Ramadan Mubarek!

Muslims around the world have developed numerous traditions for celebrating the month of Ramadan, but the constant truth that transcends each tradition and all cultures is the practice of abstaining from food and drink daily from sunrise to sunset for the entire month.

The Holy Qur'an reads in Surah 2:185:

Ramadan is the month in which was sent down the Qur'an as a guide to mankind also clear signs for guidance and for judgement between right and wrong. So everyone who is present at his home during that month should spend it in fasting but if anyone is ill or on a journey the prescribed period shold be made up by days later.

Fasting during the month of Ramdan is one of the Five Pillars of Belief in Islam. The Five Pillars are: 1. Iman or Faith in the form of the Shahada or declaration that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger, 2. Salaat and establishing the five obligatory daily prayers, 3. Zakat which means giving in charity, 4. Sawm which means fasting for the month of Ramadan and 5. Hajj which is the obligatory pilgrimage required by all Muslims before the end of their life.

Although fasting is required by all Muslims, male and female, as a means of obeying the commands of Allah the Almighty, it is also as a way to glorify Allah and to show our gratitude for His having sent the Holy Qur'an to mankind. It is believed that the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, would receite the Qur'an every Ramadan and that it was during the month of Ramadan when the first revelations began.

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Green living, green Muslims

Six hundred trees and a two acre native garden were recently planted in Houston as part of the Keep Houston Beautiful and Great American Cleanup initiatives; initiatives designed to reverse and/or reduce harmful effects to the environment. Although the roots of the modern environmentalist movement can be traced back as far as nineteenth century Europe and North America, it is important to point out that the scriptures of the Abrahamic traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam promote many of the green living values that are espoused today.

Many Jewish laws concerning farming and thriving on the earth's surface support environmentally friendly values that promote care and sensitivity for resources. For example, in the book of Leviticus 25:3-4 it reads:

Six years thou shalt sow thy fields, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof; but in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the Lord: thou shalt neither sow thy field nor prune thy vineyard.

And Jesus the Messiah, peace be upon him, a Hebrew and therefore an adherent to the laws of Moses, peace be upon him, imparted words of immense wisdom when he said that the meek shall inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5 reads:

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Islam also supports green living values and there are several scriptures in the Holy Quran that advise and admonish believers towards being grateful for the bounties that God bestows in the form of rain, clean rivers and the blessings of green, healthy trees and plant life. A few such scriptures are:

Quran 2:164: Behold! in the creation of the heavens and the earth; in the alternation of the night and the day; in the sailing of the ships through the ocean for the profit of mankind; in the rain which Allah Sends down from the skies, and the life which He gives therewith to an earth that is dead; in the beasts of all kinds that He scatters through the earth; in the change of the winds, and the clouds which they Trail like their slaves between the sky and the earth;- (Here) indeed are Signs for a people that are wise.

Quran 20:52-53: He replied: "The knowledge of that is with my Lord, duly recorded: my Lord never errs, nor forgets,- "He Who has, made for you the earth like a carpet spread out; has enabled you to go about therein by roads (and channels); and has sent down water from the sky." With it have We produced diverse pairs of plants each separate from the others.

Quran 27:60: Or, Who has created the heavens and the earth, and Who sends you down rain from the sky? Yea, with it We cause to grow well-planted orchards full of beauty of delight: it is not in your power to cause the growth of the trees in them. (Can there be another) god besides Allah? Nay, they are a people who swerve from justice.

Islamic and Judaic traditions also go as far as to provide instruction during times of war and admonish believers not to destroy trees or to burn the land in war times. In the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him it is written in Malik's Muwatta book 23:3:10:

"I advise you ten things: Do not kill women or children or an aged, infirm person. Do not cut down fruit-bearing trees. Do not destroy an inhabited place. Do not slaughter sheep or camels except for food. Do not burn bees and do not scatter them. Do not steal from the booty, and do not be cowardly."

Judaic laws repeat a similar admonition in Deuteronomy 20:19-20 when it reads:

When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them:

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Jesus In Islam

Many Christians this week will be celebrating Consider Christianity Week as a means of equipping Christians with facts and evidence in support of Christianity for effective communication of Christian values with others. Christianity is considered the second of the three Abrahamic religions, the first being Judaism and the third Islam and should be understood within the construct of history and from it's position as part of a gradual process of revelation, however, it is not always understood as such. On account of this, there have unfortunately been numerous occasions throughout history where war and violence have erupted amongst believers of the Abrahamic religions with many such eruptions still reverberating today.

The Institute of Interfaith Dialog here in Houston recently held a panel discussion posing the theory that there is potential for a clash of civilizations between Christianity and Islam as a means of addressing some of the fears and misunderstandings between the two religions. And as realized during the panel discussion, there are as many points, if not more, that can be made in support of the numerous similarities bewteen Christianity and Islam as can be made in support of a potential clash.

One fact that Christians may not be well aware of is that Muslims also believe in Jesus, peace be upon him, and recognize him as one of those nearest to God. The Holy Quran, the Holy Book of scripture within the tradition of Islam reads in Surah 3 Ayat 45:

Behold! The angels said: "Oh Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honor in this world and the Hereafter and of the company of those nearest to Allah;

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