This was a great read!
When I picked up, In the Land of Blue Burqas, I did not expect my faith, my understanding of
marriage and ideas about Islam to be challenged.
I did not read it looking for deeper understanding of my Christianity separate
from my American culture. My views of
forgiveness, responding to insult, prayer, judgment and the power of generosity
were all challenged to stretch. All of
this happened during my journey into a town in Afghanistan through the author’s
experience. It is full of people I will
never meet that are very different than me in almost every way. Despite our
vast differences I learned so much from them as I read their stories and lined
up their Islamic teachings next to the teachings of Jesus.
In
essence reading this woman’s journey in faith, “I learned to see the Jesus I
love reflected in the context of my Afghan neighbors’ culture and the
simplicity of their questions. I was
challenged to differentiate between my American culture an the teachings of
Jesus….I saw how revolutionary Jesus really is and how amazingly beautiful.”
(p. 306)
I’ll
leave you with a few more quotes so you can see what I mean. If you decide to read it I’d love to discuss
it with anyone!
On American Faith:
“Conversations about God, faith and what it means to live
submitted to Him is more common in Afghanistan than any place I’ve ever been…..For
many Westerners, the question of who God is and what He wants for and from us is
simply not relevant. We are, after all,
wealthy and busy. For Afghans, it may be
the most important question of all.” (p. 115, 116)
On Legalism:
“Sometimes we imagine that all that is good in God as
revealed in Christ only belongs to those who’ve adopted a complete framework of
theological beliefs. We imagine that
until a person understands and confesses belief that Jesus is God, that He died
on the cross for our sins and rose the third day, the teachings and blessings
of God remain inaccessible. We sometimes
make the mistake of viewing ourselves and others as either in or out, as either
wearing our team’s jersey or not wearing it." (p. 132)
Ouch, that is totally
me sometimes.
"How much better to remember that we are all on a
journey. Each time we see or hear or in
some way grasp a teaching or revelation of Christ, we are drawn out of an area
of darkness within our lives into His light and truth…..the good news is …we
can receive His healing long before we understand who He is and why He came in
the first place.” (p. 132)
Love it! The image of
darkness to light describes all I hope to do when sharing about God’s love.
On Reaching others
with Good News:
“I know I have no
power to change an individual’s worldview.
I can’t compel people to accept my words. The interpretation and reaction belongs to my
listeners. If I speak truth, that truth
will resonate within them. If they can
receive it, they will. If they can’t,
they won’t. My responsibility is to follow Jesus and share the faith I
have. In my understanding, God is good
and certainly not the author of death and destruction.” (p. 114)
She was responding here to the Islamic belief that
EVERYTHING that happens is the will of Allah.
If a husband beats his wife, it’s Allah’s will. If a child dies in a bombing, Allah’s
will. Both scenarios are all too common
in their daily lives.
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