Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Emerald Coast
"Cry! Allah Is Wondrous Kind"
Rev. Rod Debs
January 9, 2005

Storytime: Do you believe in dragons? Have you ever seen a dragon? Some people believe in dragons, and some people don’t. I think I’d have to see a dragon to believe they ever existed.

Have you ever seen a bat? Maybe in the zoo? You’ve seen pictures, right? But to see real live bats you might have to go into a dark cave and turn on a light.

I brought a lamp. Would you turn it on for me? (It doesn’t turn on.) Check to see if there’s a light bulb. (There is.) Maybe the switch is broken. Oh! It’s not plugged in. (Plug it in.) Now it works.

I’ve got a question for you: You can see the light, but what makes it shine? What makes it work? (electricity) We can see the lamp, lightbulb, switch, and wires. But I don’t see any electricity! Do you see any electricity? Even though you don’t see the electricity, you believe there is electricity!

Some people look at the sun in the sky, they look at how the world works with rain and sunshine, wind and soil, plants and animals, mountains, rivers and oceans. They see that the world works in wonderful ways. They think there must be something that made the world and makes it work so well. Some people believe in a goddess. Others believe in god. Some believe that god’s name is Allah (in the Aramaic language).

No one has seen god or goddess or Allah. Just like no one has seen a dragon, and no one can see electricity. I can’t make you believe in electricity or in dragons. You believe or you don’t believe in things you can’t see.

I have just one suggestion for deciding what invisible things to believe in. Check to see if it works. If it works and does some good, maybe it’s something worth believing in even if you can’t see it.

Message: This morning I would like to share with you some of what I am learning about Islam, Christianity and peace. Five hundred forty years after the martyrdom of Jesus, Muhammad was born in the Arabian city of Mecca, situated on a caravan trail linking Yemen with Egypt, Syria-Palestine and the Sassinian Empire. In addition to Jews and Christians, Mecca was home to folks we might call animistic polytheists, drawing inspiration from local jinn or spirits, demons of the desert.

Desert society involved no social responsibility beyond the tribe. Gaming, drunken orgies, brawls, and bloodshed escalated to murderous blood feuds. Brigandage and plunder of goods and of women-property were a regional proof of virility. It was an era of immorality and social chaos.

Three days before Muhammad was born, his father died. When Muhammad was six, his mother died. When he was nine years old his grandfather who cared for him died too. Muhammad was taken into the care of an uncle whose declining fortunes necessitated that he tend his uncle's flocks.

In this context of profound personal bereavement, Muhammad developed a sweet and gentle disposition. He was sensitive to human sufferings, always active to help the poor and weak. Muhammad received nick-names: "The True," "The Upright," "The Trustworthy One." (Huston Smith, The Religions of Man, 1958, p.219-220)

In the hadith, or written traditions of Islam, stories that recount Muhammad's character (Sunnah), described him as the model of ethical behavior (Sacred Texts of The World, Ninian Smart and Richard D. Hecht, ed., 1982, p.174-176):

Anas said: I served the Prophet for ten years (from the time I was eight years old) and he never said to me, `Shame!' or `Why did you do such and such?' or `Why did you not do such and such?'... he never blamed me for anything which was destroyed at my hand.

Anas (said): I never saw anyone more kindly towards children than God's messenger....

He told that one of the maidservants belonging to the people of Medina would hold God's messenger by the hand and take him where she wished....

`A'isha said God's messenger was never given his choice between two things without taking the lesser of them.... And God's messenger never took revenge on his own behalf....

`A'isha said God's messenger was not unseemly or lewd in his language, nor was he loud-voiced in the streets, nor did he return evil for evil, but he would forgive and pardon.

`A'isha said: God's messenger used to patch his sandals, sew his garment and conduct himself at home as anyone of you does in his house. He was a human being, searching his garment for lice, milking his sheep, and doing his own chores....

Jabir said God's messenger spoke in a distinct and leisurely manner....

`Abdallah b. al-Harith b. Jaz' said he had seen no one more given to smiling than God's messenger....

`Abdallah b. Abi Aufa said: God's messenger was often given to making mention of God, seldom given to idle talk, he would pray at length, deliver short sermons, not disdain to walk with a widow or a humble person, and he would accomplish for him what he needed....

From his marriage at age twenty-five until age forty, Muhammad withdrew into solitary retreat. In a cave on barren Mount Hira, Muhammad reflected on the fearful and wonderful realities of life. The crudeness, superstition and fratricide of Meccan society, the religious confusion, despair and delusion of believing in the desert jinn or spirits, led Muhammad to focus on the one God of Abraham, Moses and Jesus. Muhammad became convinced, "There is no God but Allah." The term "Allah" means "THE God," One and only rather than one of many.

If a Muslim were speaking this morning, I am convinced that he or she would not have spent so much time reflecting on Muhammad, merely the messenger of THE God or Allah. The miracle of the Qur'an revealed to this illiterate sheep-herder would be more central; all three religious sciences of Social Justice, Theology and Mysticism as found in the Qur'an are more primary. Muhammad was not God, not Savior Christ, not the Word of God made flesh. He was merely the messenger, the final prophet of many Judeo-Christian-Islamic prophets.

When Muhammad was forty, after those fifteen years of spiritual struggle in isolation and prayer, he took a spiritual retreat to Mount Hira during the month called Ramadan. Prostrate on the floor of a barren cave, he was visited by a messenger from God who commanded Muhammad: “Cry!” Twice Muhammad resisted the command, being an illiterate, uneducated man. After the third command to "Cry!" Muhammad asked, "What shall I cry!" and the messenger commanded:

Cry---in the name of thy Lord!
Who created man from blood coagulated.
Cry! Thy Lord is wondrous kind.

Though this is certainly an English "paraphrase" of the Qur'an account, it is significant to me that the voice that spoke to Muhammad commanded that he "cry." The brutality and immorality of Meccan society merited heartfelt weeping as well as a prophet's "crying out."

Consider the peaceful, unifying functions of the Five Pillars of Islamic practice: The first Pillar of Islam is to proclaim, "La ilaha illa Allah!" This declaration that "There is no God but Allah!" is to say that nothing in our individual lives is worthy of selfish concern and social conflict. Only Allah is worthy of our worship.

The second Pillar of Islam is prayer, five times daily. No matter where they are, Muslims set aside their private concerns to remind themselves "There is no God but Allah!" and to recite the Qur'an. The third Pillar is the fast of Ramadan, no food or water from dawn to dark for a month. Though busily involved with commerce and private concerns that separate us, hunger reminds us of our unity with the poor and of our responsibility in the order of things to care for one another.

The fourth Pillar of Islam, Zakat, is almsgiving. Compassion for the poor and oppressed of society turns our hearts toward justice, the necessary foundation of peace. In his day the sensitive Muhammad had much to "cry out" about in regard to social justice. Almsgiving or Zakat translated literally means "purity"---relinquishing of inequalities and greed that distract us from remembering THE God, Allah.

Finally, the fifth Pillar of Islam is a once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage to Mecca to pray, "La ilaha illa Allah!" "There is no God but Allah!" Shoulder to shoulder, dressed alike whether rich or poor, powerful or humble, without regard for ethnicity, Muslims experience a profound sense of unity, a sense of our human potential to create a world at peace.

In the Qur'an, Sura 13:2-4, we read the ninety-nine most beautiful names of Allah. The many names which celebrate The one God Allah join together many natures all rolled up in one, contradictory natures to boot! A unity woven of diverse beings. Allah is both "the Beneficent" and "the Afflicter," both "the Humbler" and "the Exalter," both "the Abaser" and "the Honourer", "the Seizer, who both holds tight and is open-handed," "He who causes to die, just as He causes to live." Multiplicity redefined as a unity.

Although Muhammad repudiated animistic polytheism, the religious chaos of desert spirits, jinn sprites and demons, even so the Qur'an describes seven heavenly realms of angels. All are integrated in the Qur'an and subsequent tradition. All work together in the Qur'an to create a unified system of theology and of social justice, retaining diversity only of mystical practices. Consider these three religious sciences: theology, social justice and mysticism (Living Religions, Mary Pat Fisher & Robert Luyster, 1990, p.288).

First, Islamic theology: Qur'anic God-talk about Allah being THE One and only God has a unifying social effect. The five Pillars of Islam are designed to promote social unity: All proclaim the same Allah who demands the same of all. Rich and poor prostrate themselves in prayer five times daily, and shoulder to shoulder on Fridays. There is no distinction. Almsgiving when truly practiced is a great leveler, and fasting during Ramadan gives the rich a visceral experience in solidarity with the poor. Then on pilgrimage to Mecca many thousands walk together in peace.

The second religious science, social justice: The Qur'an provides practical instructions for social justice. Usury, the taking of interest on loans, is prohibited while alms are required. Primogeniture, inheritance by the oldest son, was replaced with all children receiving a prescribed share. And the Poor Due requires annual distribution of 2 1/2%, not of one's earnings, but of all one's saved possessions to those in need. Allah spoke strongly for social justice through his Prophet Muhammad! (Huston Smith, p.243-245)

Women who, prior to his day, had been a man's property along with other livestock, were given property and inheritance rights. Women were afforded rights as a citizen to education, suffrage and vocation. Marriage was formalized thereby prohibiting extramarital abuses by men. Full consent to marriage was required and wives permitted for the first time to initiate divorce. (Huston Smith, p.245-246)

I do not wish to gloss over the fact that the traditions of Islam often contradict the spirit of social justice in the Qur'an. From the hadith tradition of Ibn Hisham's Life of Muhammad, we read that women may be beaten though not with severity (Smart and Hecht, p.159). The tradition instructs men to: “Lay injunctions on women kindly, for they are prisoners with you having no control of their persons. You have taken them only as a trust from God....”

In the very next line the same hadith promotes "brotherhood," a step toward equality regardless of fortune, health, ethnicity, prestige, power, omitting equality between genders: “Know that every Muslim is a Muslim's brother, and that the Muslims are brethren.”

The third religious science, mysticism, corrects the intellectual and legalistic tendencies of Islam. Mysticism is the inner practice of Islam that seeks to counter-balance those outward practices of theology and social justice.

When Muhammad left Mecca to become the spiritual-political leader of the greatly divided community of Medina, he did not suspend his spiritual practice begun at Mount Hira. Seventy people lived with him in his Medina mosque, and lived in voluntary poverty, detached from worldly concerns, praying night and day. This mystical inner tradition of Islam is called Sufism.

In addition to prayer and study of the Qur'an, Sufis examine their own hearts and the workings of the world. Early sufis practiced asceticism as an expression of complete trust in and surrender to Allah. Later Sufi ascetics, whirling dirvishes freed themselves of all attachments to possessions, to pray and dance to ecstatic union with the Beloved, Allah. The Sufi poet Rumi wrote (Mary Pat Fisher and Robert Luyster, Living Religions, p.286-287):

The Beloved is all, the lover just a veil.
The Beloved is living, the lover a dead thing.

The Sufi ideal was for the illusion of private self to be annihilated in oneness with the reality of God. The central practice of dhikr or "remembrance" is that there is nothing except God, that nothing in the world is real except the Creator; nothing else will last. There is no God but Allah.

As the moth flies ecstatic into the flame and finds its illusory self burned up, Sufi mystics seek for the veils of self: illusion, expectation, attachment, resentment, egocentrism, discontent, arrogance to fall away leaving only pure remembrance of THE One, Allah.

What's in your head -- toss it away! What's in your hand -- give it up! Whatever happens -- don't turn away from it... Sufism is the heart standing with God, with nothing in between. (Abu Sa'id Abel-Khayr, in Fisher and Luyster, p.287)

Reading the Northwest Florida Daily News I have been concerned by Letters to the Editor full of rage against Muslims as well as serious misunderstandings of Islam. One quarter of the world's people embrace Islam. In fact, in the United States Islam is the fastest growing religion with more adherents than Episcopalianism, rapidly surpassing Judaism (“Christian Century,” May 16, 2001). Muslims I met in Iowa seemed individually disciplined, including the head of the University of Northern Iowa Department of Industrial Technology. Here at Niceville High School, the Chair of Guidance Counselors shared her (and my) observation that Muslim students are among the highest in academic achievement. Yet on December 8, back-to-back letters to the editor read:

“This nation is not at war with `militants,’ `insurgents’ or `rebels.’ Our precious young men and women are dying and receiving devastating wounds in an inevitable war with bloodthirsty, homicidal, genocidal and suicidal subhuman Jihadists. These cowardly cutthroats sink even below the word `terrorists.’….” (EK, Destin)

“Could we boycott the upcoming Muslim stamp to be issued by an insensitive postmaster of the United States? Our lads and lasses are being killed and maimed by Muslims. Get on your computers. Send out the word. Let’s unite and say, No, we will not purchase these obscene stamps!” (EB, DeFuniak Springs)

Is Christianity at war with Islam? I think we owe it to ourselves to get beyond this vulgar image of Muslims as cutthroat, bloodthirsty, homicidal, genocidal and suicidal subhuman Jihadists. Let’s take the log out of our own eye before we try to remove the splinter from the eye of our fellows.

Rather than the Ten Commandments representing Christian values, Norman Mailer suggests that a more accurate representation Christians might present as public image would be the Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount. The Ten Commandments are minimalist: just don’t lie, swear, steal, covet, kill, fornicate or dishonor your parents or your God---the “don’ts.” The Beatitudes are those positive qualities Jesus taught his followers will make for a good and happy life.

“How blest are (the poor in spirit); the kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
How blest are the sorrowful; they shall find consolation.
How blest are those of a gentle spirit; they shall have the earth for their possession.
How blest are those who hunger and thirst to see right prevail; they shall be satisfied.
How blest are those who show mercy; mercy shall be shown to them.
How blest are those whose hearts are pure; they shall see God.
How blest are the peacemakers; God shall call them his (children)….” (Matthew 5:3-9, NEB)

“You have learned that our forefathers were told, `Do not commit murder; anyone who commits murder must be brought to judgment.’ But what I tell you is this: Anyone who nurses anger against his brother must be brought to judgment. If he abuses his brother he must answer for it to the court; if he sneers at him he will have to answer for it in the fires of hell.” (Mt. 5:21-22, NEB)

“You have learned that (our forefathers) were told, `Love your neighbor, hate your enemy.’ But what I tell you is this: Love your enemies and pray for your persecutors; only so can you be children of your heavenly Father, who makes his sun rise on good and bad alike, and sends the rain on the honest and the dishonest…. You must therefore be all goodness, just as your heavenly Father is all good.” (Mt. 5:43-45, 48, NEB)

If you and I were to speak with our neighbors, many of whom consider themselves good Christians, I feel sure they would say they are loving and nonviolent. Most days of our lives we are not being unfairly treated or violently attacked, so---yes, we are basically gentle and kind. But when it comes to how we deal with enemies and criminals, Christians generally respond with violent self-defense and with legal and military retribution. Let’s get real. Most Christians feel violence and retribution are justifiable in defense and protection of our homes and families. Only Mennonites, Quakers, Church of the Brethren, and not all of them, determine not to exempt themselves from Jesus’ teaching to “love your enemies.”

“Repay no one evil for evil… never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God; for it is written, `Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’… Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:17,19,21, RSV)

The point is that, justifiable violence and retribution aside, Christians feel that as a people, America and Christianity are shining lights of goodness, loving-kindness and generosity in defense of the oppressed for all the world to see. If we kill innocents in “collateral damage” and if torture is used to prevent terrorists from kidnapping and beheading further victims, we feel that such horrors are justifiable in defense of freedom. We are defending goodness.

Islam teaches Muslims to respond to evil deeds with goodness too. The Qur’an reads:

“The good deed and the evil deed are not alike. Repel the evil deed with one which is better, then lo!, he between whom and you there was enmity shall become as though he were a bosom friend.” (41:34-35)

But Christianity and Islam have real differences. Unlike Islam, Christianity forbids violence and has no exemptions justifying violent self-defense nor justifying violence in defense of the innocent and helpless. “Thou shalt not kill.” No exceptions! The Qur’an does not have the hard teachings forbidding violence and retribution which Christians have---and largely ignore. The Qur’an says:

“Defend yourself against your enemies; but attack them not first: God hateth the aggressor.” (2:190)

“Permission to fight is given to those against whom war is being wrongfully waged – and, verily, God has indeed the power to succour them – those who have been driven from their homelands against all right for no other reason than their saying `Our Sustainer is God’. For, if God had not enabled people to defend themselves against one another, monasteries and churches and synagogues and mosques – in which God’s name is abundantly extolled – would surely have been destroyed.” (22:39-40)

“Dr. S.F. Milani, citing numerous qur’anic passages, stated unequivocally that the concept of jihad (meaning `struggle’, often translated as `holy war’) can never justify Muslims attacking civilian targets. The greater jihad, following the teachings of the Prophet, is the struggle against evil. The lesser jihad, armed struggle, only applied to Muslim self-defence. `Even if a state of war exists between a non-Islamic and a Muslim country, no Muslim is permitted to assault, attack or harm any non-Muslim civilian who does not physically participate in the fighting.’” (A Fury for God, Malise Ruthven, 2002, p. 47)

The religious educator of the Islamic Center in Waterloo, Iowa, explained it to me like this. Muslims are to fight for only two reasons, in defense of their religion and of their land. When they fight, Muslims are forbidden from harming non-combatants in any way, including children, women and the elderly. Quoting from the Qur’an (5:32), he said that providing charity to one single human being is the same as saving the life of all humankind. Similarly, killing one innocent person is to Allah the same as killing all humankind.

Though some seek to condemn Islam as aggressive and demonize all Muslims fighting to defend their land against, for example, 209,000 Zionist settlers occupying Palestine’s West Bank and Gaza, it is simply a matter of fact that Islam strongly condemns injury to the innocent, both terrorism and suicide. It is also true that some Muslims, like Christians, find the path of peace in the Pillars as in the Beatitudes too hard.

“The word Islam comes from the root, silm, which literally means peace.” (K.G. Saiyadain in World Religions and World Peace, Homer Jack, ed., 1968, p.51) Islam is all about creating a peaceful society out of diversity and conflict. Christianity is also The Way of peace. May we help make it so.