Hot Topic II

Today when I went to give Manal her English class, she met me at the door in her floor-length coat, signaling to me that she was leaving the house (reminding me of the flexibility of schedules in Mexico). With her was another Syrian woman named Wofa, who knew even less English than Manal and has only been in Canada a week (I think). They invited me shopping (at the thrift store next door), and I was able to get them my senior discount J. This time Manal was brave enough to try the fitting room, and I stood guard at the door. I now know two Syrian women and two Algerian women. I’m loving it.

Manal told me she was fasting. She said it was giving her a headache. Maybe she was trying to explain why there would be no English class that day. I asked if it was Ramadan, and she and Wofa looked surprised and laughed. After conferring on the right word, they said together, “Summer.” Ok, so not Ramadan. “Why?” I asked. She tried to get it straight on Google Translate and kept saying, “No, no, no,” and finally gave up. So I still don’t know why. It’s today’s mystery. There are so many reasons that communication just breaks down even among friends. Imagine what happens during a controversy.

Like the question that has caused such a furor in the news lately: Do Muslims and Christians worship the same God? I mentioned that I had read a bulletin by Christianity Today with many contributors who gave their insight on the issue. The consensus was this is not a helpful question. It’s divisive. The real answer is, “Well, it depends.” Because although you might be asking one question, someone else might be answering another completely different one, and you might end up judging one another.

If you really mean to ask, “Do all roads lead to God?” Of course, the answer is no. Epistemologically, we are not talking about the same God. The Christian God is vastly different from the Muslim because our knowledge about him comes through the Incarnation. But if you mean to ask an ontological question, “Is there one God,” the answer is yes, because neither religion allows for there to be any more than One God. The God of the Muslims is an omnipotent, benevolent, and wise Creator, just as the God of the Christians, and there can’t be two of those. In terms of existence, we are both referring to one thing.

Here’s an example. You and your four year old son see something flying through the air. You think it is a hang glider. Your son thinks it’s superman. But both of you agree that there was something up there. Paul claims that people can derive some qualities of God from his creation and even referred to him as the “Unknown God.” This awareness people have of the One True God should not throw us for a loop but encourage us that God reveals himself as he wills. It’s up to us to show that what they are seeing is not “Superman.”

More on this later. Meanwhile, when someone brings up the controversy, ask yourself: which question is being asked? Ontological? Epistemological? Are you certain? There’s the real question.