Professor Charles D. Smith's article answers claims of a clash of civilizations, setting out where most Muslims live, what Judaism, Christianity, and Islam share, Islamic protection of Jews and Christians, and the historical rights of women. Shorter pieces follow on a garden of daily living and gratitude to God, along with Ramadan 2005 dates and Masjid Tucson's project giving free Qurans to libraries.
Islam, Middle Eastern Sterotypes, and Their Ramifications
Al-Qaeda and radical Islam do exist,
but claims of a “clash of civilizations” and generalized depictions
of Islam are wildly inaccurate. Unfortunately, they often are presented
as fact in an increasingly politicized media…
Many link Islam to the Middle East, where it originated, but the vast
majority of the world’s Muslims live in Asia, stretching east from
Afghanistan and Pakistan. The largest Muslim country is Indonesia, and
at least 100 million Muslims live in India, where they constitute only
10 percent of the population. Still, that 10 percent minority is more
than the population of any Middle Eastern country. Egypt and Iran are
estimated to have 70 million people each.
What about Islam and monotheism?
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam constitute the world’s three monotheistic
religions. All believe in one God — the same one. Christians and
Muslims believe their God is the one God that created the world in Genesis
and gave revelations to the Jewish prophets. Allah is the Arabic word
for the Judeo-Christian God.
Naturally, each religion supposedly left behind by the successor monotheism
rejected such claims and insisted that it retained the true revelation.
Judaism does not recognize Christianity’s claim that it fulfills
Judaic prophecy and does not accept that Jesus was God. Christianity rejects
Islam’s claim to have
succeeded both it and Judaism. Islam, while
accepting Judaism and Christianity as religions created by God, dismisses
arguments that either Judaism or Christianity was the perfect, final revelation.
Islam believes it is.
Given such attitudes, can we compare these religions in any way beyond
their common monotheistic beliefs?
Judaism and Islam have much more in common with each other than either
does with any form of Christianity. Both deny the divinity of Jesus. Both
stress the authority of divine law revealed to the people selected to
receive it by God, and then written down in the Torah or the Quran.
Page 2
A Clash of Civilizations
Both reject the idea of superior “church” officials
such as popes or bishops. For Judaism and Islam, the highest religious
officials are those steeped in the interpretation of the law based
on the Torah or Quran. Ideally, rulers are as subject to the law
and to the jurists as anyone else.
Although Islam did not accept Jesus as divine, it did revere him
as a messenger of God, a prophet like Abraham and Moses before him,
and Muhammad afterward….
Protecting fellow “People of the Book”
As the successor to two preceding messages from God, Islam historically
considered Jews and Christians, like Muslims, to be “People
of the Book” — the Torah, Gospels, or Quran. As such,
Jews and Christians, in return for a tax, were protected in Islamic
countries, permitted to follow their religious practices, education,
and laws, but they were regarded as not equal to Muslims, just as
their revelations had proved to be inferior to Islam.
However outmoded Islamic practices appear today, historically they
provided legal protection and status for non-Muslims. This was in
sharp contrast to the anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim sentiments found
in Christian Europe, especially with the advent of the Crusades.
Latin Christianity’s drive to recover Muslim-controlled Jerusalem
reminded Western Christians that Jews, as well as Muslims, denied
Jesus’ divinity. This instigated harsher treatment of Jews
in Europe and their slaughter, along with Muslims and even non-
Latin Christians, when the Crusaders
took Jerusalem in 1099.
Similar persecutions of Jews and Muslims arose following the Spanish
recapture of Iberia, causing them to flee to Muslim lands. The Ottoman
sultans welcomed Jewish refugees, many of whom settled in Salonika
and remained there for centuries. At the end of the 19th century,
Jews were the largest single religious community in the city.
Were there instances where Jews or Christians suffered specific
persecution during the Muslim centuries? Of course, cases can be
found, but the systematic record is one of protection and survival,
not the reverse. Applying today’s ideals of Western equality
backwards ignores the historical record.
We are not so far removed historically from an era
when Islamic law provided as much, if not more, security for
women than did Western law
The place of women
The same can be said regarding uninformed assumptions about the
place of women in Islam that often are used to denigrate the religion.
Today, in Saudi Arabia, women cannot drive cars or vote in elections,
but they have been doing so for years in other Muslim regions.
In general, Saudi Arabia is the exception, not the norm. Indeed,
women in Iran, governed by a Shi’ite theocracy, must wear
traditional clothing. But, they can vote and be elected to parliament,
and they can drive cars! Many are doctors and lawyers, including
Shirin Ebadi, who recently won the Nobel Peace Prize.
We should keep in mind that women in the
West gained the right to vote relatively
recently—France in 1945, and Switzerland in 1971. Iranian
and Moroccan women gained the right to vote in 1963, and their Turkish
sisters won their rights to vote in 1930, ten years after the United
States did.
What about women’s rights of inheritance, another source
of empowerment? When Islam appeared in the 7th century, it gave
women the right to inheritance, half of what male heirs received...
Though people deprecate this lack of equality today when compared
to the West, that right was revolutionary at the time, compared
to other civilizations. Moreover, women could use their inheritance
as they wished. It may have been half of a man’s, but, by
law, they had control of it. Women did not gain similar rights in
Europe until the end of the 19th century.
In short, we are not so far removed historically from an era when
Islamic law provided as much, if not more, security for women than
did Western law.
…I hope that public perception, as well as public policy,
can be informed and guided by portrayals of what actually occurs,
not highly slanted accounts. There always is room for interpretation
of facts and their meaning without delving into fiction.
Charles D. Smith, a professor of Middle
East history in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at University
of Arizona, is the author of Palestine and the Arab-Israeli
Conflict, now in its fifth edition.
Ed.’s note: This is a major portion of
the article published in Arizona Alumnus Magazine Spring 2005 Edition.
Professor Smith’s article can be accessed in its entirety
here
Page 3
The Garden of Your Daily Living
Come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses....
FOR THE GARDEN OF YOUR DAILY LIVING,
PLANT THREE ROWS OF PEAS:
1. Peace of mind
2. Peace of heart
3. Peace of soul
PLANT FOUR ROWS OF SQUASH:
1. Squash gossip
2. Squash indifference
3. Squash grumbling
4. Squash selfishness
PLANT FOUR ROWS OF LETTUCE:
1. Lettuce be faithful
2. Lettuce be kind
3. Lettuce be patient
4. Lettuce really love one another
NO GARDEN IS WITHOUT TURNIPS:
1. Turnip for meetings
2. Turnip for prayer
3. Turnip to help one another
TO CONCLUDE OUR GARDEN WE MUST HAVE
THYME:
1. Thyme for each other
2. Thyme for family
3. Thyme for friends
WATER FREELY WITH PATIENCE AND CULTIVATE WITH LOVE. THERE IS MUCH
FRUIT IN YOUR GARDEN BECAUSE YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW.
Submitted by Alim C
Page 4
Best Day of My Life
Today, when I awoke, I suddenly realized that this is the best day of
my life, ever! There were times when I wondered if I would make it to
today; but I did! And because I did I’m going to celebrate!
Today, I’m going to celebrate what an unbelievable life I have had
so far: the accomplishments, the many blessings, and, yes, even the hardships
because they have served to make me stronger. I will go through this day
with my head held high, and a happy heart. I will marvel at God’s
seemingly simple gifts: the morning dew, the sun, the clouds, the trees,
the flowers, and the birds. Today, none of these miraculous creations
will escape my notice.
Today, I will share my excitement for life with other people. I will
make someone smile. I will go out of my way to perform an unexpected act
of kindness for someone I don’t even know. Today, I will give a
sincere compliment to someone who seems down. I will tell a child how
special he or she is, and I will tell the people I love just how deeply
I care for them and how much they mean to me.
Today is the day I quit worrying about what
I don’t have and start being grateful for all the wonderful things
God has already given me. I will remember that to worry is just a waste
of time because my faith in God and His Divine Plan ensures everything
will be just fine.
And tonight, before I go to bed, I will go outside and raise my eyes
to the heavens. I will stand in awe at the beauty of the stars and the
moon, and I will praise God for these magnificent treasures. As the day
ends and I lay my head down on my pillow, I will thank the Almighty for
the best day of my life. And I will sleep the sleep of a contented child,
excited with expectation because I know tomorrow is going to be the best
day of my life, ever! [God willing.]
Writer unknown
Ramadan 2005
God willing
October 4 - November 2
For more information, please see our Ramadan page here
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