This paper will explore the derivation of social work from the religion of Islam by examining the social work practice of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, in the main mosque of Medina in the seventh century, specifically from the year 622 AD until the Prophet’s death in the year 632 AD. The presentation of the history of the mosque-centered social services initiated by the Prophet Muhammad will be accompanied by an objective Islamic-scientific examination, as well as by a comparison with the definitions of social work espoused by both the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) and the Bundesarbeitsgericht (German Federal Labor Court), all leading to the conclusion that the mosque resp. the mosque centered social work of the Prophet Muhammad is to be regarded as an valid and essential institution of social work.
