The Articles of Faith

Question # 1: List the Six Articles of Faith and give an account of what any two of them
teach. [10] (May/June 18 21)
A straightforward question to which a descriptive response is needed. Candidates need to list
the Six Articles of Faith namely:

Belief in God; angels; revealed books; prophets; life after death and Day of Judgment;
and divine decree.
From the Six Articles of Faith, they need to choose any two and write an account of
what belief in them contains.

The following is a brief account of all the Six Articles of Faith is given as guidance,
indicating what could be expected in answers.

Belief in Allah

It means that a Muslim believes in His existence, that He is the Lord, the Creator and
the Sustainer and none share His authority.
Only He is entitled to worship and that He has the most beautiful names and attributes
that He is unique and no evil or deficiency can be attributed to Him.

Belief in Angels

It is about belief in their existence, as creations of God who have no right to be

worshipped, belief in the names by which they are identified in the Qur’an and Sunna,
and belief in the tasks assigned to them in the Qur’an.

Belief in Revealed Books

is that God sent them to various prophets and that they contained the words of God.
Muslims also believe that, other than the Qur’an, all previous books are not in their
original form.

Belief in Prophets
is that a prophet was sent to every nation, they were the best of humanity, their role
was to convey God’s message.
Respect and obedience to them is due and that Muhammad ‫ ﷺ‬is the seal of prophets.

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 Belief in Resurrection and the Day of Judgment

believes that this world will come to an end with the command of God after which
humanity will be raised again.
Humankind will be accountable before God and will be rewarded or punished
depending on their deeds.

Belief in Divine Decree

entails that God has foreknowledge which is all inclusive, everything is recorded and
happens by God’s will. God’s complete knowledge over every matter does not reduce
human responsibility.

Both Articles selected by the candidate need to be covered in detail for a good mark.

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 Belief in Allah (Tawheed)
Belief:

Question # 2 Write an account of Muslim belief in the Oneness of God (tawhid).

[10] Oct/Nov 2022 21
❖ Write a detailed account of belief in: (Oct/Nov 2020 22)
1. God as the Supreme Lord and Master of all creation;
2. God alone is entitled to worship; and
3. God is known by His most beautiful names and attributes.
❖ Muslims believe that God alone is Lord, that He alone should be worshipped and
that His names and attributes are unique to Him. Outline Muslim beliefs in the
oneness of God. (May/june16 21)
❖ Outline the Muslim teaching about the belief in the oneness of God (tawhid).
(May/june13)

Muslims believe in one God, Allah. This belief in the oneness of God is known as tawhid.
This belief is the core of Islam and all creation has to recognize the Creator, which is God,
and submit to his will.
Tawhid has three aspects:
1. Oneness of the Lordship of God;
2. Oneness in Worship of God;
3. Oneness in the names and qualities of God.

In this answer, candidates need to name these three aspects of Tawhid and explain them:

1. Oneness of the Lordship of God:

There is only one Lord for the entire universe, that is God.
He is the Creator, Sustainer, Lawgiver and Master of the universe.
He is neither the father nor the son of anyone.
The main statement that every Muslim makes is ‘la ilaha illa Allah’, ‘there is no god
but Allah’.
Candidates could give quotes from the Qur’an to expand on this aspect of tawhid.

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 2. Oneness in Worship of God:

Since God is the Creator; he is the only one worthy of worship.

It is man’s primary duty and obligation to worship none other than him.
Muslims must only pray, invoke, and ask him for help. ‘You alone we worship and
You alone we ask help from.’ (Al-Fatiha 1:4-5)

3. Oneness in the Names and Qualities of God:

The belief includes: We must not name or qualify God except with what he and his
Messenger have named or qualified him with.
None can be named or qualified with the names or qualifications of God. Muslims
must believe in all the qualities of God which he has stated in his Book or
mentioned through his Messenger;
Muslims believe in the divine attributes of God; these attributes are only inherent in
God and this belief is integral to Islam.
Muslims are unable to describe God; however, the existence of God can be realized
through his manifestations and through his attributes as told by his messengers.
(Again, candidates can quote from the Qur’an to develop the point further).

(b) How do signs from the natural world strengthen a Muslim’s belief in God?
[4] Oct/Nov 2022 21
Use AO2 Levels of Response.
Muslim belief in God is strengthened when they observe the natural world. Simply by
looking at the universe, mankind has evidence of its Creator, for such a well organised and
well-coordinated world could not have come into existence on its own. There is a
harmonious and systematic arrangement in the universe. Examples of night following day or
the planets in orbit could be given to develop this point.

Nature, the change of seasons, plant life etc. all point towards a Creator. The life cycle of a
plant demonstrates the order of life and the balance created in nature and the environment.
All valid answers to be credited.

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 (b) Why is the declaration of faith (Shahadah) at the core of Islam? [4]
(Oct/Nov 2020 22)
It could be said that in Islam only God is worthy of worship and the essence of Islam
is bearing witness to the phrase, La Ilaha ill-Allah, there is no god but Allah.
This testimony to belief is the axis around which Islam revolves and all the other
Pillars follow on from it
Benefits of Tawhid:

Question # 3: Belief in the oneness of God (tawhid) is a fundamental aspect of faith.

State how tawhid benefits Muslims in their everyday life. [10] (May/june17 21)

Candidates can begin their answer by stating (attributes) that God is unique, that He is the
Creator and the Sustainer of heaven, earth and all that is therein; that He is Eternal and no
one can share in His ownership etc. Or they can launch straight into the answer by stating the
many benefits of belief in Tawhid.
The benefits of Tawhid in the life of a Muslim are several:
Belief in tawhid makes a person virtuous and obedient to God as they know that
success and salvation in this world and the hereafter can only be achieved by piety
and righteous deeds.
A Muslim surrender completely to the will of God and becomes obedient to Him.
It instills in them a sense of confidence and self-respect as they know that they are
dependent on no one but God so they bow before no one else.
The belief also makes them humble and modest as they know that all they have is
from God;
it stimulates unity and brotherhood
And broadens the outlook of a believer as they realize that God’s love and sympathy
is not confined to any one group of people but to His entire creation.
Tawhid also gives a Muslim courage as they know that only God is the giver or taker
of life so in turn this belief makes them brave.
It also creates an attitude of peace and contentment and frees one from jealousy and
envy and greed. (Candidates may well give benefits
other than those given above and if valid should be credited accordingly).

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 Prohibition of Shirk:

Question # 4: (a) Associating partners (shirk) is opposed to believing in the oneness of

God (tawhid) and can be divided into three main categories. Write about each category.
[10] (May/june17 22)
This question is asking the candidates to write about tawhid but from another perspective.

1. Shirk in the existence of God

would constitute assigning partners to God or saying that there is more than one
Creator or that there are more gods than one.
It could also be committed by declaring God to be the father or son of someone.
Well-developed answers may well quote Sura 112:3 which says ‘He does not beget,
nor is He begotten.’
This is the most unforgivable sin and should never be committed as God has said in
several places in the Qur’an e.g., ‘Allah forgives not that partners should be set up
with Him, but He forgives anything else to whom He pleases.’ (Al-Nisa 4:48)

2. Shirk in the worship of Allah

Shirk in the worship of Allah can be committed by praying invoking or asking for
help from any other than God and by offering sacrifice or slaughtering in the name
of any other than God.
Muslims should therefore only ask God for the fulfilment of their wishes or needs as
that power lies only with him. Only He should be invoked.

3. Shirk in God’s Attributes

It means to ascribe qualities which are unique to God to some other being.
It means to believe that some being other than God has the power to create, or make
something perish or has the same knowledge as God or the same divine power.
Muslims should therefore be careful to not commit this grave sin. All three kinds of
shirk should never be committed ‘Whoever joins other gods with Allah, Allah will
forbid him from the garden and fire will be his abode. There will for the wrong-
doers be no one to help.’ (Al-Maidah 5:72)

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 (b) Why has God repeatedly warned Muslims against committing shirk?
[4] (May/june16 21)
❖ Why is associating partners with God (shirk) regarded as a great sin?
(May/june13)

An evaluative and personal response is needed to answer this question.

Shirk in Islam is regarded as a great sin because it signifies ascribing the divine
attributes of God to others besides Him.
It is believing that the source of power, harm and blessings comes from others besides
God and goes against the most fundamental teaching of Islam, tawhid.
It could be said that God has warned Muslims against committing shirk as it signifies
ascribing partners to him or suggesting that another could share his divine attributes.
It has been termed as the most unforgivable of sins for which one will not be forgiven
by God.

There must be evaluation in the answer, not just a statement.

Importance:

(b) Give reasons to support the statement that without tawhid there is no faith. (4)
(May/june17 21)
Here candidates need to give their answer and back it up with reasoning. Answers could state
that

Belief in the oneness of God is the first article of Islam and all forms of ibadah
revolve around it;
Because Muslims believe in the one God, they offer salat five times a day to glorify
Him and seek His aid;
They fast in the month of Ramadan,
Give zakat and perform hajj which are all actions to glorify God, to follow His
commands, to please Him and to seek His mercy.
If the belief in tawhid was absent there would be no need to act upon the Pillars of
faith or the teachings of Islam as they are all done to please the one God.
All valid responses need to be credited.

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