COMMENTARY: Abraham is a Critical Bridge Among Muslims, Christians and Jews

c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) The air was hot, the desert vast, and there was no sign of life as far as the eye could see. The old man, with wife and infant son, had been traveling for miles when he decided to stop. Then suddenly, without saying a word, he turned and left. […]

c. 2005 Religion News Service

(UNDATED) The air was hot, the desert vast, and there was no sign of life as far as the eye could see. The old man, with wife and infant son, had been traveling for miles when he decided to stop. Then suddenly, without saying a word, he turned and left.

His wife was taken seriously aback. “What are you doing? Where are you going?” she said in alarm. He neither answered nor turned back. “What are you doing? How could you leave us here? There is no water, no food, no people,” she pleaded desperately. He continued on his way, again not saying a word.


She then asked, “Did God command you to do this?” “Yes,” he replied. “Then,” she said, “he shall not lead us astray.” With that, he left his wife and infant son completely alone, in a completely barren desert valley.

Soon after, the small amount of food and water he left with them ran out, and the babe began to cry. The woman, driven by the panic of a mother afraid for her child’s life, frantically began to run seven times between two hillocks searching for a sign of water or a passing caravan. None could be found. Then, when all hope seemed to be lost, she returned to her child to find a spring of water gushing at his feet. They were saved, and God indeed did not lead them astray.

This story _ of Abraham, Hagar and Ishmael _ is the basis for the most important event of the year for Muslims: the Hajj, or the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. For the past few weeks, millions of Muslim pilgrims have descended on Mecca, known as Paran in the Bible, to partake in the rites and rituals of the Hajj. Every adult Muslim man and woman, if physically and financially able to do so, must perform the Hajj at least once in their lifetime.

Not only do the series of rites and rituals of the Hajj re-enact the ancient story just recounted, but the Hajj also recalls Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son for the sake of God. The festival marking this event, Eid-ul-Adha, is celebrated during the Hajj itself; American Muslims commemorated Eid-ul-Adha on Friday (Jan. 21).

I was blessed to go on the Hajj in February 2003, and it was the most powerful spiritual experience I have ever had. Not a day goes by that I do not think of my time there, and the Hajj, in fact, is the trip of a lifetime for every single Muslim.

That the entire Hajj has only to do with Abraham should not come as a surprise. Abraham figures very prominently in Islamic belief. The Quran mentions Abraham by name at least 69 times, more than 15 times as much as the Prophet Muhammad himself, and recounts many of his stories. The Quran describes Abraham as “the close friend of God”; “kindly, compassionate, (and) repentant”; “a model, obedient to God, devoted, and not an idolater, grateful for the favors of God, who selected him and guided him to a straight path.” Muslims believe their religion to be nothing more than the religion of Abraham: “So We (God) inspired you (O Muhammad) to follow the way of Abraham devotedly …”

Muslims love and revere Abraham very deeply, and no devout Muslim would ever fathom impugning the character of Abraham or any other prophet _ and that includes Moses and Jesus. God set Abraham as a “beautiful example” for Muslims to emulate, and Islam would not be Islam without the Prophet Abraham. It is truly remarkable that Abraham _ perhaps the most prominent religious figure of Judaism _ has been taken in and revered by the followers of Islam. Even more remarkable, Abraham has been made the fundamental basis for one of the most important of Islamic ritual obligations, the Hajj.


This fact, along with the common love for Abraham among Muslims, Christians and Jews, should serve as a bridge of understanding and mutual friendship. It is my sincerest hope and prayer that it does. At a time when the world seems to be headed for a needless and mutually destructive “clash of civilizations,” such bridges of understanding are desperately needed.

(Hesham A. Hassaballa is a Chicago physician and columnist for Beliefnet. His forthcoming book, the “Beliefnet Guide to Islam,” will be published by Doubleday in 2006. You can read his blog at http://www.hassaballa.org.)

KRE/PH END HASSABALLA

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