Spirituality is Relational

My orientation, and my bias, is toward spiritual practice and ecumenical dialogue. This week has been a roller coaster ride in seeing the good and the bad. In all of it it I was reminded that any meaningful and authentic life is one lived in relationship with others and that any spirituality will likewise be relational. 

Here are the three "events" for me over the past week.  

I.                 Reporting a Culture of Abuse

On Monday, I read more about the pedophilia scandal in the Catholic Church. You have probably heard of the film, Spotlight, "The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core." I have heard good things about the movie, though I haven't seen it yet. Our local diocesan newspaper, One Voice, which is rather conservative, ran an article about the film. The title of the article was, “Spotlight is not anti-Catholic, Vatican newspaper says.”  On the same page they ran another news item about yet more sexual abuse at a Catholic school in Pennsylvania. Both articles were from the Catholic News Service.

 The article about Spotlight observed:

"it is now clear that too many in the church were more worried about the image of the institution than the seriousness of the act."

"All of this cannot justify the very grave crime of one, who as a representative of God, uses this prestige and authority to take advantage of the innocent," the article said.

The film, in fact, shows the kind of devastation wrought on victims when "they don't even have a God to plead with anymore, to ask for help," it said.

The second article related to a case in Altoona, Pennsylvania, “Report:Priests abused hundreds of kids in Altoona-Johnstown Diocese.” The opening lines reported:

Hundreds of children were sexually abused over at least 40 years by priests and other religious leaders in the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, a statewide grand jury found.

At least 50 priests or religious leaders were involved in the abuse and diocesan leaders systematically concealed the abuse to protect the church's image, according to a grand jury report released March 1 by Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane.

Even after at least 15 years of increasing awareness of the scandal, as a Catholic convert, I find it shocking and incredible that what I can only call "a culture of abuse" has existed within the church. Even with the distressing news of new allegations in Pennsylvania, I see it as a sign of hope that it is being reported rather than ignored in our diocesan paper. A tenuous hope, some may say, but I must also acknowledge the positive aspects of our community of faith. At least more of our society is aware of the problem which hopefully will lead to better protection of our children. (To read a poem I wrote on the subject in 2002, “Slowly God Arises,” go here)

II.             Responding to A Culture of Hate

Being Muslim in Alabama panel discussion
(Photo from Over the Mountain Democrats Facebook page)

On Wednesday night of last week I went to a forum at the Vestavia Library, "Being Muslim in Alabama." The event was billed as “a discussion with Mark Potok, Senior Fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center; Khaula Hadeed, Executive Director of the Alabama Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations; Ashfaq Taufique, President of the Birmingham Islamic Society. Today's polarized political climate calls for reasonable dialog and sincere effort from each of us to better understand the rich, varied fabric of American society and all the members of  the U.S. culture that never stands still. Come learn more about Alabamian Islamic relations and ways we can better understand one another as we work to make a better community for us all.”

Potok shared some statistics involving hate crime and hate speech. He pointed out that following 9/11, hate crimes actually went down until 2010 when specifically anti-Muslim groups began to appear. In 2014, other hate crimes went down while anti-Muslim hate crimes went up. We began to see ginned up issues and conspiracy theories geared toward inciting fear and hate.

Khaula Hadeed and Ashfaq Taufique shared a bit of what it is like being Muslim and living in Alabama. We heard some informative discussion, yet with the polarization and the reactionary political environment we are witnessing today, solutions are not easy. One of the most salient bits of advice offered was that we should simply get to know someone of the Islamic faith. “Have a meal with them,” Mr. Taufique said. “It is difficult to hate someone you have shared a meal with.” He added that he gives this same advice to people in the Islamic community regarding getting acquainted with others. “It will not diminish your faith,” he tells his colleagues, “to get to know your non-Islamic neighbors.”

The most encouraging thing for me was not in any answers (there are no easy or simple ones), but the encouraging thing was that the auditorium was filled to capacity with citizens who are concerned about making a difference.

III.         Mindfulness in Our Spiritual Practice

(Photo from Jim Burklo's website)

On Friday morning I read Jim Burklo's blog on “Prayer and Mindfulness” which highlights the relational aspect of spiritual practice in terms of self and others as well as self and Other (i.e. “God”).  

In my own experience, the best thing I can do for my friends is to listen to them.  If I’m doing too much of the talking, then I’m not adequately listening.  And when I listen, I do best if I really listen: just be present in silence and give my friend my full, compassionate, truly interested attention. . .  Mindful prayer is being God’s friend, and letting God be a friend to us:  simply being, attentively, with each other’s’ being.

Spiritual practice is indeed an endeavor that involves listening, waiting, and paying attention. With all of the reminders this week of betrayal of trust in the church and words of hate in the public square, it was good to be reminded of the need to push the personal “reset button” by spending time in meditation and to practice mindful prayer.

Jim Burklo's blog, Musings, is on the Progressive Christianity website and can be found at  http://tcpc.blogs.com/musings/.

There you have my Monday - Wednesday - Friday summary of the week past. Now on to the week ahead.

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You may also be interested in reading the following posts:

• Spirit Work, Soul Work
• Western Zen
• Trending Up or Moving Backward?

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Meeting Our Neighbors During Ramadan

Justin Whitaker writes a blog called American Buddhist Perspective. He has been writing about his encounter with the Muslim community during this holy month of Ramadan.  In  one of his posts last week he talked about participating in the fast which Muslims practice from dawn until dusk during Ramadan. He shares some of what he has learned and talks about why he is participating with the Muslim community. Here is an excerpt of his post:

“Why am I doing this? My first response is that as an educator I feel a certain responsibility to understand different cultures and religions as well as I can. In my studies of Buddhism I have reached out to and practiced with Buddhist groups around me when I could and spent time in predominantly Buddhist countries. Personal experience in the classroom is an invaluable tool. For over a year now I have been teaching World Religions and some of my students have made nearly literal 180° shifts in their perceptions of Islam through the course of a semester. We start every term talking about prejudices (or “preunderstandings”) around religion and the problem of America’s ignorance about religion in general. After chapters on Sikhism, Shinto, and Zoroastrianism, the students are usually pretty wide-eyed in their realization that they didn’t know as much as they had thought when they came into the class (I feel the same way every time I teach them). But these are students who have grown up in an age of the US being at war in Iraq and Afghanistan – many have served in the military and are now back trying to build a civilian life. Prejudices don’t disappear over night, but I know that whatever personal experience and fresh perspective I can bring – getting the students beyond the textbook and the daily news – will help.

There is also the issue of fresh waves of Buddhist-Muslim violence occurring in South and Southeast Asia that I have touched on and will certainly write more on later.”  (Read the entire essay here)

When I first began to attend iftar at a local mosque a few 
years ago, it was in part due to my interest in other faith practices but in large part it was with the understanding that our global community is such a reality in our daily lives these days.  People from different cultures live in much closer proximity now than in the past. Since our cultures and religions are part of the social fabric, we all need to have a better understanding of one another.  For years our local Muslim community has extended hospitality to the community at large by offering a time to visit and to learn more about their customs.  As stated in their letter of invitation:

As you are likely aware, there are many political hotspots in the Muslim world and Muslims are increasingly seen as adversaries of the West. It is not our intention to make you agree or disagree with our belief system, but simply to share with you the authentic teachings of Islam and to illustrate the true face of the more than one billion peace-loving Muslims in the world. With the events unfolding in the world each day, we believe it to be very important that the members of the Muslim community and the American public at large get to know each other better. It is only through visitation and sincere dialogue with Muslims that non-Muslims can gain a genuine understanding of the nature and specific teachings of the Islamic faith. What better way to learn about a group of people than to talk and mingle with them?

Many groups – ranging from high school and university students to churches to businesses to civic groups to government organizations – have come to our past years’ Ramadan iftar dinners. Through these visits, benefits have accrued both to us as well as to our visitors-turned-friends. Most, if not all, of our guests have left with a better understanding of our faith.

My hope is that those interested in peace and wholeness will take every opportunity to practice not just tolerance of the other, but rather a genuine appreciation of the faiths and cultural practices of others in the community. Ramadan, which this year is extending from July 9 to August 7, is one such opportunity to become better acquainted with our Muslim Neighbors.

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Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins

I'd like to encourage everyone to take advantage of this time to get to know your Muslim neighbors. This article is from The Birmingham News:

Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins tonight; Birmingham Islamic Society welcomes visitors

by Greg Garrison

For more than a billion Muslims worldwide and several thousand in Birmingham, tonight marks the start of Ramadan, a time of prayer, daytime fasting and charitable giving.

As Muslims begin the observance of their holy month tonight, with daytime fasting beginning Wednesday, the Birmingham Islamic Society will be welcoming non-Muslims to the Hoover Crescent Islamic Center to learn about Islamic teaching.

"Our outreach program goes throughout the year, but it’s accelerated during Ramadan," said Ashfaq Taufique, president of the Birmingham Islamic Society.

During Ramadan, the Birmingham Islamic Society does a nightly presentation on Islam at its Hoover Crescent Islamic Center on Hackberry Lane, inviting non-Muslim groups from churches, civic groups, schools and synagogues. For example, the Alabama Faith Council is scheduled to visit July 18.  (Read the full article here)

I have taken advantage of this opportunity during past Ramadan holy months and hope to again this year.  To read my past accounts go here and here.

Muslims gather for prayer at the Hoover Crescent Islamic Center.
(File photo by Mark Almond of The Birmingham News)

The One Being: Our Part in the Whole

“The knitting together of God and the world has just taken place
under our eyes in the domain of action.”
            ~ Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (from The Divine Milieu)







Sometimes my mind wanders in church, and sometimes it explores. One Sunday morning there was a visiting priest at our church. He mentioned in his homily that he taught theology to the ninth graders at a college preparatory school. His custom, he told us, is to use Wednesday class time to discuss the scripture passages from the lectionary on the upcoming Sunday. As he delivered the homily, the priest came across as intelligent and genuine. I thought about how fortunate those students were to have such a gifted and knowledgeable teacher. I had the impression that this priest sees the importance of his task in teaching those young students. Surely, he sees his endeavors in light of the big picture, a great attribute for one in the teaching profession.

From there, my mind went from the teaching profession to other professions and jobs that we all go back to on Monday morning. I wondered how many people are able to grasp the vision of being a part of a great unified whole. How many of us in society are able to see our work, as Teilhard elaborates in The Divine Milieu, as contributing to the manifestation of God in the universe? Christianity can offer a picture of this unified whole of which we are all a part, and can help us make sense of it all. Such a view gives meaning to our individual endeavors within the corporate whole. Indeed, Teilhard’s spiritual classic presents such a picture.

Christianity, however, is not the only place to find that larger a view. The other major religions also give people a concept of the whole. Hassidic Judaism gives us the concept of tikkun olam (repair of the world), that we can be instruments to build up and to bring good into the world. Buddhism teaches that we are all part of one great phenomenon. Islam tells us that we all find completion and peace in submission to Allah, the Omnipotent and All Merciful. Indigenous earth-based religions affirm that we are all part of creation. Taoism teaches that everything occurs within the all-encompassing Tao – the essence, source and reason of all that is (Cf. the Greek logos [reason], translated “Word” in the New Testament: “In the beginning was the Word…, In the beginning was the Logos…, In the beginning was the Tao, and the Tao was with God, and the Tao was God”).

My mind continued to explore, that Sunday morning, as the order of service moved from homily to Eucharist. I observed how our worship can celebrate the oneness of all, and can demonstrate our role in building the world. In our church, we say the Nicene Creed affirming Christ’s “one being with the Father,” which is how we happen to express the Greek term homoousias, meaning “one substance.” The deeper truth is that there is, of course, only one substance in the universe. In the Eucharist, we dramatize the truth that the divine logos is spread throughout creation as we receive the “logos” and carry that realization into the world. When the service is ended, we are exhorted to “Go into the world in peace to do the work that God has given us to do.” Indeed, it is in that everyday work that we see “the knitting together of God and the world.”

Whatever your background, whatever traditions you hold, look to the wisdom you have inherited to see the one being, the one substance of the universe, the one world and your part in the whole.

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Fasting and Feasting During Ramadan

I promised to say a word about my visit to a local mosque. The month of Ramadan is a sacred month to Muslims. The days are spent fasting. They abstain from water and food from dawn until dusk and then they break the fast each day with a meal, iftar, after evening prayers are said. The local Muslim community has for years used this time to invite those outside their faith to come and share a meal and learn about Islam. There were about twelve or fifteen of us guests the night I attended. Our group included Baptists and Presbyterians who were there to listen and learn. We were welcomed by our Islamic hosts and given some time for a slide presentation and question & answer time prior to evening prayer.

Not All Are Arab

I should hasten to say, especially since my last blog post referred to my learning more about Arabs, that “Muslim” does not equal “Arab.” This fact was emphasized during the presentation were heard at the mosque. The gentleman leading the discussion told us that he grew up Muslim in a non-Arab country. The most populous Islamic country, we learned, is Indonesia. Of course, there are large Muslim populations throughout Africa and Asia as well as Europe. Islam is a world religion and an international faith. Actually, Arab Muslims constitute only 20 percent of the Muslim population worldwide. Because Arabic is the language of their sacred text, the Quran, faithful Muslims will study the language in order to understand the words as they are heard in public. A faithful Muslim, we were told, must know enough Arabic to say the basic prayers offered in worship.

Sharia, Women and Islam

Because there has been some public fear and recent news items regarding sharia law, there were many questions regarding sharia. Our hosts tried to explain to us a few aspects of sharia, emphasizing that while there are practices and customs for faithful Muslims which are prescribed by Islamic law (e.g. no consumption of pork or alcohol, no gambling, and no charging or payment of interest in monetary matters); it is also the duty of faithful Muslims to abide by the laws of whatever country they live in. It was obvious that our Muslim hosts wish to live peaceably among us and to promote an understanding of who they are. They are distressed by the fringe elements who commit terrorist acts and even do things that are against Islamic law (such as killing innocent people) in the name of Islam.

There were some Muslim women there, at least one of whom was an American convert, who shared with us about the role of women. We learned that Muslims do not date, that marriages are arranged, with the woman having final say. The women speaking told us that they had more security with this marriage arrangement because if there is a problem, there is the larger extended family to intervene. Also, if there is a marriage prospect in a man, brothers and uncles of the woman will do all they can to know what that man’s true character is before any plans are made. The women sharing with us also stated that the traditional Muslim dress was liberating to them. They do not have to worry about conforming to the highly fashion-conscious and sexualized images that are so predominant in Western culture, but were instead free to be themselves. Moreover, they don’t have to worry about a “bad hair day” with their traditional head coverings.

The Worship Space

During Ramadan, Muslims will first break their fast with water and dates. We were offered some dates prior to entering the mosque for prayer. Men and women enter from different doors and are separated by a screened partition during worship. When I attended iftar last year, it was at the Islamic Center which is a multi-use facility that includes a prayer room. This year, we were at a mosque located on the other side of town. The building had been a Christian church at one time and had been remodeled to accommodate Muslim worship. The most obvious difference in the layout is that there are no pews. The sanctuary is a large, carpeted space where people gather to say prayers. I almost forgot to mention the other most obvious difference between a mosque and a church is that shoes are removed prior to entering the sanctuary. There are shelves at the doorway on which every person entering may place shoes before proceeding to prayer. Of course, any Christian or Jew who has heard the story of Moses and the burning bush would readily understand the significance of taking off shoes.

The other difference in the worship space we encountered at the mosque is that it is oriented to ensure the facing of Mecca during prayer. There are lines within the carpet that allow worshipers to align themselves so that they are geographically facing Mecca. In the back of the sanctuary were some folding chairs where we non-Muslim observers could sit while prayers were offered. We observed five brief cycles of prayer. The prayers were in Arabic, and there were three basic postures taken by the Muslims at various points in the prayer: standing, kneeling, and prostrating. The prayer leader was located in an alcove at the front and center of the room. The marble alcove had an archway with Arabic writing in a very clean, aesthetic script.

A Surprising Connection

After the prayers had ended, our host gave us a tour of the sanctuary and explained the elements of the room. I was astounded by his explanation of the alcove in front from which the prayers were led. It is called a Mihrab, or prayer niche. The Mihrab, which is located in many mosques, is in honor of Mary, the mother of Jesus! The words in Arabic over the Mihrab were from the Quran. An English translation of the text reads:

"Every time that he entered (her) Mihrab to see her, he found her supplied with sustenance. He said, 'O Mary! Whence (comes) this to you?' She said, 'From God. For God provides sustenance to whom He pleases without measure.'" (Qur'an 3:37).

The text refers to Zacharias, a priest in the temple at Jerusalem who was assigned to care for Mary, according to Islamic legend. He would enter the temple and find Mary in her prayer niche, and she was sustained by God.

Islam, as you may know, does not allow images, but displaying sacred texts is allowed. As I stood there in the mosque, hearing our host explain the Mihrab while looking upon that beautiful white marble structure with Arabic writing, I was amazed. There are two churches where I ordinarily pray. One is a Roman Catholic Church. There is a large Hispanic population there, and in one part of the sanctuary is a beautiful statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Also within the church is a more European version of Mary in a simple wooden statue. The other church is Episcopalian which holds to an Anglo-catholic tradition. At the front of the sanctuary is the Lady Chapel. What I like about this church is that the chapel door remains open during the worship service allowing full view of a beautiful statue of Mary in her more “English” representation. How remarkable that Mary became a common bond as I stood there in the mosque! It was as though in my head I was seeing Rome, London, Mexico City, and now Mecca all coming into alignment in honor of Mary.

I have no illusions of any kind of “one world religion” where everyone sings “Kumbaya” and goes happily on their way (nor do I think that would even be desirable). For me, though, that night, the sudden visualization of Mary within the context of prayer and worship was something to celebrate. If you read my essay from my Ramadan experience last year, you will know that the commonality I felt then was that my host and I were both former Baptists. As I said then, you celebrate whatever commonality you can find while respecting and honoring the differences.

Let's Eat!

As we left the sanctuary, we were escorted back to where our meal awaited. The feast spread out on the table before us included meatballs in tomato sauce, manicotti, garlic bread and tossed salad. I had been expecting something in a curry, or a Mediterranean cuisine. "What is this, Italian Night?" I asked. Our host who had been leading our discussion prior to the prayers said, "Yes! My wife is Italian and she prepared this for us!"



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Outer Travels, Inner Changes

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it solely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."
~ Samuel Clemens

I grew up under an apartheid system in the Deep South and came of age in the wake of the civil rights movement. I was 15 years old when our schools finally integrated. It was also at that time when as an adolescent I made an adult commitment to the Christian faith that was nurtured in me as a child. I came to see that a tearing down of my own prejudices was a part of my spiritual growth. Such a tearing down required many outer conversations and much interior work – and it certainly did not occur overnight. To this day, I have to deal with an automatic inner prejudicial response that is not programmed in my own daughter’s psyche because she did not grow up under a system of widespread apartheid consciousness. All of this is to say that prejudice is not easily overcome and it is not a once-and-for-all occurrence.

Fast forward ten years or so: I was in my late twenties when I took a job teaching English at Hong Kong Baptist College as a Baptist missionary. I had just spent three years in California studying in seminary. The traveling from Alabama to California to live in a culture different from my own was perhaps more educational than my academic studies. Living in Hong Kong, I was in yet another cultural environment in the Far East. It was a culture that I could easily love, with its blend of Chinese culture, urban living, and remnants of British Empire. While I was in Hong Kong reflecting on my own inner prejudices and noting my changes in attitude, I became aware that I was carrying a deep-seated prejudice toward Arab people. I had never known anyone of Arab descent. I suppose the stories I had heard of the Muslim world (from people who had never been there) had fed my attitudes.

Because of my own history of dealing with ingrained prejudices against African Americans, I knew that the attitudes I carried toward the Arab world were another hurdle to overcome. During my first summer overseas, in between school terms, I decided to do more traveling. I flew to Bangkok, Thailand, did some sight-seeing and then took the train from Bangkok through Malaysia to Singapore. While in Kuala Lumpur, Maylasia, I heard my first call to prayer from the Islamic minarets in that city. I knew that when I arrived in Singapore, I would be able to see Arab culture first-hand.

Singapore is a remarkable island/city/state, clean and well-ordered, where a large population of Malay, Chinese, Hindus, and Arabs manage to dwell peaceably together. I had been living among Chinese people in Hong Kong, so I made it a point while in Singapore to visit the Hindu and Arab sections of the island. I wanted to witness each of those worlds while given the remarkable opportunity to go from one world to the other by taking a simple bus ride from one part of the city to the next. In each place, I was able to sit in the marketplace, eat their respective native cuisines, and visit both Hindu and Muslim houses of worship. I was able to experience some of what Mark Twain referred to when he said prejudice and bigotry cannot survive the effects of travel. In my own case, however, I think that inner preparation beforehand helped me to achieve a greater openness once I arrived.

That trip to Singapore was really my first step in actively seeking some understanding of Islamic culture. In my next post I will talk about my visit this week at a local mosque for a Ramadan iftar (breaking of the fast) and evening prayer.









[All photos for this post were taken by me during my trip to Singapore in 1982. Pictured here, clockwise from the left: a Hindu temple, a marketplace in downtown Singapore, a mosque in the Arab section, and a view of chinatown. Up at the top: the panoramic view is one that I shot while hanging over a balcony and living to tell about it; the other shot is the famous Singapore merlion.]



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