jihad

• • jihad is the struggle in following faith and defending Islam against evil
• greater jihad:

  • inner struggle to be a Good Muslim
  • involves following Five Pillars
  • involves controlling personal desires
  • involves forgiveness and living in peace
  • "No bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another" - shows that a Muslim is individually responsible for their own beliefs and being a good Muslim
• lesser jihad:

  • defending Islam from threat, only in self defence
  • orginates from Muhammad's decision to use conflict to stop Muslims from being attacked
  • "Permission to fight has been given to those who are being fought"
  • however, violence cannot be taken too far - "Fight in the way of Allah those who fight against you but do not transgress"
  • lesser jihad can only be declared by a Muslim leader
  • lesser jihad cannot be used to justify terrorist attacks
• jihad in Britain:

  • Islam is a minority religion in Britain, so it may be harder for Muslims to perform greater jihad
  • Muslims perform jihad in Britain by buying halah meat, not drinking or gambling and giving to charity
  • Muslisms may face prejudice in Britain, as there is a misunderstanding of the meaning of jihad, as jihad has been referred to in terms of terrorist attacks