Muslims, looking at Christianity, can't help but feel embarrassment because of the great oddness of Christianity.
Christianity has one requirement to reach heaven: to believe in Jesus as the God Who died for the people to be saved.
On the other hand, Islam has many requirements to reach heaven. There are 3 types of requirements: some pertain to what one believes (God, angels, Prophets, revealed books, Day of Judgment, etc...), some pertain to what worship one does and how (5 daily prayers, fasting, pilgrimage in Mecca, mandatory alms-giving, regular remembrance and mention of God, etc...), some pertain to having and keeping a pure heart (not to hate anyone, to love everyone and every living thing, not to lie, not to cheat, not to deceive, not to come against anyone, to love God, to fear God, to hope in God, to trust in God, to dedicate oneself to God, to live for God, and for His beloved Prophet and favourite friend, Muhammad, peace be upon him, etc...)
The first thing asked of a Muslim is to seek knowledge. Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "to seek knowledge is mandatory for every Muslim". Islam goes by its scholars. Islamic libraries are filled with tons and tons of books. All these books are explaining the Qur'an and the Hadiths (the Hadiths are the sayings of Muhammad, peace be upon him). The Muslim must learn these books and acquire knowledge, that is mandatory and the first requirement. Maybe the most famous and the greatest of all the books of Islam is the Ihya Ulum Id Din of Abu Hamid Al Ghazali, perhaps the greatest theologian and scholar of the history of Islam, and who has been nicknamed Hujjat Al Islam (Proof of Islam).
And then Islam would be a ''cult'', and Christianity or Judaism would be the ''religions''. Perhaps, you may now realise how insane this sounds.
Islam is about its Ulama and Awliya (scholars and saints): Rumi, Ibn Arabi (of 12th century Muslim Spain), Saadi, Hafiz, Al Ghazali, etc. Some are specialised in the Sharia (the Divine Islamic Law): Imam Shafi, Imam Malik, Imam Abou Hanifa, Imam Ahmad Hanbal, etc.
Islam is not a "cult''. It is a religion. Muhammad (peace be upon him) is not a "highly intelligent" leader, he is a divine prophet of God. Jesus was, (peace be upon him), and Abraham was (peace be upon him), Moses was (peace be upon him), Noah was (peace be upon him), Joseph was (peace be upon him and his family) and many others, numbering 124 000, (peace be upon them all). But I don't think Christianity or Judaism teaches any of that.
Christianity has one requirement to reach heaven: to believe in Jesus as the God Who died for the people to be saved.
On the other hand, Islam has many requirements to reach heaven. There are 3 types of requirements: some pertain to what one believes (God, angels, Prophets, revealed books, Day of Judgment, etc...), some pertain to what worship one does and how (5 daily prayers, fasting, pilgrimage in Mecca, mandatory alms-giving, regular remembrance and mention of God, etc...), some pertain to having and keeping a pure heart (not to hate anyone, to love everyone and every living thing, not to lie, not to cheat, not to deceive, not to come against anyone, to love God, to fear God, to hope in God, to trust in God, to dedicate oneself to God, to live for God, and for His beloved Prophet and favourite friend, Muhammad, peace be upon him, etc...)
The first thing asked of a Muslim is to seek knowledge. Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "to seek knowledge is mandatory for every Muslim". Islam goes by its scholars. Islamic libraries are filled with tons and tons of books. All these books are explaining the Qur'an and the Hadiths (the Hadiths are the sayings of Muhammad, peace be upon him). The Muslim must learn these books and acquire knowledge, that is mandatory and the first requirement. Maybe the most famous and the greatest of all the books of Islam is the Ihya Ulum Id Din of Abu Hamid Al Ghazali, perhaps the greatest theologian and scholar of the history of Islam, and who has been nicknamed Hujjat Al Islam (Proof of Islam).
And then Islam would be a ''cult'', and Christianity or Judaism would be the ''religions''. Perhaps, you may now realise how insane this sounds.
Islam is about its Ulama and Awliya (scholars and saints): Rumi, Ibn Arabi (of 12th century Muslim Spain), Saadi, Hafiz, Al Ghazali, etc. Some are specialised in the Sharia (the Divine Islamic Law): Imam Shafi, Imam Malik, Imam Abou Hanifa, Imam Ahmad Hanbal, etc.
Islam is not a "cult''. It is a religion. Muhammad (peace be upon him) is not a "highly intelligent" leader, he is a divine prophet of God. Jesus was, (peace be upon him), and Abraham was (peace be upon him), Moses was (peace be upon him), Noah was (peace be upon him), Joseph was (peace be upon him and his family) and many others, numbering 124 000, (peace be upon them all). But I don't think Christianity or Judaism teaches any of that.