Islam, By Michael Lipka And Conrad Hackett - 1606 Words

Today, religion is a very controversial topic; and perhaps the most controversial religion of all, is Islam. Islam is the world s second largest religion after Christianity, and the fastest growing religion in the world. Research conducted by Michael Lipka and Conrad Hackett found that, Muslims will grow more than twice as fast as the overall world population between 2010 and 2050 and, in the second half of this century, will likely surpass Christians as the world’s largest religious group. With so many different views on what a Muslim is or should be; one may wonder what Islam actually teaches. If it truly what the media portrays it to be, then we all have a very good reason to be afraid. While many people combat stereotyping, I have developed quite a few negative views about Islam over the years, due to my horrible experiences with Islam. Although I despise stereotyping, I believe that many stereotypes exist for good reasons. Just like Christianity and Judaism, Islam is a monotheistic religion; meaning it is centered on the worship of one divine creator. Most Muslims would agree that Islam is a peaceful religion, and many Muslims claim that the word Islam translates to peace in Arabic. However, this is false, the word Islam actually means Surrender. Islam is a very strict religion, focusing heavily on what you do during the time that you’re alive, rather than what you believe. Many rules must be followed at all times. A person who breaks one of those rules