Binary Oasis

I’ve been thinking and reading a lot recently about the philosophical/religious implications of what we see and experience in the natural world, including cosmology.  In particular, cosmology has some really fascinating questions and problems that literally stump the best scientists in the world.

There is one fundamental paradox about origins that anyone can understand.  It has to do with the fact that science and philosophy agree that there had to be a beginning to the universe.  Scientists have no answer to this paradox, though there have been some proposals to try to get around the paradox.  For instance, Stephen Hawking has toyed with the concept of imaginary time to get around the materialistic problem of the paradox.  Christianity, along with most major religions, have creation stories that point to God as the Creator.  Secularists might reply with this a version of this same fundamental question: “Who or what created God?”  To me, the answer is that He has always existed.  It certainly is something of a paradox, but I believe it is a very reasonable answer, especially in light of the non-answers that we get from secularists.

I’m reading Brian Greene’s book “The Fabric of the Cosmos” right now.  It is a fascinating overview of the history and current theories of cosmology.  Cosmology is full of tough and profound questions, including the most basic question of “where did everything come from?”

I made it through another of The Teaching Company’s lectures. This one was “Great World Religions: Islam.” I found it to be very instructive, though there were some times that I questioned the objectivity of the lectures. Here are some of the lecturer’s statements (with some of my commentary mixed in):

• Jihad means “to strive or struggle.” It appears that “holy war” is a secondary meaning at best.
• The lecturer (John L. Esposito) paints a picture of Islam that is not inherently violent, but one that does contain violence as part of the context of tribal warring. I would interpret the lecturer as saying that it is reasonable to war against those that war against you, but not to instigate a war.
• 80% of Muslims are not Arab
• “The world ‘islam’ means ’submission’ or ’surrender’” or peace
• “Muhammed was a multifaceted personality who served as the religious, political, and military leader of a community-state.” (Lecture 3)
• “[Muhammed] … is also portrayed as a caring husband and father who through his teachings and actions sought to improve the status of all women.”
• ” The Jews did not recognize Muhammed’s prophethood, and in the Battle of the Ditch, some of the more powerful Jewish tribes fought against him. He ultimately crushed them, executing the men and capturing the women and children. Muhammed’s treatment of these Jewish tribes in Medina has been seen as anti-Semitic, but it is important to note that the tensions and ultimate violence between Muslims and Jews were more political than theological or racial.”
• “Muslims believe that the Quran is the literal, eternal, uncreated Word of God sent down from heaven to the Prophet Muhammad as a guide for humankind. The Quran confirms the Torah and the New Testament (Gospel) as revelation from God, but but revelation that became corrupted over time. Thus, the Quran was sent as a correction, rather than a nullification of abrogation, of the Torah and the Gospel. Muslims believe, therefore, that Islam is the oldest of the monotheistic faiths, because it represents both the original and the final revelation of God.”
• It seems that the Quran is not chronologically ordered. I read recently about the theory that Islamic reformation will result in a more violent Islam since the later chapters focus more on violence. If the Quran is not chronologically ordered, then perhaps this theory may not hold water?
• “Muslims do not believe in the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. Muslims recognize Jesus as a prophet, not as God’s son.”
• “There is no doctrine of an inherited Original Sin in Islam.”
• “Another major message in the Quran is that men and women are equal and complementary. Quranic revelations raised women’s status in marriage, divorce, and inheritance. Men and women are equal in the eyes of God; man and woman were created to be equal parts of a pair. Men and women are equally responsible for promoting a moral order and adhering to the Five Pillars of Islam.”
• “The Quran frequently stresses pluralism and tolerance, that God has created not one but many nations and peoples.”
• “The Quran clearly and strongly states that ‘there is to be no compulsion in religion.’”
• “Historically, although the early expansion and conquests spread Muslim rule, in general, Muslims did not try to impose their religion on others or force them to convert.”
• “The two broad meanings of jihad, nonviolent and violent, are found in the Quran and expressly contrasted in a well-known prophetic tradition. The tradition reports that when Muhammad returned from battle, he told his followers, ‘We return from the lesser jihad ["warfare"] to the greater jihad.’ The greater jihad is the more difficult and more important struggle against one’s ego, selfishness, greed, and evil.”
• The lecturer discusses the so-called “sword verses,” that seem to condone violence and compulsory conversion, but he maintains that these verses need to be placed in their historical context. He also notes the correlary to texts in the Old Testament.

The lectures are summed up with this statement:

• “Too often in the past tolerance has meant suffering the existence of others while regarding them as inferior. Today, all are challenged to embrace a modern form of pluralism and tolerance based upon mutual understanding and respect. To affirm the truth of one’s own religion or worldview does not exclude the ability to acknowledge principles and values shared by others. Recognition of significant religious differences can still be accompanied by respect for the rights of others to hold different religious beliefs.”

Of course those religions that are exclusivist could see that as being invalid. Most religions do contain elements of exclusivism, so that makes his summary a little hard to swallow for some. I, for one, would disagree that we should embrace pluralism, though I agree that we can “acknowledge principles and values shared by others.”