Unit 8

English 203: Literature of the NonWestern World

Review:

  You know something more about Islam than most Americans, such as:

• The Koran (or the Mother of the Book) is eternal with God.  Because it is entirely divine (in contrast to the New Testament, which most Christians believe is kergyma -- an expression of the authors' faith in Christ), the Koran's injunctions cannot be ignored or altered. Not only must they be taken literally, the Koran cannot be translated adequately from Arabic.
• The Ramadan fast is kept to commemorate the salvific gift of the Recitation through the angel Gabriel to Muhammad.
• The genealogical belief that the Arab people religiously descend from Abraham through Is'mail (Ishmael), the son Abraham had from Hagar, the Egyptian.
• The haj has 2 focal points: touching the rock that fell from heaven (the Ka'ba); & performing rituals designed to remind Muslims that they descend from & share the same faith as Abraham & Is'mail.
• Muhammad ruled in Medina for a decade (632-33 c.e.) where he illustrated the Islamic way of life by his actions & further clarified the Muslim lifestyle by responding to specific questions.  His answers & some of his actions were recorded in the 2nd most authoritative work in Islam, the Hadiths.
• The Muslim position on Jesus, who was a prophet no different than the other prophets.  He did not die on the cross, but was magically whisked away to heaven where he remains alive in the body.  Jesus is destined to come back to the earth just before the end of the world & the Last Judgment to make the haj & to clarify for Christians that he is a Muslim & that Christians should see the error of their ways & also submit to God.
• The Koran does not offer a historical account.  It is meant to be read aloud.  The purpose or intent of the Koran is to be a reminder to conscience, a reminder that everyone will face the Last Judgment alone to account for their life's actions.  The allied theme is tawid, the absolute unity & omnipotence of God.  Thirdly, there is an undeniable air of threat (you will spend eternity in hell), militarism, & jihad present in the Koran.  The message is to fear God & consequently live righteously.
• Notice that in spite of all the talk about sending you to hell, the Koran does not talk about "the Great Satan."  Almost all the Shi'ites are Iranians whose understanding of Islam was greatly influenced by Zoroastrianism.  This was the religion that St. Augustine first professed that influenced his thinking, especially in his invention of Original Sin.  Zoroastrianism believes in something like Star Wars; that there is a battle between the forces of good & evil that is indecisive.  Consequently, it is crucially important to be on the side of the good & to go to war with the forces of evil.  Sunni Islam has none of this spirit.  God is absolutely & totally in command of everything.