In the Name of God, the Merciful…
19 June 2007 - 4 תמוז 5767 by Huw
Mindful that Arab Christians - and even Arab Catholics - also pray to “Allah” in their native language, which of the following 99 Names of God would you - in Arabic or English - deny as an appellation of the God those Christians worship?
John Taverner - whose music I generally abhor, just for style (or lack of, let’s be honest) - has written a devotional piece based on the 99 Names.
Which of those names is worthy of protest? Or what deity might need defence from them?
I am not sure about “The Giver of Dishonour” and “The Distressor, The Harmer.” It depends on how they are defined. If those attributes are the result of his actions then there is no problem.
There is nothing in the 99 names that cannot be interpreted in a Christian way. It is not the names, per se, but the theology supporting Islamic understanding of these attributes that is the problem.
It would seem that the protesting has arisen due to Tavener’s choice of using the attributes of God as organised by Islam as implying there is no difference between Muslim and Christian views of God.
Since I have to teach Islam, I use the 99 names to teach Christian views about God as well as Islamic views, comparing and contrasting.
It may be worth noting that one name which Christians use of God which is not found in the Muslim world is “Father.”
As to the protest against performing an Islamic act of worship (reciting the 99 names) in a Christian cathedral, just try singing a hymn to the Holy Trinity or to “Christ our True God” in a mosque one day and see what happens…
I hadn’t noticed father was missing: odd for such a supposedly “patriarchal” religion.
But, hey, if we chose to see a mystical devotion as sectarian - even one that is relatively harmless, we’re all up the creek anyway.
I’d rather protest the music: cuz I know it will suck. I’d rather protest the cultural theft - even though I do it myself, I recognise that’s a problem for some people. But I see no problem addressing the Holy One (Baruch-Hu) with any of these titles for all titles are man-made.
Fr E -
Dishonour is not so bad…
1 Samuel says YHVH brings death:
The Lord kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up. The Lord makes poor and makes rich; he brings low, he also exalts.
(1 Sam 2:6-7)
Nice Scripture, Huw.
I am Latino. Dishonor ranks higher in my (and Arab) culture than it does in American culture. So, I guess that title hit me a little harder for cultural reasons.
I would think such cultural reasons were *exactly* why it was chosen.
(I”m not that good w/ scripture: it happened to come up in today’s lections.)
Actually Father is left out due to the fact the Muslims believe that Allah is neither male nor female for the most part. Allah is genderless, whereas God can become Goddess.