Love this idea for a challenge! I saw a poll recently that asked Americans whether they had a positive, negative, or neutral view of a religion based on the word alone (i.e. no additional context was given), and Islam did not fare well. In some ways, I get it. Most Americans don't know any muslims, and the media isn't exactly friendly in its portrayal of the religion.
Like all ideologies/philosophies/religions adopted by large groups of people, Islam encompasses "good" and "bad" points and isn't a monolith. That said-- I'm happy to highlight some of its qualities I find most inspirational, as a non-religious individual who comes from both Islamic and Christian family traditions and who loves looking for the wisdom in religion.
NB. My takes are probably more theological than sociological. That is-- most of the points listed here refer to scripture and religious doctrine vs. how the religion is practiced today.
1. The conceptualization of the divine as beyond our understanding
I never really understood the Holy Trinity in Christianity (although, to be fair to me, the Holy Trinity is apparently one of the most difficult concepts to truly grasp). In Islam, the divine is not insinuated to be human and is declared to be beyond our understanding. In fact, muslims are encouraged not to spend too much time pondering the idea of god, because it's not productive.
To me, this is the first step in the process of "faith". We acknowledge that there are forces we cannot understand. I think there's something beautiful in this fundamental pillar.
