RELIGIOUS SERVICE

Religious Service

Abstract

The research highlights the assumptions that are observed in a religious service. The study focuses on the misconceptions that have to be considered in the research. This paper emphasizes on the misconceptions related to Islam, when visiting Islamic centre. Thus, the misconception is associated with a number of quotes. Finally the paper gives brief information to understand the religion in a holistic perspective with respect to the book, “Living Religions”.

Religious Service

Introduction

Everyone in the world knows the feeling of being hurt when someone misunderstands you. It is more painful when it is related to national, cultural or religious levels extending the hurt to millions. However, in today's ever changing world, we have the opportunity to overcome such misconceptions in order to minimize the boundaries between countries and religions. It has been observed that people living in the west part of the world have various misconceptions about Muslims and Islam, and so did I use to have some misconceptions that were overcome after conducting this research. The most common problem is that the western world is believed to be more advanced, enlightened and liberated, while Islam is just the opposite. The key to understand Islam and Muslims is to resist stereotypes and examine each situation according to Islamic teachings, and not as actions by Muslims (Siebers 1993).

Discussion

I will demonstrate the facts that were unrevealed to me in the religious service that I attended. It was the Islamic centre where they give speech “Khutba” to the people regardless of whoever came in to listen. The misconception, which I used to have about Islam, was a common and biggest misconception that the world has, about Islam. Islam is portrayed as a terrorist and when any Muslim fights against the other party regardless of whether they fight justly or unjustly, considered to be a terrorist. However, reading the chapter on Islam in Living Religion”, I found Muslims believes and their followings.

“It is thus said our thoughts, actions, and moral qualities are returned into our outer reality” (Mary, 2011).

Through this research, I was able to find the answer to my question that whether Islam encourages terrorism or not? The answer is certainly not because the teachings of Islam totally forbids and condemns the misguided acts of vigilantes, which target innocent civilians. However, Muslims do not remain and should not remain silent while facing oppression, injustice and humiliation because a religion or a culture cannot survive if it is not able to protect itself. The other major thing I observed was the phrase that highlighted the point of war “Jihad” in Islam, which was considered a total misconception by everyone including myself.

Jihad = Jahada “To struggle, strive, fight for the faith”.

The people in that Islamic centre were listening to the “Khutba” very carefully and what I found out it is that they were against the terrorism too. People there were mainly concerned about the peace. Even I was confused that my perception about the Islam could be a ...