Communication Between Cultures

sovereignty to another body. Regardless of your personal reaction to the specific

event, you can recall the protests and even violence that erupted in Pakistan, Afgha-

nistan, Indonesia, and countless Arab countries following publication of cartoons sat-

irizing the Prophet Muhammad. For the protestors, the cartoons diminished the

spirituality and uniqueness of Muhammad.

The Koran

We have already referred to the Koran and noted that for Muslims it is the most sacred

of all texts. Written in classical Arabic, over an approximately twenty-year period, Mus-

lims believe that the Koran is the word of God. The story of the inception of the Koran

is a simple one and one alluded to earlier.“Muslims believe that the angel Gabriel

divinely revealed to Muhammad the Qur’an, the perfect copy of an eternal, heavenly

book. The name Qur’an means‘recitation, which reflects the main origin and use of

this scripture, oral communication—first from Gabriel to Muhammad, then from

Muhammad to his followers.”^134 “TheQur’anis the basic authority for Islamic religious

life, Islam’s continuing guide during 1400 years of history and in many cultures.”^135

Unlike the Hebrew Bible and the Christian New Testament, the Koran has very

little narrative. Its 114 chapters (often calledsurahs) contain the “wisdom”that

Muhammad proclaimed during his life. This makes the Koran a manual on how to

live, as it treats topics ranging from how to lead a holy life to proper conduct of social

matters. The Koran offers counsel in both spiritual and practical topics because Islam

does not distinguish between religious, social, and political life. Prothero expands on

this idea:“Islam is a way of life as well as a religion. The Quran tells Muslims not just

how to worship Allah, but also how to lend money, divide estates, enter into con-

tracts, and punish criminals.”^136 The eclectic nature of the Koran has led some obser-

vers to suggest that the Koran is the most memorized book in the world.“To this day

there is great prestige in memorizing the text, and one who knows it in its entirety is

calledhafiz(literally‘guardian’).”^137 The Koran is so venerated by Muslims that they

would never write in the book or damage it in any way.

Submission

As we have mentioned, Islam is a religion based on the idea of one God. A direct

corollary of that belief means each Muslim must submit to that God. The Koran

(16:52) states,“GOD has proclaimed:‘Do not worship two gods; there is only one

god. You shall reverence Me alone.’”Daniel and Mahdia offer a synopsis of this

bond between one god and submitting to that God:

Islamitself means“submission”to God and His will. The Koran emphasizes over and over

the majesty of God, the beneficence that He has shown to human beings in particular, the

acts of obedience and gratitude that creatures owe in return to their Creator, and the

rewards that await the faithful at the end of time.^138

Predestination

A belief in predestination is one of the basic principles of faith for anyone who seeks

to practice the Islamic religion. As Van Voorst notes,“Predestination and fate play a

large role in affairs both big and small in Muslim life. In Arab countries, perhaps the

most frequently heard expression isenshalla, if God wills.”^139 This simple phrase is not

Core Assumptions 131

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