Ethnicity Differentiation
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I had a surprising and mixed feeling when I went to church for the first time in my life. I totally felt that I betrayed my people who are Muslims from the Middle East by entering the church, leave alone worshipping with Christians. My palms were sweating and I could not even properly listen to the preacher well due to my lack of concentration. I was not able to understand how in the same universe, there exists completely different religions that share much in common. I absolutely felt withdrawn and very lonely for not being able to embrace religion that my friends enjoyed without any difficulty. I wondered if my friends would identify a mosque as a different place as I thought the church was at that particular time.
Having been brought up in a deeply rooted Islamic culture, I had never associated myself with any other religion before but I knew about their existence. My prior knowledge concerning Christianity and the urge to prove what really happens in other religions however helped me to gain some confidence, which could not be sufficient to withstand uneasiness. I thought it unfair to have religious differences such as one religion dominating a particular region of the world. As an Arab amongst the congregation, I appeared odd and abandoned due to the hijab I was wearing unlike the brotherly and familiar feeling I usually have when I attend mosques. In fact, at some point I could hide my face when I realized that someone within the congregation was staring at me.
The similarity between the church and the mosque is that the attendees recognize their way of worshipping and religious status as the best compared to others. There is uniformity in the way Christians and Muslims carry out their prayers when they are in their prayer gatherings. Christians do have a pastor who conducts the prayers as it is in mosques where there are Imams guiding Muslims in worship. Additionally, there are two different holy books used by the two distinctively different religions by their respective followers in worshiping. Interestingly, the two different religions believe in God whom they respect and fear (Stefon, 2010). Quran and the bible share most of the stories especially in the Old Testament such as the stories of Moses and Abraham that really connects the two religions. I further realized that Christians also believe in continuous prayers at specific times such as in the evening and early mornings just like Muslims. Additionally, both religions do have almost similar believe concerning family issues such as women submitting to their husbands and prohibition of sex before marriage.
However, there are numerous beliefs that both religions do not agree on such as the existence of trinity according to Christians’ beliefs and the fact that Jesus is a son of God as claimed by Christians. Muslims believe that Jesus was a human prophet and not divine as claimed by Christians and that there is only one God who is the creature of the universe. Muslims further believe that God who is referred to, as Allah is the father to everyone and that there is nothing special or divine about Jesus that should make him worshiped directly or indirectly. Muslims also believe in original sin and that Jesus did not die on the cross to save humanity from sin but instead God made it to appear so. Christians strongly believe in salvation in the name of Jesus to cleanse their original sins that Muslims are strongly opposed to (Raisanen 2010).
My perception towards Christianity is influenced by the Islamic belief that Jesus was not God’s begotten son hence should not be worshiped as Christians do since he was just a prophet and a great teacher. Additionally, Muslims consider that calling Jesus God or son of God is blasphemy and that there is no day God’s word has never existed. Muslims do not believe that Jesus died for our sins as claimed by Christians that all their (Christians) sins were forgiven after the death of Jesus on the cross. Muslims regard themselves as perfect and the true followers of Jesus teachings since the current bible is altered. Muslims consider Christianity as a satanic product and a way of deceit to the world especially to the Roman Empire. However, I strongly believe that Christians too worship the same God just as Muslims but differ in a few believes (Johnson 2010).
There is a belief by most people that all Arabs are strong Muslims and that they cannot go to church. The majority of people from the Middle East prophesy Islamic faith thus making it unique for any race from the Middle East to be a Christian. My presence in church puzzled many whites who were in the congregation from the way they were staring at me. Nearly all whites and a few blacks thought that I was just investigating something and that it was strange for an Arab to confess Christian faith. Fascinatingly, many whites construe Arabs as terrorists and violent people who could die for their faith. My presence in church made the congregation insecure especially after the 9/11 attacks that is believed to have been instigated by the late Osama bin Laden who was unfortunately an Arab.
The white colleagues enjoyed a bit of privileges compared to me perhaps because they were the usual race expected in the church. While entering the church with my white friends, the ushers who were standing at the church entrance only welcomed my colleagues with broad smiles and a warm handshake. Nonetheless, the ushers stared at me surprisingly without even a single word uttered to me. The security officers drew closer to me maybe to confirm what I wanted in such a holy place where I was least expected. The ushers directed me to the position far away from the preacher possibly because of my race or due to the threat I posed to the congregation.
Church attendance was not something ordinary as far as whites and even Arabs are concerned. I am in fact, expected to worship on Friday instead of on a Sunday as a Muslim. It was unusual getting into a place of worship with shoes, which is against Islamic belief. A holy place can only be entered with bare foot, which is further washed even after removing the shoes. I found it weird worshipping together with the opposite sex and even sitting beside them unlike in the mosques where women and men do not mix. It was interesting sitting on comfortable chairs during worship instead of crossing our legs while sitting on the soft carpet (Stefon 2010).
Existence of different ethnic groups and various races are issues beyond human scope that need collective responsibility to eliminate. Social evil or negative attitudes towards any human race, ethnic group, and religion should be matters of the past. Because of doing this paper, I realized that racism and disregard to the minority is still a major concern in most parts of the world especially between the whites and the Arabs. Whites are usually considered as the superior race by other races such as blacks and Arabs. Societal injustices based on racism and ethnicity is an issue that is brought about by historical injustices. There are some beliefs amongst the society that there are specific places of worship and even social places that are only meant for some races. The issue of minority groups’ concern has not been well addressed by most administrations. Coexistence of most races or ethnicities and the need to respect all races, ethnicities, and minority groups should be addressed to maintain unity and peace amongst humanity.
After the church attendance, I came to realize that I may at times, not be appreciated by my fellow human beings simply because I do not belong to their race, religion, or ethnic group. I further understood that I personally do not appreciate the fact that most people confess different religions that existed in their regions of origin. Initially, I had never imagined that I would one-day step into a church building due to the strong Islamic beliefs instilled in me by my parents and the society. This paper has made me understand and appreciate the beliefs of the Christianity religion as well as their take on Islamic religion. By doing this paper, I further extended my Islamic knowledge by reading some of the Islamic materials. I have actually learnt while doing this work via thorough reading that Muslims and Christians share most of the things.
The following handout was obtained from the church of Nazarene in 2006,
HYPERLINK “http://www.nph.com/nphweb/html/bhol/itempage.jsp?itemId=083-411-2566&tid=FE&tc=1” INCLUDEPICTURE “http://clt.nazarene.org/images/stories/DWS2006/Welcome.jpg” * MERGEFORMATINET
Welcome to the Church of the Nazarene that is a straightforward, basic introduction to church membership, written in everyday language for anyone interested in the history, beliefs, organization, practices, and mission of the Nazarene denomination. Both members and non-members will find this study a great way to become acquainted, or reacquainted, with the people and passion that grew into the Church of the Nazarene.References
Church of the Nazarene.(2006).The Discipleship Place. Retrieved from HYPERLINK “http://www.thediscipleshipplace.org/index.php?Itemid=151&id=13&option=com_content&task=view” http://www.thediscipleshipplace.org/index.php?Itemid=151&id=13&option=com_content&task=view.
Day, V. (2008). The irrational atheist: Dissecting the unholy trinity of Dawkins, Harris, and Hitchens. Dallas, TX: BenBella Books.
Johnson, E. L., & Myers, D. G. (2010). Psychology & Christianity: Five views. Downers Grove, Ill: IVP Academic.
Räisänen, H. (2010). The rise of Christian beliefs: The thought world of early Christians. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.
Stefon, M. (2010). Islamic beliefs and practices. New York, NY: Britannica Educational Pub. in association with Rosen Educational Services.
