Historical Background
Arabs from the Middle East are often judged and misunderstood by people from other cultures. It is important not to be ignorant and to learn about societies and cultures that are different than ours. A good way to begin is to know about their historical background. You can learn a lot through history. You can learn why people behave the way they do and hopefully learn to love and accept these people for who they are.
We can trace the history for the people of the Middle East back to the prophet Abraham. Born to him were two sons, the eldest being Ishmael. The Muslims are direct descendants of Ishmael. Although Abraham had to send Ishmael away the Lord promised him many things. “And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation” (Gen. 16:12; Gen. 17:20). The Bible says that Ishmael and his mother were guided and protected in their wanderings by the Holy Spirit. The Koran tells an account of Ishmael and his mother settled in a place near Mecca and their posterity began to fill the Arabian Peninsula (Mayfield).
Religion is a major element for the lives and culture of most Arabs. Islam means "submission" or the total "surrender of oneness to God" (Lewis). Muhammad is the founder of Islam; the religion of most Arabs. He was raised by his uncle in very humble circumstances. He was a very good boy, very trustworthy and honest. When he was about forty years old he claimed he had a vision. The angel Gabriel told him about his calling to become a prophet. Muhammad went around trying to get people to live better life's through Faith in a supreme being, Daily Prayer, Fasting, Giving to Charity, and a Holy Pilgrimage (Zahid). He taught that immorality and gambling were bad and discouraged slavery. He also taught of the belief of one god, which wasn't a popular concept at that time. Throughout his life Muhammad often went into a trancelike state. The words he said when he was in this state were taken as divine revelation and were recorded and are now part of the Koran or The Holy Book. He did a lot to change the people of the time and made them much better (Zahid).
The Middle East is the birthplace of several major religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Islam was born in a state while other religions were born in a society. Islam is a way of life for Muslims. Muslims believe that their religion is the only way for people to obtain salvation in the after-life. Although Muslims believe very strongly in this, they respect anyone who truly lives their religion. Muslims look down on people who either aren't of any faith or don't live what they believe. Muslims are good examples of living up to their religion and high standards that are set for them (Zahid).
A common misconception among people who are uneducated about muslims is that they're all terrorists. This is a false accusation. Muslim extremists only make up 7-8% of the Muslim population. They are very well-educated and are generally in the middle and upper classes. They are trying to get Islam back to how it used to be. Their religion is how they justify their actions. It is believed that if they die in an act of terrorism, they will go straight to heaven because of their promoting Islam and their surrender to God (Esposito and Mogahed, 2007).
The conflicts in the Middle East are commonly known throughout the world. It is important to understand why some Arabs act the way they do towards others, Jews in particular. Palestine used to be the homeland of the Arabs and it wasn't until the Balfour Declaration that things began to change for the Arabs. This declaration was formed to give a place for the Jews after the unfortunate events of WWII. The Arabs felt cheated out of their homeland that was eventually given to the Jews in 1948 with the creation of Israel when the Jews were clearly in the minority. Their anger towards the Jews comes from being "kicked out" of their homeland that meant so much to them historically and religiously (Rowley and Taylor, 2006)
The Middle East is located in a very strategic place geographically and is the center on many world issues such as economics and politics. The Middle East came into its modern era after WWI when the Ottoman Empire fell into a number of different pieces. Another event that led to that transition was the creation of Israel in 1948. The development of crude oil in the 20th century also gave the Middle East a definite advantage in world economics. The international oil cartel is dominated by the Middle East (Zahid).
The Arabs are a very interesting people. They play a great role in the world and society today. It is important to learn about these people and their culture (Toronto).
Links to find out more.
This site gives a lot of information on the five pillars of Islam and the Muslim religion. If you want to learn more about the muslim religion, this would be an effective site to visit.
http://www.islam101.com/dawah/pillars.html
These are great articles to read if you want to know more about Islam religion and to get a Latter Day Saint perspective, check out this article:
http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId= bbaba1615ac0c010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1
http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId= 68ea615b01a6b010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1
References
Esposito and Mogahed. "Who will speak for Islam?" November 2007 http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/11/07/john-l-esposito-and-dalia-mogahed-who-will-speak-for-islam/
Lewis, Bernard (1993). Islam in History: Ideas, People, and Events in the Middle East, Open Court.
Mayfield, James B.. "Ishmael, Our Brother." Ensign JUN 1979 8 Dec 2008 http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId= 68ea615b01a6b010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1.
Toronto, James. "A Latter-day Saint Perspective on Muhammad." Ensign AUG 2000 8 Dec 2008 http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId= bbaba1615ac0c010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1
Rowley and Taylor. "the Israel and Palestine land settlement problem: An analytical history, 4000 B.C.E-1948 C.E." 12 May 2006 http://www.springerlink.com/content/u0t86h21t4kr2164/
Zahid, Ishaq. "Five Pillars of Islam." Islam 101. 8 Dec 2008 http://www.islam101.com/dawah/pillars.html.
Credit to:
McKinzie Creager, and additions by Holly Vogelsberg