What do Muslims believe about God?

While most religions share a belief in God, there are differences in terms of belief ABOUT God. Some religions teach that God is One, but that there are many lesser gods that are all manifestations of the One God. Some teach that God is One, but He is divided into parts. Some teach that God is One, but He is IN everything or He IS everything. Some religions teach that God is One, but you need to go through intermediaries, such as idols, saints, or priests, to reach Him. Islam is different. In Islam, we believe that God is One. No buts. No exceptions. There is only One God, One Owner of everything, and none has the right to be worshiped but Him. This believe in the Oneness of God is called Tawhid, which comes from the word "Wahid," meaning "One."

Of course, this is not the only thing Muslims believe about God. There are many important characteristics or attributes that belong to Allah, more than I can mention here . We actually have what is called the 99 names of Allah, a list of descriptive titles belonging to God. For example, Allah is the Creator, the Sustainer, the Eternal, the All-Knowing, the All-Seeing, the Peace, the Light, the Guide, the First, the Last, the Almighty, the Forgiving, the Loving, the One. There are two attributes, however, that should be discussed in greater detail, namely "the Just" and "the Merciful," because understanding how these two names compliment each other will allow for a clearer and deeper understanding of Islam in general.  Allah is Just and Fair, so we know that Allah will never place a burden on anyone more than they can handle, that whatever we do in life, good or bad, we will be held responsible for it, and that nothing will be missed or ignored or left out. Everything will be taken into account. At the same time, the Mercy of Allah is unimaginably vast. There are actually two names of Allah in Arabic that contain the word Rahma, or  Mercy. They are Al Rahman and Al Raheem, and they can be roughly translated as the Most Merciful and the Ever-Merciful. So even if we do wrong, even if we make mistakes, even if we mess up again and again and again, Allah in His Mercy is always ready to forgive us and give us another chance. All we have to do is ask. Simple.

Of course, we're only scratching the surface here, but keep studying Islam, keep praying and thinking, keep contemplating the world around you,  and you will continue to learn more and more about Allah.

"Say, 'O My servants who have transgressed against themselves, do not despair of the mercy of Allah . Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.'"

(Qur'an 39:53)