What It Means - Day 257

"Whether you display a good deed openly or conceal it, or pardon an evil, truly God is Pardoning, Powerful."
Quran 4:149

And here's another brief passage from the fourth surah, al-Nisa, rendered as "Women." I don't know if I have anything profound to add to it, and, truthfully, how can one add anything more profound to notion of doing a good deed. I chose this one because of how it, essentially, equates, or nearly equates, performing a good deed and pardoning a bad deed done against you. I've never been a person who held grudges, and I think that was true long before I ever converted.  I'm not certain why, because I certainly come from a family of grudge-holders, or maybe it's because I came from a family of grudge-holders. There are people who have harmed me in my life, both personally and professionally, but I can't seem to muster the energy to hate them. Sadly, I've hurt people, some of them remarkably good and kind people, albeit it unintentionally, and I feel the weight of my actions, much like Jacob Marley's chain. I'd prefer that others didn't carry those weight around for wrongs they did to me, either intentionally or unintentionally.

What It Means - Day 256

"O yo who believe! Be steadfast maintainers of justice, witnesses for God, though it be against yourselves, or your parents and kinfolk, and whether it be someone rich or poor, for God is nearer unto both. So follow not your caprice, that you may act justly. If you distort or turn away, truly God is Aware of whatever you do."
Quran 4:135

And here's another passage from the same surah (like I said, it's an important one), al-Nisa, "Women," which is the fourth surah. Justice is essential to Islam and it is expected/required of Muslims. Nasr tells us, "Establishing and upholding justice in society is a key concern of the Quran. God establishes justice by setting the Balance within creation itself (15:19; 55:7; 57:25), by commanding justice among human beings through revelation (7:29; 16:90; 42:17; 57:25), and by weighing deeds in a set balance on the Day of Judgment (21:47).

So, you have to act justly, no matter how rich and powerful or poor and powerless the other person is, and that justice should begin with yourself (we all too often leave ourselves out of this equation). I had a big blowup with the previous Imam and several members of our community felt that I had tweeted (for a while I was in charge of the mosque's twitter feed) on some inappropriate topics. I had retweeted a couple tweets dealing with the rights and conditions of LGBT Muslims within our broader ummah. Several members asked/told me to take down the tweets and I refused, and, not surprisingly, my infamous temper made an appearance (which I do feel bad about, and for which I apologized). However, I did not apologize for the tweets and I did not take them down. If we are about justice then we are about justice for every member of our community.

What It Means - Day 255

"And when you are offered a greeting, respond with a greeting that is better, or return it; such God takes account of all things."
Quran 4:86

Here's another passage from al-Nisa, or "Women," the fourth surah. As Nasr tells us in the Study Quran: "When one is offered a greeting (tahiyyah), which is usually understood to be the proper Islamic greeting, 'Peace be upon you (al-salamu alaykum),' one should respond with a greeting that is better such as, 'And upon you be peace, and the Mercy of God, and His Blessing,' or simply return it, that is, respond in a similar manner by saying, 'And upon you be peace (wa-alaykum al-salaum); or simply, 'And upon you.'" (p. 230) as Muslims we are directed to always return the worse with the better, that is to avoid an eye for an eye approach (as we've discussed previously). This passage is a simpler, everyday version of the same basic Islamic approach, in this case responding with a "better" greeting.

What It Means - Day 254

"If you fear that you will not deal fairly with the orphans, then marry such women as seem good to you, two, three, or four; but if you fear that you will not deal justly, then only one, or those whom your right hands possess. Thus it is more like you will not commit injustice."
Quran 4:3

This passage, drawn from the fourth surah, al-Nisa, or "Women," one of the most important chapters in the Quran. This is the Quranic passage that limits the number of wives to no more than four, but actually no more than you treat fairly. The common perception is that it was increased to four, but actually it was limited to four. Arabia at the time of Muhammad was both an extraordinarily misogynistic society, but also a region torn by consistent warfare; the result being many widows with no one to support them. The Prophet himself was only married to one woman, his first wife Khadija, for most of his life, and it was only after her death - and because of the political demands of sewing together a deeply fragmented land, that he ended up marrying many women for essentially diplomatic reasons. Thus the decision to allow four had much more to do with social and economic reasons than anything else, but it has stuck. In reality I think that less than 2% of Muslim marriages are actually polygamous, mainly because of the directive about treating all the wives fairly - and obviously because of national rules making it illegal. This is another one of those rules that I find myself in opposition to, not only because, contrary to the original desire to provide some measure of protection, it all too often limits the rights of women. In addition, this is one of those religious dictates that, well, has nothing to do with religion, but instead the societal and historical baggage associated with the religion's growth.

What It Means - Day 253

"O yo who believe! Be patient, vie in patience, persevere, and reverence God, that haply you may prosper."
Quran 3:200

These words form the final passage of the third surah, Al Imran, usually rendered as "The House of Imran." Truthfully, I don't know what I could possibly add to these simple but beautifully profound words. I've proposed before that one of the things that drew me to Islam in the first place was its emphasis on patience (it's never been one of my strong points, or at least I've never considered it as one of my strong points). I can remember how when I was a kid my mom would drag us up to Cincinnati to shop at Shillito's, somehow maneuvering her big car into the parking garage, and maneuvering four kids around the store. Actually, I think I mainly managed to stay out of trouble by not being "there," instead off traipsing through some far off imagined land fueled by my reading. Maybe that's the key to patience, being of this world and not of this world. Is this how one maintains patience in our increasingly chaotic, hectic world, by living only partially in it, and simultaneously living in God's world (as much as we are ever able to do so).

What It Means - Day 252

"To God belongs the East and the West. Wheresoever you turn, there is the Face of God. God is All-Encompassing, Knowing."

Quran 2:115

We've discussed similar verses previously. This particular one is drawn from al-Baqarah, the second surah, the longest in the Quran, here rendered as "The Cow." On one level is relates to the direction of the qiblah, especially in regards to the change during the Prophet's life from facing toward Jerusalem and instead turning towards Mecca. However, it's also obviously more profound than that. As Nasr tells us, "This verse can also be taken as an allusion to the Omnipresence of God, who is the First, and the Last, and the Outward, and the Inward (57:3), manifest in all things, though naught is like unto Him (42:11). This verse is understood to mean that God is present everywhere and and is one of the scriptural foundations for the Sufi doctrine of the 'oneness of being,' or wahdat al-wujud." (Study Quran, p. 54) To me, it also brings up the folly of the notion that we as Muslims, or any religion at any time, would ever think that we have a monopoly on God and the one clear, true vision of the divine.

What It Means - Day 251

"Naskh ('abrogation') as a technical term is a key concept in the fully developed form of Islamic jurisprudence, theology, and Quranic commentary, and is a major conceptual tool for understanding the relationship between different commands and prohibitions in the Quran and the Sunnayh. It is a crucial concept for understanding how the Quran is actually used as a source of Islamic Law and practice, and thus many commentators devote considerable attention to this particular verse." (Nasr, Study Quran, p. 49)

The verse in  question is: "No sign do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, but that We bring that which is better than it or like unto it. Dost thou not know that God is powerful over all things?" This is the 106th verse of the second surah, al-Baqarah, here rendered as "The Cow."


We've discussed the concept of abrogations before, the notion that a later - chronological, not in the regular order of the Quran - revelation abrogated, either replacing or modifying an earlier revelation. It's certainly a fascinating concept, although also a maddening one. Scholars have argued, and continue to argue, about the number of Quranic verses that have been abrogated, with the estimates ranging from less than ten to hundreds. If God is omniscient and eternal, essentially existing across all time and space at every second, then why would would there be the need to replace or modify an earlier revelation. Certainly the argument could not be made that God made a mistake the first time around. The argument made in regards to alcohol, as we've discussed, is that humans weren't ready for a total ban initially, so God had to get there slowly and only reveal the total ban when people were ready. This also make me think that most of the abrogations were either harsh or at least more restrictive (but more on that later). If the point is that later revelations had to be made because humans didn't really understand the first revelations, then who is to say that they understand the newer ones?

Nasr continues:

"Although it is generally agreed that one Quranic ruling may abrogate another Quranic ruling revealed earlier in time, there has been considerable difference of opinion about other kinds of naskh, for example, whether Prophetic practice (Sunnah) can abrogate the Quran or vice versa, and whether the consensus  of the learned community (ijma) can abrogate a ruling from the Quran or a hadith."

Obviously, this is a very confusing and sometimes contentious issue. Honestly, I'm puzzled by the argument that a consensus of the learned community could abrogate something from the Quran, mainly because is the argument not based on the notion that the opinion of a group of humans, albeit scholarly ones, would replace a revelation. And, to me, this brings us to my biggest problem with abrogations: they are, I would argue, by definition more about human interpretation and bias and less about divine revelation, which probably explains why the abrogations seem to always grow more harsh and/or more restrictive. Again, I think it's easy to cherry pick passages from the Quran to back up your own personal beliefs, and abrogations seem to have such potential to take us further and further away from the heart of the faith. This is why I always say that you need to look at your faith as a whole and not focus on little, sometimes debated, corners of it.

And, as always, I'll throw in my usual disclaimer that I speak for me and me alone, and I do not represent the vast majority of Muslims (I don't know why they're all so routinely wrong . . . 😌).

What It Means - Day 250

"And with those who say, 'We are Christians,' We made a covenant. Then they forgot part of that whereof they were reminded. So We stirred up enmity and hatred among them, till the Day of Resurrection. God will inform them of what they used to do."
Quran 5:14

We've drawn a lot from the 5th surah, al-Ma'idah, "The Table Spread," and here's another example. Nasr tells us:

"This verse asserts that Christians, like Israelites/Jews, entered into a covenant with God and, like them, forgot a part of the 'reminder' that had been given them. The consequences, however, are different. Whereas the Israelites' failure with regard to the covenant leads to spiritual punishment by God, the Christians' forgetting of the covenant results in enmity and hatred among them, alluding to the factionalism or sectarianism within the Christian community spurred by theological differences or to hatred between Jews and Christians - although the latter is a less likely interpretation in this context, since the verse seems to be addressed exclusively to the Christians." (p. 283)

This seemed like a natural followup to our discussion yesterday of the dangers of factionalism, in this case relating to Christians. That said, I chose it because it plays on one of the central theme of Islam: that they are a continuation of the original monotheistic tradition, building upon and avoiding the mistakes of their Jewish and Christian brothers and sisters.

What It Means - Day 249

"Truly those who have divided their religion and become factions, thou hast nothing to do with them. Their matter rests with God alone; then He will inform them about that which they used to do."
Quran 6:159

This passage from the 6th surah, al-An'am, here rendered as "The Castle" warns against the dangers of factions inside of the Muslim ummah. Arabia during the time of Muhammad was a disunited, warlike territory and this made the Prophet's job that much more complicated. As we've discussed, while it is easy to focus on Muhammad as a prophet, he also played political, economic, legal and military roles in the early days of the faith. Considering the fractious world that existed in Arabia it's not particularly surprising the message of this revelation. Of course, he's not just talking about political or geographic fracturing here, but more importantly religious divisions. And it didn't take very long for them to develop, mirroring the experience with all other religions. Considering that during the Prophet's lifetime the entire Islamic world was little more than the stretch between Mecca and Medina, and it seems less naive that the entire ummah and faith could be held together. Now there are 1.6 billion Muslims spread across the globe and the dream of unity seem, well, a dream.

What It Means - Day 248

"Insight has come to you from your Lord. So whosoever sees clearly, it is to the benefit of his own soul."
Quran 6:104

Here's another passage from al-An'am, "The Castle," one of the lengthiest and very important surahs in the Quran. In his commentary for the Study Quran Nasr writes, "Insight, literally 'insights,' translates basa'ir (sing, basirah), which is derived from the same root as sight in the previous verse. Some commentators say that sight refers to the vision of the physical eye, but insight (basirah) refers to the 'eye of the heart' (Aj) or to the 'light of the heart,' from which all vision derives. Similarly, others gloss insight as 'guidance' in the form of the vision of the heart that leads one towards the truth religion." (p. 379) Of course, what does this actually mean? In a monotheistic religion, and it's hard to imagine a religion more unabashedly monotheistic than Islam, by definition everything comes from God, so, of course, insight would as well. I love the phrase the "light of the heart," although I'm still brooding over exactly what it means. Nasr continues, "Whosoever sees clearly - that is, understands the proofs and arguments for God's Oneness and has faith in the truth of the message brought by the Prophet - it is to the benefit of his own soul . . ." (ibid)  To me this bring us back to that line from Rumi about everyone seeing the unseen in proportion to the clarity of their heart. So, if you understand the totality of all things then you also see the role you play, big or small, in the world a better place by serving it inhabitants.

What It Means - Day 247

"'O Adam! Dwell thou and thy wife in the Garden, and eat from wheresoever you two will, but approach not this tree, lest you two be among the wrongdoers.'"
Quran 7:19

I've drawn quite a bit from surah 7, al-A'raf, here rendered as "The Heights" already, and doubtless will again. I chose this passage for a couple reasons, mainly related to the reference to Adam. People who are completely unfamiliar with the Quran or Islam more generally are often initially shocked by the appearance of characters from the Old or New Testament; their response often taking on a "wait, why are you trying to steal our guys?" feel. From the Islamic sense these are "our guys" as well, which is why Jews and Christians are Peoples of the Book. Eve is not mentioned by name in this section. As we know the only woman in the entire Quran who is ever mentioned by name is Maryam (Mary), the mother of Jesus. In the extra-Quranic literature she is always referred to as Hawwa. As Nasr tells us, "In this case, however, Eve can be said to have been created not from Adam as male, but rather from the original androgynic Adam who is the prototype of humanity, both male and female."

What It Means - Day 246

"Do they not consider the camels, how they are created; the sky, how it is raised; the mountains, how they are established; and the earth, how it is spread? So remind! Thou art but a reminder; thou art not a warder over them."
Quran 88:17-22

I think this is the first thing I've culled out of surah 88, al-Ghashiyah, here rendered as "The Overwhelming Event." This passage contains a couple classic themes that run throughout the Quran, such as the reminder at the end that the job of the Prophet is merely to remind people of the truth. If in the end they/we don't do the right thing it's on them/us.  That's also true in a broader sense in Islam because you completely own your own deeds.

This passage also displays another theme: referencing the world as self-evident proof of God's existence. I probably chose this one because I'll be camel riding with my students in Jordan next week. Nasr tells us:

"Camels were central to desert livelihood, as they were easy to domesticate; could be eaten, milked, or used as beasts or burden; and could carry large loads for many days, surviving on little water and thorny desert brush. The camel is thus seen in many commentaries and in Islamic literature in general as one of the supreme examples of God's Wisdom and Power. The reference to camels can also be understood as an allusion to the docile nature of camels, who despite their strength will yield to one who is leading them. In this sense, the verse could be read as chastising human beings for not yielding to the guidance of God in the manner that camel's yield to their guides." (p. 1508)

In a larger sense this is also interesting because it reflects on the default setting of Islam - or more generally of people of faith - that everything in this world proves that God exists. If you're not a person of faith then all the things of this world can be viewed as proof that God doesn't exist; how could all of this complexity exist inside of a divinely structured universe, the very random diversity acting as evidence against any sort of divine superstructure.

What It Means - Day 245

"When the sky is cleft asunder, and when the stars are dispersed, when the seas are burst forth, and when graves are turned inside our, then shall each soul know what it has sent forth and what it has left behind."
Quran 82:1-5

These are the first five verses al-Infitar, the 82nd surah, here rendered as the "The Cleaving Asunder." I chose these verses mainly because I think they're beautiful and they give a small sense of the powerful language in the Quran, even translated into English. My Arabic-speaking friends will tell me that I'll never truly understand the Quran until I speak Arabic and can read the book in its original tongue. Truthfully, I don't think I agree with that notion, but I fully believe that I'll never be able to appreciate the beauty of the Quran. Muslims believe that the fact that Muhammad, a generally unlettered merchant, produced a work of the poetic beauty and metaphoric splendor of the Quran is proof of the miracle (as compared to somehow rewriting history to make the Prophet seem better educated). Now, do I think the world will actually end this way? Well, no - I always try to be honest and not say what folks, especially my fellow brothers and sisters, would like me to say. I think it is a beautiful and powerful metaphor, but a metaphor nonetheless. I think the world will end, or at least our personal world will end, and either our life and deeds add up to something or they don't. Explaining the enormity of a life lived without purpose, and a life that failed to make the world a better place, is a failed life, and a life that leaves you at odd with God, even if the sky is not actually cleft asunder.

Wadi Rum Bowl 2019

Over the years a couple of students have unexpectedly broken through my no gifts force field and surprised me with gifts; in the end it was always a class going together to get something, and it's usually been one of the travel course. A couple years ago it was famous framed Scudderisms from the India/Sri Lanka trip (they did it after the semester was already over so there wasn't much I could do about it, other than revel in it's epicness - I think I've blogged about it, but if not I'll have to make up for that shortcoming). On Thursday my students from the upcoming Jordan trip surprised me with this amazing football, which they had custom-made. It's in honor of the upcoming Wadi Rum Bowl between the Liza Ryan coached Buffalo Bills and the Scudder coached Minnesota Vikings to determine the ultimate loser franchise. Liza went on the last Jordan trip and she fell hard for the country (and who doesn't?) and began pestering me to arrange and lead a trip to take her back her senior year (she was joined in that by Ashley and Cat and Genevieve so I never stood a chance). In fact, I'm actually supposed to be on sabbatical this year, but I postponed it to make them happy (apparently I like my students). I don't quite remember the impetus for the Wadi Rum Bowl, although I'm sure it grew out of some combination of football smack talking and pining away for Jordan. Liza is bringing two footballs, which she'll deflate in advance, and then inflate when we're there (if she remembers the hand pump). Considering that it's the Bills and Vikings I'm sure it will end up with an embarrassing tie with Liza and I both getting injured.

Seriously, how epic is this? According to the manufacturer we can't deflate it - and we can't bring it on the plane because the pressure would make it blow up - so it will have to stand guard in my office until we get back. Undoubtedly Liza's Bills will end up winning then I guess she'll end up with the trophy/ball, which seems only appropriate.

What It Means - Day 244

"Grant not favor, seeking gain!"
Quran 74:6

This very brief passage, drawn from the 74th surah, al-Muddaththir, here rendered as "The Covered One," surely has equivalent verses in every religion. Nasr explains to us in the Study Quran: "Similar to 92:18-22, this verse indicates that charity should be given freely for the sake of God, not to curry favor or seek material gain. It can be seen as a general command for all believers or as a particular command for the Prophet." (p. 1439) I think I would argue that it also more generally speaks to the need for sincerity in all aspects of your faith. You should do thinks because of the rightness of doing them, and not because you're trying to impress anyone. Actually, I think you could also include God in that general admonition as well, and I'm not trying to be disrespectful. If you're doing something for fear of punishment from God or in hope of reward from God is your intention contaminated, although not as much as hoping to avoid punishment or curry favor from more human sources. Or, well, is it actually worse? Do we insult God when we turn Him/Her/It into nothing more than a vehicle for punishment/reward? However, if God is the inherent kindness and compassion at the heart of all things then kind, compassionate acts are not an attempt to inspire reward but rather acting in union with the point of everything.

One Week

In one week I'll be leading another class on the way to Jordan. Normally on foreign travel it's at this stage when I'm regretting that I ever considered going on the upcoming trip.  However, that never seems to be the case with Jordan, which is one of the innumerable reasons why Jordan is clearly my favorite country. Jordan is beautiful and so historically and culturally rich, and, well, from our point of view it's simply the easiest trip to plan. Our great friend Fadi from Petra Moon Tours whips everything into shape with minimal fuss. I can't sing their praises too highly if you're thinking about heading to Jordan and need some assistance please check out Petra Moon. It's hard to believe that my friend Cyndi and I threw the first Jordan trip together in almost no time six years ago. At the time even though I had been to Jordan repeatedly I have never led a student trip there and the problems seemed insurmountable, and now by comparison the thought of going to Jordan seems so natural; essentially, I'm going home.

The camp in the Wadi Rum where we'll be spending Thanksgiving.

GS: later note - actually, that's not where we ended up staying after all. We went back to the Rainbow Camp, where we stayed on our first trip. We've been so successful in attracting large groups of students that we outgrew this camp.

What It Means - Day 243

"' . . . My wealth availed me not. My power has passed from me.' Take him and shackle him. Then cast him in Hellfire. Then put him in a chain whose length is seventy cubits. Truly he did not believe in God the Magnificent, and did not urge feeding the indigent."
Quran 69:28-34

This passage is drawn from the 69th surah, al-Haqqah, here rendered as "The Undeniable Reality." The language here is very typical of the Quran, including the reference to the Hellfire as part of a discussion of the punishment of the day of judgment. Is the Quran nothing more than an endless litany of threats of eternal damnation? No, of course not, and I'm hoping the many passages we've examined over the year (can't believe we're already 243 days into this venture) show. That said, there are certainly enough passages that deal with the Hellfire. You know me, I inevitably come down on the side of a metaphoric reading of the Quran (and all holy books, for that matter), and, as always, I'll throw in my disclaimer that I speak for me and me alone and certainly not for Islam or even a healthy minority of Muslims. Even if you do side with a more metaphoric meaning of things it does emphasize the importance of considering every one of your actions seriously, because, in the end, any discussion of a day of judgment is really a discussion of your own personal conduct. If you absolutely believe in the day of judgment as laid out in these powerful words and images then it is still absolutely a clarion call to focus on the weight of your actions. Having said all that, what strikes me about this passage is the emphasis, also typical for the Quran and for Islam more generally, to look after the needy. At the beginning of the passage an individual is lamenting the fact that in the end of all things "My wealth availed me not. My power has passed from me." Consider his crimes: "Truly he did not believe in God the Magnificent, and did not urge feeding the indigent." We've talked at length about the centrality of the message of belief and performing righteous deeds, and I would argue that this is just one more example.

What It Means - Day 242

"That is because their messengers brought them clear proofs, at which they said, 'Shall a human being guide us?' So they disbelieved and turned away; yet God is beyond need. And God is Self-Sufficient, Praised."
Quran 64:6

This passage, drawn from the 64th surah, al-Taghabun, here rendered as "Mutual Dispossession." It starts off with a theme that is common in the Quran, the notion that the Prophet's critics attacked his teachings because how could a mortal man speak for God. It then transitions into a concept that is both "duh" and complicated: "yet God is beyond need. And God is Self-Sufficient, Praised." God is, well, God, and so it would make perfect sense that, as such, God would be self-sufficient. In this commentary Nasr adds, "That God is Self-Sufficient could indicate that God has no need of them or no need for them to believe in Him; thus He did not compel them to believe in Him despite His ability to do so." In this case Nasr is referencing the non-believers, but it would naturally relate to the believers as well. If God doesn't need anything from us then what would we ever do to impress God? Talk about a tough challenge in the office Secret Santa drawing: what do you get someone who has everything? If God is self-sufficient and doesn't need anything then how would you ever "impress" God and earn salvation? Obviously, it's a question that transcends Islam, and gives us an insight into how the Calvinists settled on predestination (another complex concept). However, after saying that, I do think God needs something from us, and it's not ritualistic and external that is related to the demands of religion, but rather something more organic and internal that that is related to faith: kindness. If God is good then we as humans were created because the good by nature share their goodness, and so if we were created in an act of goodness then what God wants from us is to simply share that goodness.  Everything else is commentary.

What It Means - Day 241

"Truly men who give in charity and women who give in charity and lend unto God a goodly loan, it will be multiplied for them, and theirs shall be a generous reward."
Quran 57:18

We've seen similar passages from the Quran before, but nevertheless I still culled this verse out of the 57th surah, al-Hadid, here rendered as "Iron." It reminds us once again about the importance of charity, and we know this is one of the foundational Five Pillars. I guess it hits home with me right now because of the work I've been doing with TechDren and the South Burlington Food Shelf, but also because we're cycling towards the end of the year - the year is getting colder and people are in need, but we're also drawing towards that time of year when we begin to reflect upon what we owe the rest of humanity. Our mosque is very well-represented at the South Burlington Food Shelf, both in regards to the folks working there but also the food which is being left at the masjid (which I'll in turn convey to the Food Shelf). Also, I think this passage is important because it represents men and women equally in regards to their duty to provide charity (now, truthfully, in regards to the Food Shelf it is the sisters who are dominating in showing up to work). Having said all this, as a faith I think we need to make certain that we're not asking equal sacrifice from the female members of our ummah without in turn offering equal benefit. Yes, in the end these issues are always in the hands of God, but in this world we can work a lot harder to give women equal access at the mosque.

What It Means - Day 240

"Truly it is a Noble Quran in a Book conceals. None touch it, save those made pure."
Quran 56:77-79

I often tell my students the story of my friend Debi being in Morocco and buying me a small travel Quran as a gift (years before I converted, ironically). She placed the Quran in her bag and headed towards a public toiler. At that moment the shopkeeper ran after her and, politely, insisted that she let him hold the Quran while she entered the toilet. He wasn't assuming that she was going to do something to defile the Quran, but rather that just taking it into that place was being unintentionally disrespectful. Debi handed it over, entered the toilet, and found him waiting for her. After handing it over he walked back to this shop; he had been insistent, but completely respectful and polite the entire time. That story leads us to today's post. These three very brief verses are drawn from al-Waqiah, the 56th surah, here rendered as "The Event." Yes, you should not do anything to defile or besmirch a Quran, as you shouldn't with any other holy book; even if you don't believe in that particular religion or its perceived holy scripture why would anyone go out of their way to be disrespectful? That said, in this case there is a far more profound, and thus important, meaning. It deals with the sense of being spiritually pure, or at least more pure, as you try and tackle the Quran. We've talked before the concept of wudu, or ritual purification, before, and even if you view the process as being completely metaphoric it doesn't make the need to make the need to try and get yourself in an intellectual, emotional and spiritual place to understand the words any less valid.

What It Means - Day 239

"Truly We have created everything according to a measure."
Quran 54:49

I culled out this very brief passage, which I may actually examine again at length, but for now I mainly wanted to use it as a vehicle to show the complexity of Islamic theological debate. It's drawn from the 54th surah, al-Qamar, here rendered as "The Moon." Maybe in some ways this is the opposite of yesterday's blog posting on the purchase and refurbishment of our new mosque. Yesterday was the practical side of any faith organization, the "why aren't the lights working?" side of things. Of course, there's also the other side, the wildly philosophical side of things. Clearly I have a major man-crush on Seyyed Nasr (in fact I just emailed him on Friday, more on that later, maybe) and I wanted to cull out a couple pages from his Study Quran. These two pages plus of micro-print are an attempt, and I'm sure what Nasr would characterize as an unfairly brief attempt, to sort out the meaning of one brief sentence. As Nasr tells us, "This verse can be understand as a straight-forward affirmation of God's creation of all things." I guess it wasn't really all that straight-forward after all. It's a section of commentary that I love, and which I revisit quite a bit, not simply because it deals with an issue that I find central to Islam (the question of human free will) but also because I'm drawn to the complexity of the debating claims. Certainly gives non-Muslims a clearer view of the faith, which is sometimes considered to be very simplistic and literal, when clearly nothing could be further from the truth.  Like I said, I'll doubtless revisit this again and, briefly, lay out some of the arguments in regards to the issue of free will, and talk about the one that I find most convincing (or at least the one that makes the most sense to me).

The commentary of this one brief sentence begins in the lower right of the right page . . .

. . . and then carries all the way through the next two pages.

What It Means - Day 238

I don't think this is what faith means, but the more practical aspects of running your particular house of worship are at least a part of what it means to be part of your faith community. Whenever I bring students to the masjid I walk them through what they're going to see and hear, and inevitably point out that right after the sermon someone who is not the Imam will step forward with a bunch of practical announcements about potluck dinners or community volunteer days or reminders that people haven't paid their annual membership, etc. We are an ummah, and that means many things.

When I was running around yesterday I stopped by, late, for a workday at our new mosque location, which was the first time I had the chance to see inside it. Several months ago we had the chance to purchase one of the two Mormon churches in Burlington. It was a good deal, the asking price being much less than its perceived value, but it was still a lot of money. Truthfully, and although I donated several times, I didn't think we'd be able to raise the funds (which I guess is even more evidence, as if we needed more evidence, that I'm not a person of great faith). Amazingly we raised over a million dollars in less than four months, and now it's ours. There's a goodly amount of work to do to get it ready, and I, clumsily, helped out a bit yesterday, but we might be there before the end of the year.

It's located on Swift Street, next to a synagogue and down the road from a church, so we're becoming a fairly ecumenical little corner. When I first saw it I was struck by how big it is, but we do have a growing community.

Here the main prayer area and folks are lovingly refurbishing it, and making sure that everything is treat respectfully as part of the transformation. There are no pews in a mosque, everyone sits on the floor, so we had to find a new home for them. In mosques you pray facing Mecca (the qibla is the actual direction, and the mirhab is the niche or at least the designation inside the mosque that indicates the direction) and that doesn't line up with the layout of the church. Essentially, the qibla would be facing towards the wall to the left (which is why I chose this picture). I think negotiations are still on-going (I'm not in the inner circle on these things) and the sermon might be given with the left wall as the "front" or we would face the traditional front of the old church for the sermon and then turn ninety degrees to face the qibla for the actual prayer (I've seen this in other mosques). 

And we now have our own gym, which will be great for expanding our youth programs.

It's a pretty expansive space, especially as compared to our old mosque.

It features lots of classrooms, certainly more than we need, so we have many options.

Chai Chai Chai

Yesterday I had a pretty amazing day, and one which oddly typical anymore and one that would be unrecognizable to the life I used to lead. I started the day volunteering at the South Burlington Food Shelf, then jetted downtown to meet my truly excellent student Olivia Richer for Chai Chai Chai at Dobra Tea, then circled back to the new mosque to "help" on a workday (I suspect I helped as much as I used to "help" my grandmother Alice run her grocery store in the country), then went to the gym to lift weights, and then finally met the family of one of the kids I'm taking to Jordan for an early Thanksgiving dinner ((I'm stealing their daughter for Thanksgiving so they flew up from Texas to celebrate early, and graciously invited me). I'm very blessed.

It's not uncommon for seniors to start scheduling coffee (or chai) meeting with their professors as they stare down graduation, and it's something that makes us very happy. I first had Olivia in a class when she was a sophomore and she decided that she wanted to go on the trip to India when she was a junior. She worked so hard and made it happen, and I can't imagine anyone had a richer experience than her. Olivia desperately wanted to ride elephants and look for tigers, so when the initial elephant ride was cancelled - and then we didn't see any tigers (only heard them, maddeningly close) - I felt terrible for her, which led me to pressure Inder and Santosh to somehow arrange for another elephant ride (which she dearly loved - I previously posted a picture of her canoodling with the elephant).

What It Means - Day 237

"And as for his saying, 'O my Lord, truly these are a people who believe not,' bear with them and say, 'Peace,' For soon they will know."
Quran 43:89

And building upon yesterday's discussion, here's a passage from the 43rd surah, al-Zukhruf, here rendered as "Gold Ornaments." Now, does it answer the question I was discussing - the issue of diversity, respecting religious diversity, but drawing the line at those who believe in nothing - with any certainty? No, of course not. It does remind us that even if we disagree with someone else's religious beliefs, and even if they believe in nothing, we should bear with it patiently and leave them with "Peace." And this is true even if we're doing so for what I would consider the worst of all reasons, that we're certain that they're wrong and that God will sort them out later.  When we as Muslims do not respect people of other faiths then we're not being Muslims. But, again, why would we as Muslims not respect someone who adheres to no set faith but who lives a righteous life? I would say we should, and not simply on the level of bearing patiently with them and wishing them "Peace." First off, obviously, who the hell are we to judge anyone? When we're absolutely certain that we know what God thanks and wants in regards to someone else aren't we being far more blasphemous than the person we're judging?  I would go even further with this, however. As I often propose, if you want to worship God simply be kind to everyone and everything in your life, no matter how far or near. Who is to say that someone of no faith who is helping others isn't actually being far more "religious" than we are?

What It Means - Day 236

"Had God willed, He would have made them all one community. But He causes whomsoever He will to enter into His Mercy."
Quran 42:8

This passage, drawn from the 42nd surah, al-Shura, here rendered as "Counsel" is very well known. It's one of several verses in the Quran that celebrate diversity, proposing that diversity is a gift from God as compared to a curse, as in the story of the Tower of Babel. As Nasr explains in the related commentary in the Study Quran, "From one perspective, this verse alludes to God's providing various revelations so that people might vie with one another in good deeds." (p. 1174) So, the diversity relates not only to language or custom but also to religion, which makes this another directive in the Quran to respect other religions and their followers. Building upon this Nasr also proposes, "From another perspective, it could be said that God did not join all people in a single religion and save all from the punishment, since this would have removed the charge of moral and legal responsibility (taklif) that can only be confirmed by also giving human beings choice." (ibid) Again, if there is not human choice then none of this means anything. That said, it would bring us back to the notion the Muslims should accept you following a different religion, but might not accept you following no religion. Not that they're alone in that, of course, as my students learn every year when they are asked to fill out an Indian visa application form and discover to their chagrin that none or atheist leads to the form being returned. We are told over fifty times in the Quran that the key is to believe and to perform righteous deeds - and in famous passages are told that Jews, Christians, Sabeans and others have nothing to fear if they believe in God and the final days and perform righteous deeds they have nothing to fear. So, I guess the question might be: why is performing righteous deeds alone not enough? I mean, you're building in this framework where you're celebrating diversity of opinion, so why would that diversity not include those who lead righteous lives but don't adhere to any of the religions or believe in a divine superstructure?

What It Means - Day 235

"The good deed and the evil deed are not equal. Repel by that which is better; then behold, the one between whom thee there is enmity shall be as if he were a loyal, protecting friend."
Quran 41:34

And since we're talking about Islamic messages dealing with peace here's another remarkably famous one, in this instance drawn from Fussilat, the 41st surah, here rendered as "Expounded." It's another example of a classic Islamic notion, that good deeds and bad deeds are not equal. Good deeds weight more, sometimes labeled as ten times more, meaning that they essentially mean more. The emphasis is on the power of doing good, as compared to punishing people for doing wrong. Here we are reminded of the advantages of this approach: you can make your enemy your friend, turning him by love and kindness in a way that you could never do with hatred.

What It Means - Day 234

"Let there be no harming and no reciprocating harm."

Muhammad, Hadith (Nasr, Study Quran, p. 1165)

Here is one of the most famous, beloved and foundational ahadith, the sayings of the Prophet. It is about as definitive a statement of the fact that Islam is supposed to be a religion of peace as you could possibly imagine. Sadly, the popular perception of Islam is so at variance with this mandate. If I were going to send around this quiz what percentage would get it right?

Who said, "Let there be no harming and no reciprocating harm"?

a) Jesus

b) Mohandas Gandhi

c) Muhammad

d) All of the above

The biggest challenge that folks would have would be that, even if they couldn't place the quote exactly, they would mainly struggle with the fact that d couldn't be the correct answer because Islam is a violent religion that was spread at the point of a sword. Very few people would choose c as the answer.

To be fair, however, there are enough Muslims who could use this reminder as well.

What It Means - Day 233

"Say, 'I am only a human being like you. It is revealed unto me that your God is only one God. So go straight unto Him and seek forgiveness from Him.'"
Quran 41:6

I think that this is the first time, at least in this online reflection, that I've visited the 41st surah, Fussilat, here rendered as "Expounded" (outside of this online discussion I've read it many times, and hope to live long enough to read it many more times). In this instance Muhammad was directed to respond in this fashion to the Quraysh, the wealthy leaders of Mecca. They had attacked him as "only a human being," and thus not one who could possibly convey a message from God. To Muslims this, along with Muhammad's "unlettered" status, is proof of the miracle. So, in this case the Prophet would not be shying away from the accusation, but rather emphasizing it. Additionally, his status as one of them insured that the Quran was delivered in a language, Arabic, which meant that a prophetic message was finally their own.

What It Means - Day 232

"Whosoever works righteousness, it is for his own soul. And whosoever commits evil, it is to the detriment thereof. Then unto your Lord shall you be returned."
Quran 45:15

Here's another brief passage from the 45th surah, al-Jathiyah, here rendered as "Upon Their Knees." It's another one of the innumerable reminders inside the Quran of the fact that human beings themselves are completely responsible for their actions, good or bad. It's one of the reasons why we don't think Jesus died for our sins, mainly because no one can die for anyone else's sins. You be part of a large community, in fact several different communities, but you are never judged in relationship to your crew, rather simply your own decisions and acts. As with all monotheistic religions it's a tough balancing act, intellectually, between the concepts of an omniscient God and human free will.

What It Means - Day 231

"Tell those who believe to forgive those who hope not for the days of God, that He may requite a people for that which they used to earn."
Quran 45:14

And he's a passage from another surah that we haven't visited yet, in this case al-Jathiyah, the 45th surah, here rendered "Upon Their Knees." The message is as simple as it is central to Islam, but also worthy of remembering: forgive others, even those who don't believe what you believe. As Nasr reminds us, "The command to forgive and be gentle with disbelievers and hypocrites can be understood as following from the allusion to the signs in your creation (v. 4), since if one reflects upon the signs of God, one will recognize the honor due to all human beings. As al-Razi observes, discussions of the nature of the created order in the Quran are often followed by discussions of virtuous conduct. In this sense, the admonition to forgive those who hope not for the days of God can be understood to mean that when one acts in accord with the nature of things, one will forgive others, remembering that one's own faith and understanding are blessings from God . . ." (p. 1219)  Again, the popular perception among non-Muslims is that Islam is an intolerant faith hostile to other religions, when exactly the opposite is true; sadly, sometimes we need to be reminded of this even more than non-Muslims.

Murakami Bingo

Mainly I think I'm posting this image because it amuses me, but it also played a central role in one of my classes the other day. I'm teaching a COR 115, Rhetoric, this semester for the first time because the division was in a bind so I picked it up at the last minute. Instead of being a sensible soul and choosing something manageable like Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio I instead had the students read the first fifty pages of Proust's Remembrance of Things Past and the Haruki Murakami novel Kafka on the Shore. Why? It's not simply because I'm inherently cruel, at least not entirely. One of the points of the course is to teach the students how to grapple with difficult texts, and, well, it is Proust and Murakami. Our texts for the day were the short story "The Year of Spaghetti" and the first eight pages of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, both of which opened with a classic Murakami scene: a guy trying to cook spaghetti when a mysterious woman calls and disrupts his plans. I also gave them a copy of a Murakami bingo card that, I think, was from a New York Times article. Mainly I was trying to get them to understand the importance of metaphors and that they needed to learn to read on a much deeper level, not only because it was key to college paper success but also because it was a key component in eventual advancement in their careers; as I always opine, "Your boss is not going to be interested in you explaining the obvious, she's desperately interested in your telling her what the obvious actually means." In regards to the bingo, I was hoping that the reason why these events always show up in Murakami novels was because they are metaphors that he's always relying upon (and not simply because he's a weirdo), and that if they can start reading more proactively and analytically they'll both do a better job and actually maybe even enjoy reading more. The jury is still out on the latest experiment.

And I'm glad that someone else noticed Murakami's ear fetish, I was afraid it was just me.

What It Means - Day 230

"When Jesus brought clear proofs, he said, 'I have come unto you with wisdom and to make clear to you some of that wherein you differ. So reverence God and obey me. Truly God is my Lord and your Lord; so worship Him. This is a straight path."
Quran 43:63-64

This passage is drawn from the 43rd surah, al-Zuhkruf, here rendered as "Gold Ornaments," and I think this is the first time I've drawn anything from this particular chapter. At least I think it is. Today is the 230th blog post in this year-long discussion of personal faith and I could certainly be much more structured in my record-keeping. I chose it for a couple of reasons, one of them being that it references Jesus and like all Muslims I revere his teachings, but also because it's important for non-Muslims, especially Christians, to be reminded how central Jesus's teachings are to the faith. Also this brings up the notion of "clear proofs," which is a phrase often associated with the efforts of the prophets. As Nasr tells us, "All messengers are said to bring clear proofs, which are understood by some to be evidentiary miracles and the prescriptions of the Divine Law. In the case of Jesus, some also understand clear proofs to mean the Gospel and its injunctions. For the evidentiary miracles with which Jesus came, such as speaking in the cradle, healing lepers, raising the dead, and breathing life into a bird, see commentary on 3:49; 5:110; 19-29-34; also see 2:87c; 2:253." Essentially, the notion is that every so often God sends messengers when there is a need, and that these messengers bring with them clear proofs of God's existence and intentions, but every time it happens the majority of people don't recognize the clear proofs as clear or even proofs. Why? Well, I guess the obvious answer would be that if they were able to recognize the clear proofs then there would have been no need to send the messenger in the first place.

Tailgating 2019

One of the foundation Events of Excellence in the Gentlemen of Excellence (GOE) calendar is the annual tailgating extravaganza at Middlebury College. As I've detailed previous, none of us actually work at Middlebury (other than John Stroup's wife) or attended Middlebury, but we show up there once very fall, usually on Senior Day, to tailgate. Often it's cold as hell - and once it was cold as hell and raining - but yesterday it was glorious. The Middlebury Panthers beat the Hamilton Continentals 14-7 to finish the season undefeated. While do don't hate Hamilton as much as we do Tufts (for no reason other than we decided one day that we hate them and everything they stand for, although none of us have ever visited Tufts nor do we know what they stand for, so you can measure the degree of our hatred) it was a happy result.

As always, the day featured culinary excellence from noted chef Kevin.

And, as always, it featured footfall commentary and political punditry from one Sanford.

People will sometimes ask me why I didn't accept job offers overseas, and it's complicated, but one of the biggest reasons I stayed is the incredibly rich collections of friends I have.

The days ended up, as is an age-old tradition, with frito pie, although in this case at Kevin's and not John's. We also had homemade cornbread and apple crisp. I'm still stuffed.

South Burlington Food Shelf

As I found myself saying to someone recently, if our life is not about trying to make the lives of others better then I don't really know what the point of faith is, and, for that matter, what the point of our life is. The last couple years I've tried to put make my actions match up with my words, which has lead me to devote a lot of time to supporting TechDren. Lately I've been volunteering at the brand new South Burlington Food Shelf. I ended up on the board of the Food Shelf because they reached out to various faith organizations in the area and I jumped at the opportunity. Folks have been working for months to get the Food Shelf up and running for months, and we finally officially opened this last Friday. Yesterday was the first day that I was able to volunteer, and I'm hoping to show up and help once or twice a week from now on. It's so difficult to comprehend how a country of our almost inestimable wealth could include hunger among our many problems; one our of eight Vermonters face food insecurity, and it's one out of six for children in Vermont. Yesterday I was helping an elderly woman load a few bags full of food into her trunk yesterday and she, full of sincere gratitude, said she didn't expect the Food Shelf to be "so grand." I only cried a little. As I'm fond of opining, if we do nothing more than leave our little corner of the world better than we found it we've lead a very rich life.

We're located at 356 Dorset Street, which is close to the University Mall and right on the bus line.

And we're easy to find because of our beautiful new mural.

Here's Pedro (it's actually Peter, but the nickname has stuck) walking everybody through the training session for volunteers.

Our line of brand new donated refrigerators, which will hopefully soon be full of meat and dairy. Now we only plug a new one in when enough food shows up.

Here's our box at Aiken Hall. We're going to have something similar at the mosque once we move to the new space. Once the canned goods arrive at Aiken or the ISVT I'll make sure they get delivered to the Food Shelf. I've also been tagged to run the Twitter feed for the SBFS (to the surprise of no one).

Before yesterday's opening some of the volunteers were loading fresh vegetables.

There are all sorts of jobs for volunteers, including checking folks in. Even if you're not from South Burlington you'll get sent away with a bag of food. 

Here are some of the shelves, and one of our jobs as volunteers is to figure how what folks can take from each area - and also to keep the shelves stocked.

We have plenty of fresh vegetables, and least yesterday you could take as much as you wanted.

Right now we're open three days a week: Thursday 6:00-8:00 p.m.; Fridays 8:00-10:00 a.m.; Saturdays 8:00-10:00 a.m.

What It Means - Day 229

"The recompense of an evil is an evil like unto it. Yet whosoever pardons and sets matters aright, his reward with with God. Truly he loves not the wrongdoers."
Quran 42:40

This brief, but profound, passage is drawn from the 42nd surah, al-Shura, here rendered as "Counsel." It's hardly a unique passage in the Quran, but it's also one that every time I read it I reflect upon the number of Christians who would think it's drawn from the Gospels because they have assume that Islam is an angry, vengeful religion. Are there seemingly "angry" passages in the Quran - and are there angry Muslims - yes, of course, but overwhelmingly we are reminded to control our anger and to forgive, and the vast majority of Muslims I know (sadly, all too often not me) are extraordinarily good at controlling their anger and forgiving others.

As Nasr informs us in the Study Quran commentary, "If understood as a general statement, this verse alludes to the Quranic dictum that people are only punished for their bad deeds in a measure that is equal to the sins they have committed, but that they are rewarded tenfold or greater for food deeds." (p. 1184) I know we've discussed this subject before but I'll repeat my earlier opinion: even if this is only a metaphor it speaks to an optimistic faith based on hope and a positive view of human nature, and not an angry based on a view of a corrupted human nature wherein punishment is required.

What It Means - Day 228

"The parable of those who take protectors apart from God is that of the spider that makes a house. Truly the frailest of houses is the spider's house, if they but knew."
Quran 29:41

This passage, drawn from al-Ankabut, the 29th surah, here rendered as "The Spider" is one of the most famous passages in the entire Quran. Obviously there are passages in other religious traditions that contain the same reminder, the line from Psalms about God being the rock of my refuge (if I remember correctly) being a prime example. Actually, if I were not so insanely buried at the moment I should really do some research and track down similar messages. I guess the question would be, why?  Is it because we actually expect God to take sides and look after us, and if we choose the wrong side we'll be destroyed?  Again, I think there's a real danger in anthropomorphizing God, and assume that he'll pop in when we ask or that He/She/It will take sides. To me, what this means is leading a life based on the teachings of God, so that if we lead a life based on compassion and toleration and forgiveness and kindness then that is a, to stick with the metaphor, a solidly constructed house. To lead a life based on nothing but self-interest and cruelty and intolerance is to build the spider's house.