Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet - Assignment Example

Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet It is a question that has troubled billions of people since the dawn of time: how should a person lead a good, meaningful life? There are as many theories as there are grains of sand on the beach, but some ideas over the years have been more popular than others. Some people are born into religions where these questions are largely answered for them. They know from an early age what their god tells them is the right thing to do and what is the wrong thing. Others question their faith and try to revise their morality, bringing in parts of other religions or philosophies. Still others have no real faith and try to build a moral foundation out of their personal experience adding rules and content to it as the years go by. In this essay I will look at the teachings of the prophet Mohammed as presented in this fascinating documentary. A number of people are interviewed and describe their interpretation of the teachings and how these apply to their lives. This excellent documentary features a number of outspoken advocates for Islam. Each have had their lives shaped in different ways by the prophet Mohammed. They feel a deep personal and spiritual relationship with him and his teaching are implemented in various ways in their individual lives. Jameel Johnson for example is the chief of staff to a United States congressman from New York. He has a high stress job in a complex environment. He is also breaking down barriers and many American may not expect to see a Muslim working in politics for the United State government. But he is content with that role. For him, Mohammed teaches that everyone should do all that they can to try correct injustices. He sees a hierarchy of faith based on how much action you are willing to take to change things. Those who sit at home feeling bad are at the low end of that spectrum. This feeling has motivated him to get involved in politics. He opposes discrimination and feels that the best way to put these ideas in action is in Washington. He also feels like Mohammed would want him to educate people about his faith and about how to end injustice and this is something else he is capable of doing in his powerful position. He organizes Friday prayer sessions on Capitol Hill and these have grown very significantly. Part of his understanding of the teachings of Mohammed involves proselytizing for him. He also wants to turn away from material things in order to focus on his faith. That is what he truly believes. Daisy Khan has a slightly different perspective than Johnson, in part because she is a woman. Many believe that Islam treats women as inferior. Khan tackles this question during the documentary. She talks about growing up in America and how for a long time all she wanted to do was fit in. She turned her back on her faith and on the teachings of prophet Mohammed. Eventually, she began to see a heart-shaped hole in her life and rediscovered her faith. But she felt that Muslims should reach out to other faiths in their community in order to share ideas and concepts and to help bind the community together. She has done this through her interfaith dialogues in New York. She has worked hard to bring disparate people together. For her, Mohammed teaches that we are the children of God and that the divisions sometimes generated by faith are false ones that can and should be overcome. Of course, this takes a great deal of work, so Khan must work tirelessly to promote her message. Islam is a soft thing, not a hard thing, and violence must be removed from the faith. People need to have a better understanding of the faith, Khan believes. Part of being a Muslim involves your own personal faith, but part also involves sharing with others what Islam is really about. After the terrorist attacks in New York, Khan began to really pick up this thread and do her best to show people that Islam is a religion of peace not of war and that people should learn more about what it really means. Some of the best ambassadors, she thinks, are artists from the community rather than fire-breathing imams. This softer side of Islam, the artistic side, is what she believes is sometimes lost in the mix. So she does her best to communicate through a number of interfaith dialogues with people of different religions and persuasions. James comes from a mixed background and takes a unique approach to Islam. His family background had several different faiths, and so he was not raised as a Muslim. A bit like Khan he had to look inside his heart for what he wanted. He had to try to find out on his own what appealed to him and whose teachings he wanted to follow. And when he did this the teachings that spoke most to his heart were those of the prophet Mohammed. For him one of the great things about being a fire fighter is how there is no colour or faith involved in the job. The goal is to help people and do your duty. This appeals to Burke who likes the simplicity and direction of his faith. Burke believes that to be a good Muslim you should serve people. His job and his faith are closely intertwined. Both require a high degree of selflessness and the idea that you should not put yourself first and you should keep your eye on the greater good. This are valuable contributions to this dialogue on faith. Only through helping people, can you show your true love to the creator. That is the teaching that Burke takes away from the prophet Mohammed. He is someone who especially believes in proselytizing, like the other two, his faith is a bit more personal. It is something he thinks about as he works and lives, but not something he is especially keen to pass on to others. He is too selfless for that. This documentary provided a great deal of perspective on this important issue. All of the interviewees seems sincere about their faith and worked hard to express their true feelings. For these reasons I would recommend the film. I do have a few reservations, however. More might have been done to provide great contemporary political context to the issue. Huntingtons thesis on the clash of civilizations might have been useful in this regard. Although the theory is full of generalizations, it can be a useful illustration. A lot can also be considered in light of the plans to build a mosque near Ground Zero. There are few better contemporary examples than that. If there is truly a clash between Western culture and Islam, as some suggest, where do American Muslims fit in. globalization is changing our cultures and making our clashes more complex—that is something not addressed in this documentary. Transport and communication technology has allowed people and things to travel at speeds previously unheard of. The world is a smaller place. Countries that were once distant and took weeks to arrive at our now accessible in a few hours. But perhaps the premise is incorrect. There have been many cultural and civilizational clashes throughout history that Huntington does not consider. What makes the so-called present one different is the ease of travel and the porousness of the Western security envelope. These are important contemporary political considerations involving Mohammeds legacy and the way we live now in the West that arent covered enough in this documentary. However, everything else was well done. Read More