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3.  '''Fasting''' is expected for the entire month of [[Ramadan]], whereby no food is eaten during daylight hours in that month.  Fasting strengthens the body and soul.

3.  '''Fasting''' is expected for the entire month of [[Ramadan]], whereby no food is eaten during daylight hours in that month.  Fasting strengthens the body and soul.

4.  Almsgiving:  Muslims must donate to the poor.

4.  '''Almsgiving''':  Muslims must donate to the poor.

5.  The [[Hajj]] or pilgrimage '''is made''' at least once during a Muslim's lifetime to Mecca, where Muhammad himself made a hajj from A.D. 629 to 632.

5.  The [[Hajj]] or '''pilgrimage''' is made at least once during a Muslim's lifetime to Mecca, where Muhammad himself made a hajj from A.D. 629 to 632.

Islam also has a social law known as the "[[shariah]]" to dictate how people should relate to each other.  The shariah can impose harsh punishments pursuant to the Qur'an for wrongful conduct.  Islam strictly prohibits alcohol, drugs, [[gambling]], [[prostitution]], [[homosexuality]], [[pornography]] and other harmful activity.  [[Abortion]] is illegal under Islamic law.   

Islam also has a social law known as the "[[shariah]]" to dictate how people should relate to each other.  The shariah can impose harsh punishments pursuant to the Qur'an for wrongful conduct.  Islam strictly prohibits alcohol, drugs, [[gambling]], [[prostitution]], [[homosexuality]], [[pornography]] and other harmful activity.  [[Abortion]] is illegal under Islamic law.   

The Islamic religion adheres to the '''Arabic''' version of the Qur'an as the only authentic version, and translations are not accepted.  This caused the spread of the Arabic language throughout the Middle East and into Asia, and increased the influence of the new religion.  This also prevents any translators from changing the meaning of the Qur'an.

The Islamic religion adheres to the '''Arabic''' version of the Qur'an as the only authentic version, and translations are not accepted.  This caused the spread of the Arabic language throughout the Middle East and into Asia, and increased the influence of the new religion.  This also prevents any translators from changing the meaning of the Qur'an.

Muhammad's first successor, or "[[caliph]]", was his friend [[Abu-Bakr]].  He kept together the Islamic faith, but around A.D. 660 a schism occurred in Islam between the [[Sunnis]], the largest group, and the stricter Shiites (or Shi'ites or Shia).  They could not agree on who should be the successor to Muhammad, and the Shiites chose [[Ali]], a son-in-law of Muhammad, as caliph.  The Sunnis — made up of the members of the Umayyad clan — triumphed in this first period of Islamic history.  During the reign of a Sunni king named [[Umar]], Islam grew at an astounding rate.  At the [[Battle of Yarmuk]] (A.D. 636 AD), 40,000 Muslims defeated an army of 120,000 Byzantines.   

Muhammad's first successor, or "[[caliph]]", was his friend [[Abu-Bakr]].  He kept together the Islamic religion, but around A.D. 660 a schism occurred in Islam between the [[Sunnis]], the largest group, and the stricter Shiites (or Shi'ites or Shia).  They could not agree on who should be the successor to Muhammad, and the Shiites chose [[Ali]], a son-in-law of Muhammad, as caliph.  The Sunnis — made up of the members of the Umayyad clan — triumphed in this first period of Islamic history.  During the reign of a Sunni king named [[Umar]], Islam grew at an astounding rate.  At the [[Battle of Yarmuk]] (A.D. 636 AD), 40,000 Muslims defeated an army of 120,000 Byzantines.   

In 750 A.D., the Abbasid clan — whose members supported the Shiite sect — defeated the Umayyads.  The rule of Abassid caliph "Harun al-Rashid" is known as the "Golden Age of Islam."

In 750 A.D., the Abbasid clan — whose members supported the Shiite sect — defeated the Umayyads.  The rule of Abassid caliph "Harun al-Rashid" is known as the "Golden Age of Islam."

The capital of the Carolingian empire was not Rome, but Aachen in what is now Germany.  Charlemagne's son Louis "the Pious" then held this empire together from 814-840, but when he died his three sons fought with each other.  They split the empire three ways in the Treaty of Verdun in 843.  Western Europe was just too vast and diverse for a single ruler, and a new system was needed.  That new system was feudalism.

The capital of the Carolingian empire was not Rome, but Aachen in what is now Germany.  Charlemagne's son Louis "the Pious" then held this empire together from 814-840, but when he died his three sons fought with each other.  They split the empire three ways in the Treaty of Verdun in 843.  Western Europe was just too vast and diverse for a single ruler, and a new system was needed.  That new system was feudalism.

===Feudalism in Western Europe===

===Feudalism in Western Europe===