Christians did not believe that Muhammad was the last prophet sent by Allah, and Muslims denounced the Christian theory of a blessed trinity. Even today, America and Europe disagree with the Islam world, often resulting in war.
Spread.
Islam is the religion followed by over one fifth of the world's population. It is currently the fastest growing religion in the United States. This is partially because of the simplicity of its beliefs. Islam calls for faith in one god and asks of all Muslims to obey the Koran. It also calls for its followers to use their intelligence and observations. The Koran does not go against scientific knowledge but provides an explanation for things unknown to us. .
Islam was spread early on through trade activities along the East African coast. Portugese invasions later helped to spread Islamic beliefs. This is because the Arabs had much political influence over the Portugese region. Trade continued to spread the religion into East Africa. As Germany began to conquer parts of Africa, they hired Africans as civil servants. This introduced the Islamic religion to a small number of Europeans that rapidly began to grow. Schools were set up in Africa and a few parts of Europe and encouraged children to follow Islam. However, after World War 2, Britain gained more control of Africa. Missionaries from this country promoted Christianity with schools and employment opportunities. Muslims were gradually alienated from the political scene. However, many Africans were alarmed by the influence of British imperialism and Christianity in their country. Because of this, Muslims held much power in independence movements. Many Africans began following the Muslims, and so did some Westerners. Many different political and religious movements helped to gradually spread Islam throughout the world.
Beliefs.
Muslims have about six basic beliefs that they live by. The first is belief in God, whom they call Allah.
