I taught Islam for several years at the college level. One of the things which was clear was that the Muslims await the coming of the Mahdi, revealed in the hadith, as the messiah who will bring many centuries of peace before the end of the world.
The Sunnis and the Shias (Shiites) disagree as to the nature and timing of this Mahdi, but they are in agreement that he will come.
Some texts state that he will fight against the anti-Christ. One can see the lifting of Christian ideas in these prophecies, which came centuries after Christ and the writing of the book of Revelation, about 100 A.D. The Koran is a mixture of the Torah, the Catholic Bible, and Arabic customs.
Some believe that the Mahdi's coming depends on the cleansing of the world of Christians. Part of the Shia prophecy of the coming of the Mahdi is the complete destruction of Syria. Does this look familiar?
According to some Islamic writings, the entire world will be Muslim under the Mahdi, and this has to happen before the end "resurrection of the dead." The Baha'is, who follow a religion established in the 19th century, also believe in a type of Mahdi-Messiah, who will come and bring peace, but under the Baha'i "faith".
If you followed my recommendation on this blog twice of watching the movie Khartoum, you will understand the coming of the Mahdi and one who claimed to be him in the past, Muhammad Ahmad bin Abd Allah.
Of course, there is only one Messiah, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior. But, those Muslims who await the End Times, are pushing for the purification of the world of Christians in order to establish the era of peace with the coming of the Mahdi. This is the impetus, imo, of the surge of violence in the "religion of peace".
