Shane Bennett

It’s innate, isn’t it? This desire to be over others, to dominate; to be known as better, stronger, above. In many young sibling groups the bossiness rolls down the ages like water, pooling frustratingly in the baby! 

Of course, whole peoples do this and whatever people you belong to, there’s probably some guilt there in the near or distant past. God knows how Americans have, and are exercising this desire for good and ill. 

In Islam, a particular form of the domination desire is codified in the Quran in Sura 9:29, “Fight those who do not believe in Allah nor in the Last Day, and do not forbid what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden, and do not practice the religion of truth, of those who have been given the Book, until they pay the jizya readily and are disgraced.”

The practice is called dhimmitude (those on whom it is practiced are called dhimmi) and it answers the tricky question of what to do with Jews and Christians who refuse to convert to Islam when their territory is conquered. As “People of the Book,” they’re God’s friends, so you probably shouldn’t kill them! Instead they are charged a special tax called jizya, but relieved of paying the religious tithe, zakat and fighting in wars. 

That might be a fair trade, but for the addition of “are disgraced.” In both historic and current application, Jews and Christians are treated as second class citizens.

Some of you know what it’s like to be treated as second class citizens. The closest I’ve come was being a non-athlete in high school. If the feelings I remember are any indication, the real thing really sucks. I’m sorry for whatever way I’ve contributed to that reality for you. 

So how might we respond to this dhimmitude reality?

1. We pray for Jews and Christians for whom this is life. We ask God for justice to prevail and for perseverance, grace and kingdom of God confidence for all who follow Jesus in challenging situations. And 2. We do our best not to participate in or allow any amateur dhimmitude where we live. We do our best to treat Muslims, and all others, as the creations of a loving God that they are, bearing his image and made for his glory. 

Welcome to the weekend! Got anything fun planned? Maybe a date with your sweetie?Maybe a movie? Our family watched a great one recently called The Boys in the Boat about a scrappy group of Depression-era, West Coast college students who defeated the Ivy League elites, the Nazis, as well as their own demons to win Olympic gold in Eight Man Crew. 

The dramatic tension of the film centers mostly around social differences. “We’re poor, but fiercely determined,” vs. “We’re rich and somewhat coddled,” and “We’re planning to capture the world for the Reich!” Although the ultimate conclusion was foregone, the racing suspense was super fun. 

Solid cinema should show us what is true about its characters and setting. I suspect, however, I often enjoy movies because they say and show what I already believe about stuff. 

I read recently about the inaugural Muslim International Film Festival in London. “Championing the narratives of international Muslim filmmakers and highlighting their compelling stories, MIFF. . . . has a mission to celebrate and amplify the diverse voices that explore the rich tapestry of Muslim experiences via the medium of film.”

If you’ve got a little weekend free time, go here and enjoy some of the trailers for the films shown at the festival. 

Filmmaker Warda Mohamed, whose short film Muna screened at the festival, said, “We need to have access to films that challenge stereotypes and reaffirm the norm of Muslim stories.”

That’s the bottom line, isn’t it? All of our brains harbor stereotypes of various people. Muslims, Hindus, Canadians, Mexicans, Republicans, Democrats, a variety of stripes of Christians. We often need Jesus to drop into the comments and say, “You don’t like those guys? That’s weird! I like them a lot. And, no offense, I know ‘em a lot better than you do!”

Cheeky Weekend Challenge: Watch a movie in which the good guys don’t look like you! I’d love to see your recommendations. 

The Berlin State Assembly recently passed a measure to outlaw the use of an inverted red triangle. Maybe you’re aware of this. For me, so much of the world still causes me to say, “I had no idea!” 

Of course the red triangle is used to sell all sorts of products from the satisfying Bass Ale to questionable Guess jeans. Historically, Nazis used a red triangle patch to identify political prisoners, communists in particular. Following WW II, it became a symbol of having defied and survived concentration camps. 

In recent months, it’s gone from a Hamas military targeting tool to a broadly used symbol of support for Palestinians. 

As the German interior ministry ponders a nationwide ban, I’m wondering about the nature of symbols, their evolution, their intended and unintended consequences. 

Certainly no one person gets to determine what a symbol means, but I want a red triangle to signal my wish that no more babies, moms, journalists and other non-combatants have to die in Gaza. I don’t want it to mean hating Jews or targeting Jews. I’m convinced that desiring the former things does not automatically imply the latter. I don’t, in fact, wish ill on any Jews. 

Further, I want a red triangle by my name to encompass the conviction that, yes, the Jews of Israel have a right to defend themselves. But at the same time, the Arabs living in Gaza and the West Bank do not merit extinction. Before they are anyone’s enemies, they are God’s people, designed for his glory.

And here’s the connection that has gutted me today: I’m a tax-paying citizen of the country who has, more than any other, supplied the bombs and bullets to wipe those people off the planet. 

Somewhere right now, an American businessman is wrapping up a fine vacation on a very fine boat that was purchased with the revenue of weapons sold to Israel. Pardon me if I’m tempted to spray paint a red triangle on his hull. 

PS: I said above that I wish ill on no Jew. I do, however, wish Benjamin Netanyahu would lose his role as Israeli prime minister and he’d likely see that as a set back. 

Does death feel nearby for you today? If you’re dealing with a recent or impending death, whether a plant, a puppy or a grandparent, I’m sorry. Death can be brutal. And if it’s your own: Ah, may God give you sense of his nearness. 

When I’m not in the midst of it, I find it fascinating how we deal with death and the dead. We follow the blend of rules and customs, faith and culture we’ve generally agreed on. How does that compare to Muslims around us?

How Muslims deal with death and the dead

• The customs and rituals of death for Muslims tend to be handled more by family and community than by professionals, as they are for many of us.
• Ghusl Mayyit, the ritual cleaning and shrouding of a dead body, is usually carried out by family members who are the same sex as the person who has died. It involves washing. . . in a specific way while maintaining privacy and dignity.
• Ideally, the shrouded body is placed directly in the earth. While most U.S. states do not require a casket or vault, many cemeteries do, making the direct burial value a challenge to keep. Cremation is not endorsed.
• Given that bodies are not embalmed, burial is desired within 24 hours of death.
• While customs vary widely, excessive mourning is generally frowned upon. Because Islamic convictions hold that the end of life on Earth is not the end, wailing and crying can be seen as a lack of faith. 

My friend is leading a memorial service tomorrow. He’ll lean heavily on Paul’s words in I Thess. 4, reminding the mourners that in Jesus, we do “not grieve as others do who have no hope.” 

As a Muslim looks at the grave, there is hope, but it is tenuous. In some schools of thought the grave grows pleasant and comfortable for those who’ve lived well, but increasingly painful and constricting for those who failed to do so. 

Yeah, death is brutal. 

For much of the top half of the planet, these present days mark the return to school. Kids from California to Kamchatka bid a fond adieu to fun, freedom and non-school food. 

They trade the joys of summer for the challenges of school, including sometimes being and other times welcoming new kids. 

Some of those new kids in some of those schools will be Muslim. And some of those will have all of the standard new kid vibes plus they’ll be wearing a hijab or bearing a very non-Jaden/Braden/Caden name. 

If you’re reading this as it drops and your nearby school starts on Monday like it does for my tribe, you’ve got a couple of days to maybe make a difference. If kids owe you respect because you’re way older than them, attention because you’re their teacher or maybe money because you feed and house them, gather them around you. (An open bag of Sour Patch Kids is great bait for my munchkins.) 

Tell them it’s possible there will be a new student or two at their school who is Muslim. You may mention Muslims follow a different faith, but we have some things in common. Share that some students will be weirded out by Muslim kids, but you’d like them to remember this: 

Muslim kids are lit! (They’ll know “lit” is a good thing, even it it isn’t part of your everyday vocabulary.) Proceed to work the acronym: 

L: Loved by God. 

I: Insecure. Of course not all are, but since most kids are insecure the first few days of school, the likelihood is high! Plus the extra stuff.

T: Terrific. You don’t need to be afraid of them. In fact, they might become a really good friend for you and you for them. 

If it’s in your authority to do so, tell them you’ll give them a whole bag of Sour Patch Kids if they set up a play date in the first week of school! 

Feel free to pass this idea along. Cut and paste in your bulletin or post it on the church Facebook page. 

It’s a tough time to be a Christian, love Jesus and love Muslims. 

There’s pressure to support Israel without question, regardless of its actions. There’s pressure to commit to (almost?) any ends in opposition to abortion and immigration. And if you dip into social media, the algorithms will quickly turn the apparent fight up to 11! 

If it’s tough for you, but you’re trying today, thank you. Hang in there. Here are three things that help me: 

1. Throw a ball for a dog. 
2. Marinate in Psalms that admit things are a mess, but God’s got it. Psalm 16, 18 and the ever-popular 46 are good starters. 
3. Ask good and thoughtful questions; of yourself, God and others. 

I don’t know how “good and thoughtful” a question this is, but I’m wondering if Muslims in the U.S. will rally to Kamala Harris. 

Arab-Americans provided instrumental support to President Biden in his push to the White House. His policies on the war in Gaza have now alienated many, calling into question the impact their voices will have on the upcoming election. 

Now they’re waiting to see what stance Harris will take. Will she continue the current party line relative to Israel or will she make an effort to differentiate from her boss’s approach? 

This might be a good question to sensitively pose to a Muslim friend. Let’s keep aware though that many Muslims will have a more deeply emotional connection to the conflict than many Christians. For us, it’s more likely a theological question. For them, it could literally be a family issue. 

As we watch this unfold, let’s join together in asking God that the war in Gaza, which daily threatens to expand, would come to a quick and just conclusion.

Ps. 46.10 “Be still, and know that I am God!
I am exalted among the nations;
I am exalted in the earth.”

11 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.

Please see the final week giving note at the end of today’s email.

My sweet wife is currently reading a book called God and Money. (Fair warning, you might not want to read it. I get little nervous every time she says, “So I read this thing in that book on money. . . .”) 

The book tells the story of how “John and Greg met as Harvard MBA candidates in a men’s Bible study and stopped asking ‘How much should I give?’ and started asking ‘How much do I need to keep?’” 

That’s a great question. For the sake of honesty, though, I should admit our family has yet to fully engage it. But it’s got us thinking about how Muslims think about money. (It’s almost always easier to wonder about someone else, than deal with it yourself, innit?)

The Zakat Foundation, a non-profit helping distribute Muslims’ charity briefly shares: 

“Five Essential Islamic Teachings on Wealth”
(If you think, “Whoa, these sound familiar, you’re not wrong!)

1. Wealth can be enjoyed, but do not let it distract you.
Wealth can give us pleasure in life, but it can also be a distraction from what is truly important. A Muslim should not save and hoard great sums of money, but should distribute it to those who are in need of it.

2. It is never acceptable to earn a living by doing wrong.Muslims must earn their wealth in a lawful, or halal, way. “O you who have believed, do not consume one another’s wealth unjustly but only [in lawful] business by mutual consent.” Quran 4:29

3. Practice charity toward the poor, orphans and those in need.
The faith of Muslims is built on the five pillars of Islam. One of those pillars is giving wealth to charity, or zakat.

4. Do not fear poverty. God will provide.
Some believers say that fearing poverty is the same as not trusting in God.

5. Giving of your wealth is the source of true prosperity.
“The example of those who spend their wealth in the way of God is like a seed [of grain] which grows seven spikes; in each spike is a hundred grains.” [Quran 2:261]

May God help Muslims honor him with their wealth. And you and me, too.

Today is the final week for this semi-annual Muslim Connect funding drive. (And it’s oddly aligned with an unplanned edition on zakat!) If you’ve been considering a gift, now would be a good time. I’m raising money to get all the 390+ editions of Muslim Connect archived at shanebennett.com. I’m also beginning to dream about putting a collection of them together in a book! If you’d like to give, please click here, navigate to the “Staff” drop down, select me and proceed. Thank you very much. 

Please see the special note at the end of today’s email.

In case your Islamic calendar has gone missing, the current month is Muharram, the first of the Muslim year. On the 10th day of Muharram, Muslims celebrate a holiday known as Ashura. Ashura fell this year on July 16th and 17th.

While all Muslims celebrate Ashura, both the ways and reasons vary between Sunnis and Shias.

For Sunnis, Ashura mainly commemorates Moses parting the Red Sea. Some add remembering Noah getting off the ark and Joseph getting released from prison. Like Shias, Sunnis celebrate with fasting, extra prayers and giving money to charity and family. 

Ashura is a much bigger deal for Shias. For them it commemorates the 10th day of Muharram in the seventh century when Husayn, Muhammad’s grandson was killed by the Umayyad army in the Battle of Karbala. Shias believe he was the rightful successor to Muhammad and remember his martyrdom still today.

Shias fast, add prayers to the schedule and give money like Sunnis, but they also engage in elaborate and heartfelt mourning ceremonies. 

Muhammad is reported in a Hadith to have said when asked about fasting on Ashura, that doing so expiates the minor sins of the past year.

As is too often the case, violence marred this year’s celebration of Ashura: Islamic State terrorists fired on a gathering of Shias in Muscat, Oman, killing six and wounding 30. Four of the dead were Pakistani citizens. 

Jesus said the enemy came to steal, kill and destroy, but he came to bring abundant life. May that life be increasingly known among us and throughout the Muslim world. 

Twice a year I invite you to consider a gift to help fund Muslim Connect. The email is free and always will be, but this summer I’m asking God to bring in the necessary resources to archive all of the Muslim Connect emails at shanebennett.com. If you’ve learned something today or found value in Muslim Connect generally, please click here, navigate to the “Staff” drop down, select me and proceed. Thank you very much. 

Please see the special note at the end of today’s email.

The governor of Louisiana recently signed a law requiring the Ten Commandments (10C) be posted in every public school classroom, from elementary through university. 

“No later than January 1, 2025, each public school. . .shall display the Ten Commandments in each classroom. . . .The. . .Ten Commandments shall be displayed on a poster or framed document that is at least eleven inches by fourteen inches. The text of the Ten Commandments shall be the central focus of the poster. . .and shall be printed in a large, easily readable font.”

I’m guessing if you’re reading Muslim Connect you’re fairly pro-Ten Commandments. You think they’re a good idea and you endeavor to shape your life in alignment to them. 

But should governments, local, state or federal, mandate their display in public school classrooms? And you may wonder, like I do, what does this mean for Muslim school kids? Of course there are myriad other considerations as well. 

Two questions come to my mind:

1. What do Muslims think of the Ten Commandments? Turns out you can find parallels to each of the commands in the Quran, save remembering the Sabbath. They’re not in a list like Exodus 20, but the sentiments are reflected. So Muslims agree generally with the governor of Louisiana that the 10C reflect God-ordained and sensible, moral rails for life with God and society.

   But does this make a Muslim fifth grader feel more or less at home in her classroom? And frankly in what ways and how much does that really matter? To me, you, the governor of Louisiana?

2. Do you think this law is a good idea or not? I’d love for you to take 30 seconds and weigh in on this one question survey.

However you see this, may God give us all grace to live by the 10C and even more so by Jesus’s sum up of them to love the Lord God with all you have and love your neighbor as yourself!

Twice a year I invite you to consider a gift to help fund Muslim Connect. The email is free and always will be, but a contribution now will help it keep going and growing. Particularly this summer I’m asking God to bring in the necessary resources to archive all of the Muslim Connect emails at shanebennett.com. If you’ve found value in Muslim Connect and would like to help, please click here, navigate to the “Select Designation” drop down, select me and proceed. Thank you very much.