Midweek Faith Lift
November 1, 2023
Unity, Islam & Quantum Leap, II
Rev. Deb Hill-Davis
Spiritual Reflection
October 23, 2023
A DeLorean, the futuristic car featured in the film, “Back to the Future,” was found in a Wisconsin barn with just 977 miles on it. Auto restorers bought the car from its original owner and are getting it road-ready. They said the car was in perfect condition. “It’s literally like a time machine.”
"You are an individual ever awakening to greater potentiality. Life made you out of Itself and implanted a unique something within you. Every urge that you have to rise up is an echo from deep within which is forever proclaiming, 'Behold, I make all things new.'" – Ernest Holmes, This Thing Called You
Affirmative prayer: I give thanks for the grand design of the Universe, for the wholeness and wonderment inherent in life, and for the pattern of perfection at the center of my being. I find the goodness in things every day and am made new again. ‘I press on toward the mark of the high calling of God.' Thank you, Infinite Presence, forever. Amen.
It is somehow fitting that we begin with a story about a car, which at this point is an antique and is being restored and made road worthy once again. It is fitting that the ancient religions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam are also antique religions and as we explore them, we are also exploring the spiritual essence of these religions and how they can in actual practice be made “road worthy” again! Throughout the history of religions in the west, there has been a thread of violence and war in the name of God. That has never been the essence of the true spiritual path of these three Abrahamic religions and we pray they all return to their true essence.
With that perspective, let us once again take up our reflections of Unity and Islam and how they are similar in their essence. As we noted last week, the essence of Islam is to follow the will of Allah Inshallah and all is done in the name of Allah, or bismillah. Absolute obedience is what Allah desires. The opening chapter of the Koran, Sura I sums up the essence of the relationship of humans and Allah:
In the Name of God, the merciful Lord of mercy
Praise be to God the Lord of all being,
The merciful Lord of mercy,
Master of the Day of Judgement
You alone we serve and to You alone we ask for help.
Guide us in the straight path
The path of those you have blessed
Not for those against who there is displeasure nor of those
who have gone astray.
Within Islam, Muhammad is the last and final prophet in the Islamic faith and his teachings in the Koran are the guidebook that shows the faithful how to follow the will of God. Muhammad is venerated and revered within Islam but not seen as God, but as a teacher, much like we see Jesus in Unity. Strict adherence to the teachings of Muhammad is essential to being a faithful Muslim. The practice of Islam requires absolute trust and faith in Allah as the One, true God.
There is a path of return when the faithful one falls short, which we often do. This path is described in the five elements of Islam, which provide the whole theological framework of the Muslim’s life. The first is the Godhead itself and the unity of God; from this all else flows. Thus, every word, thought and deed is tested with respect to faithfulness to the will and beneficence of God. The highest and best use of the human mind and will is to magnify God and reflect God’s will. This is not unlike our first Unity principle, which holds that there is only one power and one presence.
The second element of faith is the belief in angels. Muhammad was visited by the angel Gabriel in his meditations and angels are seen as divine messengers as they are in Judaism and Christianity. The third element concerns the Scriptures and messengers, including the Torah, Psalms, Gospels and above all the Koran. All are given respect but the Koran is held in highest regard. As noted, Abraham, Jacob, Moses and Jesus are all venerated as prophets of their respective faiths along with Muhammad in Islam.
The fourth element of Islam is the Last Day, or Judgment Day which is mentioned more than 100 times in the Koran. There is a deep belief in a divine and universal justice that weighs every human act. This is not unlike the Jewish adherence to the Law or Lord that is required by the faithful for blessings to unfold in one’s life. In Unity, our focus is on consciousness and how that impacts what we experience in this life. While traditional Christianity does focus on the afterlife, we in Unity do not make that a primary feature governing our lives or spiritual path. We do not hold to the notion of hell, nor does Judaism, but Islam does believe in the return to the bliss of Eden in heaven or if one is faithless, then the reward is hell.
The fifth element of Islam is divine will, which is a powerful guiding precept with the belief that God is in charge and grace is in God’s hands alone. The true believer is humble in the presence of God’s magnificence and experiences joy and freedom when in alignment with God’s will. In Unity we do not focus so much on the surrender to God’s will but using our spiritual power of Will to align with the Divine energy of Love. We do not supplicate or beg God for our needs to be met; we claim our good in alignment with the power of Love and Life. There is a caution in our approach in that we can have a kind of spiritual arrogance that seems as though we are “in charge” of the Divine. Humility is at the center of all spiritual paths, including Unity, which beholds the Divine with wonder and awe of the mystery.
There are also five Pillars of Islam which are specific practices intended to help faithful Muslims live in alignment with the One, the will of Allah. These practices outline how one lives out the five elements of Islam. The first of these is a basic declaration of faith (Shahada) that there is no God but God and Muhammad is his messenger. This is not unlike our declaration of One Power and One Presence.
The Second Pillar of Islam is prayer (salat) and the faithful Muslim is called to prayer 5 times per day: sunrise, noon, midafternoon, sunset, and evening. In Muslim countries there is an audible call to prayer, not unlike the bells of a church or the shofar of Judaism. Muslims do not need to be in a mosque to pray, but to face the direction of the holy city of Mecca. When together, prayer in on the knees, leaning forward with the head on the ground, a position of humility. Friday is the Muslim holy day when the faithful gather for prayer and to hear a message. In Muslim countries, the faithfulness to prayer is noteworthy and an experience of connecting with the energy and presence of God. There are no images of God, so the connection is purely spiritual. We in Unity, also have a distinct focus on prayer, affirmations and meditation as a significant part of our spiritual path and we also do not have images of Jesus as part of our prayer.
The Third Pillar is alms giving (zakat) which is usually 2.5% of one’s income along with private giving to charity to help those in need. The giving is with gratitude for the gifts one has received, not unlike our law of circulation in Unity. The Fourth Pillar is fasting (sawm) which is done during the month of Ramadan. Muslims fast from sunrise to sundown and it includes refraining from food, drink and sex during that time frame each day. This means no eating or drinking throughout the day.
The month of Ramadan changes according to the Muslim Lunar calendar. It begins with the crescent new moon and ends with the crescent waning moon of the 9th month of the Lunar calendar. It is a spiritual time of reflection and personal growth and jihad during which one engages in awareness of the struggle with personal will. It is not unlike Lent in the Christian tradition, which is much less virgorously followed in the west. In Unity, our Lenten practice is to refrain from negative thoughts and behaviors and to embrace positive thoughts and benevolent acts. The whole Muslim community is involved and supports one another in this practice of during Ramadan.
The Fifth Pillar is the (hajj), or pilgrimage to Mecca which each Muslim is expected to make during their lifetime. Mecca is the central shrine of Islam, thus the sacred destination to the birthplace of Islam. Pilgrimage is central most Abrahamic religions, for the Jews, it is to Jerusalem and the last remaining Wall of the Temple. Christians also take pilgrimages to Jerusalem and on the Santiago de Compostela, or Way of Saint James in Europe. Many in Unity take a pilgrimage to Unity Village in Kansas City as a return to our spiritual home!
I want to leave us today with the words of Richard Rohr, a modern day mystic who seeks to discern how the more deeply spiritual understandings of religion can be incorporated into daily life. We have observed how all “religions” can run amok and create suffering and chaos. How are we called up higher?
Oct. 16, 2023, Richard Rohr, wrote in his blog, “Love and Power:
Both love and power are necessary building blocks of God’s peaceful realm on earth. Love utterly redefines the nature of power. Power without love is mere brutality (even in the church), and love without power is only the sentimentality of individual lives disconnected from the Whole. The gospel in its fullness holds love and power together, creating new hope and healing for the world.
Blessings on the Path,
Rev. Deb