Was Islam really born in Mecca? Nope. Try Petra.

Every year new research on the early history of Islam comes out. It is very exciting!

Here is a video about one researcher, Dan Gibson, who argues that the original birthplace of Islam was in fact Petra (in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan), and that the city known as Mecca today in Saudi Arabia didn't even exist at the beginning of the Islamic calendar (begins in 622 AD).

Here is a trailer, though the entire movie, The Sacred City, is at Amazon:



If you really into the topic of Islamic origins, I also note that Gibson has a newly published book, Early Islamic Qiblas. I understand that the book develops in much greater detail the argument in the movie.

How the US attacking Syria could plunge the region into war

So 90% of the American people want NO military action in Syria, but President Obama, it seems, is intent on doing just this. This will be very bad for the whole region, though. Here is a likely scenario:

In fact, it is being reported that cruise missile strikes could begin "as early as Thursday".  The Obama administration is pledging that the strikes will be "limited", but what happens when the Syrians fight back?  What happens if they sink a U.S. naval vessel or they have agents start hitting targets inside the United States?  Then we would have a full-blown war on our hands.  And what happens if the Syrians decide to retaliate by hitting Israel?  If Syrian missiles start raining down on Tel Aviv, Israel will be extremely tempted to absolutely flatten Damascus, and they are more than capable of doing precisely that.  And of course Hezbollah and Iran are not likely to just sit idly by as their close ally Syria is battered into oblivion. 

We are looking at a scenario where the entire Middle East could be set aflame, and that might only be just the beginning.  Russia and China are sternly warning the U.S. government not to get involved in Syria, and by starting a war with Syria we will do an extraordinary amount of damage to our relationships with those two global superpowers. (From HERE)

Grim stuff. Instability is already spilling from Syria into Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon. But that can be contained. This, however, would be a game changer, and certainly not in a good way. America needs to stay out of Syria. Totally and completely. Just send tents and food for women and children refugees (not men), and don't resettle ANY of them in North America or Europe. That is my advice.

On the unrest in countries like Egypt, Yemen, and Jordan

by Abu Daoud

Well, what can I say?

I have been surprised by the outbreak in massive riots in Egypt, and lessed such events in Yemen and Jordan. What really seemed like the moment when 'the levee's gonna break' was when folks in Egypt started calling for the resignation of Mubaarak.

You see, you can have riots, even violent, destructive ones, in the Middle East, for certain causes, like Islamic stuff (of course), and anti-American and anti-Israel stuff (of course), and even maybe for rather pragmatic things like the price of bread or sugar of tomatos. You can even call for new elections or a new parliament or a new group of ministers (the new boss...same as the old boss), a la Jordan. But you can't call for the top guy to be replaced, or to leave, or to step down, or anything. In fact, you should not even mention him, unless you are saying, hey this guy needs to save us from these corrupt jerks. Then it's ok.

Well, that's not what is happening in Egypt. The police are out of play, widely despised by people in general. Now the military has been called in, and what of that? Even if one or two main commanders tell their troops, you know, we're here to defend Egypt from Israel and Libya and fill-in-the-blank, so we're just not going to get invovled in this, either way....well, that will end up being decisive. If a couple of influential commanders do that, then a new regime in Egypt is not impossible.

But if the military by and large obey their orders (which seem illegitimate to me, but then again I'm American), then sooner or later, perhaps after much bloodshed, the iron will of the Mubaarak Dynasty will be enforced upon all.

The Oldest Christian Church?

The oldest Christian church?

Archaeologists in Jordan announced on Tuesday the discovery of a cave under the church of St Georgeous in Rihab that they believe was used as far back as between 33 AD to 70 AD to shelter early disciples of Jesus Christ - making it the first Christian church in the world

See all the pics HERE.

Is Jordan falling under the control of Palestinians?

Robert Fisk has a great article here on the rising influence of Palestinians in Jordanian government. While the military leaders in the article are pretty anti-USA and anti-Israel, I think that overall they are really making a good point.

Why Jordan is Occupied by Palestinians

The slow death of the Jordan River

The BBC has a great photo-series about the Jordan River. Do check it out. Very sad.

In Pictures: Journey down the Jordan

And remember my predictions about the next big war being about water--not oil.

Jordanian Blogger on Ramadan

[Per the request of the blogger at Black Iris of Jordan, this entire post has been removed. Sincerely, Abu Daoud.]

Kingdom of Jordan has plans for new railway

Well, Jordan has some great new plan, it really could work I think. If--and this is a big if--the bidding process is really transparent and honest. Which is a big IF in Jordan. That having been said, I wish the Kingdom the best of luck in this new endeavor. Heaven knows they have a real problem with unemployment (25%) and rising fundamentalism.

AMMAN (AFP) — Jordan plans to begin work on a six-billion-dollar railway next year to bolster trade with its neighbours and create jobs for its cash-strapped population, Transport Minister Sahl Majali told AFP in an interview.

"The 4.5-billion-dinar project is vital to Jordan because it will make freight movement faster and easier, cut transportation costs and boost trade," Majali said on Tuesday.

"It will also create massive job opportunities for Jordanians."

The railway would link the Red Sea port of Aqaba with the Syrian border, through Amman and then the industrial city of Zarqa -- the two largest cities in the largely desert country.

Extending some 1,600 kilometres (about 990 miles), the railway would also link the Saudi and Iraqi borders with Jordan's northern city of Irbid and the northeastern towns of Mafraq and Azraq.

Work will begin next year and is scheduled to be completed by 2013, Majali said. The focus will initially be on freight services, with passenger trains planned for the future. [...]

AFP.

Legal Ruling on an Honor Killing in Jordan

Here is a great post from Jordan where honor killings happen on a regular basis. Read the whole thing please, but note specifically the section that contains the court's opinion and verdict on why this murderer only got a slap on the hand:

“It is obvious that the defendant did not plot the murder and his actions came immediately after reading his sister’s confessions,” the court said, noting that the defendant benefits from a reduction in penalty because his sister was involved in extramarital affairs in return for money, which led to her divorce and “brought her family shame and disgrace”.

“Her actions hurt her parents, brothers and unmarried sisters’ honour and reputation and are considered by the court as dangerous and unlawful, especially to the defendant, since in our customs and traditions a man is valued by his sister’s behaviour and honour among his community,” the court ruled.

Book Review: Spiritual Warfare in the Middle East

Just finished reading this and found this book review to be adequate:

Spiritual Warfare in the Middle East
by Glenn Patton
Brentwood Christian Press 1992

An interesting little book. However, one would expect the author, a Southern Baptist missionary in Lebanon and Jordan during the 70's, to actually know how to spell "Maronite" since it is, after all, the largest and oldest church in Lebanon--there is no such thing as the 'Marionite' church.

Also grating is his overarching emphasis on being Baptist, as opposed to simply evangelical or even Christian. He has not one positive thing to say about the historical Christian communities of Lebanon and Jordan who managed to stay Christian through centuries of brutal Islamic rule, and one senses that he does not see them any differently than the Shi'a and Sunni Muslim communities in those countries.

In one story though he almost seems apologetic about how his missionary agency (the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Conference) is so focused on Baptists only. He is invited to speak to a group of Christians and teach them, he is later told he must cease because they are not formally baptists.

That having been said there are several truly touching moments throughout the book, and it can not be doubted that his years of sacrifice and ministry demonstrate a true and deep Christian longing to see the Gospel (according to the Baptists) increase. The story about the exorcism of a young Jewess is precious, the testimonies about changed lives of both Muslims and nominal Christians are also encouraging. His call for missionaries to the Middle East must be heard.

Finally, the insights into the political and historical situations leading up to the Lebanese Civil War and the attempt of the Palestinians to overthrow the Jordanian monarchy were quite interesting to me, though politics is not his main concern.

In sum, it is a short read and if you happen across it, it will be worth your while to read it, though his treatment of non-Baptist Christians will be annoying to non-Fundamentalists.

[Abu Daoud says: for a better, though different, group of missions testimonies see Ten Muslims Meet Christ by William M. Miller.]

Jordan: What human rights?

From CT:

A Jordanian Islamic court has annulled the marriage of Mohammad Abbad, a Muslim convert to Christianity. The North Amman Shari'ah Court said in a May 22 document that "marriage depends on the creed [religion], and the apostate has no creed." Though Jordan's penal code does not outlaw apostasy, and its constitution guarantees freedom of religion, the country maintains Islam, which forbids conversion to other faiths, as its official religion. Abbad, 40, fled the country in March with his wife and two young children, after being assaulted in his home by acquaintances who demanded custody of his children.

What am I reading? And: a New Jordan blog.

Salaam!

What am I reading?

Still slugging along with the Purgatorial and penitential A History of Islamic Legal Theories by Wael B. Halleq. By far the most technical work I have ever read on the shari'a. I let it sit for a while on the book shelf while I tackled the superfluous Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which curiously contains several references to the Bible, including quotations of Biblical verses.

In addition to my regular plundering of the pages of the International Bulletin of Missionary Research and International Journal of Frontier Missions, I also rushed through the unique and practical Planting Churches in Muslim Cities by the inscrutable Greg Livingstone.

In terms of hard core theology recently finished The Promise of Trinitarian Theology by Gunton which was a joyful exploration of and vindication the Cappadocian school over against Augustine. I liked it, but if you can deal with it, Beauty of the Infinite is better, though it is more technical and not as clearly written.

Currently have gone back to some important history: the break up of the Ottoman Empire during and after WWI. Very readable and highly recommended: A Peace to End All Peace by David Fromkin.

New Blog

For those of you interested in Jordan there is a new blog: Observations of a Jordanian

Furor in France, Frustration in Jordan, and Women

Two interesting links here. One is regarding the furor in France:

PARIS (AP) - The bride said she was a virgin. When her new husband discovered that was a lie, he went to court to annul the marriage—and a French judge agreed.

The ruling ending the Muslim couple's union has stunned France and raised concerns the country's much-cherished secular values are losing ground to religious traditions from its fast-growing immigrant communities.

The decision also exposed the silent shame borne by some Muslim women who transgress long-held religious dictates demanding proof of virginity on the wedding night.

In its ruling, the court concluded the woman had misrepresented herself as a virgin and that, in this particular marriage, virginity was a prerequisite.

But in treating the case as a breach of contract, the ruling was decried by critics who said it undermined decades of progress in women's rights. Marriage, they said, was reduced to the status of a commercial transaction in which women could be discarded by husbands claiming to have discovered hidden defects in them. [...]

And some great remarks on the awkwardness of interacting with women while living in the ME (in his case Jordan):

...It is this segregation of the sexes that creates vexing problems for me sometimes. For instance, even after two years in our apartment building, I still would not recognize two out of the three Jordanian women who live here if I ran into them on the street. I've had conversations with them, but only through the closed doors of their apartments when I've come to ask a question of their husbands. Hence, I have no idea what they look like.

A further issue occurs when I see women on our street that I have seen outside before and know live nearby. My instinct is to be friendly, to say a simple hello, perhaps engage in small talk, and move on. This is what I would do at home, and perhaps after a time we would move on from small talk to something more meaningful. Here, though, such friendliness would be considered somewhat forward, and who knows who might be looking down on me from their upstairs window? As a result, if I happen to cross paths with a women, usually I just put my head down and keep walking. This even troubles me, though, when I come across women I do know. Recently I happened to be at the falafal shop nearby when a women from church came in. I talk to her at church, and she has been to our home more than once. However, because of the stigma that surrounds gender mixing here, I was unsure of how to acknowledge her presence. I wanted to greet her, but I didn't want to appear too friendly in front of all the guys at the falafal shop. So, we did speak for a minute, but it was an awkward conversation during which I wondered the whole time what everyone else was thinking.[...]

Jerusalem Patriarch of the Orthodox Church

Much of the Middle East falls under the territory of this Patriarchate. (N. Africa is all under the Patriarch of Alexandria.) But interestingly enough the Patriarch and the bishops are all Greek, even today. Atallah Mansour in his "Narrow Gate Churches" ascribes the rather severe numerical decline of Orthodoxy in the Holy Land to the fact of Greek hegemony. The word Roum in the following paragraph means Greek as in the Byzantine Empire which was still the Holy Roman Empire, it does not mean Roman as in Latin or Italian. Roman Catholics here are called Latin Christians. Greek Catholics (Melkites) are simply called Catholic. Eastern Orthodox are called Orthodox or Roum:

Even in Arabic, most publications call that church Roum-Orthodox despite the fact that over 99% of their church members in the Holy Land call themselves Arab, speak Arabic as a mother tongue and fail to understand their church leaders rituals in the Greek language. The Greek clergy insist the church is Greek and the church's assets belong to Greek nationals--thus they refuse to appoint Arabs to membership in the Holy Sepulchre Fraternity since this might force them to share with Arab natives the church's material assets. Many faithful Orthodox Christians voted against the Greek clergy's hegemony with their feet by joining other churches.

Narrow Gate Churches by Atallah Mansour
p. 204-05

While I have a great deal of respect for Orthodoxy from a theological point the pastoral care (if one can call it that) that they provide for their flock is truly disastrous. It is hard, given these circumstances, for me to feel sorry for the Orthodox even though they are historically the original church through much of the region.

And since we're on the topic, here is an example of Orthodox chant in Arabic:

Christianity Today: Jordan evicts evangelicals

Jordan's Eviction Notice

Country hailed for tolerance deports at least 27 Christians.

[...]

Jordan said through its U.S. embassy that the deportations came in response to complaints from Catholic and Orthodox bishops about evangelicals' proselytizing. Much of evangelicals' growth has come from the conversion of nominal Catholic and Orthodox believers.

However, one evangelical leader in Jordan said multiple factors, including new pastors with better training, increased access to satellite TV and the Internet, and prayer are combining to draw Jordanians to the Christian faith.

"I wish what the government accuses us of doing was true, that we are doing evangelism, giving Bibles away, going to the streets," he said. "But these people are just coming to us, and they have a hunger."

Jordan's moderate government is facing growing political pressure from at least three sources: Islamic fundamentalism, turmoil in surrounding nations, and the economic strain of hosting almost one million Iraqi refugees. Observers say reducing the number of foreign evangelicals allowed the government to build political capital with both Muslim hardliners and Christian bishops.

"Jordan has bigger problems than missionaries," said one longtime missionary in the country. "Jordan is more afraid of internal security threats than of religion."

Some of the deportations can also be attributed to well-intended Western missionaries with flawed practices. "Too much of the evangelical 'evangelism' in Jordan is spurred on by demands from sending agencies in America who require quick results and statistics that assure donors of success by American church-growth standards," said Leonard Rodgers, executive director of Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding.

Observers said missionaries to Jordan should devote more attention to interfaith and ecumenical discussions, and to strengthening indigenous Jordanian churches. [...]

Inter-Christian relations in the Middle East

One of the most contentious issues right now among the small Christian communities throughout the Middle East concerns the relationship between evangelicals and the traditional Orthodox and Catholic churches. There is an article on it at CT but here is the section I found interesting:

5. The need for cooperation between evangelicals and non-evangelicals. It was indeed shocking and sad that the council of the Catholic and Orthodox bishops in Jordan denounced the presence of the evangelical churches and their institutions in the newspapers and television, resulting in further media backlash. This has brought pain and confusion to the average Jordanian citizen and shame to Christians in the eyes of Arabs in the region. It is difficult to understand how the Catholics and Orthodox churches call on the cessation of all evangelical activity in the country when they and the evangelical churches are equally registered as churches in the country; both have the same common foundation of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible, and at least the Nicene, Athanasian, and Chalcedonian creeds, and they together do not constitute more than 3 percent of the population!

It is understandable that many Catholics and Orthodox Christians are angry that some evangelicals view them as not being true believers. Surely some evangelicals err in this regard and should cease from judging others. But evangelicals are good people and sincerely seek to serve Christ and see all who carry Christ's name walk in truth with him. They desire to share the weight of this responsibility with all churches that have the same vision. Yet it is imperative that intervention takes place at the highest ecclesiastical level to seek ways of cooperation.

Black Iris: How Denmark Became a Jordanian Distraction

Excellent comments here from a guy in Jordan, who is trying to help that country move forward. He makes these comments after describing various efforts to start a boycott of Danish goods.

How Denmark Became a Jordanian Distraction

[...]I find boycotts ironic sometimes, especially in Jordan. But forget about the shooting-yourself-in-the-foot quality that comes with hurting local businesses here in Jordan more than the Danish media in Denmark. Forget about the fact that people are boycotting Danish butter but are still taking their insulin shots (80% of which are imported from Denmark). Forget about the irony of the pirated DVD shop, Hammudeh, posting “Don’t buy Danish products” on its door. Instead, think about this:

Why is no one boycotting local goods by local producers whose prices have skyrocketed, some of which have gone unchecked by the consumer protection society (in my opinion)? Isn’t that the natural reaction? Why were no boycotts issued for Israeli products or more specifically American products, over the massacres happening in Palestine?

I ask these questions not to urge such boycotts but to point out the irony of Jordanian’s having chosen to boycott something utterly ridiculous in light of much more serious issues.

Produce prices have gone up.

Bread prices have gone up. We even have to pay for the plastic bags they put them in now.

Fuel prices have gone up.

Dairy prices have gone up.

Real wages have stayed the same.

Where is the outcry there? Where is the outrage over an issue that hits closest to home? Where is the mass mobilization and campaigns and vibrant speeches in the Parliament by our “representatives”?

Nowhere.

So you’ve gotta ask yourself: what the hell is going on here? [...]

Honor Killings all around!

Recent honor killings in:

Jordan

Israel

And a conference on the practice in Saudi Arabia

Spengler: Should Islam be blamed for 'barbaric' acts?

Spengler is a brilliant scholar of Islam. The name 'Spengler' is, of course, a pseudonym. For obvious reasons. I love it when he publishes:

Should Islam be blamed for 'barbaric' acts?
by Spengler

[...] Islam by its nature cannot be separated from primitive life. [...]

The Hebrew Bible reports the practice of honor killing, but abhors it. Muslims remain divided on the subject. Strictly speaking, it is true that Islamic law forbids a Muslim family from killing an adulteress or a woman who has had relations with a non-Muslim man. But that is only because Islamic law specifies that Islamic courts, rather than families, should supervise the killing. It is not that women (and sometimes men) should not be killed for the crime of illicit sexual relations, but rather that the Islamic courts should arrange the killing.

For this reason, Islamic law views quite leniently honor killings that accomplish what the courts would have done given the opportunity, and many Islamic commentators do not see why families should wait for the courts at all. Until recently, Jordan gave "honor" killers sentences of as little as six months under Article 340 of the Jordan Penal Code, which stated: "Anyone catching his wife or one of his immediate family in a flagrant act of fornication with another person, and kills, injures or harms both or either of them, will benefit from the exculpating excuse ..."

Jordan's King Abdullah succeeded in revising this language, but as the Associated Press reported last year, "attempts to introduce harsher sentences for honor killings have been blocked in Jordan's parliament, where the predominantly conservative Bedouin lawmakers argue that lesser penalties [than honor killings] would lead to tolerating of promiscuity."

Islamic clerics, to be sure, tend to favor the idea that they rather than families should do the killing. According to a traditional ruling cited by Dr Mohammed Fadel and frequently posted on Islamic sites,

The prohibition against applying a legal penalty without legal authority (bi ghayri sultan) and without witnesses; cutting off the means to shedding the blood of a Muslim based merely upon the claim of his accuser, the one seeking the shedding of the accused's blood. [In this case] the truth of the claim would be known only by [the accuser's] own statement and Allah, may He be glorified and sanctified, has made the life of a Muslim a precious thing, and has made the sin in taking it great as well. Therefore, it [legal punishment] is permissible only under the conditions in which Allah has permitted it. [Application of legal punishments] is exclusively for the government so that it may apply that which Allah has commanded in His book or on the tongue of His Prophet.

There is no question that flogging and execution of adulterers is mandated by the Koran (eg, Sudra 4:15). As I observed in another context, this point is so clear in Islamic law that Professor Tariq Ramadan refused to condemn the practice in a televised debate with then French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy.

All Islamic commentary on the subject, though, applies to the behavior of Muslims in a country under Islamic rule in which the only only law is Islamic law. If no Islamic courts are available, what should an individual Muslim do? Is it then permissible to take the law into one's own hands? We have no clear record of Islamic jurisprudence on the subject, for only in recent years have large numbers of Muslims come to live in non-Muslim countries. But the reticence of Islamic clergy in the West to denounce honor killings is noteworthy. Western apologists for Islam who attempt to distinguish between the religion and primitive practices constantly stub their toes against Muslim authorities who insist that honor killing, genital mutilation, and stoning of adulterers is mandated by Islam. [...]

Snowy day in Amman, Jordan

Folks I know over in Amman have been surprised by a decent snowfall. This amount of snow would not be notable in many cities, but in Amman it certainly is and the cty had shut down. Here are some pictures from bloggers: