02-03-2005, 02:09 PM
Bismillah,
The word WORSHIP may have a different meaning, regarding to who says it and act according to it. In Islam the ONLY ONE that is worshipped is Allah, SWT.
The Meaning of Worship
To understand why human beings need to worship God, one must first understand what is meant by the term ‘worship.’ The English term ‘worship’ comes from the Old English weorthscipe meaning ‘honor.’ Consequently, worship in the English language is defined as ‘the performance of devotional acts in honor of a deity.’6 According to this meaning, man is instructed to show gratitude to God by glorifying Him. In the Qur’an, Allah says:
“Glorify the praises of your Lord.” The Qur'an 110:3
In glorifying God, man chooses to be in harmony with the rest of creation which naturally glorifies its Creator. Allah addresses this phenomenon in many chapters of the Qur’an. For example, in the Qur’an, Allah states:
“The seven heavens and the earth and whatever is in them glorify Him and there is nothing which does not glorify His praise. (The thunder is described as gloryfying Allah in 13:13, the day and night in 21:20 and the mountains in 38:18) However, you do not understand their glorification.” The Qur'an 17:44
However, in Arabic, the language of the final revelation, worship is called ‘ibaadah, which is closely related to the noun ‘abd, meaning ‘a slave.’ A slave is one who is expected to do whatever his master wills. Consequently, worship, according to the final revelation, means ‘obedient submission to the will of God.’ This was the essence of the message of all the prophets sent by God to mankind. For example, this understanding of worship was emphatically expressed by Prophet Jesus (the Messiah or Jesus Christ), “None of those who call me ‘Lord’ will enter the kingdom of God, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” Matthew 7:21. It should be noted that ‘will’ in this quote means ‘what God wants human beings to do’ and not ‘what God permits humans to do,’ because nothing happens in creation without the will (permission) of God. The ‘Will of God’ is contained in the divinely revealed laws which the prophets taught their followers. Consequently, obedience to divine law is the foundation of worship. In this sense, glorification also becomes worship when humans choose to obey God’s instructions regarding His glorification.
Source
The following from http://www.viewislam.com/belief/purpose3.htm.