Although sadness overwhelmed him...

Although sadness overwhelmed him, Prophet Abraham was a strong believer in God, so he did not question the divine order. Ishmael, too, unquestionably accepted the command of God by allowing his father to lead him to a mountaintop to be sacrificed. Ishmael's only request was that his father place him face down in order that his father would not see his facial expression during the sacrifice.

Prophet Abraham raised his blade, still ready to comply with the command of God, when a revelation intercepted and caused the cessation of the sacrifice of his son. Prophet Abraham had proven his loyalty to God. The incident was a trial to measure Prophet Abraham's faith. Prophet Abraham was then given a sheep to sacrifice instead. The great trial of Prophet Abraham is commemorated every year as the Feast of Sacrifice ( Eid al-Adha ).

This is a holy holiday for Muslims in which the meat of animals is distributed to the poor. After passing these tests, Prophet Abraham became the leader of humankind, as well as the father of the prophets of the three main monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Why did God Send Different Prophets and Different Religions? Although God sent prophets to nearly all civilizations, the Quran only mentions twenty-five names.

The first of them was Prophet Adam, the father of humanity, and the last prophet was , the seal of the prophets. Throughout history, different messengers with slightly different messages were sent to diverse societies. The reason was that the religious needs of humanity were growing and developing just as the human race was growing and developing. Also, diverse civilizations needed to be approached differently in relation to guidance.

Nevertheless, the source and basic message behind the calling was the same—that there was only one God. God sent Prophet Moses with the Torah as light and guidance for the Children of Israel, along with many other prophets, such as Prophet David and Prophet Solomon. Fifteen-hundred years after Prophet Moses, God sent Prophet Jesus, the son of Mary, confirming the Torah and bringing the Gospel, which is also a book of guidance and light.

Finally, six-hundred years after Prophet Jesus, God sent with the Quran to confirm all the messages sent before him and to complete the revelation of a universal religion to humanity.