What About Islam?
Mountain Brook Baptist Church
November 5, 2014
What about Islam then? There are an estimated 1.6 billion Muslims around the world, making Islam the world’s second-largest religion after Christianity, according to the December 2012 Global Religious Landscape report from the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life. Should we lump the billion and a half Muslims with the million or so who have dominated the news with their radical religion? The answer surely is "No," but it would be easier to reach this judgment if major segments of the Muslim world would publicly condemn the radicals. Perhaps they have and we have not heard them.[1] It is true that Turkey--a Muslim country--has joined its NATO allies to resist ISIS. Many moderate Muslims insist that radical, jihadist Islam is not representative of the faith as a whole, which they insist is peaceful. In order for us to make a better judgment about the Muslims in the news I want to review with you the basics of Islam. If one is to compare Islam with Christianity, surely we should compare the best of both faiths and not the worst elements.
The Man Muhammad
The 1.6 billion Muslims in the world today all trace the beginnings of their religion to a man born in 570 A.D., almost six hundred years after Jesus and about eighteen hundred years after Moses. Muhammad was born to a poor family in the Saudi Arabian town of Mecca. Muhammad's full name is Muhammad ibn Abd Allah, ibn Abd al-Muttalib, ibn Hashim. Muhammad's father was Abdallah (ʿAbd Allāh, servant of Allah), of the family of Hashim. The name Muhammad means "Praised." His father died soon after Muhammad's birth. At the age of six the boy lost his mother and was thereafter taken care of by his uncle Abu-Talib. He spent his early life as a shepherd and an attendant of caravans. He was employed by a rich widow, Khadijah, fifteen years his senior, to take her caravan to Syria and trade for her. Muhammad handled this task well and at the age of twenty-five Khadijah married the younger Muhammad. She bore him six children. The two sons born to this couple died in infancy but four daughters survived. Of these four, Fatima, is the most famous. To an outsider at least, Fatima seems to fill the role in Islam that is filled by Mary in the Catholic Christian faith. Following the death of Khadijah, Muhammad married twelve other wives. One of those wives was betrothed to him as a child and married to him at puberty. This wife, Aisha, survived Muhammad by decades and was involved in the collection of his sayings which became part of the Quran.
Prophetic Call and Vision
Although all of the accounts of Muhammad's initial vision which began his life as a prophet are colored by the reverence and devotion of centuries of followers, there was obviously a dramatic moment in his life that changed everything. Here is the account that appears in one introduction to the Quran in English:[2]
It was his practice to retire with his family for a month of every year to a cave in the desert for meditation. His place of retreat was Hira, a desert hill not far from Mecca, and his chosen month was Ramadan, the month of heat. It was there one night towards the end of his quiet month that the first revelation came to him when he was forty years old. He was asleep or in a trance when he heard a voice say: "Read!" He said: "I cannot read." The voice again said: "Read!" He said: "I cannot read." A third time the voice, more terrible, commanded: "Read!" He said: "What can I read?" The voice said: "Read: In the name of thy Lord Who createth. Createth man from a clot." ''Read: And it is thy lord the Most Bountiful Who teacheth by the pen. Teacheth man that which he knew not." When he awoke the words remained "as if inscribed upon his heart." He went out of the cave on to the hillside and heard the same awe-inspiring voice say: "0 Muhammad! Thou art Allah's messenger and I am Gabriel." Then he raised his eyes and saw the angel in the likeness of a man, standing in the sky above the horizon. And again the dreadful voice said: "0 Muhammad! Thou art Allah's messenger, and I am Gabriel" Muhammad (God bless and keep him!) stood quite still, turning away his face from the brightness of the vision, but whithersoever he might turn his face, there always stood the angel confronting him. He remained thus a long while till at length the angel vanished, when he returned in great distress of mind to his wife Khadijah. She did her best to reassure him, saying that his conduct had been such that Allah would not let a harmful spirit come to him, and that it was her belief that he was to become the Prophet of his people. On their return to Mecca she took him to her cousin, Waraqa ibn Naufal, a very old man "who knew the Scriptures of the Jews and the Christians," who declared his belief that the heavenly messenger who came to Moses of old had come to Muhammad and that he was chosen as the Prophet of his people."
Flight to Medina and Return to Mecca
Muhammad began to share his belief in one God, Allah, and gradually gathered a small group of converts numbering about forty. At this time each tribe, and sometimes each clan within a tribe, worshipped a god which was usually represented by an idol. The famed Kaabah around which a million pilgrims walk each year on their pilgrimage to Mecca was home to hundreds of idols and sacred objects. Muhammad began aggressively arguing that Allah alone should be worshiped and all the idols destroyed. Many of the tribes in and near Mecca resisted the message of Muhammad fiercely. Ultimately, Muhammad and his followers had to flee from Mecca. This flight to Medina a city north of Mecca is known as the Hegira and occurred in 622 A.D.[3] The religion known as Islam is dated from this event. The Muslim calendar counts the years After the Hegira or A.H. To determine the date of Muslim events on our calendar, simply add 622 to the AH date used by Muslims. The inhabitants of Medina welcomed Muhammad and he began to use military force to combat his enemies. He conquered several Jewish, Christian and Arabian tribes and eight years after fleeing, he entered Mecca in triumph, demolished the idols of the Kaaba, became master of Arabia, and finally united all the tribes under one emblem and one religion. Mecca became the most sacred place on earth to Muslims and to this day, Muslims bow in prayer toward Mecca. Each mosque has a niche in a wall indicating the direction to face when praying.
In 632 he made his last pilgrimage to Mecca at the head of some forty thousand followers. Soon after his return to Medina he died of a violent fever at the age of 53, the eleventh year of the Hegira (A.H. 11), and the year 633 A.D. of the Christian era.
Geographical Spread of Islam
Following the death of Muhammad, his disciples spread outward from Saudi Arabia across North Africa and the Middle East. Muhammad recognized Jews and Christians as "People of the Book" since they shared the Old Testament, and these religious groups were not required (theoretically) to convert when their territory was conquered--but they were required to pay the tax imposed on them and many such conquered populations converted rather than pay the tax. Those who were neither Christian nor Jew were required to convert or face death. The modern map of Islam shows a high concentration of Muslims in the original regions and also major populations in Africa, Turkey, and the Asia-Pacific region (especially India and Pakistan). After the death of Muhammad there was a major conflict over leadership. Ultimately two major groups emerged within the Muslim world--Sunnis (the majority group) and Shias. While they share the fundamental elements of the Muslim religion they differ widely over interpretations of the Quran and legal practices (Sharia law). In some cases the conflicts between Sunni and Shia have been more violent than the confrontation of Islam with other religious groups.[4]
The Message of Islam: The Five Pillars[5]
Profession (Shahadah)
All Muslims share some things in common. Among these shared elements are the so-called Five Pillars of Islam. Some of these shared elements are very similar to Christian practices even though they may not seem familiar because of the way Muslims go about them. For example, the first pillar of Islam is a profession of faith! Sounds familiar doesn't it? While a new Christian will confess "Jesus is Lord" at his baptism, a convert to Islam would profess: "There is no god but Allah; Muhammad is the messenger of Allah." One becomes a Muslim when he or she recites this profession with a sincere heart. The profession must be made in Arabic. The Arabic word for this pillar is Shahada which comes from the verb "to testify." The Shahada is written in many elaborate and decorative ways by Muslims. The only things like this in the Christian faith are the medieval illuminated biblical manuscripts.
Prayer (Salah) A second pillar of Islam is the requirement that one pray five times a day. One of the most common images of the Muslim faith is the picture of hundreds of men (women normally do not pray publicly) bowing in prayer in a mosque. In the Muslim tradition, the first prayer comes before sunrise, the second at noon, the third in the late afternoon, the fourth after sunset and the fifth before bedtime. The call to prayer may well be the first impression a westerner gets of a Muslim city. I well remember the call to prayer that came over the loud speakers in Casablanca before dawn on my first morning in Morocco. The one who calls to prayer chants in Arabic:
God is Great (said four times)
I bear witness that there is no god except the One God. (said two times)
I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God. (said two times) I
If possible one prays at a mosque, but if that is not possible a devout Muslim will pray wherever he (or she) is--be that on a street corner or in a place of business. Many Christians no longer observe fixed hours of prayer, but liturgical churches--especially the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox churches--maintain this tradition. Monks and nuns still observe very similar cycles of prayer. For those of us not familiar with this kind of Christian devotion, it is instructive to visit the web site of St. John's Abbey in Minnesota.[6]
"As Benedictine monks, we approach prayer in a distinctive, monastic way. We pray the Psalms, those ancient, iron-age poems given to the Church by the people of Israel, at regular times each day. We come together to do this "work of God" and it is the glue that holds our community life together."
Muslims--like the Monks of St. John's Abbey--pray a fixed form of prayer, reciting the first chapter of the Quran and using other standard forms of prayer and praise as well as various positions of the body from standing erect to kneeling and prostration. The Muslims seek to involve their whole body in worship throughout the day from dawn to bedtime in ways not very different from that of Old Testament worshippers who sought to submit heart, head, hands and house to God (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).
Providing (Zakat)
Zakāt, "that which purifies," is the practice of taxation and redistribution, including benefits paid to poor Muslims, imposed upon Muslims based on accumulated wealth. It is obligatory for all who are able to do so, and it is considered to be a personal responsibility for Muslims to ease economic hardship for other Muslims to eliminate inequality among followers of Islam. In some countries the zakat is collected by the state and is mandatory, but in most countries the zakat is a voluntary contribution that varies in amount from at least two and a half percent upward. In addition to the tax, Muslims are expected to remember the poor. I had the special experience of being in a Muslim home one year when they celebrated the Festival of the Sacrifice (of Isaac or Ishmael). Each family sacrifices a sheep and prepares a great meal just as we do at Thanksgiving. The meat from the sacrificed animal is preferred to be divided into three parts. The family retains one third of the share; another third is given to relatives, friends and neighbors; and the remaining third is given to the poor and needy. I went with the father of this family late in the evening to deliver the food they had reserved to a poor employee and his family. He spoke no English and I spoke no Arabic, but words were not needed to understand what was transpiring. Christians, Muslims and Jews are all called upon to remember the poor.
Fasting (Sawm)
The fourth pillar of Islam is fasting, especially during the month of Ramadan (which is special because that is when Muhammad had his vision calling him to be a prophet). Fasting involves abstaining from food, drink and sexual intimacy from dawn to dusk. While not the same by any means, we Christians practice a form of fasting--though usually mild-- during the Lenten season leading up to Easter. The purpose of doing without is to heighten our conciousness of God. Muslims have a much more demanding routine since they are required to do even without water during the daylight hours. They can eat before sunrise and after sunset. The month of Ramadan comes at different times in our calendar year since it is based on a lunar calendar and when it comes during the long summer days it can be expecially demanding. The fast days of Ramadan do have their light side, however, since the long period without makes the meal that breaks the fast especially enjoyable. Muslims call this meal Iftar and it often takes the form of a big potluck meal at a mosque just after the evening call to prayer at sundown.
Pilgrimage (Hajj)
The last pillar of Islam is the Hajj, the once in a lifetime pilgrimage of a man to Mecca to make the walk around the Kaabah at the center of the holiest place of all for Muslims. Who can forget the images of a million men prostrating themselves in prayer around the Kaabah that are routinely featured each year in our newspapers. Christians are not under any mandate to make a pilgrimage to Israel, but each Christmas we see pictures of pilgrims making their way to Bethlehem, and each Easter we see Christians walking the famed Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem just as Christ did two millenia ago. Catholics by the million make the journey to Rome to stand in the plaza at the Vatican to hear the Pope's sermon and receive his blessing. Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Rome become Mecca for many Christians. Once a Muslim man makes the pilgrimage to Mecca (women are not required to make the journey), he is given the honorary title of Hajj. I have never forgotten the time I was privileged to have a traditional dinner with a family in Casablanca. The father of the family introduced himself--in English--by giving his name and saying, "I am Hajj." Clearly that pilgrimage was the defining moment in his life.
The Quran (Koran)
The Arabic word qur'an is a form of the verb meaning "to read." The Quran (Koran) is the Islamic sacred book; it is their scripture. Muslims believe the Quran to be the word of God as dictated to Muhammad by the archangel Gabriel and written down in Arabic. The Quran consists of 114 chapters of varying lengths, known as suras. The first sura is said as part of the daily prayers and is only a few verses long:
1. In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
2. Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds;
3. Most Gracious, Most Merciful;
4. Master of the Day of Judgment.
5. Thee do we worship, and Thine aid we seek.
6. Show us the straight way,
7. The way of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy Grace, those whose (portion) is not wrath, and who go not astray.
The Muslim scriptures touch upon all aspects of human existence, including matters of doctrine, social organization, and legislation. In a recent Baptist Press article which appeared in The Alabama Baptist on October 23, 2014, an Islamic scholar is quoted as saying:
“There is a fundamentally different hermeneutical approach between the two ends of the Islamic spectrum [literalists and rationalists]. For radicals, the words of the Quran, Hadith and legal texts are to be taken literally. They believe that Allah gave them those texts for all time with universal and timeless relevance. So when the Quran says to slay the pagans wherever you find them — or for that matter, says a man can take four wives — then quite simply Allah means that Muslims can follow those injunctions for all time. Hence the ISIS phenomenon...”
In our Old Testament there are passages which command Israel to kill man, woman and child among their enemies (see Deuteronomy 20:10-18 for example). Most of us understand that such a command would have reflected the common understanding of warfare three millenia ago but none would think such brutality could be God's will for us today. Unfortunately, some Muslims are so rigid in their interpretation of their scriptures that they take such commands literally even today. Many of the narratives of our Old Testament are summarized or re-told in the Quran. The Quran tells of Jesus' virgin birth, recounts many of his miraculous healings and describes Jesus as a prophet. Muslims insist that God does not have a "son," thus they do not believe that Jesus was "son of God."
Conclusion
So what are we to make of Islam? It appears to many that we are on a collision course with Islam that cannot be resolved by dialogue. It is obvious that militant Islam which uses force to deny people freedom of choice in religious matters is a threat to free peoples of all faiths and especially to American Christians. It is abundantly clear that radical, militant Islam as we see it in ISIS and the Taliban (and numerous other groups) represents a worship of God that is as unacceptable as that espoused by radical Christian groups that use murder and violence to impose their understanding of God on others. Yet it is obvious that there are many ways in which Muslims and Christians (and Jews) have more in common than they do differences. We need to know Muslims better than we do now, especially American Muslims. Perhaps American Muslims can and will have the ability to influence the world. In a recent Wall Street Joural article, two high officials of the Muslim Public Affairs Council urged their American brothers and sisters to "Let Islamic Reform Start in America." It may not be possible for this to happen, but if we Christians can help America's moderate Muslims be a light to their world we could hardly find a more worthy endeavor. Perhaps if this is to happen it ought to begin with churches like ours.
FOOTNOTES
BACK TO TEXT1. One Arab scholar, Dr. Nafeez Ahmed, has argued that there are moderate voices being raised in the Arab world: "Such global Muslim public opinion has translated into action. The “Muslim voices against extremism and terrorism” resource compiled by Sheila Musaji, founding editor of The American Muslim journal, collects in one website literally hundreds and hundreds of fatwas, formal statements, initiatives, and non-violent solutions by Muslim leaders, organizations and civil society movements vehemently opposing extremism and terrorism. Part of this collection includes innumerable calls for non-violence inspired by Quranic texts and Prophetic traditions by Muslim groups and leaders in the U.S., UK, Western Europe, India, Pakistan, Iran, Jordan, Egypt – to name just a few." Dr. Ahmed's comments are published on the Al Arabiya website: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/world/2014/07/07/Liberal-Western-pundits-where-s-the-outrage-over-moderate-Muslims-.html
BACK TO TEXT2. Abdullah Yusuf Ali, The Glorious Qur'an: Translation (Reprint Edition. 2003) (New Delhi: Islamic Book Service, 2003) pages iv-v.
BACK TO TEXT3. Pronounced "hay-gir-a" with the accent on the "hay" or "heh-djai-ra" with the emphasis on the "djai".
BACK TO TEXT4. To hear Katie Couric explain the history of the Sunni and Shia conflict go to: http://news.yahoo.com/katie-couric-sunni-vs-shia-now-i-get-it-155748192.html
BACK TO TEXT5. Sunni and Shia Muslims have different versions of the five pillars. The five presented here follow the Sunni version.
BACK TO TEXT6. http://www.saintjohnsabbey.org/monastic-life/abbey-spirituality1/ Wall Street Journal, October 30, 2014
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