What We Learn from our Faith

For God is not a God of disorder but of peace. 1 Corinthians 14:33

One morning last week this verse was included in my devotional. Just reading the words brought me a sense a peace, a feeling of well being and an assurance that God wants the best for us. But then my eyes strayed to the next paragraph.

As in all congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in church. 1 Corinthians 14:34-35

Wow! In one second my feelings of being in harmony with God evaporated.  How could this be included in our Bible, in the New Testament that brings us the good news that Jesus died for all of us?  Quickly my mind turned to the time in which Paul wrote this letter and how different the time was than that which we live in today. Poor Paul! What would he think of us today? Here we have a female Bishop who is highly respected by the worldwide Methodist church and her colleagues. Many of our clergy leaders are women who are bright, articulate and beloved by their congregations and peers. A good number of the young clergy who have come to the Texas Conference in the past few years and are in the ordination process are women.  Not to mention how much mission and ministry is accomplished here by lay women. 

As I thought through this scripture in the context of our world and my life, I was again grateful to be a United Methodist. Being Methodist equips me with the tools to think through Paul’s words, evaluate them in the context of when they were written and come to the conclusion that they are no longer the kind of guidance appropriate for me today.  As a United Methodist, the Bible forms the foundation of my belief, but it is not inerrant. These words, written by Paul, while perhaps appropriate for his time, were written by a man. Paul, a great man who was instrumental in the growth of the early church, was still just a man.  He was inspired by God and preached the Gospel of Jesus, but clearly, he wasn’t always right!

Reaching this conclusion has infused my thinking all week long. This week is an important one, religiously and for our country. Today our Jewish friends are celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.  Today is also the Muslim celebration Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Next week Jews around the world will observe Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. And of course, Saturday is September 11, which has come to be a day of national mourning.

I have many friends and acquaintances who are Jewish and several friends who are Muslim. Last summer, Tom and I had the opportunity to travel in Turkey, a country where the dominant religion is Islam.  During our visit to Turkey, I learned a lot about the religion and the people who are observant Muslims. One of the most important things I learned is that they are people, just the same as we are. They go to work to support their families whom they love and cherish. They seek to protect their children from the harsh side of life and want a better life for them. Education, health care and a higher standard of living are issues that affect them.

It seems to me that there are some things we could learn from our friends and neighbors of different religions. For me, two quick things spring to mind.  In Judaism the two high holy days are Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. They are the two times each year that almost all Jews will attend worship services – kind of like some of our Christian friends who we’ll see at church on Christmas and Easter. But here is a huge difference. Because Jewish holidays begin at sundown, worship services are held in the evening of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and the following day. So for many people, the observance of these holy days means sitting in worship, much of the time in stillness and quiet, in the synagogue or temple all day long. For most of us Christians, to have an experience like that, with other Christians or by ourselves, we would have to go on a retreat to spend a quiet day in prayer and meditation. Thinking of my Jewish friends sitting in peace and stillness, feeling God’s presence surrounding them, I am a little envious. 

Our Muslim friends, here in the United States and around the world, stop what they are doing five times everyday to pray. While we were in Turkey, we heard the call to prayer and we visited several mosques and saw people praying. My guess is that the people who are observant Muslims here may not always spread out their prayer mats to pray, but that they do it in their own ways. Remember the admonition to “Pray without ceasing?” I find myself praying a lot while I’m driving.  It seems to be a time when my mind quiets and I slow down enough to “let God in.” But the prayer time that I experience each Sunday morning in worship when I am surrounded by other Christians who are also praying is powerful. For me, it would be so powerful to know that five times everyday, when I am praying, others are, too. 

If I were a religious scholar, I could probably come up with many other examples of strengthening behaviors that we could benefit from learning from other religions. We know that both Judaism and Islam are Abrahamic faiths so that we have the root of our faiths in common. And here, in the United States, as we learn our history, we know that we are a country founded on the principles of freedom of religion as well as the separation of church and state. 

Hearing about the pastor in Florida who is planning to burn copies of the Koran in observance of the anniversary of September 11 makes my heart hurt. The events on September 11, 2001 were tragic and have impacted our foreign policy and economy for almost a decade.  We have all been affected by that day. We will talk about it for years to come.  For our children I suspect it may be like it was for many of us on the day that President Kennedy was shot – they will always remember where they were when it happened and what followed.  I, too, will remember and mourn forever the lives that were lost and the after effects.

As a United Methodist, though, I am empowered to be tolerant – to learn from those who believe differently than I do. I am equipped to share my faith in Jesus Christ and to respect the faith of others.  And I believe that by doing that, by living my faith in love, I will truly be doing God’s will.

Showers of Blessings,

Leah Taylor