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Islam honors all the prophets who were sent to mankind. Muslims respect all prophets in general, but Jesus in particular, because he was one of the prophets who foretold the coming of Muhammad. Muslims, too, await the second coming of Jesus. They consider him one of the greatest of Allah's prophets to mankind. A Muslim does not refer to him simply as "Jesus," but normally adds the phrase "peace be upon him" as a sign of respect. \nNo other religion in the world respects and dignifies Jesus as Islam does. The Qur'an confirms his virgin birth (a chapter of the Qur'an is entitled "Mary"), and Mary is considered to have been one of the purest women in all creation. The Qur'an describes Jesus' birth as follows: \n\n"Behold!' the Angel said, God has chosen you, and purified you, and chosen you above the women of all nations. Mary, God gives you good news of a word from Him, whose name shall be the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, honored in this world and in the Hereafter, and one of those brought near to God. He shall speak to the people from his cradle and in maturity, and he shall be of the righteous. She said: "My Lord! How shall I have a son when no man has touched me?' \nHe said: "Even so; God creates what He will. When He decrees a thing, \nHe says to it, 'Be!' and it is." [3:42-47]\n\nMuslims believe that Jesus was born immaculately, and through the same power which had brought Eve to life and Adam into being without a father or a mother.\n\n"Truly, the likeness of Jesus with God is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, and then said to him, 'Be!' and he was." [3:59]\n\nDuring his prophetic mission, Jesus performed many miracles. The Qur'an tells us that he said: \n\n"I have come to you with a sign from your Lord: I make for you out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, and breathe into it and it becomes a bird by God's leave. And I heal the blind, and the lepers, and I raise the dead by God's leave." [3:49]\n\nMuhammad and Jesus, as well as the other prophets, were sent to confirm the belief in one God. This is referred to in the Qur'an where Jesus is reported as saying that he came:\n\n"To attest the law which was before me, and to make lawful to you part of what was forbidden you; I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear God and obey me." [3:50]\n\nProphet Muhammad emphasized the importance of Jesus by saying: \n"Whoever believes there is no god but Allah, alone without partner, that Muhammad is His messenger, that Jesus is a servant and messenger of God, His word breathed into Mary and a spirit emanating from Him, and that Paradise and Hell are true, shall be received by God into Heaven. [Bukhari]
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Well first of all, answering-Islam.org is not exactly spot on about their Christian theology / history in places, so one should be careful about the Islamic theology / history that the site wrote themselves.  However, they do have a good collection of other people's works that are well vetted and scholarly.\n\nThey host The Original Sources of the Qur'an by W. St. Clair Tisdall which is a good book, if dated.\n\nAs a historian and a person with degrees in religion focusing on comparative religion, let me say this:  The Catholic/Orthodox Churches of Mohammed's time period considered Islam to be a Christian heresy and have enough sources and historical data to back this claim up.  (A Muslim might deny this, but it is a factual challenge to the origin of Islam and not an accusation without evidence)A good modern read before jumping into the historical primary sources would be to read the modern English historian Hilaire Belloc's "The Great Heresies" which you can read the pertinent chapter online here  \nhttp://www.ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/HERESY4.TXT\n\nI would also like to point out that Islam has since evolved and is its own religion by its own right and should not be considered a heresy of Christianity in its modern context.  Islam is no longer a synthesis of the beliefs of the 7th century Arabia but is its own contained theological systems that has moved far beyond its original sources.
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First: Becoming a muslim is easy, you must say and believe 1-God is the One and there is no god except him 2-Muhammad is messenger of God. and you must believe that there is a judgement day.\nThe main rituals are as follows:\n1- Prayer which must be done in the direction of Mecca, 5 times a day, morning(when sun comes out),noon, afternoon, dawn and night but they are short rituals and dont last long.\n2- Lent, there is an arabic month which you must lend means you should not eat from sunshine till the dawn.\n3- You must go to Mecca once in life if you become that rich and do a complete set of rituals there.\n4- Help poor people\n5- Praise good works and tell others not to do bad works\nand ....\nthere are some personal instruction for muslims:" always be groomed, always wear clean clothes, always wear perfumes, be kind to others, visit friends and family, be kind to other humans,be kind to animals..."\nit is adviced not to use any drug which make you can not distinguish between good and bad or if you use it do not pray on it including alcohol.\nPig meat is prohibited, also if you have touched a dog you must wash yourself and change clothes for parayers.
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The teachings of the Quran is the word of god that was sent by the Angel Gabrielle to the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh). SOme of the teachings became the five pillars of islam\n1. There is one god and his Propet is Muhammed\n2. To give 5% of your yearly income to the poor if you can\n3. To pray five times a day facing Mecca\n4. To visit mecca once during you lifetime\n5. To fast during the holy month of Ramadan\nthose are jst some of the teachings of the quran