APRIL 1, 2003 - 'Muslims - Dialogues - Beliefs'
"Introducing Prophet Muhammad"
NO LAUGHING MATTER: SERIOUS, PRAYERFUL INTERFAITH DIALOGUE
It was Tuesday, the opening day of April with a promise of springtime already
in the air. The location of the fourth of six consecutive dialogue sessions in
the series "Muslims - Dialogues - Beliefs" was St. John's Episcopal Church.
The host, Pastor Dick Bormes. He was ably assisted by a member of his congregation,
Prof. David Wall of St. Cloud State University.
The overall context is wartime. There is a general atmosphere of sadness,
confusion, anxiety, fear, even outrage. Loved ones are involved in and around
Iraq. Friends and family are personally involved in the war which the United
States entered into last month. Friends and family of American Muslims,
Christians, and others, who are currently residing in Iraq, are being regarded
as "the enemy." These have become the objects of unprecedented US military
action at which the entire planet is aghast.
That sets the backdrop against which the dialogue of April 1st happened in
St. Cloud, MN. Two diametrically opposite moods: what seems to be an incipient
world war implying a tragedy of unimagined proportions, on the one hand, and a
day remembered in many parts of the world for tomfoolery, on the other.
April Fools Day. A time really for fun and laughter, for pranks. But that was
not the mood of the serious minded, committed 40-45 persons (including some six
children) who took time out to reflect as Muslims, Christians, Baha'is, and
others on an epochmaking religious figure.
The topic of the day was "Introducing Prophet Muhammad." Muhammad (Peace and
Blessings be upon him) was the founder of Islam, a religion with a huge
international membership hailing from every continent. Today every fifth person
on our planet regards him, his words, and practices to be the most exemplary
that a human being can aspire to.
Muhammad's Contribution to Religiosity
Born in 570 C.E., the Prophet Muhammad had the historic distinction of
uniting the tribes of the Arabian peninsula in the short span of 22-23 years
(610-32 C.E.) under the banner of the third major Abrahamic religion, Islam
One can appreciate the magnitude of the Prophet's achievement when one
realizes that many of the tribes of Arabia were not at peace with one another
-- to make an understatement. Besides, for the first 12 years of the Prophet's
career in Mecca (610-622 C.E.), where he was born and where he received the
earliest divine revelations which went on to form the sacred Qur'an, Muhammad
was ignored, opposed, and fiercely persecuted.
It was not until he migrated to Medina in 622 C.E. that Muhammad (PBUH) could
begin to concretize the inspired Qur'anic vision of an ideal Islamic city/state
rooted in "submission to Allah," which necessarily implied social justice and
equality for all.
The area in which the Islamic religion brought peace and unity, namely
peninsular Arabia, is comparable in size to the United States east of the
Mississippi. Consider the enormous land mass involved. Recall, too, the
limitation of early medieval means of transportation, namely, by horse or
camel, and on foot. These reflections afford us in geographic terms an inkling
of the magnitude of Muhammad's attainment
Opening Video
At the outset of the dialogue session on 4/1, the first 30 minutes of a
recent PBS video "Muhammad: Legacy of the Prophet" was screened for the benefit
of a handful of those who arrived at 6 p.m. The seating arrangement was the
same -- it was meant to invite all to freely engage in conversation.
Interfaith Symbols
This time the credence table carried beadwork symbolizing the richness of
Native American religion and culture, an African drum symbolizing the diverse
religions and cultures of a great continent, a shining brass Aum (symbolic of
Hindu religious traditions), a chalice and paten (symbolizing Christian
traditions). And, centrally placed among these symbols of other religions was,
of course, the Arabic text of the Qur'an.
Introductions
At 6.30 p.m., Pastor Dick Bormes most heartily welcomed those who had gathered
at his church to engage in the interfaith encounter.
Next, moderator Prof. Dan McKanan took the podium. He teaches Church History
in the School of Theology at the College of St. Benedict and St. John's
University, Collegeville, MN. Dr. McKanan concisely laid out the parameters of
the dialogue and drew attention to to purpose and aim of the "Interfaith Sacred
Texts and Communities" series which begins with a timely focus on the religion
of Islam. He introduced Mr. Ahmad Ramadani of Bangla Desh, a graduate student
of St. Cloud State University, and invited him to make the opening presentation.
Presentations
Ramadani introduced the life and work of the founder of Islam based on Qur'anic
texts and on various hadith (traditional reports of reputed words and deeds of
the Prophet Muhammad). The scriptural texts (ayat) were the following: Al-Fath: 13,
Al-Ahzab: 40, Muhammad: 2, AN-NAJM : 3,4, Al-Anfal: 20-21, Al-Haaqqa: 44-47.
For ten minutes Ramadani spoke with warmth and deep respect about the
significance of Muhammad the Seal of the Prophets and the Founder of Islam.
One of the points he emphasized was that Muhammad was unlettered. The Qur'anic
revelations were not authored by him. They were God's word conveyed to him by
the angel Gabriel.
McKanan then invited Prof. Noreen Herzfeld to take the floor. Dr. Herzfeld
teaches courses on Computer Science as well as on "Islamic Spiritual
Traditions" at the College of St. Benedict and St. John's University. Once
again Herzfeld spoke with unction and deep knowledge about the topic of the
day. Her purpose was to enable Christians in particular to come to a greater
love and respect for the outstanding human being who is mentioned in the
Islamic declaration of faith, the shahadah: "There is no god but God and
Muhammad is the messenger of God." She eloquently made a case for why even
Christians can fully affirm that the Prophet Muhammad is God's messenger.
Interchange among Dialogue Participants
McKanan invited everybody to engage in the dialogue by bringing their comments,
questions, concerns. He added that nobody should feel hesitant to ask hard questions.
This time again there were very many interventions from the floor and
conversations with the two main presenters. There were some questions about
rules and laws in Islam and how they related to a potential threat posed to non-
believers by a central Islamic belief in the Day of Judgment, on the one hand,
and, on the other, how rules and laws might be understood and interpreted by
Muslims who believe in the Merciful and Compassionate Allah.
The liveliness on the floor was evidenced by the fact that in discussion of a
Islamic reality. It was met by a remark from the floor that the two situations
in questions were so very different that it was like comparing apples and
oranges. There were other questions and comments, too, which indicated that
people had some questions of a comparative nature to pose to the presenters.
Some compared Islam with Christianity, others compared Islam from a History of
Religions perspective. All of these, when responded to by the presenters,
enabled a better grasp and appreciation of the historic contribution of the
Prophet Muhammad and the religion of Islam.
What had been missed thus far was the voice of a believing Muslim woman. One
was clearly heard for several minutes on 4/1. This headdress (hijab)-wearing
woman gave eloquent witness to the vital role that the five pillars of Islam
play in her life: witnessing to Islamic belief (shahadah) personal prayer five
times a day (salat), almsgiving (zakat), fasting (sawm), and pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj).
Among the questions raised this time were those pertaining to Islam and
religious pluralism: how does Islam relate to other faiths, those that were
already there before Islam's historic emergence and those, such as Baha'i,
which have come with new revelations in the aftermath of Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets.
Chant from the Qur'an
Having attended to parting words uttered by the presenters, the participants
prayerfully listened to verses chanted by Ms. Norhashimah Erpelding:
Surahs Al-Nesa (4:163-65) & Al-Ahzab (33:45-46). These could be read in Arabic
and in English translation in the handouts distributed:
Lo! We inspired you [O Muhammad] as We inspired Noah and the prophets after
him, as We inspired Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and
Jesus and Job and Jonah and Aaron and Solomon, and as We imparted unto David
the Psalms; and messengers We have mentioned to you before and messengers We
have not mentioned to you...
And God spoke to Moses directly: Messengers of good cheer and of warning, in
order that mankind might have no argument against God after the messengers. God
was ever Mighty, Wise.
"O Prophet, we have sent you as a witness, and good tidings to bear and
warning, calling unto God by His leave,and as a light-giving lamp.
Concluding Prayer from a Participating Faith
At the very conclusion of the session, inspiring Bahai prayers were read by
a member of the local Bahai community Nurianne Tomas. She went up to the
podium and prayed aloud in the following words from the Baha'i Sacred Writings.
The prayers spoke of the atmosphere of spring. Very appropriately, they also
heralded unity, an end to global enmity, harmony, and peace:
"O my spiritual friends! Dost thou know from what airs emanate the notes
sung by those birds? They are from the melodies of peace and reconciliation,
of love and unity, of justice and security, of concord and harmony. In a short
time this heavenly singing will intoxicate all humanity; the foundations of
enmity shall be destroyed; unity and affection shall be witnessed in every
assembly; and the lovers of the love of God at these great festivals shall
behold their splendor." [From a Tablet by 'Abdu'l-Baha about Naw-Ruz (Star of
the West, Vol. VII, p.1)]
"O my God! O my God! Unite the hearts of Thy servants, and reveal to them Thy
great purpose. May they follow Thy commandments and abide in Thy law. Help
them, O God, in their endeavor, and grant them strength to serve Thee. O God!
Leave them not to themselves, but guide their steps by the light of Thy
knowledge, and cheer their hearts by Thy love. Verily, Thou art their Helper
and their Lord."
[Bahá'u'lláh, Founding Prophet of the Baha'i Faith]
Activities for Children
There were six children who availed of the wonderful daycare facilities at
St. John's Episcopal Church. The kids had the luxury of having Islam related
activities conducted by Imam Jarrod Hall. He had brought outlines of pictures
to be colored by the children. Among these were Islamic geometrical designs and
a depiction of the Five Pillars of Islam.
Refreshments and Visiting
The chair once again brought the proceedings to a fitting conclusion by
thanking and appreciating the hosts, convenors, presenters, participants, and
all concerned. He invited those present to partake of the different kinds of
refreshment provided so generously by the St. John's Episcopal pastor and his team.
At this point the daycare kids came in and joined the adults. Some got to
see the coloring which the children felt so proud to display. Meanwhile, some
participants took the opportunity to visit with each other and to check out the
many handouts and Islam related literature which was displayed on tables in the dialogue hall.
Meeting of the Main Actors of the Dialogues
The coordinator, chair, presenters, cantor, and daycare provider met together
in an adjacent room for twenty minutes to touch base with each other: was
everything happening as planned, were there any suggestions, comments, concerns.
The meeting was adjourned at 8.30 p.m. with an awareness of confidence and
satisfaction in the team.
There was a sense of overall wellbeing and enhanced anticipation of the two
dialogues that remained. The dialogues seemed to indeed be attaining one of
the main goals: to bring into conversation in a safe and conducive environment
people of different religious traditions, to explore common ground as well as
difference between Islam and some of the religions participating in the dialogues.
The Next Dialogue
We are engaging with differences between Islam and other religions, in general,
and Christianity, in particular. This comes to light especially in the
dialogues of early April as we enter into central Islamic perspectives on
Muhammad (PBUH) and Jesus (PBUH). The following quotes from the Qur'an give us
an inkling into some of the awe with which Jesus is regarded by Muslims:
Surahs Ali-Imran 45 & Al-Ma'edah 110
"The angel said, 'O Mary, God gives you good news: a Word from Him whose name
is "The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary. He will be prominent in this life and
in the Hereafter, and one of those closest to Me".'
"GOD will say, 'O Jesus, son of Mary, remember My blessings upon you and your
mother. I supported you with the Holy Spirit, to enable you to speak to the
people from the crib, as well as an adult. I taught you the scripture, wisdom,
the Torah, and the Gospel. Recall that you created from clay the shape of a
bird by My leave, then blew into it, and it became a live bird by My leave. You
healed the blind and the leprous by My leave, and revived the dead by My leave.
Recall that I protected you from the Children of Israel who wanted to hurt you;
despite the profound miracles you had shown them.' The disbelievers among them
said, 'This is obviously magic'."
Location of the upcoming dialogue: First United Methodist Church
Date: Tuesday, 4/8/03, 6.30 - 8 p.m.
Rescreening of video at 6 p.m.
Concluding session #6.
PLEASE NOTE THE CHANGES IN TIME SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR A LESS RUSHED DINNER
Where: Salem Lutheran Church, St. Cloud, MN
When: 1) 5.15 p.m. Halal dinner: $3/person, $10/family
2) 6.45 - 8.15 p.m. Women's Panel: Goodrich (Jew), Perkins (Christian), Somji (Muslim)
Topic: "Hagar in the Wilderness"
Open to the public, free
Concluding Wrap-up by main presenters Ahmad Ramadani and Noreen Herzfeld and by
coordinator Malcolm Nazareth
Concluding Prayer by leader of a non-Christian and non-Islamic faith:
"A Circle for Healing During Struggle" (Wiccan Ritual) Melissa McConnell
Physically accessible; daycare available
Call: Malcolm 203-9849 or Mark 252-8683
Report by:
Malcolm Nazareth, Co-Founder of CIE (Center for Interfaith Encounter)
Executive Director of UNIITE (Understanding the Need for Interfaith/Intercultural Togetherness and Education)
320/203-9849
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