Shane Bennett

If you live in the U.S., you may still be shaking off a Thanksgiving turkey bender. Can I invite you to jump start your brain and help me think about something?

I’m working with a super talented sketch note artist, Mike Rohde, to design an introductory graphic to depict the very basics all Christians should know about Muslims. Recognizing my perspective on this might be both limited and skewed (Really, what are the odds?!?), your input would be very helpful.

To get us going, here are the top seven things I think all Christians should know. What would you add to the list?

1. The world’s 1.6 billion Muslims are wildly diverse in ethnicity, beliefs and actual practice of those beliefs. Most are not Arab and do not speak Arabic.
2. Muslims are loved by God. We might think about Muslims in our day the way Jesus did about Samaritans in his. Jesus wants Muslims to have the abundant life he said he came to bring.
3. In general most Muslims are very similar to Christians in terms of family, values and thoughts about God. We have much of our religious history in common.
4. Much of the negative stuff you hear or read about Muslims is designed to play you, to get your vote or your money. Not all, but much.
5. Islamic terrorism kills more Muslims that any others.
6. Most Muslims believe Islam can and will take over the Earth.
7. Muslims are down for a chat. Again, not all and not all the time, but maybe more than we might expect.

So what would you add, change or subtract from this list? If you’re willing to share your wisdom, please go to this Google Doc and expound or comment below. If you’d like a copy of the graphic when it’s ready, let me know here. Thank you.

Here’s something that’s been rolling around in my mind recently: Muslims don’t believe in the doctrine of original sin. That is, that we’re all born sinners because of Adam and Eve’s sin. Turns out Jews don’t believe this either and a good portion of Christians, including most who followed Jesus in the days before Augustine.

I don’t have the space here to fully deal with this doctrine. (I sometimes say that when I actually just don’t know how!) But I’d like to point out three things:

1. It’s interesting that Muslims believe people are basically able to follow God’s purposes if they only will. If you want to look into this, here’s a Muslim talking about “Original Mercy.”
2. I think most Muslims would say, as would most Christians, that they all too often, even regularly, sin. This reality makes John’s words in his second letter so deeply good and helpful: “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
3. This could be a good thing to kick around with your Muslim friends. Are people born sinful? What do you think sin is? Would you say you’re a good Muslim? What hope do we have against sin?

This line of conversation leads pretty directly to talking about Jesus. What did he say about sin? What does he do about it? Even this, “You know what his best friend said?” Then quote John from the passage above.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Please comment below. If you enjoy Muslim Connect, please share it with a friend.

Prayer update: If you prayed for our daughter Anna after her crash two weeks ago, thank you. She’s still sore, but doing better. And she bought a replacement car a couple of days ago! 

My 19 year old daughter and I had a fun chat driving home today. We batted around a number of current issues, including immigration and kneeling NFL players. We pulled into the driveway before we got to 2nd amendment rights! She tends to be more conservative on these issues than I am, while I tend to be, hmmm, balanced, I think you call it!

We both agree that it’s good, but challenging, to hear the ideas and opinions of people who are different from you, who think differently from you. Since it’s human nature to find comfort in having our thoughts and perceptions reinforced, rather than challenged, humor can sometimes serve as a good container for alternative perspectives.

With that in mind, I want to cautiously invite you to check out a very short, made-for-the-web TV series called Halal in the Family. Its four episodes of campy parody aim, “to combat bias and challenge misconceptions about Muslims and communities associated with Muslims.” (Tweet this.)

Halal in the Family sheds light on issues of, “surveillance and spying in Muslim communities; online bullying and hate networks; media bias; and the use of anti-Muslim prejudice for political gain.”

You might find the shows funny, but also a little painful. It hurts that people must deal with suspicion, misrepresentation and abuse. Honestly, it’s a little hurtful to find those things in my own heart.

There is some course language in the out takes that follow the show’s credits and a slight bit of off-color humor. That said, I think Halal in the Family merits watching. It’s good for us to see things about Muslims by Muslims.

Before I go showing these at church or something, I’d love to hear your thoughts. In the comments, please tell us what you think and where you might show Halal in the Family.

In her wonderful new book, Across the Street and Around the World, my friend Jeannie Marie tells an amazing story:

“I had never met a Muslim before this moment. I’d left the suburbs and driven into the city on a personal quest: to practice global compassion in my local context. I swallowed hard and dragged myself into the modest refugee resettlement office.” 

After brief introductions, the administrator, Ayisha, asked Jeanne why she was there.

“Someone told me that Iraqi refugees were coming to Phoenix. So I looked it up online and found your name. It sounded Muslim. I thought it would be good for me to actually meet a Muslim. You also said on the phone that you’re helping refugees, so I thought, well, maybe I could help somehow.” 

“Yes,” Ayisha said. “You can help.” 

Jeannie imagined collecting food or clothing, distributing it into the grateful hands of refugees. Everyone would smile at each other. . .and then they’d all go home.

“Instead, Ayisha said, ‘I just met a young widow with three small children, who arrived last month from Iraq as a refugee. If all that you are saying is true, then I would like you to come with me to her apartment tomorrow.’ She paused before continuing. ‘American soldiers accidentally killed her husband. I would like you to come with me and ask forgiveness for the American people.’”

Serious stuff, eh? Can you put yourself in Jeannie’s shoes? What would you think about this request? How would you answer Ayisha? What would you do?

Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

If you’d like to know what Jeannie Marie did, pre-order her book here. If you do so now, you’ll get the first three chapters of the book in PDF format, 20% of the audio book, a phone lock-screen set and an exclusive bonus chapter. I’d love for you to get this important new book. Please check it out.