We did pray in a gym today. Downstairs they were holding a funeral so I got to see what its like to pray behind the men. Did you know they assign someone to lead the women as well? Why do we not do this when we pray normally! Half the time you can't see the leader in the mosque. I actually don't mind this format, it seems to make more sense. I'm a fan.
We talked about the Pope's fancy house. Sr. A was trying to teach us about how its not bad to have worldly possessions. That some scholars have fancy houses and some live in huts. Those that live in huts do so out of fear for what they may be held accountable for. Those who live in palaces also use their money for good but it is ok to enjoy your money. Then she brought up how the Pope has a gorgeous home and how beautiful the Vatican is. And she was all "See the Pope he is a God fearing man but he has a lot of lovely things. That does not mean he is not a good person. Although what he does with all that God only knows." She then asked me if the Vatican was always that fancy and I replied that although it has always been fancy it has accumulated donated wealth over the years. It is a product of many donations to the facility, as most churches of the olden days were. She then kept going on about how fabulous it was and how you can go up in the dome and see his house and the gardens. We are all required to visit the Pope if we ever head to Rome :).
Sr. A also offered to help me with my prayers. She thought I had converted because I learned to pray and I said no. Then she wanted to know who taught me and I said I taught myself with a little help from notes that were proof-read by a friend (My Love). And she said "Well I would love to help you, really I would." So I emailed her to see if the offer still stands. Hopefully it does. I learned a very elementary version of prayer, I'd like to learn the more traditional form so I don't get so lost at group prayer.
Posts
Rome and the Vatican are one of the few things that I would get on a plane for.
ReplyDeleteI do like Sr. A's lesson (of course). :) Does she realize the Pope doesn't actually own all of the treasures? :)
Amber: haha yes she knows that he doesn't actually own it. That it is inherited so to speak and belongs to the church. She was referring to the gardens. Like what does he do with so many gardens? lol Go for strolls I suppose.
ReplyDeleteShe also talked about the White House...then went on to say it wasn't as cool as the Pope's house. She cracks me up.
LK, have you learned to say, "At-tahiyatu ..." at the end of each 2 raka? It ends with the shahada. I would think that would "count" as converting, since it's the same words one says when converting. If you are saying it, I'm curious why you don't see yourself as ready to convert?
ReplyDeleteZuhura: JUST BECAUSE YOU SAY THOSE WORDS DOES NOT MEAN YOU HAVE CONVERTED. That is a big misunderstanding. I believe there is no god but God. I do believe that Muhammad was a messenger from God. But when you take your Shahada you are claiming MUCH MORE than those two fraises. You are submitting to all the rules of Islam, the dress, the lifestyle, the holidays, zakat, fasting, major family issues that come with it, social issues, predjudice, the Qur'an, consequences of choosing your religion. You become responsible for ALL of this.
ReplyDeleteYou also have to consciously intend to convert when saying the Shahada in order for it to be valid. If the intent to convert is not present then you have not officially converted.
The mistake a lot of people make is they think all you need to take your shahada is belief that there is no god but God and Muhammad is his messenger. Theres so much more to it.
So thats why. In a nutshell.
To me if you believe that there is no god but God and Mohamed is God's messenger, that implies all the other stuff. If he's God's messenger, then the Qur'an is God's message and that's where all the other stuff you mentioned is found (and, for some, in the Hadith as well). Not all Muslims agree on what the "rules" of Islam are (though there are some I'm sure we'd all agree on), nor on dress, lifestyle, family and social issues, so I do think there is room for interpretation, thought, and critique even after converting.
ReplyDeleteI'm not trying to pressure you; I was just curious about your thinking on the matter. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.