Islam: A Concise Introduction ~ by Huston Smith, 2001

Islam: A Concise Introduction ~ by Huston Smith, 2001

I read this book for two challenges:  the World Religion Challenge and the Middle East Challenge.  Actually, I read it in 2002 and re-read it this week.  Each chapter has something interesting in it, but I want to start this review with the first surah (chapter) of the 114 chapters of the Koran, found on page 48 in this book:

In the Name of Allah the Merciful, the Compassionate:
Praise be to Allah, Creator of the worlds,
The Merciful, the Compassionate,
Ruler of the day of Judgment.
Thee do we worship, and Thee do we ask for aid.
Guide us in the straight path,
The path of those on whom Thou hast poured forth Thy grace.
Not the path of those who have incurred Thy wrath and gone astray.

Introduction (p. viii)

To start at the beginning, with semantics, the word islam means explicitly "surrender," but it is related to the Arabic word salam meaning "peace"...

Prologue (p. 2)

The proper name of this religion is Islam.  Derived from the root s-l-m, which means primarily "peace" but in a secondary sense "surrender," its full connotation is "the peace that comes when one's life is surrendered to God." (p. 2)

1.  Islamic Background (p. 4)

"In the beginning God..." the book of Genesis tells us.  The Koran agrees.  It differs only in using the word Allah.  Allah is formed by joining the definite article al (meaning "the") with Ilah (God).  Literally, Allah means "the God."  Not a god, for there is only one.  The God.  When the masculine plural ending im is dropped from the Hebrew word for God, Elohim, the two words sound much alike.

2.  The Seal of the Prophets (p. 13)

[The] appeal [of God's revelation to Muhammad] throughout was to human reason as vectored by religious discernment.

3.  The Migration that Led to Victory (p. 18)

The year [that Muhammad fled from Mecca to Yathrib] was 622.  The migration, known in Arabic as the Hijra, is regarded by Muslims as the turning point in world history and is the year from which they date their calendar.  Yathrib soon came to be known as Medinat al-Nabi, the City of the Prophet, and then by contraction simply to Medina, "the city."

4.  The Standing Miracle (p. 26)

The Koran continues the Old and New Testaments, God's earlier revelations, and presents itself as their culmination:  "We made a covenant of old with the Children of Israel [and] you have nothing of guidance until you observe the Torah and the Gospel" (5:70, 68).  This entitles Jews and Christians to be included with Muslims as "People of the Book."

5.  Basic Theological Concepts (pp. 34, 38, 39-40, 44)

• God (p. 34) ~ Judaism was correctly instructed through it Shema -- "Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One" -- but its teachings were confined to the people of Israel.  Christians, for their part, compromised their monotheism by deifying Christ.  Islam honors Jesus as a prophet and accepts his virgin birth ... The Koran draws the line at the doctrine of the Incarnation and the Trinity, however, seeing these as inventions that blur the Divine/human distinction.
• Creation (p. 38) ~ It was created by a deliberate act of Allah's will:  "He has created the heavens and the earth" (16:3).
• Human Self (pp. 39-40) ~ With life acknowledged as a gift from its Creator, we can turn to its obligations, which are two ... gratitude ... The Arabic word "infidel" is actually shaded more toward "one who lacks thankfulness" than one who disbelieves ... [and] surrender ... to be a slave to Allah is to be freed from other forms of slavery -- ones that are degrading, such as slavery to greed, or to anxiety, or to the desire for personal status.
• Day of Judgment (p. 44) ~ ... each soul will be held accountable for its actions on earth with its future thereafter dependent upon how well it has observed God's commands.

6.  The Five Pillars (p. 48)

First, God revealed the truth of monotheism, God's oneness, through Abraham.  Second, God revealed the Ten Commandments through Moses.  Third, God revealed the Golden Rule -- that we are to do unto others as we would have them do unto us -- through Jesus.  All three of these prophets were authentic messengers; each introduced important features of the God-directed life.  One question yet remained, however:  How should we love our neighbor? ... the Five Pillars of Islam, the principles that regulate the private life of Muslims in their dealings with God.

• creed (p. 49) ~ "There is no god but Allah."
• prayer (p. 50) ~ five times a day
• charity (p. 53) ~ those who have much should help lift the burden of those who are less fortunate
• fast during the month of Ramadan (p. 54) ~ fasting makes one think, teaches self-discipline, underscores the creature's dependence on God, calls one back to one's frailty and dependence, sensitizes compassion
• pilgrimage (p. 55) ~ journey to Mecca

The Kaabah in Mecca

7.  Social Teachings (pp. 70, 74)

Let there be no compulsion in religion. (2:257)
[S]tandard greeting ... as-salamu 'alaykum ("Peace be upon you").

8.  Sufism (pp. 76, 81)

[T]he mystics of Islam [are] called Sufis ... In plain language, transcendence must be made immanent, the God who is encountered apart from the world must also be encountered within it.

9.  Whither Islam? (pp. 92-93)

Islam is a vital force in the contemporary world.  It numbers in the order of 1.2 billion, of which the vast majority are moderates and not radical fundamentalists.  Read these words at any hour of day or night and somewhere from a minaret ... a muezzin will be calling the faithful to prayer, announcing:

Minaret in Amman, Jordan

God is most great.
God is most great.
I testify that there is no god but God.
I testify that Muhammad is the Prophet of God.
Arise and pray;
God is most great.
God is most great.
There is no god but God.

This short book (100 pages, including the footnotes) was drawn from Huston Smith's bestselling book The World's Religions.  I highly recommend it to you as an overview of Islam.  Rated:  9 of 10.

Middle East Reading Challenge ~ with links to my reviews

Photo taken by Helen on a visit to Oman

Helen of Helen's Book Blog started the Middle East Reading Challenge when I was unable to participate because I was preparing and teaching a couple of classes at Chattanooga State in the fall.  The semester is over, so now I'm joining.

The countries
Helen defines the Middle East as these fifteen countries.

1. Bahrain
2. Egypt
3. Iran
4. Iraq
5. Israel
6. Jordan
7. Kuwait
8. Lebanon
9. Oman
10. Palestine (Gaza Strip and West Bank)
11. Qatar
12. Saudi Arabia
13. Syria
14. United Arab Emirates (UAE)
15. Yemen

She explains her reasoning:

"The Middle East is a nebulous term with each person defining it in a different way (it's also a very Euro-centric term so please forgive me for that). However I am going to use it for lack of a better way to define the area covered by this reading challenge. So, what is the Middle East? Traditionally it included only the countries in Asia plus Egypt. Some define it as countries with Arabic as the dominant language, while others say it is all Islamic countries. For the purposes of this challenge I am going to stick with the more traditional/geographic approach including the countries around the Arabian peninsula. I struggled about what to do with Turkey and have chosen to leave it out as they currently choose to be associated more with Europe. Likewise, I am not including the 'stan' countries as they are culturally, linguistically, and ethnically different (and, officially, they are in Central Asia)."

The books ~ anything to appreciate and understand the Middle East more

• Author from one of the countries
• Fiction ~ set in one of the countries
• Nonfiction ~ leaders
• Nonfiction ~ religions
• Nonfiction ~ historical events
• Nonfiction ~ memoirs
• Young Adult

Dates of the challenge
August 1, 2010 through July 31, 2011 (it began during Ramadan).

Sign up here
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Share reviews
Use this Mister Linky to report reviews.  I'll come back here and add books as I read them, with links to my reviews.

1. Barefoot in Baghdad ~ by Manal M. Omar, 2010, memoir (Iraq), 8/10
2. The Jerusalem Scrolls ~ by Bodie and Brock Thoene, 2001, fiction (Israel), 6/10
3. I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced ~ by Nujood Ali, 2010, memoir (Yemen), 8/10
4. Islam: A Concise Introduction ~ by Huston Smith, 2001, religion, 9/10
5. The Septembers of Shiraz ~ by Dalia Sofer, 2007, fiction (Iran), 8/10
6. x

I Am Nujood: Age 10 and Divorced ~ by Nujood Ali, 2010

This one is unfortunately a true story, written by a brave little girl (with the help of Delphine Minoui).  Nujood had the courage to show up in a court of law to find out how she could divorce the man her father had -- I'm looking for a good word here, since she was too young to understand marriage -- let's say her father sold her to the old man, who promised to wait until she was older, but didn't.  She got out of the terrible situation, as you can see by the title, because she was smart, as well as brave.  My youngest granddaughter is ten years old, and she is a child.  A child, not an adult woman!  Can I imagine her in the situation Delphine Minoui wrote in the Epilogue?  No, I can't.

"On November 10, 2008, in New York City, the youngest divorcee in the world has just been named a Woman of the Year by Glamour.  With all the gravitas of her ten years, she shares this unexpected honor with the film star Nicole Kidman, the American secretary of state Condoleeza Rice, and Senator Hillary Clinton, among others" (p. 169).

I Am Nujood: Age 10 and Divorced ~ by Nujood Ali, 2010.  I rate this memoir 8 of 10, a very good book.

The Jerusalem Scrolls ~ by Bodie and Brock Thoene, 2001

Mary Magdalene by Anthony Frederick Augustus Sandys, c. 1860

The Jerusalem Scrolls is a novel by Bodie and Brock Thoene that I picked up and put down several times, all because it's the fourth book in a series.  Finally, I took a chance and read it, and it turns out it really has nothing to do with the series.  There's a bit at the beginning (and even less at the end) trying to tie this volume to the series, but it's really a novel about Miryam of Magdala (Mary Magdalene) that a character in the series of book just happens to read.

First, I must say I was annoyed that the authors greatly emphasize Miryam's sinfulness, making her a notorious whore, known to sleep with lots of men.  She lusts after the first man who "slept" with her and, along the way, keeps company with a Roman centurion.  This is not who she was.  Luke 8:2 and Mark 16:9 say Jesus cast "seven demons" out of Mary, a concept which is usually associated with healing from illness, not forgiveness of sins.  Yet Mary Magdalene "became" a prostitute in 591 when Pope Gregory the Great identified an unnamed woman as Mary Magdalene.  According to the Bible, Mary was a devoted follower of Jesus and the first one sent to share the good news about Jesus.  The Gospel of Mary paints a very different picture of this person, showing (as in the Bible) that Jesus trusted her to share his message.  The woman in this novel is a very different sort of person.  I can't say I much liked this version of the story.

This is one of the books I read for the World Religion Challenge (January 1 to December 31, 2010).  It's easy reading and, if you don't mind Miryam acting like an idiot about men, it isn't a bad tale.  It's just that I don't like it when people make up stories about women for the shock value, especially when women already get a bum rap from too many Christians all the time.  Rated:  6 of 10, above average.

Barefoot at Bonnie's ~ a cat's perspective

Bonnie was reading a book the other day called Barefoot in Baghdad, and that got me to thinking.  I go barefooted all the time, but it would never occur to me to write a book about it.  Maybe a single post, like this, but not a whole book.  Maybe people get cold feet in Baghdad, since you have no fur.  We cats get cold as well.  I have walked around in the snow and it's not fun.  The pads on my paws are thick, but snow is still wet and cold.  Brrrrrrr!  I'd rather stay inside and look at snow through the window.  This snow picture is from last winter.  We probably won't have snow again until January, though it's possible around here in November or December.

Kiki Cat, signing off
(I think I'll go hide under the covers and warm up, even if it isn't snowing.)

......... It's CATURDAY .........

Barefoot in Baghdad ~ by Manal M. Omar, 2010

Baghdad, 2003

While reading Barefoot in Baghdad, I wondered how Manal Omar could be so naive about the dangers when she first determined to go to war-torn Iraq and yet remain so determined to help Iraqi women, even after people she knew were killed.  I was visualizing the horrors of war, while she was in the middle of it all, making friends and working hard to set up centers for Iraqi women.  Although Omar is an American, she shows clearly that some of what Americans did was harmful, even when they were trying to be helpful.  I had to keep reminding myself that she lived to write this memoir and, therefore, wouldn't be killed in the next chapter.

I wrote about the beautiful cover last Friday, when I checked this book out of the library.  At that time I had read only the first paragraph.  The book didn't go in the direction I expected, though it held my attention and kept pulling me from page to page.  I came away from my reading feeling pessimistic about the future of Iraq.

Watch a video from USIP (United States Institute of Peace), taped July 17, 2009, in which Manal Omar discusses the state of security in Iraq following the drawdown of U.S. forces and how the country has changed since 2003.  She was in Baghdad from 2003 to 2005.

Helen gave the book a 4.5 of 5 in her review on Helen's Book Blog.  Go read what she wrote.  I rate the book 8 of 10, a very good book, even though I haven't given any details.

Beautiful cover ~ intriguing book

"Throughout my childhood I struggled to answer the simplest of questions: where are you from? I was born in Saudi Arabia to Palestinian parents who moved to Lubbock, Texas, when I was six months old. During my childhood, my parents would uproot me every few years, from Texas to South Carolina to Virginia. Living in the American South, I was far from the image of a Southern belle, and yet the summers I spent in the Middle East only emphasized my American identity and made it clear to me that I would also never exactly be an Arab poster child." 

Barefoot in Baghdad: A Story of Identity -- My Own and What It Means to Be a Woman in Chaos is a memoir by Manal M. Omar, published in August 2010.  New books in my library system are seven-day books, meaning I'll need to put aside The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver, even though I'm only halfway through it.  From what I've read so far, I think this book will be a quick read.  And this note at the beginning of the book makes me even more curious:

"Barefoot in Baghdad takes its title from a popular Iraqi-Turkmen proverb that says, 'Walk barefoot and the thorns will hurt you.'  It is often used as a warning to those who challenge societal norms."

I love the cover!  The library book I'm holding has been processed, with corners and spine taped to keep the paperback cover sturdy and a library barcode added, but it still has that new book smell and no one -- absolutely no one! -- has paged through it yet.

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