Deeper understandings American Muslims Homegrown as well as from 68 nations with cultural differences
Editor’s note: This series is intended to be a public conversa- tion among teaching theologians of the ELCA on various themes of our faith and the challenging issues of our day. It invites readers to engage in dialogue by posting comments online at the end of each article at
www.thelutheran.org. The series is edited by Philip
D.W. Krey, president of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadel- phia, on behalf of the presidents of the eight ELCA seminaries.
By David Grafton and Michael Shelley
David Grafton: The impression one receives from some of the news media is that all Muslims are Middle East- ern or Asian immigrants with heavy foreign accents. In reality, the largest single ethnic community of American Muslims is African-American, the
major denomination called the Ameri- can Society of Muslims. While African-American Muslims
didn’t originally come here of their own accord, they certainly now are distinctly American. Those Ameri- can Muslims of immigrant origin (of course, most Americans are of immigrant origin) hail from at least 68 nations.
One can make comparisons with Lutheran immigrant communities who came to the U.S. for both reli- gious and economic reasons and who maintained their own distinct cultural identities. (In fact, Benjamin Franklin in 1751 made disparaging comments about the boorish Germans.) People often ask me, “What do American Muslims think about … (this or that)?” I’m at a loss as to how to respond. It’s like asking, “What do American Christians believe about the Lord’s Supper?” It depends. In my relationships with Muslims I find there are a wide variety of social, political and spiritual perspectives.
Michael Shelley: I agree. I often tell students in my classes or people attending adult forums: “If you take nothing else away from what I say, take this: there is diversity among Muslims.”
And this includes Muslims in the Grafton Shelley
Grafton is associate professor of Islamic stud- ies and Christian-Muslim relations and director for graduate studies of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. Shelley is dean and vice president for academic affairs; associate profes- sor of Christian-Muslim studies; and director of A Center for Christian-Muslim Engagement for Peace and Justice, all at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.
20 The Lutheran •
www.thelutheran.org
U.S. The American Muslim com- munity has a wide-ranging ethnic and professional mix. Among American Muslims are lawyers, engineers, merchants, cooks, factory workers, schoolteachers, university professors and doctors.
My cardiologist in Sandusky, Ohio, whom I see every summer, is
a Muslim originally from Syria. The skill and care he has provided as a doctor are principal reasons I’m still alive today.
In my work here in Chicago, I have been blessed to meet a marvel- ous cross-section of American Mus- lims. No doubt many of the people reading this have encountered such skilled and caring Muslims more than they are aware.
Some people say “Allah” is the name of a pagan moon god and isn’t the same as the “God” of the Bible.
Grafton: This is a very old claim. It’s similar to an old Christian argument about the “God of the Old Testament” being distinct from the “God of the New.” That, of course, was declared a heresy long ago. Similarly, Arab Christians, Jews and Muslims have always used this word, Allah, to refer to God. One can simply open up the Arabic New Tes- tament and find the name of “Allah.” In fact, Mark 15:39 in my Arabic Bible literally reads: “Truly, this man was the son of Allah.”
Shelley: I would separate this into two questions. In pre-Islamic Arabia, Allah, which means “the God,” was well known as the “high god” of Mecca, the city where Muhammad was born and grew up. Allah was rec- ognized as the creator (Quran 29:61) and sustainer whom people called upon for help in times of trouble (Quran 10:22).
This was, to be sure, part of a polytheistic mindset. Although Allah was superior to the others, there
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