January Apprentice: Buddhism and Islam
Study/Learn
1 - Write the following on note cards from the Dictionary of Cultural Literacy:
- Buddha
- Buddhism
- Islam
- Koran (Qur'an)
- Mohammed
- mosque
- nirvana
- Ramadan
2 - Read this short overview of Islam
3 - Watch this short 3 min video: Beauty and Belief: Islamic Art Exhibit
4 - Read this excerpt from the Qur'an, the holy book of Islam
5 - Read the chapter, The Knot in the Cord: Khidija and Aisha, Wives of the Prophet Mohammad from the book, 10 Great Souls I Want to Meet in Heaven by S. Michael Wilcox
6 - Read this short overview of Buddhism
7 - Read the chapter, The Wheel-Turner: Siddharta, the Buddha from the book, 10 Great Souls I Want to Meet in Heaven by S. Michael Wilcox
8 - Read at least one of the following articles: (for a more complete understanding of Islam and Buddhism, you can read all of these articles)
- Buddhism By Spencer J. Palmer at lds.org
- Reincarnation at lds.org
- Islam and Mormonism—A Comparison by Hugh Nibley at lds.org
- A Latter-day Saint Perspective on Muhammad By James A. Toronto at lds.org
- Ishmael, Our Brother By James B. Mayfield at lds.org
Know/Understand
1 - Hopefully by now you have realized that we have much more in common with the religions of Islam and Buddhism than we have differences. Make a list of at least 5 of the teaching from each religion and find scriptures from our LDS scriptures that teach the same thing. Bring your list to class and be prepared to discuss.
2 - The first step on the Eightfold Path of enlightenment in Buddhism is Right Understanding. This is, basically, overcoming selfishness and thinking of others. Journal for 20 minutes about ways you find yourself acting selfishly. Set a very specific goal to do one unselfish act of service for someone in your family each day this week.
3 - Choose one thing you learned from the article you read (#8 above) and come to class with a creative way to teach it to the class.
Become/Serve
Read the following introduction from Pres. Boyd K Packer's at the BYU devotional, "Building Bridges to Harmony Through Understanding" by Alwi Shihab in Oct 2006. You can find the whole article here.
"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expresses “special love and concern for the eternal welfare of all men and women, regardless of religious belief, race, or nationality, knowing that we are truly brothers and sisters because we are sons and daughters of the same Eternal Father.”1
We believe that “the great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammed, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God’s light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.”2
It is not a coincidence that the world’s great religions come together at Temple Hill in modern-day Jerusalem. Known now as the Place of the Rock, it is a religious shrine for Islam, for Christianity, and for Judaism. All three great religions hold ties to this place. All three, likewise, have a common thread in a tradition that Elijah the prophet would return.3
Knit together by world history and by Old Testament history and doctrine, the Church and the Islamic world can see each other as People of the Book, indeed Family of the Book.
Church members and Muslims share similar high standards of decency, temperance, and morality. We have so much in common. As societal morality and behavior decline in an increasingly permissive world, the Church and many within Islam increasingly share natural affinities."
As we begin a study of world religions, I hope that we will joy in the beliefs we have that are the same as those of other religions instead of focusing on the differences. Pray every night this week to have the Spirit of discernment with you as we study these religions, for an increase in love for all people of the world and a testimony that we are all children of the same God.
OPTIONAL: For more information on the three religions in Jerusalem, read this article: Jerusalem By D. Kelly Ogden
Notes
1. “Statement of the First Presidency regarding God’s Love for All Mankind,” February 15, 1978.
2. Ibid.
3. See Boyd K. Packer, The Holy Temple, [Bookcraft: 1980] 117.
