Question

Which of the below is not a reason why the Africans more readily accepted Islam rather than Christianity?

Option 1: Unlike Christianity, Islam tolerated traditional values, allowing a man to have more than one wife.
Option 2: None of the above.
Option 3: Islam was a modernizing influence, imposing a consistent order among different societies, strengthening powers of government and breaking down ethnic loyalties.
Option 4: "The Mohammedan Negro has felt nothing of the withering power of caste. There is nothing in his color or race to debar him from the highest privileges, social or political, to which any other Muslim can attain.

Answer 1

Option 2: None of the above, is the correct answer as all the other options accurately reflect reasons why Islam was more readily accepted by African societies compared to Christianity, due to Islam's flexibility, inclusiveness, and its adaptation to African cultural norms.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question asks which of the provided options is not a reason why Africans more readily accepted Islam rather than Christianity. The correct answer is Option 2: None of the above, as the other options are indeed reasons that contributed to the more ready acceptance of Islam over Christianity among African societies.

Option 1 highlights the Islamic tolerance for polygamous marriages, which aligned with existing African practices, whereas Christianity emphasized monogamy. Option 3 describes how Islam acted as a modernizing influence, bringing about a level of cohesion and consistent governance which appealed to ruling elites. Option 4 underlines the inclusive nature of Islam, which did not discriminate based on color or race and offered equal opportunities for social and political advancement within the Islamic community, contrasts with the cast systems encountered in other cultural contexts.

All of these points contributed to the receptivity of Islam in African societies, particularly during the medieval period when local traditions were integrated into the Islamic faith. This resulted in a form of Islam unique to the African continent, which is known as Africanized Islam.