Download Powerpoint - John Provost, PhD

Islam
A Growing Religion
Islam is an
important religion
to know about for
many reasons,
one of which is
that it’s the
world’s 2nd
largest, as well as
the fastest
growing religion.
The Central Idea
“The word Islam means
“submission,” and the name tells
us that the central idea of this faith
is simply full and complete
submission to the will of God. An
adherent of the faith is called a
Muslim, one who has made the
submission.”
The Five Pillars
“The practice of Islam centers on what
are commonly called its Five Pillars:
reciting the creed that states that there
is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is
his Prophet; praying 5 times daily;
giving alms; keeping a fast during the
month of Ramadan; & once in one’s life,
if possible, making the pilgrimage to
Mecca.
The Golden Age
“During the
Golden Age of the
Caliphate,
science,
philosophy, and
theology were
extensively
cultivated.”
Sunni and Shi’a
Sunni Islam emphasizes the
traditional path of Islamic life as
interpreted by the consensus of
scholars & the community. Shi’a
Islam, while following the
traditional path, also puts its faith
in the authority of Imams who are
Muhammad’s hereditary
successors.”
Islamic Mysticism
Islamic
mysticism, called
Sufism, focuses
on the presence
of the Divine
oneness
everywhere, &
offers paths to
the attainment of
union with God.
No Consensus
There is currently
no consensus on
how women
should fit into
Islam and what
their place is to
be.
The Mosque:
A Place of Prayer
 The mosque, a place
of prayer to the
infinite Lord, has no
picture, image, altar,
flowers or candlesonly a vast, clean,
cool, austerely
beautiful empty
space.
Muslim Worship
 It is deeply
consistent with the
basic premise of the
faith that whenever
feasible, Muslims not
only establish
Muslim worship, but
create Muslim
societies under
Muslim rulers based
on Qur’anic law.
Muhammad (570-632)
At the core of
Islam lies the
experience and
faith of
Muhammad
himself.
Journey to Yathrib
 His journey to
Yathrib is called the
Hijra, the date from
which the Muslim
calendar begins;
marking the
beginning of
Muhammad’s public
& organizational
work on a large
scale.
The Qur’an
It would be more
accurate to say
that the Qur’an is
to Muslims what
Jesus (not the
Bible) is to
Christians.
A Standard
The Qur’an’s
Arabic has been
compared to
Shakespeare’s
English. It is the
standard by
which all other
Arabic is
compared, and
found wanting.
Show Respect
To profane the
Qur’an would be
like a Catholic
having to witness
Holy Communion
misused and
abused.
Not a Competition
Jesus has, to say
the least, been
far more highly
regarded by
Muslims than
Muhammad has
been by
Christians.
Submission to God
It is just the
essence of
religion, plain and
perfect
submission to the
absolute God in
all areas of life.
No Separation
This focus on the oneness of God & of
all life is what allows Islam to remain
fundamentally simple. It’s also the key
to the Sufi’s understanding of reality.
Their whole practice takes off with unity
& oneness as the starting point. If we
are all one with God, then the
separation we experience must be an
illusion.
Life Under the Law
 To study the Qur’an
is to realize that all
of life falls under
religious law & is one
of the reasons that
many Muslims prefer
to live in a Muslim
ruled state.
Hadith
If the Qur’an is
the direct words
of Allah, then
hadith is the
direct words and
stories about
Muhammad.
Jihad: Holy War
Out of the
community ideal
of Islam comes
the concept of
jihad, which is
designed to
defend Islam &
allow its social
practice.
A Holy Struggle
Any act of selfcontrol and
discipline can be
seen as a “holy
struggle.”
The First Pillar
The first of the
five pillars is to
say, “There is no
god but God
(Allah), &
Muhammad is the
rasul (Prophet or
messenger) of
God.”
Unity and Oneness
The idea behind
charity is
solidarity and a
celebration of
unity and
oneness.
Not Okay
The moral issue is
not with poor
people, but with
people who are
destitute. Poor is
one thing,
homeless &
starving is
another.
Spiritual Hunger
 If we let our physical
hunger remind us of
our spiritual hunger
and let that reminder
turn our hearts to
prayer, then we are
beginning to gain the
benefits intended.
The Hajj
“Abraham under
God’s instructions
built the cubical
shrine at Meccathe Ka’ba-with
the help of
Ishmael.”
Prayer
Five times a day
the faithful
Muslim’s mind
and heart,
perhaps
prompted by the
muezzin, turns
away from the
things of the
world to prayer.
The Mosque
 Far simpler in
ornamentation than
most churches and
temples of other
faiths, yet imposing
and monumental,
the mosque well
reflects the austerity
& majesty of Islam
and its God.
A Popular Hero
 Unlike other religious
founders,
Muhammad died a
popular hero among
his people, a ruler, a
successful diplomat,
politician, & general.
The Glorious Years
The years of the
Baghdad
caliphate (7501258) & of the
Cordova caliphate
in Spain (7551236) were the
glorious years of
early Islamic
civilization.
Divine Sanction
The rule of law
believed to have
Divine sanction
inevitably made
society static,
putting a
premium on
conformity, rather
than innovation &
new ideas.
From Time Into Eternity
 The famous Persian
carpets also often
have a comparable
sacred message; the
spot in the center
upon which the
elaborate design
focuses is an
opening from time
into eternity.
Literary Masterpiece
The Qur’an itself
is considered a
work of not only
religious &
spiritual genius,
but also a literary
masterpiece.
Jalaluddin Rumi
(1207-1273)
Rumi wrote that
we should “Let
the beauty we
love be what we
do. There are
hundreds of ways
to kneel & kiss
the ground.”
Crucial Questions
Religions must
adapt to their
surroundings to
some extent. How
much they should
adapt is always
one of the crucial
questions faced
by religious
leaders.
Islamic Scholars
Progress was
seen as a good
thing in Islam, an
unfolding of
Allah’s will for
humans.
Reason and Limits
Mystics tend to
fall in line with
those who follow
their hearts. They
see a purpose for
reason and
rationality, but
they also see its
limits.
Integral Philosophy
From an Integral
Philosophy
perspective, it is
good to have both
ways. Neither the
mystical nor the
rationalist
position is
“better” than the
other.
Consensus
Sunni Islam relies
on the consensus
of a group of
scholars to reach
decisions
regarding beliefs
and practices.
Peace
Since all three
religions are
waiting, wouldn’t
it be great if they
could wait
together in
peace?
Lost in the Depths
 Sufis seek not only
to follow his external
commandments, but
to know him
intimately & even to
lose themselves in
love into the depths
of his being.
A Timeless Path
 “Thus, many Sufis believe not only that their
way is that of Muhammad himself, but also
that Sufism is really a timeless path known to
the wise in all generations.”
Pre-Trans Fallacy
This is a classic
“pre-trans fallacy”
where a transrational comment
is understood on
a pre-rational
level.
Persecution
Many of the great
saints of all of the
world’s religions
have been
persecuted &
condemned, even
killed before they
are later
recognized as
saints.
The Spread of Islam
 By the last quarter of the twentieth century
this situations changed dramatically. Rarely
since the stunning spread of Islam in its 1st
century have the fortunes of a religion
changed so remarkably in so short a time.
A Popular Source of
Support
By having a strong belief system,
strict rules and laws, and a strong
emphasis on community, Islam
proves to be a popular source of
support for many people who find
the rapid changes of modern life
disconcerting and troubling.
Reformation
The Reformation
helped wrench
Europe into new
stages of
historical
development.
What Islam will
generate remains
to be seen.
“Victims of the
Western World”
At the very least,
Muslims look at
the 100 million
people killed in
wars during the
20th century as
being primarily
the victims of the
Western world,
not Islam.
Acceptable Alternatives
At least we can disagree with
some perspective on what needs
these movements serve. In doing
this, we may be able to provide
more acceptable alternatives that
seek to meet these same needs for
structure, stability, and safety.
Stereotypes
Popular images of
people become
engrained in
human
consciousness, &
begin to influence
the way we think
about others.
Freedom
Freedom doesn’t
mean that one
has to give up his
or her faith. It
just means that
one isn’t forced
by law to attend
services, etc.
A Life of Service
The mystics of all
traditions agree
that what’s
important is living
a life transformed
by the love &
presence of God.
Such a life is a life
lived in service to
others.
What Makes a Fanatic?
Part of what
makes people
fanatical is an
extreme devotion
to a certain literal
understanding of
a teaching or
revelation.
A Gross Distortion
 It’s important to
know that the vast
majority of Muslim
people reject these
fanatical teachings
about suicide
bombers & see it as
a gross distortion of
the Qur’an.
Not Insurmountable
Does that mean
the temptations
are more difficult?
Possibly. But that
doesn’t meant
they are
insurmountable.
Patriarchy
All the religions
we’ve studied,
except the Early
Religions, spring
out of the last few
1000 years, when
the world has
been patriarchal.
In Favor of
Choices and Rights
 Muhammad himself “pronounced in favor of
choice & rights for women, a position that flew
in the face of the prevailing abuse of women in
tribal society of his time & place.”
May 19, 1919
Less Than 100 Years Ago!!
We tend to forget
that women were
allowed to vote
less than a
hundred years
ago in the
modern United
States.
Interpretation
 As we have seen, when it comes to written
text, they each must be interpreted. The
interpretation often says as much about the
development of the interpreter as it does
about the text.
Women Count
If people (and
thus women)
count to God,
then they have
some inherent
value that must
be recognized by
the community.
A Cloud of Rationalization
The human ability
to rationalize
away the great
ideals of the
religions is one
way we have
delayed living up
to them for
hundreds of
years.
A Compromise
The government
found a
compromise, in
that it respects
the rights of
adults to make up
their own mind,
but not to decide
for children.
Spiritual or Political
If the issue is not spiritual but
political, then many women who
want to stay in their religion
demand that changes be made, so
that what is of spiritual value is
guarded, but what is of a bygone
era & harmful to the dignity of
women be changed.
Changes
Today, economic
considerations are
influencing
changes in many
Islamic countries.
Women have
moved out of the
home & into the
workplace.
Challenging the Roles of
Women
Much of the modern scholarship
challenging the roles of women in
Islam are coming from women
who are doing their homework and
asking the critical questions about
Muhammad, the Qur’an and early
Islamic history.
“Protection” of Women
We see the
“protection” of
women as
something
ordained by God
forever, rather
than a comment
on what was
relevant at the
time.
Importance of
Understanding
If we are to continue to live & work
together in peace in this country, then it
will be important for us to understand
some general points about Islam.
A World Religion
More importantly, after centuries
of repression, Islam is on its way
back as a world religion, full of
new life & many changes that
make it a power and spirituality to
be reckoned with in no uncertain
terms. “This resurgent Islam is a
major force in the world today.”
Not in the Original
Teachings
We saw that most
of the negativity
doesn’t lie within
the original
teachings
themselves, but
in the way they
are put (or not
put) into practice.
A Balanced View
We only gain a
balanced view by
talking to as
many people and
reading as much
as we can.