Laws and Customs - Priya

Priya Chennupati

Both the Islamic religion and the Christian religion are both very different and similar at the same time. They both have a set of laws that are comparable in many ways. The sets of laws are The Five Pillars for the Islamic religion and the 10 Commandments for the Christian Religion.  These religions are very different in that Muslims have to pray but Christian  have specific rules like do not steal(Catechism of the Catholic Church). They both however have a rule that says they only have one god.

The 5 pillars of Islam are the basic religious duties and are the framework of the Muslim life of the Islamic people. There are five parts of pillars and they are called the Shahada, Salat, Zakat, Sawm and the Hajj. The Shahada is the faith of having or believing on only one god (Allah). This also says that Muhammad was the prophet of Islam. The Salat is the performing of ritual prayers in the proper way five times each day (Five Pillars). Each of these five prayers are not more than a few minutes long. Prayer in Islam is believed to be a direct link from the worshipper to the God. in prayer a person feels inner happiness, peace and comfort and knowing that God is pleased with hi or her. Prayers are performed specifically at dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset and night. Prayers can be done anywhere such as in the fields, at home and many other places(Salat). Zakat is the act of giving alms or charity to benefit the poor and needy (Five Pillars). This pillar states that everything that a muslim owns belongs to god and he is loaning it to us(Zakat). Sawm is the act of fasting during the month of Ramadan (Five Pillars). Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim year where people strict fast from sunrise to sunset(Ramadan). And finally the Hajj is the pilgrimage done once in a lifetime to Mecca (Five Pillars).

The religious rules and laws for Christians are also known as the 10 Commandments. The 10 commandments of Christianity are located in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The first commandment says that their should only be one good, Jesus. The second one says that you can not make an idol of god for yourself at home and you are not allowed to worship or bow down to it. The third commandment states that you shall not misuse the name of the God or say his name intending something rude or unpleasant. The fourth commandment says that you have to remember the Sabbath day and keep the day holy. The fifth commandment says that you must respect your mother and father. It says that they were the people to bring you into this world and took care of you for a lifetime. The sixth commandment says that you must not commit murder. The seventh commandment says that you must not commit adultery and the eighth commandment says that you must not steal from neighbors or anyone.  The ninth commandment says that you must not give any false evidence against your neighbor like trying to get them in trouble. Finally the tenth commandments states that you must not be envious of your neighbor’s goods, wife or anything that belongs to your neighbor. These 10 commandments set the basic religious framework for the religion (Catechism of the Catholic Church).  

The relationship between The Five pillars of Islam and The Ten Commandments of Christianity is there are some similarities and some differences. Both types of these laws and rules are very similar because for one they both are related to religion, Islam and Christianity and they both have one God that they worship. For Islam their one god is Allah and they have to worship only him (Five Pillars). For Christianity they also have one god named Jesus. In Islam there are specific ways and rules to perform your prayers. These rules include what time you should pray and how many times a day you should pray. For Christians they are not allowed to created replicas or models of the god in your home and you are not allowed to worship or bow down to it (Catechism of the Catholic Church). Another similarity is that these sets of rules and laws are now the basis for many country’s laws and government systems. Some differences are that the Islamic religion has a pilgrimage that everyone has to do in their lifetime to Mecca and the Christian religion doesn't have a specific pilgrimage that they are bound to do. Also in the Islamic religion your are expected by law to give alms or charity to the poor and needy but in the Christian religion you are not expected to (Five Pillars). These religions are completely different but they are also very similar in many ways.

The Five Pillars and The Ten Commandments are similar in many ways but they are also different. These two sets of rules and regulations are the basis for the two religions. These rules keep everyone on the same page and keep everything modest and safe. Some of these rules are so you don’t offend the God and to make sure that you have respect for him. These religions are so different yet so alike.

Works Cited

Catechism of the Catholic Church.

www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/command.htm.

Christian Laws. online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?bookId=258&articleName=GE18_1304&searchText=christian%20laws%20and%20rules&searchOperators=any&category=History.

Five Pillars of Islam. www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/practices/fivepillars.shtml.

History.com Staff. "Ramadan." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2010. Web. 12 Dec. 2016.

Salat: Daily Prayers. www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/practices/salat.shtml.

Zakat : Charity. BBC, 2014, www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/practices/zakat.shtml. Accessed 11 Dec. 2016.