Pre-Flight Islamic Prayer on Jazeera Airways

I went to Kuwait last weekend to see one of my children in a school sports tournament. One of the wonderful things that has developed in the region in the last 5 years or so are low cost regional airlines. Jazeera Airways, a Kuwaiti airline, is one such company. I got a roundtrip air ticket from Dubai for about 360 AED (100 USD).

The flights were great and one very interesting aspect of this particular airline is that before every takeoff there is an Islamic prayer for travel that is broadcast on the airplane television screens. You hear someone performing the prayer (it’s a recording) and see the Arabic text scrolling onscreen. It takes about 1 minute or so total. I took a little video of it and uploaded it to youtube only to find that someone had done a much better job!  The video above is from the guy who did it better than me

I’ve not experienced this prayer on any of the other flights out of Dubai. I’ve wondered if it’s on Jazeera since it’s out of Kuwait and Kuwait tends to be more religiously conservative than the UAE.

I tried to google “Islamic Travel Prayer” and came up with a number of hits. This one seemed to make the most sense but I still don’t know if it is the actual prayer that is being spoken on the video. If someone who knows Arabic could listen to the video and tell me if the prayer is the one I’ve got printed here I would appreciate it.

Allah is the Most Great. Allah is the Most Great. Allah is the Most Great. Glory is to Him Who has provided this for us though we could never have had it by our efforts. Surely, unto our Lord we are returning. O Allah, we ask You on this our journey for goodness and piety, and for works that are pleasing to You . O Allah , lighten this journey for us and make its distance easy for us . O Allah, You are our Companion on the road and the One in Whose care we leave our family . O Allah , I seek refuge in You from this journey’s hardships, and from the wicked sights in store and from finding our family and property in misfortune upon returning.

Also, what do you think about the idea of a ‘travel prayer’? Does it make sense? What about the others onboard who are not Muslims… Does this make sense for them?

No Kissing at the Mall

Interesting policy implemented at the Mall of the Emirates last month. If you’re feeling amorous with your shopping partner (or someone you meet there you should take note of the second prohibition listed… “No Kissing or Overt Displays of Affection”. You might also get stuck at “Please Wear Respectful Clothing” too.

This raises a number of questions. Does this apply to all kissing? Like the “peck on the cheek” kind? Or just the ‘extended lip-lock’ kind? Who makes this decision? Is hand-holding an overt display of affection? Is an arm around the shoulder? Exactly where can a hand be put?

And what is respectful? Of course I assume they mean respectful to the host culture. But that is a tough thing to do when you (Dubai) are setting your goals on drawing hundreds of thousands of tourists to your country. Tourists by definition almost always see themselves as not a part of the culture they are visiting. It’s as if they think of themselves as viewing everything from behind a glass window.

When I first moved here I used to not wear shorts except to the beach and to the park. But I’ve loosened up about that over the last 5 years. I wonder if I ever offend anyone when I go to the store.

As a Christian I’m eager to keep the commandments of the Bible as an act of gratitude to God for what he’s done for me through Christ – the forgiveness of sins and the adoption into the his eternal family as a son of the King. The Bible would teach “let there not be a hint of immorality among you.” (Ephesians 5:3) But the real challenge is that immorality has some culturally defined boundaries. Or at least the “hints” are culturally defined often.

So, even when I take my family of all women (4 daughters, 1 wife) to the mall they don’t go in shorts or sleeveless shirts just out of respect for the host culture in which we live. But even then I wonder if people see my daughters, know we’re from the west, and then just assume they are immoral. What can I do about that? Nothing I think. Other than to live it down among the people who really know us.

When we go though, we’ll just have to make sure… no kissing!

What do you think?

NYTimes Photo Report on Peshawar Pakistan

I really enjoy the multimedia presentations of different places around the world on many of the many US newspaper websites. Here is a very interesting one from the New York Times website. It’s a photo report on Peshawar Pakistan. Peshawar is a battleground between the Islamic extremist groups like the Taliban and the Pakistani government. Click the link below to get to the slideshow. The pic above is the first one in the show… a striking black and white shot.

Peshawar Under Seige

Pictures from Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Abu Dhabi

This mosque has been under construction for as long as I have lived in the UAE (over 5 years) and it’s finally been finished. I’m currently looking into whether it’s open to the public. I’ll let you know as soon as I find out.

Nevertheless, it’s very very impressive. Take a look…

Click here to see the slideshow

Christians Not Allowed to refer to God as Allah in Malaysia?

This is a very interesting article I ran across today about the Malaysian government banning Christians (specifically Roman Catholics in this case) from using the word “Allah” to refer to God in their publications. It raises very interesting and ominous questions about religious freedom. The Malaysian Christians make the point that the word Allah is pre-Islamic and therefore cannot be protected as an Islamic word as such.

I don’t have too much time to comment but here is what the de facto minister for Islamic affairs official said in defending the ban…

“The use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims may arouse sensitivity and create confusion among Muslims in the country.”

What do you think?

Friday Prayers at the Mosque

This is the scene in front of a Dubai mosque just yesterday, Friday, and I took it at a stop light on Jumeirah Beach Road. You’ll notice how full the mosque is. This is atypical for the middle of the week but somewhat normal on Friday at the Jumuah prayer.

The Jumuah is the name for the Friday prayer time in Islam that happens just after noon and is preceeded by a sermon or Khutba by the Imam of the mosque. The friday prayer is perhaps the most important of all the prayer times for muslims. Prayer is required 5 times a day but this one is special in importance. Thus most of the mosques see large crowds gather particularly on Friday. The Khutba (or sermon) is typically broadcast over a loudspeaker to the surrounding neighborhood here in the UAE.

Here’s a selection of things the Koran, the Hadith’s (saying of the Prophet), and some Islamic scholars/teachers have said about the Jumuah and muslim prayer in general:

The Prophet said…

“If a person had a stream outside his door and he bathed in it five times a day, do you think he would have any filth left on him?” The people said, “No filth would remain on him whatsoever.” The Prophet (peace be upon him) then said, “That is like the five daily prayers: Allah wipes away the sins by them.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

In another hadith, the Prophet said,

“The five daily prayers and the Friday Prayer until the Friday prayer are expiation for what is between them.” (Recorded by Muslim.)

And…

“Of all the days, Friday is the most virtuous. It is on this day that the trumpet will be blown. Send abundant blessings upon me on Fridays because they are presented to me on that day.”

On this day it is commanded by the Prophet that you should take a full bath (ghusl), put on clean clothes and perfume/cologne if you have it. Also, it is not obligatory for females to offer this particular prayer.

The Koran says…

“O you who believe! When the call for Friday prayer is made, hasten towards the remembrance of Allah Most High and leave all transactions. This is best for you if only you know.” (I’m unsure of this reference)

“Verily, man was created impatient, irritable when evil touches him and niggardly when good touches him. Except for those devoted to prayer those who remain constant in their prayers…” (al-Maarij 19-23)

The Christian View of Prayer – A Very Short Summary

The Christian view of prayer is different from the Muslim view. Christian prayer is simply communication with God. In prayer, a person can do any number of different things including, acknowledge God’s character, holiness, and other attributes, cry out to him in emotional pain and anguish, make requests of God to intervene in our lives and in the world to act in certain ways in keeping with his character and purposes in the world, remind God of his promises, ask for wisdom for decisions and life choices, etc. The Bible is full of examples of prayers of people in many different life situations. We should study them and pattern our prayers after them in the appropriate times and situations.

I know of no examples of Muslim prayers in the Koran presumably because the Koran is almost thoroughly a recounting of God’s words directly to the Prophet.

One of the most important things about Christian prayer is that is not a duty that atones for or makes expiation for sin. It does not enhance one’s moral standing before God. In fact, only through Christ, the perfect God-man, can we “boldly approach the throne” of God in prayer. Apart from Christ we approach a holy God as sinful and rebellious people and we will not be accepted.

Also, it should be noted that for the Christian no physical cleaning is required to approach God in prayer.

For the Muslim readers who check out this post, let me know if I’ve made mistakes in my simple recounting of Islamic prayer and specifically the Jumuah prayer. I got most of the information from here, here, and here.

Eid Al Adha and Hajj Begin

There are two Eid celebrations per year and the second, Eid Al Adha is likely to begin on Tuesday. This is the celebration of when Muslims believe Ibrahim (Abraham), at the command of God, took his son Ishmael to sacrifice him on a mountain. Christians believe the son was actually Isaac and that story is told in Genesis chapter 22.

This is also a time for many Muslims to go on the Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, which is required at least once in the lifetime of all Muslims who are physically and financially able.

I have a friend, Mohammad, who is traveling there today. I wish him well and I’m praying for him.

Here is an interesting MSNBC.com slideshow on the Hajj. (The link goes to the multimedia page… the Hajj pics might rotate off soon so check it out soon if you want to see them.)

And below is an interesting (and short) Youtube video on the Hajj. Check it out.

Is Cleanliness Next to Godliness?

I recently had to buy four new tires. As I waited at the local petrol station for the new ones to be put on the car I noticed a sign I’d never seen before in that garage. “Cleanliness is Next to Godliness”. Now I’ve heard that saying before but never seen it posted in a auto garage!

I understand the desire to have the workers keep their work environment clean. It would promote safety in the work place and an image of excellence. But IS cleanliness next to godliness? Does the cleaning of your body or your environment enable you to better draw near to God and be like him?

A few things come to mind.

Jesus said stuff like this on the subject.

Mark 7:14-23 Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.”

Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowd, and his disciples asked him what he meant by the parable he had just used. “Don’t you understand either?” he asked. “Can’t you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you? Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.)

And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.”

In Islam, one place and time where physical purity is necessary is during prayer. Muslims must physically cleanse themselves for their prayers to be heard by God and therefore effective. The cleansing procedure is called Wudu.

Islamonline.net says, “Muslims must have perfect ritual prayers to pray the Salah (ritual prayers). Here is an excerpt from their posting on the subject.

Physical purity means cleanliness of the body, clothing and environment. According to the rules of Islam, Muslims should keep their bodies and clothing clean from any impurities, especially the body wastes of humans and animals.

Islam insists on the use of clean water to cleanse the body of impurities, and only when water is not available can a person use other things. Even the clothing should be perfectly clean from any impurities. For that reason, Muslim bathrooms have a source of running water or pitchers of water next to the toilet.

Similarly, any animal discharges — including the saliva of dogs — are unclean and Muslims should make sure their clothing, environment, and bodies are free of those impurities.

Muslims must have perfect physical purity to pray the Salah (ritual Prayers).

You are in this state of ritual purity of wudu’ until you urinate or defecate, pass wind, sleep, or become unconscious. If you do any of these things before or during the Salah, you must repeat the wudu’.

The history of the phrase itself seems to indicate that it came from ancient Hebrew writings of the 2nd century A.D. In English it appears to have derived from Sir Francis Bacon and then later John Wesley, the famous Christian evangelist, mentions it in a sermon in 1791.

As a follower of Jesus, I tend to think that cleanliness doesn’t have much to do with godliness at all. I can see where an understanding that one’s body is a creation and gift from God should lead one to take care of your body. And there are some references to working hard with your hands (as opposed to being idle) in the New Testament. But cleanliness is hardly a “doorway” to godliness.

What do you think?

Native Deen: Islamic Hip Hop Group Out With New Recordings

You may remember that I met up with the US based hip hop group Native Deen here in Dubai over a year ago. (Deen means “religion”) We had some great conversation about truth and comparative religions. They’ve just come out with a new recording. And here is the music video from the group.

Jesus… the Failure?

One of the commenters on the “tattoo” post from a few days ago has mentioned the idea that Jesus came to reestablish the Mosaic Law and never intended for his message to go to anyone but Israel. The idea that Jesus was just like the prophets that went before him would also be included in this idea. The idea is one put forward by many Muslims and perhaps other groups though I’m not sure about that.

I don’t believe this idea to be true but I’ve considered it in the last few days. One conclusion that I come to is that if this was Jesus’ purpose then he could rightly be considered a complete failure as a prophet.

Consider:

1.) If he came to reestablish the Mosaic Law he instead did quite the opposite. His teaching and leadership instigated a radical “sect” of Judaism (Christianity) that declared that though the Law was good they didn’t have to fulfill the civil or ceremonial component of the Law. So they threw off the dietary commands, the commands about mixing with people of other races, the Temple worship, and all the feasts and sacrifices. They even spoke of a “New Covenant” which Jesus had made mention of just before his death (or disappearance). Mosaic Law, as Israel knew it in Moses’ day, was definitely not renewed.

Where is the record of the resurgence in Law-focused Jewish devotion that would have been brought about by a prophet of his stature? After all, he was called Messiah.

To my knowledge, there is absolutely no record of a wave of Law-focused Jewish devotion as a result of Jesus’ ministry.

2.) His message, though it’s asserted that it was for Israel alone, ended up spreading out across the whole world and continues to spread to this very day. So it would seem that his followers got it wrong when they fanned out from Jerusalem immediately following his death/disappearance. Either he hadn’t trained them well or there was some big misunderstanding on their part. They began specifically spreading this message to other nations and didn’t encourage them to become Jews…. rather they were to worship Jesus himself!

3.) Unlike the premier prophets that came before him he never delivered a unified “revelation” from God. He also didn’t manage to get his “revelations” written down like the other prophets before him, namely Moses, or the one who would come after him like Mohammad some 600 years later. If he was given a revelation we don’t have it. We do have what his followers wrote about him but this doesn’t fit the format of other prophets before and after. Some might say that perhaps his revelation was lost but this seems like a preposterous thought given the weight and honor and value that his own written words would have had. His own writings would have far outweighed any writings of his followers.

The lack of a written revelation could be considered a major failure as a prophet.

4.) Referring to the end of my point #2, it could be considered a major failure that his key followers began a “sect” that encouraged the worship of him, that equated him with God, and posed some “trinity” within the One God breaking with conventional Jewish thought. It would be one thing if a ‘break-away’ group of renegade followers started this. But these were his chosen lieutenants. This would be the greatest failure of all perhaps.

Let me re-iterate; I do not believe what I’ve written above in points 1-4 to be true. I’m merely trying to illustrate how Jesus could not have been considered a success as a prophet of God AND be one who sought to reestablish the Mosaic Law and get his message out exclusively to the people of Israel.

To my Muslim friends this imagining might seem blasphemous. For they hold Jesus in high regard. So I hope you understand my desire to simply illustrate a hypothetical situation.

What do you think?