Islam Gender Roles

Islam in English translates to “submission to God.” “Islam is the second most popular religion in the world” with over a billion dedicated followers and continues to rapidly grow in the United States each year (Robinson 1). Moreover, Islam is divided into two main sectors: the Sunnis and Shiites, which differ in their views of the successor of Muhammad. Islam has five pillars in which Muslims practice their lives: Shahada, Salat, Zakat, Sawm, and Hajj. According to Shahada, Muslims believe that there is no God, but Allah and Muhammad is His messenger. Similarly, Muslims based their beliefs from the Quran, which “was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel” differing from Christianity and Judaism, whereas these religions refer

This ritual is similar to the background I grew up in, Catholicism, where only men can preform prayers and specialized rituals. Moreover, the idea that women cannot hold leadership roles in the Masjid stems from not only the idea of separating genders, but also the idea of maintaining the historical practices. Rehman explained “men have been leaders for generations, so it is ideal that men hold leadership roles to keep consistency with their ancestors.” The distinct idea of male only leaders creates an additional barrier of the genders. Women fail to also experience the potential ability to become closer to God by spreading the messages of the Quean in Masjid. The male leadership role is a historical tradition passed down from generations. The leadership roles in Sunni Islam has failed to evolve and developed toward modern trends. The failure to grow within itself sparks American stereotypes about the roles of women being subservient to men or even possessions of men. Christianity and Islam share similarities in these areas, however, as some fail to recognize or connect the two together because of preconceived notions that Islam is corrupt. In addition, Catholicism and Sunni Islam share the common idea of not allowing women to perform or lead prayers in front of the masses. The idea that only men can lead takes away a certain status or relationship women can attain with a higher