Getting
Acquainted with Islam
and Muslims
Presented by
Mark Hamza Dougherty <mdougher@vt.edu>
as part of the Seminar:
Understanding Islam and
Muslims, Blacksburg, VA, Oct. 16, 2001
In the name of God. Good evening and thank
you all for coming tonight to a session that will hopefully get you better
acquainted with Islam and Muslims. What I would like to do in my presentation
is two-fold. First, I would like to discuss something of the beliefs and
practices of Muslims. After that, I will attempt to classify some of sources
available for information about Islam and Muslims.
Virginia Tech, as we know, is becoming a
more diverse community, partly because of the increased awareness and exposure
on the part of interest groups, but also largely because of the
internationalization of the university community. According to the university
administration, this is a good thing. Islam, a major world religion, is well
represented on campus. This is reasonable and expected, given that about one in
four persons worldwide is a Muslim. As our staff and student body becomes more
representative of world demographics, the number of Muslims is likely to
increase even more. This should certainly not be a cause for concern or
anxiety. On the contrary, I hope you will find Muslims at this institution to
be, by and large, highly motivated and of high self-esteem, qualities that make
them successful candidates for the intellectual challenges of university life,
and for life in general.
So what are some of the things that Muslims
believe? Muslims understand that no one of us, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, is
perfect; and that God alone, the Creator, is perfect. Consequently, Muslims
believe that humankind has always been in constant need of guidance and mercy
from God; thus, the need for prophets and messengers. Muslims believe that we,
as humans, cannot see God, since He is of a completely different nature from His
creation. He, Allah, is Omnipotent, constrained by neither time nor space. As
the Qur’an clearly states, “He begets not, nor was He begotten, and there is
none co-equal or comparable unto Him” (Noble Qur’an, 112th chapter).
Muslims believe that the religious practices (as well as the prohibitions)
enjoined on us by our Creator are for our good. Muslims, by and large, seek to
please God within the framework called Islam, each according to his or her
ability and each according to his or her level of knowledge about the religion.
I would like to repeat this point for clarity because we may find ourselves
coming back to it. Muslims seek to please God within the framework of Islam,
each according to his or her ability and each according to his or her level of
knowledge about the religion.
What kind of impact does this framework or
way of life called Islam have on Muslims as they interact within a non-Muslim
society? I believe that it is precisely the day-to-day interactions that occur
between Muslims and non-Muslims in a country like the US that help increase
understanding. This has also been the case throughout history, as during the
so-called Golden Age of Muslim Spain, when Muslims, Jews, and Christians
borrowed and learned from each other in a wide range of human endeavors. To be
brief, I will concentrate on some of the issues that most often identify a
person as a Muslim within society. These can be divided into roughly three
categories; prayer, diet, and social conduct.
Prayer: The Muslim man and woman is
obliged to establish ritual prayer five times each day. It is important to note
that the Muslim can make these prays anywhere, as the Qur’an establishes the
whole earth as a place of prayer (2:150). In an institution like Virginia Tech,
the best place for prayer would be a place that is clean, dry, and secure from
unexpected interruption. In addition to daily prayers, Muslim men are required
to attend weekly Friday congregational prayer. Currently, there are three
Friday services available to Muslims in this area.
Diet: Pork and alcohol are not
permitted to a Muslim. Any substance or drug which clouds the mind is
prohibited, except in the case of legitimate medical need. The Qur’an allows a
similar dispensation in the prohibition of pork in the case of severe hunger
(5:3). During the lunar month of Ramadan, all Muslim men and women (who are
able) are obligated to fast from dawn to sundown.
Those who have a valid excuse are permitted to make up their fast at a later
time.
Social conduct: Conduct between men
and women is regulated to a certain extent in Islam for the benefit of the
society as a whole. Gazing unabashedly at a member of the opposite sex who is
not a proper relative is prohibited. Being alone in a closed room with a member
of the opposite sex who is not a proper relative is prohibited. For students,
faculty, and staff on this campus, this would also include seemingly innocent
acts as traveling alone in a car or shaking hands with a member of the opposite
sex, both of which would be discouraged in Islam. An interesting and perhaps
controversial hypothesis to make is that if Islamic values of social conduct
were practiced in the work place, it would preclude many of the current sexual
harassment problems that we see. Finally, the most noticeable Islamic trademark
pertaining to social conduct is probably the Islamic covering for women, often
thought to include only the head scarf. What is not widely known is that both
men and women in Islam are prescribed a dress code by the Creator, both for
modesty and to identify themselves as Muslims.
Professor Charles Kimball, Chair of the
Religion Department at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
was recently asked by a reporter, “What should non-Muslims know about key
similarities and differences between Islamic and Judeo-Christian traditions?”
He said, in part, “The best answer to this
question is for non-Muslims to engage in a thoughtful study of Islam.“ [
http://www.csmonitor.com/2001/1004/p25s1-wosc.html ]
I personally believe an important key to
understanding Muslims (on this campus and elsewhere) is to realize that Muslims
are not an ethnic group (because Islam cuts across all races and
borders). Also, Muslims (by and large) do not see themselves as living either
an alternate (man-made) lifestyle or as a marginalized minority group.
This is simply not what the Qur’an teaches. Islam, for Muslims, is a complete
way of life prescribed by the One who created all humankind (5:3).
I would suggest that to engage in the type
of thoughtful study that Dr. Kimball recommends requires of the serious student
two things; an open mind and a willingness to look deeper than what appears on
the surface. As an illustration, let’s look at the many different sources of
information about Islam and loosely classify them into workable terms. First,
we can accurately describe a central core of information about Islam made up of
two main parts;1) the Arabic Qur’an (which Muslims worldwide attest as the
revealed word of God) (26:192-195), 2) the authentic sayings and practices of
the Prophet (peace be upon him) called Sunnah or Hadith. Together, the Qur’an
and authentic Hadith, along with the agreed-upon-decisions of the contemporary
companions of the Prophet (pbuh), are the main sources of Islamic belief,
legislation, and scholarship.
Several levels of knowledge emanating from
these core sources are available in English, including translations of the
meaning of the Qur’an and Hadith. Three widely available translations of the
meaning of the Qur’an in English are 1) The Noble Qur’an (1996), by Drs.
Taquiuddin al-Hilali and Muhsin Khan from the Islamic University in Saudi
Arabia, 2) The Holy Qur’an (1934-1937, Lahore, Pakistan), by Abdullah
Yusuf Ali, and 3) The Meaning of the Glorious Qur’an (1930, London), by
Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall, an English man of letters who accepted Islam. I
am happy to report that the works just mentioned are currently available in
Virginia Tech’s Newman Library.
The authenticity of the most respected
compilations of Hadith have been verified through a rigorous scientific
methodology which traces each narrated Hadith directly from the Prophet (pbuh),
through a chain of reliable transmitters, up until the time of its compilation.
The two most highly respected compilations of Hadith are Sahih Bukhari and Sahih
Muslim, both of which are available in English (the word sahih in Arabic meaning
authentic). Unfortunately, Newman Library does not appear to have any copies of
authentic Hadith compilations, but there are several web pages where copies of
these works, in English, can be ordered (two of them are
www.islamicmedia.com and
www.islamicity.com ).
Now I would like to loosely classify the
remaining body of literature about Islam that is available to the average
American. As mentioned, the Qur’an and authentic Hadith are direct sources of
Islam traceable back to the 7th century Prophet himself. We can read
these documents for ourselves, at least translations of the meaning. The next
level of literature available would be the numerous books written by classic
Islamic scholars in either Arabic, Persian, and Urdu, some of which have been
translated into English, but the majority of which have been left in their
original languages. These writings, unfortunately, represent a vast store of
knowledge that is virtually inaccessible to the English-speaking person.
Next, we have a large collection of books
about Islam written by Muslims. Many of these books are available in English in
the popular press. Some are quite scholarly in their use of detailed
references. In general, I suggest that if one is seeking the most reliable book
from a Muslim author, select an author that quotes from the Qur’an and authentic
Hadith, with reference citations. That way, you can verify for yourself the
evidence the author is using to make his or her point. This may sound like
research, but I believe it is in line with the type of thoughtful study that Dr.
Kimball is recommending for those who engage in a thoughtful study of Islam.
Three examples of this type of informative literature on Islam are the following
books; 1) Muhammad: his life based on the earliest sources, by Martin
Lings, 2) What Everyone Should Know About Islam and Muslims, by Suzanne
Haneef, and 3) Towards Understanding Islam, by Sayd Abul A’La Maududi.
All of these books, I am happy to say, are currently available in Tech’s
library.
The next level of information about Islam
and Muslims, I would suggest (and I have in my mind a picture of a series of
concentric circles emanating from the knowledge base, the Qur’an and authentic
Hadith), are the large number of books in English written by non-Muslims (see
Figure 1, below).
Figure 1. Suggested classification of
written information about Islam in English:
A.
Authentic sources (translations of the meanings),
B.
Books about Islam by Islamic scholars,
C.
Books about Islam by Muslims,
D.
Books about Islam by non-Muslims,
E.
Media (film, popular press, western news media).
Now here is where we can begin to get into
trouble, at least from a Muslim point of view. For while it should not be
assumed that a non-Muslim writer will necessarily be biased against Islam, a
large portion of the literature written about Islam that is currently sitting on
the shelves of the Newman Library in Virginia Tech, I dare say, falls under the
category of biased scholarship. To more fully describe the charge that I am
making, I will cite Dr. Jamal Badawi, a Muslim scholar living in Canada. Dr.
Badawi has classified some of the devices used by non-Muslim writers in the past
to criticize Muhammad (pbuh). In his booklet The Prophethood of Muhammad
(available from the Islamic Foundation of America, 6606 Electronic Drive,
Springfield, VA 22151), Dr. Badawi cites a Polemic Era, whose writers seem to
have been motivated by religious prejudices and, to put it nicely, did not
reflect an honest spirit of inquiry. Rather, many of their writings succeeded
in creating a poisonous atmosphere from which the Crusades against Muslims were
perhaps an implication. Blatant distortions, misrepresentations, half-truths,
and at times sheer fabrications were freely used. We have provided a web page
address of a speech given by Pope Urban II at the Council of Clermont in France,
on November 27, 1095 that resulted in the first Crusade as an example of what is
a polemic. [
http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/bible/crusades.stm ]
Dr. Badawi states that as the Polemic Era
lost its momentum through the centuries, a more careful “disguised Polemic” was
introduced. Writers in this group criticized their predecessors as extremists,
yet their motives were little different from them. Writers of this era, which
took place during the colonial period, realized that sheer fabrications were no
longer effective in the midst of the more highly educated masses. After the
colonial period, a more tolerant, yet perplexing attitude came into being among
non-Muslim critics as some actually began to give credit to Islam as a powerful
and viable ideology and to Muhammad (pbuh) as a man with positive and moral
qualities. One thing, however, was left out. Was Muhammad a true prophet who
received divine revelation from God, and was the Qur’an really a divine book, or
was it of Muhammad’s own making?
As Dr. Badawi concludes, no matter how
courteous, mild, or apparently objective these writers may seem to be, a serious
question of consistency would inevitable arise here. How consistent is it to
admit the sincerity and high moral character of Muhammad (pbuh) while implying
that he was not truthful when he claimed to be a prophet of God; or when he
claimed that he did not derive his teachings from any human source?
It is for these reasons, as well as others,
that Muslims read with caution the works on Islam written by non-Muslims, and is
partly the reason for Muslim distrust of the Western media, which often appears
to lack sound information about Islam. Going back to our model of the
concentric levels of information emanating from the authentic sources of this
world religion (figure 1), we can perhaps picture the outer-most circle as the
one most often in contact with and in interaction with the non-Muslim
readership. I can assure you that for those who wish to scratch deeper beneath
the surface so often presented by the media, the information about Islam is
available, including:
-
a large body of translated scholarly works by Muslims,
including reliable translations of the meanings of the Qur’an and authentic
Hadith,
-
an increasing number of English-speaking Muslim writers and
speakers,
-
alternate sources of news and literature, such as
http://islamicity.com/ and finally
-
an increasing number of Muslims as neighbors, associates,
and colleagues to interact with.
The last case is relevant to me, as it was
over ten years that I had a roommate from Turkey that took the time to share
something of his beliefs with me. I hope I have passed on some of that same
favor to you tonight. Thank you and may God’s peace be with you.
Afterword:
“Indeed we have sent Our Messengers with
clear proofs, and revealed with them the Scripture and the Balance (justice)
that mankind may keep up justice. And We brought forth iron wherein is mighty
power (in matters of war), as well as many benefits for mankind, that Allah may
test who it is that will help Him (His Religion), and His Messengers in the
unseen. Verily, Allah is All-Strong, All-Mighty.
The Noble Quran 57:25 (translation of the
meaning)