"Al-Fatiha upon your souls", is an Islamic expression usualy said in the situation of condolence, if you want to share the sorrow and with the relatives of the deceased person you have to say this phrase. "Al-Fatiha" is a seven verses Sura in the beginning of the Holy Quran! The literal meaning of Al-Fatiha means the fresh start or the opening stage! But the root of the word in Arabic is the adjective "open" or "not closed"!
The very new usage for this word now you will find it in this article.
Before three years I received a letter from a strange organization, its name Al-Fatiha. The letter was an invitation for me to attend a conference of gays and lesbians in the Islamic world, but the strangest thing was the title of the sender! He was not the representative of the organization, but a Mediator (as he said) and he can prepare all things; the ticket, the visa to New York and the allowance and it would be a generous one. In addition for all that, he or she or (he-she) asked me "if you want to keep your participation secretly you have the right to do so!
He/She said that he/she took my e-mail from a list of free African writers! I do not know anything about this list. I thought at that time it was just a joke of one of my friends!
In the said document:
(Al-Fatiha: Mission Statement:
The Al-Fatiha Foundation is an international organization dedicated to Muslims who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trasngendered, those questioning their sexual orientation or gender identity, and their friends. Al-Fatiha's goal is to provide a safe space and a forum for LGBTQ Muslims to address issues of common concern, share individual experiences, and institutional resources. The Al-Fatiha Foundation aims to support LGBTQ Muslims in reconciling their sexual orientation or gender identity with Islam. Al-Fatiha promotes the Islamic notions of social justice, peace, and tolerance through its work, to bring all closer to a world that is free from injustice, prejudice, and discrimination.
Goals and Objectives
Support Muslims who self-identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and those who are questioning their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Provide a supportive and understanding environment for LGBTQ Muslims who are trying to reconcile their sexuality or gender identity with Islam.
Empower LGBTQ Muslims by creating safe spaces to share individual experiences, advocating on their behalf in national and international forums, and providing information about institutional resources.
Foster spirituality among LGBTQ Muslims.
Encourage dialogue with the larger Muslim community around issues of sexuality and gender)
My comment:
After that I realized that it was not a joke. It is a real organization, with many hidden branches in a number of Muslim countries and Muslim communities in non-Muslim countries. It has its website and premises. I traced it in the internet and I found many news and articles supporting it. One of the press releases said: (Participants- in the second conferences- came from the UK, USA, Belgium, …….. (five countries), they represented more that a dozen nationalities and ethnic backgrounds, including: Arab, Pakistani, …….. and Sudanese)
(and Sudanese!) very strange!
Other article said that many of the membership are Imams and Preachers! It is not a matter to practice homosexuality but the matter is your stance in this issue!
I have nothing to say for them. What kind of relationship they want to establish between religion and immorality? Can preachers speak to people and preach them to practice homosexuality? I can just say, as in our traditions Al-Fatiha upon your souls!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
The Real Nuer in Sudan!
My essay is just a review for selected paragraphs from a Sudanese book. It is written by Reverend Gabriel Gai Riam Weituor and discusses mainly the relationship between church and state in Sudan. It shows just six pages about the concept of peace in South Sudan with a good example “Covenant Theology of the Nuer”. The writer comes from the Nuer people, and it is from the perspective of the Nuer tradition he wrote this part of chapter nine.
In this chapter he also discusses the concepts of the Prophet Ngundeng. It is another amazing story that we will cover tomorrow.
It is very clear that there are many similarities between Monotheist religions and Nuer religion. The concept of the religious man is not like the African magician, traditional Sudanese Kojour. He is not just an extra-ordinary man who can make miracles, he is not rain maker, but he is a person who can lead his community and neighboring communities to peace and welfare.
We miss here (as usual) the role of African media. The meaning of cultural diversity exists only in dancing and singing. But big naught about our rich culture.
Christian - Muslim Relations In Sudan
A study of the relationship between church and state (1898-2005)
Author: Gabriel Gai Riam Weituor
Chapter Nine
( ….. The Nuer language has two words for “people”. Cuk, (singular cok) means people in the inclusive, universal sense of all the ethnic groups of humankind; it is used in this inclusive sense in contrast to the word naath that denotes people in particular sense of the Nuer themselves.)
(The Nuer phrase, kondial labne gaat cukni “we are all little ants in the sight of God” explains that the Nuer see ants as helpless, and is the same way the Nuer believe God sees the whole humanity in their diversity without distinction. Another Nuer states that human beings are “foolish in the sight of God” (door wang kuoth)……)
( Nuer religion expresses the relationship between God and the people through the concept of “covenant” (Nguot/Ngut), that denotes an inviolable bond both between the Creator and all creation, and between all people.)
(…….It is particular in the sense that they believe that God sends prophets to all peoples; it is universal because the Nuer accept that all these prophets are genuine messengers from God)
( The role of the prophets is to make clear to the people what Nguot, or covenant, requers ofthem in terms of their moral lives. As well as covenant, Nguot means rules and regulations (laws) that the Nuer apply across all aspects of their lives, as communities and individuals. For example the Nuer customary laws are referred to as Nguot Fangak (a district where the Nuer revise their traditional systems)……..)
(…. This is evident in the importance of the late 19th century Prophet Ngundeng who stands in the Nuer tradition as the great prophet of peace and reconciliation. Before Prophet Ngundeng the Nuer prophets and priests were mainly concerned with the welfare of the Nuer community in particular. Some of the prophets carried out raids on other people that had caused instability with their neighbors. However, when Ngundeng came he instituted principles of compensation that were intended to reduce conflicts and create harmony among the people. For example he forbade young men to carry spears to dances, and urged the Nuer to stop raiding their neighbors, thus reducing instability.
Secondly, he involved representatives of the Nuer and their neighboring tribes in the building of pyramid-shaped mound as a symbol of peace building. The shrines of the spirits and divinities of all tribes were brought to the Mound, as a sign of curtailing the escalation of the conflicts among the Nuer and their Neighboring people)
(…. The Dinka, Annuak and other peoples came to the Mound, and by adhering to Ngundeng’s teaching, they combined faithfulness to their own particular traditions with acceptance of the universal order)
In this chapter he also discusses the concepts of the Prophet Ngundeng. It is another amazing story that we will cover tomorrow.
It is very clear that there are many similarities between Monotheist religions and Nuer religion. The concept of the religious man is not like the African magician, traditional Sudanese Kojour. He is not just an extra-ordinary man who can make miracles, he is not rain maker, but he is a person who can lead his community and neighboring communities to peace and welfare.
We miss here (as usual) the role of African media. The meaning of cultural diversity exists only in dancing and singing. But big naught about our rich culture.
Christian - Muslim Relations In Sudan
A study of the relationship between church and state (1898-2005)
Author: Gabriel Gai Riam Weituor
Chapter Nine
( ….. The Nuer language has two words for “people”. Cuk, (singular cok) means people in the inclusive, universal sense of all the ethnic groups of humankind; it is used in this inclusive sense in contrast to the word naath that denotes people in particular sense of the Nuer themselves.)
(The Nuer phrase, kondial labne gaat cukni “we are all little ants in the sight of God” explains that the Nuer see ants as helpless, and is the same way the Nuer believe God sees the whole humanity in their diversity without distinction. Another Nuer states that human beings are “foolish in the sight of God” (door wang kuoth)……)
( Nuer religion expresses the relationship between God and the people through the concept of “covenant” (Nguot/Ngut), that denotes an inviolable bond both between the Creator and all creation, and between all people.)
(…….It is particular in the sense that they believe that God sends prophets to all peoples; it is universal because the Nuer accept that all these prophets are genuine messengers from God)
( The role of the prophets is to make clear to the people what Nguot, or covenant, requers ofthem in terms of their moral lives. As well as covenant, Nguot means rules and regulations (laws) that the Nuer apply across all aspects of their lives, as communities and individuals. For example the Nuer customary laws are referred to as Nguot Fangak (a district where the Nuer revise their traditional systems)……..)
(…. This is evident in the importance of the late 19th century Prophet Ngundeng who stands in the Nuer tradition as the great prophet of peace and reconciliation. Before Prophet Ngundeng the Nuer prophets and priests were mainly concerned with the welfare of the Nuer community in particular. Some of the prophets carried out raids on other people that had caused instability with their neighbors. However, when Ngundeng came he instituted principles of compensation that were intended to reduce conflicts and create harmony among the people. For example he forbade young men to carry spears to dances, and urged the Nuer to stop raiding their neighbors, thus reducing instability.
Secondly, he involved representatives of the Nuer and their neighboring tribes in the building of pyramid-shaped mound as a symbol of peace building. The shrines of the spirits and divinities of all tribes were brought to the Mound, as a sign of curtailing the escalation of the conflicts among the Nuer and their Neighboring people)
(…. The Dinka, Annuak and other peoples came to the Mound, and by adhering to Ngundeng’s teaching, they combined faithfulness to their own particular traditions with acceptance of the universal order)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
