Chapter 2 Matching Exercise

The “doubters,” this is a reference to those in Medina during the Prophet Muhammad’s stay there who doubted the legitimacy of his religious claims and thus his political leadership.

Members of the Coptic Orthodox Church, the largest Christian religion in Egypt, or a more generic cultural term for Egyptian Christians.

Daily prayers recited by Muslims and one of the Five Pillars of Islam.

Lesser aristocracy that included administrators and tax collectors in the Sassanian Empire, many of whom continued in their occupations even after the Islamic conquest.

(related, dhimmi) (Arabic: People of the Book): A term found in the Quran, designating Jews, Christians, and Sabians as believers in a revealed book, specifically the Bible or Torah. Special protections were extended to those deemed dhimmi or protected ones under Muslim rule, in return for a tax paid (jizya).

Credibility

Meaning “one nature,” it is a reference to Christians who believe that Jesus Christ has one divine nature and not both human and divine, as in Diophysism.

Tradition or custom of the Prophet Muhammad based on his sayings (hadith). It is second only to the Quran in terms of its religious significance as a guide for Muslims.

Meaning “two natures,” it is a reference to the Christian belief in the two natures of Jesus Christ, divine and human miraculously fused into one. It became the official religion of the Byzantine Empire at the Council of Chalcedon in 451 CE, in opposition to Monophysites.

Sanctuary, often a religious sanctuary. Also a reference to forbidden areas.

The tribe into which the Prophet Muhammad was born in Mecca. It controlled trade and dominated in Mecca during the time of the Prophet.

(Arabic: community): The collective community of Islamic people throughout the world.