Muhammad (saws): A Role Model for a New Millennium   
      
      
   The human need for role models   
      
   Have you ever heard of Moses, Jesus, Confucius, Krishna or the Buddha? How   
   about Gandhi, Mother Theresa or Martin Luther King? If you live in the West,   
   there's a good chance that you know a bit about these people and their   
   accomplishments. In man's    
   eternal search for immortality and meaning, many leaders and heroes, both true   
   and false, have made their appearance on the world stage. The respect and   
   reverence shown to such figures among people of every nationality, in every   
   age, points to a deep    
   human need to believe in someone greater than oneself, in an attempt to   
   transcend the confines of one's own limited existence. We see this theme recur   
   in world myths, legends, hero stories, and in the idealisation of people who   
   have been raised by their    
   followers to superhuman or godly status.   
       
   Most educated people today are sceptics,   
      
   and view such stories as the charming remnants of a simpler age. And with   
   globalisation and the steady stream of new religions and ideologies that   
   people are exposed to, it may be hard to know what to believe. Some find it   
   easier to ignore spiritual    
   questions altogether, focusing instead on their relationships, careers and   
   'getting ahead'. Yet we know that excessive materialism stifles the mind and   
   spirit; despite technological advances, the deep yearning to believe in a   
   Higher Power, true    
   leadership, and an ultimate purpose in life remains. In this day and age, who   
   can be trusted as a guide in both spiritual and worldly matters?   
       
   There is one leader,   
      
   still largely unknown to the West, who is an extraordinary role model that   
   people of all backgrounds can relate to: the Prophet Muhammad. The details of   
   Muhammad's remarkable life have been carefully preserved and have been   
   subjected to the scrutiny of    
   historians, east and west. In contrast to others who have achieved renown for   
   their accomplishments in a limited sphere of activity, Muhammad's achievements   
   span all major areas of life. The historian Michael H. Hart wrote:   
   My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world's most influential persons   
   may surprise some readers and be questioned by others, but he was the only man   
   in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular   
   levels. Hart, Michael,    
   The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History.   
       
   Why does the average European or American   
       
   know so little about a man whose life was so exceptional? Irrational fears and   
   negative propaganda, dating back to the Crusades and exaggerated by the media,   
   have created a 'mental block' for many people against all things Arab or   
   Islamic, and the two    
   terms are often mistakenly confused. As we enter the age of the global   
   village, is it not time for those who pride themselves on being unprejudiced,   
   independent thinkers to put aside these mental relics from a bygone era? We   
   invite you to take a few    
   minutes to explore a new understanding of religious leadership, and in so   
   doing, to catch a glimpse of a man who is loved by one-fifth of the people on   
   this planet.   
       
   The concept of Prophethood in Islam   
      
   For a Muslim, a Prophet does not primarily imply someone able to foretell the   
   future - although most of Muhammad's predictions have already been fulfilled   
   in astonishing ways - but a man sent by God to call people to repent, have   
   faith, and dedicate    
   their lives to doing good, thereby helping them rediscover the purpose for   
   which they were created. Prophets are not considered to be Divine, and are not   
   prayed to or worshipped - though they were men of outstanding character and   
   spirituality who were    
   protected from committing sins, performed miracles, received revelation and   
   communed with God. Islam teaches that God is One, without partner or   
   associate; no human being can share in any of the qualities that are unique to   
   the Intelligent Creator and    
   Sustainer of our vast and complex universe. Muhammad was no more than God's   
   honoured servant and Messenger, yet he embodied the best of human potential,   
   and that is what continues to make him so appealing and accessible today. Last   
   in a line of Prophets    
   and Messengers sent by God to all people on earth - including Noah, Abraham,   
   Moses and Jesus - who effected the large-scale transformation of individuals   
   and society, Muhammad was unsurpassed as teacher and guide. Speaking of his   
   own role as the last    
   true Prophet before Judgement Day, he said:   
   'The parable of me in relation to the Prophets who came before me is that of a   
   man who built a house beautifully and well, except that one brick in its   
   corner was missing. The people went around it and wondered at its beauty, but   
   said: "If only that    
   brick were put in its place!" I am that brick, and I am the last of the   
   Prophets.'   
       
   Muhammad's personal life   
       
   Muhammad was born in 570 AD to a noble family of Makkah, and was a descendant   
   of the Prophet Abraham. Orphaned at six, Muhammad was a thoughtful youth who   
   worked as a shepherd and helped his uncle with the trade caravans. As a   
   teenager he rejected the    
   immoral customs of his people, who had become steeped in idolatry, and joined   
   a chivalrous order, earning the nickname 'The Trustworthy'. At age 25 he found   
   employment with a wealthy widow of 40 named Khadijah, managing her business.   
   Impressed by his    
   honesty and character, Khadijah proposed marriage and he accepted. Despite   
   their age difference, they were happily married for 25 years, and were blessed   
   with six children. After Khadijah's death Muhammad married several women for   
   political and    
   humanitarian reasons, as was expected of a man of his position; all but one   
   were widows and divorcees. He was a loving and considerate husband and father,   
   and his family was devoted to him despite his voluntary poverty, for he put   
   into practice his own    
   advice, 'the best of you is the one who is best to his own family.'   
       
   Muhammad, the Prophet   
       
      
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