Nice Bombs

U. had an interesting conversation with his father on our last day in Amman. It was about Shari'a Islamic law. According to my father-in-law it is normal and acceptable for a man to see a prostitute if he's single, however if a woman lives with a man whom she is about to marry and has sex with him it is a punishable sin. She can be arrested. His wife agreed that this is normal and ok, and that women are basically responsible for being sexually moral and chaste outside of marriage, wheras men are not. I was surprised to hear this from a woman.

This morning I was reading a spoof on the argument against gay marriage found here. It's critical of the antiquated notions of marriage in Christanity.

Now, hold on, because these two are connected. It made me wonder. Is there any scathing self criticism of Islam by Muslims? Is there anyone who says, "hey these things may have made sense in Muhhamad's time, but they don't work now?" Is there progressive Islam?

I remember Uncle K., the religious scholar, mentioning that in his studies he has found certain "holes" in the Quran, but that he would never write about them, since he would lose his status as an acedemic, and may even be persecuted. Or perhaps it was his brother who mentioned this about him.

I also remember someone telling me that the job of the clerics is to make suggestions and sort of "ammendments" to fit the times. Kinda like the pope in Catholicism, I guess. So I'm just curious if it is possible for Islam to shift with the needs and circumstances of a contemporizing culture?

You see I had done some research on the Vodoun religion. The thing I love best about it is that it's constantly in flux. It shifts, changes, adapts. Since the rituals are based upon everyday things, of course it has to. It is a flexible religion, based solidly in African traditions, but always progressing. And then there's my religion, Wicca. It seems suited for the times. The doctrine of live-and-let-live seems to harmonize with post-modern America. It fits. And it's ecologically/earth conscious, which is a much needed awareness in our contemporary society.

It just seems to me that a religion which is incapable of flexibility, reinterpretation, ammendment, or which has no awareness of comtemporary issues that may never have been a concern in the past, can only clash with a changing society. I think that religion can hold on to the power of it's roots, the wisdom of it's longevity, the traditions that people hold dear. However, it has to remain alive. It can't stagnate, or it will become irrelevant, or worse yet force people backwards in human spiritual evolution.

So if anyone has any information regarding a "progressive" Islam, I'd be very interested.

You have to understand, being in the Middle East, it was strange for me to see religion woven so tighly into the fabric of everyday life. It was facsinating, but also a little like a sci-fi novel. It seemed like a persistent sort of conditioning of the mind, to always, no matter what, be aware that you are in a Muslim country. From the call to prayer echoing off houses, to abiyas in the streets, there was a certain in-your-faceness of something that I regard as personal and private. I respect it, but that kind of conformity always unsettles me and my powerful need for individuality.

I can't get over my amazement of this clash of cultures between East and West. I don't know what I expected. Did I expect Europe with a different alphabet and better food? I think I did. It's was something I needed to experience. I know this. One can never fully have a feel for something until one is inside it.

I am now painfully aware of my Westerness. It's almost embarrassing. And yet I'm sort of embracing it.

Today, I am wrestling with a strange sort of at-home-ness whilst my existensialist angst reemerges. I feel I need more education, while wondering why I need anything at all.

Maybe it's time to apply for that PhD program now... I need to occupy my brain with things outside myself again.

K