Wealth and poverty – Islamic teachings Essay Example

has, He looks at how well each person or country uses their wealth, or how they spend their wealth. Only deeds are important to Allah, because only good deeds will get us into paradise.

Therefore, whatever little we have spare, should be contributed to the poor. By doing this, we would be creating peace amongst the countries.Mohammad also warns against lack of compassion in the world saying a man who" eats his fill while his neighbour remains hungry by his side"(Hadith) is not a true believer. Therefore, it is clear to Muslims their duty to the poor and less fortunate is a crucial part of being a diligent believer.

Zakaat literally means to increase. Technically it means to purify one's position of wealth by distributing a prescribed amount which has to be given to the poor as a fundamental Ibaadat (Worship) Zakaat is not a governmental tax, but it's main purpose is to keep the money in circulation and by making charity compulsory, the rich are made to think and reflect on the need of their community. Thus if people become caring individuals and therefore then sin will become distanced from them.Islam aims for life to be a test for Allah's vice-regent representation.

Life is, preparation for life to come (Akirah) The test for men of riches and poverty are set by the Qur'an and Hadith, which mentions about this life is a test that the rich will be tested on how they show their gratitude however though the poor on the other hand will be tested on how they keep their faith and trust in God.One of the scholars tends to make a strong statement

emphasising the importance of keeping to the commands of God by stating"The nation that does not give Zakaat, Allah Will bring about a drought on them (i.e. necessities of life will become scarce)" (taleemul Haq)Some Muslims think people who suffer in this world could be due to them not obeying Gods command therefore Islam is based on giving charity and it is an important pillar,there are many quotations in the Qur,an and Hadith asking to give Sadaqah (voluntary charity) so that every person rich or poor can get involved in with caring for the community. For example Prophet (p.

b.u.h) said "A smile is a charity" and I don't see why everyone cant do this everyone can smile. Removing harmful object from a path is a sign of charity" and in these actions both rich and poor can take part.Islam has forbidden interest and encourages people to give loans to help others Qur'aan;"Allah destroys wealth obtained from interest and will gave increase for deed of charity".

Soorah Baqarah: 276Interest just makes poor more poor as they find it difficult to pay it back!ii) Explain why there is need for world developmentOne of reasons for World development is to help poor people to benefit from much lucidity that rich countries can start to less develop countries get into a difficult situation for a number of reasons most obvious is warA war is a very big reason for a country staying undeveloped. There have been lots of wars in this world and if there is a war in an already very poor country, it affects it very critically for instance men who should normally support their families in

day to day bases are no longer present, since they are either on the battlefield or killed in the war Thus the families end up without financial support and do not were to turn.Secondly when wars take place buildings, field and other major facilities are destroyed and the families and communities need serious help many trees are being cut down and new houses are being built, so therefore the land space keeps getting smaller and smaller. The Third world countries have a higher death rate than they do for birth rate.

This is because of infant mortality and lack of healthcare,This financial support can only come from agencies set up by undeveloped countries. Not only during the troubled time people need help but after the war is over they need money and resources to rebuild the country back again, this means of obtaining, this it is to get it from charity organisations or borrow money.When poor countries borrow from rich states they have to pay not only the amount borrowed but also interest, this situation then leaves them in difficulties that they will never be able to get out of. Therefore there is a movement in rich countries asking develop countries to "right off" the dept of poor however only a few developed countries such as Britain has done this but other are still demanding the money borrowed and interest back (payback).Secondly the reason for world development is Cash crops ,the only way many less develop countries can make money for their debts is to grow cash crops (crops grown for sale rather than consumption).

Cotton,coffee,tea and tobacco are grown to sell to the developed world.

Many less developed countries are starving because land is used to grow cash crops instead of food.Finally and most important is Natural Disasters many less developed countries are situated in areas of the world where natural disasters (earthquakes, floods, droughts)are more frequent and more severe than anywhere many thousands of homes and farmland on which the inhabitants depend. If rain does not fall, crops will not grow unless people have the wealth to sink wells, install pumps and organise an irrigation systemTo conclude this as you can see there is a major need for world development less developed countries are at desperate measures if it is not dept it is starvation homeless etc..

.iii)Analyse and explain the work of one Muslim agency working for world development.Muslim Aid, one of the many Muslim agencies is an international relief and development agency working to stop poverty and suffering some of the world's poorest communities. Muslim Aid is tackling the root causes of poverty through a series of long-term programme such as water provision, education, income generation and health care, Muslim Aid provides relief to victims of natural disasters, wars and famine. For example if there is a country that is suffering from famineFor example Afghanistan. Afghanistan has been suffering from a drought for a number of years Since it started in 1985, Muslim Aid has always been dedicated to helping the people of Afghanistan through healthcare, drought relief; skills training, education, and irrigation projects and the civil war and recent aerial bombardments in the country have left it in circumstance where emergency relief was needed.

Muslim Aid instantly gave �500, 00 for food, shelter and medical care for the

refugees that were stuck in camps near Peshawar along the Pakistani border, and to the helpless communities in Afghanistan.Gujarat the most destructive earthquake Muslim aid gave help and Months later; Muslim Aid continues to help this unfortunate city. The quake, which reached 6.9 on the Richter scale, cost nearly 100,000 lives and made up to a million people homeless.

Straight away, Muslim Aid gave �500,000 for a relief and rehabilitation programme that supplied ambulances, medicine, food, water, and shelter to the thousands of injured civilians.Muslim Aid will get together and arrange for money to be collected for example these above countries, the way the system normally is set up is by arranging funds, sponsorships, people donating, competitions etc...

Muslim Aid works in twenty-five countries around the world. Funds are set up through its offices in Australia, UK and Germany. development work is carried out through its field offices in Bosnia, Bangladesh and Sudan and also through growing partnerships with local organisations and NGO's,allowing us to respond quickly to emergencies, assess real local needs and keep costs low.(b) "There should be no rich people as long as there is poverty in the world".Some Muslims agree with the statement because Muslims should provide money for the poor so that their Muslim brother or sister doesn't starve with hunger.

They shouldn't worry about how much they do for the poor, because the more you give in charity, the more Allah gives you.The poor aren't very fortunate because them not having money is either a test or a punishment from Allah. Allah tests every person in a different way. He tests them on wealth, natural disasters, diseases, wars, and many

other difficulties.

He wants people to see how much they love him."The person whom Allah has bestowed with wealth ,and he does not give Zakat, on the day of Qiyaamah, his wealth will be turned into a venomous serpent which will wind around his neck and bite his jaws and say: "I am your wealth, I am your treasure", BukhareeOthers think that being rich is a test from God. Allah tests his believers in different ways he tests them on wealth, natural disasters, disasters, wars and many other difficulties. He wants people to see how much they love him.I agree and disagree with both of these statements because I think that it's ok to be either equal to every single person on the earth, or to be richer as long as you give your bit of wealth to the poor and needy. (Zakat)I disagree with the statement because Allah tests everyone differently.

He tests some people with wealth on the way they show their gratitude, natural disasters, deaths, on the other hand the poor are tested on how they are to keep their faith and trust in god, Money isn't everything.Many people also think that why should they give their money away when they have earned it because of their hard work, If others did the same they would not be in financial difficulty.