Ap World Dbq Christian and Islam Attitude Towards Merchants Essay

societies. Christianity in its origins had a negative view of merchants while Islam was more positive as

In the “Arabian Peninsula Trade Routes” (Doc. A) it shows how Mecca was very busy with all kinds of trade. Since Mecca is where Islam would start in the upcoming years, traders would come and go taking the teachings of Muhammad with them. Mecca was both the center of trade and the center of Islam which leads to the quick spread of faith through the many traders and merchants that

At their origins, Christians and Muslims had different views about merchants and traders. This can be seen in the first two documents which are excerpts from the holy books of

The Crusades and the Mongol invasions greatly affected the trade in the Islamic world, but the Mongols were more open to the idea of trade than the Crusaders. There were many ways the Crusades affected trade. For example, by increasing the demand for Middle Eastern products. This was cause for more production in the Middle East. Also, the Crusades increased the use of money in the Islamic world, and the need for it. Lastly, the Crusades created many new inventions to do with weaponry and war because of trade. This allowed for better chances on the battlefield, and all the new inventions caused the economy to grow because people bought more things as they were now available.

Overall, there are a number of similarities in the two faiths’ treatment of minority religions. Still, an examination of Medieval Christians' inter-faith relations finds a history of religious diplomacy much more fragmented than that of the Muslims. In Christianity, tolerance and persecution were part of the ebb and flow of the passage of power from one ruler to the next, as well as the power struggle between the church and the state. On the other hand, Muslims had no such struggle; their church and state were one and the same. Unlike Christians, they did not have separate laws for the sacred and profane, the secular and religious. The passage of power from one Islamic ruler to the next rarely brought with it radical amendments in the treatment of infidels, although exceptions did exist.

On the surface, Islam and Christianity appear to have very little in common, however, as you get deeper into areas such as rituals, beliefs, ethics, founders, and sacred objects, the two show strong mutual similarities, particularly in the fundamental areas, while being totally different. In this essay I will compare and contrast many of the facets that make up the worlds largest and most recognized religions, Christianity and Islam.

When thinking about the history of the world, one must always consider that merchants as well as trade have played an immerse role in shaping the world as it is today. They are responsible for many of the cross-cultural interactions that we have had in the past. Christianity and Islam, the two predominant religions of the world today, have both grown and spread through merchants and trade also. These two chief religions both have attitudes towards merchants and trade that have either developed or decreased overtime. According to these documents, from up to the year 1500, Christianity went from a negative view of merchants and trade to a positive view while Islam went from a positive view to a negative view, but both sides

Islam became almost the same. In the 14th century, letters to and from Italian merchants

In the beginning of Christianity, trade was considered sinful, while the Muslims thought trade was a lesson of appreciation and hard work. Christians had a strongly negative attitude towards the interaction between trade and merchants. Islamic people, however, had various different opinions on trade in comparison to the Christian religion. However, over time, the thoughts on trade and merchants shifted to a more negative point of view from both religions. The opinions from these religions were opposite at the beginning of time, but they eventually fused into one overall thought and opinion by the 16th century.

As stated in Document 5, “After those kingdoms collapsed, Muslim rulers still encouraged trade with European businessmen. Commerce with the West benefited both Muslims and Europeans, and it continued to flourish.” Even when the kingdoms collapsed, Muslims still continued trade with the Europeans, and trade then maintained to thrive. This shows how the course of the Crusades helped bring back the prosperous economic relationship between Europe and the Middle East. Also, Document 2 explains how merchants who used their fleets to carry Crusaders ended up using their fleets to set up markets in the East. Merchants took European goods and brought back goods from the Middle East. This illustrates how Western Europe reconnected themselves to a more vast selection of products through the trade during the Crusades. As seen above, the Western Europeans were positively impacted by the Crusades through a more connected trade relationship with the Middle

Islam soon acquired vast amounts of territory in Afro-Eurasia, and according to the map, “The Growing Worlds of Islam (900-1500),” it occupied an area from parts of central Asia to West Africa and Eastern Europe by the start of the sixteenth century. This map documents the phases of the growth of Islam for six hundred years, which combined with further analysis will reveal each step in the conquest of each new phase of territory. Controlling all of these nations created standardized trade and common business practices throughout the empire. Using already intact trade routes, such as the Silk Roads, documented in the map provided as document 1, the Islamic empire built an economic system that was unified by common religious beliefs. Comparing the trade routes mapped on both the Silk Roads map and the “The Growing Worlds of Islam (900-1500)” map, one can see that they are very similar, suggesting that they remained the same and that the Islamic empire just took over the control of each. Yet it was not just the Silk Roads that saw a revival at the hands of Muslim commercial excursions. The Mediterranean and Indian Ocean sea routes, as well as the trans-Saharan routes were given new life as well due to the Islamic empire. These routes not only produced trade, but they also opened up opportunities for new agricultural products and a sharing of ideas and innovations. These

Christians do not think money is a bad thing. However, they believe the way money is earned and used is the issue. Most Christians believe that wealth is a gift from God to benefit others. Christians believe that all money belongs to God and he gives them stewardship of his money to use wisely. The Bible teaches, “You cannot serve both God and money.” (Matthew 6:24). For Christians this means that they must be careful not to replace their love for God with the love of money.

Similarities between Christian and Islamic understandings of peace can be seen through the examples of Jesus Christ and Muhammad as prophets being examples of peace in order to guide adherents in their beliefs and practices. The nature of reciprocity is evident through each of their teachings. One of Jesus’ teachings, better known as the golden rule of Christianity is ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you’. This links with Muhammad’s teaching in the Hadith saying ‘None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself’. These teachings stress the ethic of reciprocity as each adherent (despite differing religious traditions) cannot be faithful to God without considering the needs of others. As it is through care for others that peace can be

The story that is depicted by Giotto di Bondone in his painting Expulsion of the Merchants from the Temple is the bible story about Christ ridding the temple of merchants. Giotto does a very good job of conveying the emotion of Christ and all of the other people that were at this event. People of the Jewish faith are called to come make sacrifices at the temple a couple times a year. During these times of sacrifice, merchants would set up markets in the back of and on the immediate exterior of the temple. They would try to sell anything that they could make money on; for example, they would sell souvenirs, animals for sacrifice, and exchange foreign currencies for profit. This abuse of the temple angers Christ and he throws all of the merchants

As of today, the world’s two largest religions Christianity and Islam share an estimated 3.6 billion members, more than half of the world’s population. On the surface, they appear to have almost nothing in common, however, as one goes beyond the surface and examines the other factors such as the rituals, beliefs, ethics, founders, and convictions, the two religions share many similarities. However, in order to truly see and understand these similarities and differences, one must date back to the rise and birth of Christianity and Islam.