Feast After the Fast:
Muhammad’s Journey
(Version 2a)
A Sunday service led by the
Reverend Michael Walker
Presented in Observance of Eid el-Fitr – July 10, 2016, at the
Unitarian Church of Harrisburg, PA
Feast After the Fast: Muhammad’s Journey
v.2a
Rev. Michael Walker
INVOCATION
It is a Muslim holiday, so I’m using words from
when my soul heard something
that tradition throughout the service today.
from your soul. I drank water
The Sufi mystic, Rumi, spoke often of where one
from [the spring of your soul] and felt
may find the holy, which he often called the Beloved or
the current take me.
my friend. In his poetry, he most often found the holy in
And so it is. And may it ever be so.
another’s eyes. For our chalice lighting this morning, let
!
us hear the words of Rumi:1
What was in that candle’s light
that opened and consumed me so quickly?
Come back, my friend! The form of our love
is not a created form.
Nothing can help me but that beauty.
There was a dawn I remember
1
Barks, Coleman, et al., trans. The Essential Rumi. San Francisco: Castle, 1997. p. 101.
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MEDITATION: “The Journey of Love” (SLT 610)
Rev. Michael Walker
OFFERING
Where in our hearts is that burning of desire?
This congregation offers a liberal spiritual home to
It is true that we are made of dust
seekers from all walks of life. We are proud of the work
and the world is also made of dust,
we do in the community, the classes we offer for children
but the dust has motes rising.
and adults, for the care and concern provided by this
Whence comes that drive in us?
community and it’s staff, and for this beautiful campus
We look to the starry sky and love storms in our hearts.
that has become a spiritual home for so many.
Whence comes that storm?
If you are here for the first time, we invite you to
The journey of love is a very long journey,
let the offering basket pass you by. You are an honored
but sometimes with a sigh you can cross guest. And if you have made this your spiritual home, we
that vast desert.
thank you for your continuing generosity.
Search and search again without losing hope;
While the music plays, it is our custom to place
You may find sometime a treasure on your way.
offerings and pledges to help the work of this fellowship
My heart and my eyes are all devoted to the vision.
in the envelopes and then into the basket, while donations
- Muhammad Iqbal
for charitable giving are left loose in the basket.
!
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Unitarian Church of Harrisburg, PA
Feast After the Fast: Muhammad’s Journey
v.2a
Rev. Michael Walker
Feast After the Fast:
This month, our Share-the-Plate Recipient is
____________________.
Muhammad’s Journey
Thank you, all, for your generosity. This
Reverend Michael Walker
morning’s offering will now be received.
!
In honor of the Muslim feast-day of Eid al-Fitr,
which was earlier this week and marks the end of the
month of Ramadan, I thought that I might share a bit of
Muhammad’s story. In light of events occurring in the
world, it seems all the more apropos that we occasionally
hear about those whom we might not often hear from or
who may have different viewpoints than our own.
!
Ramadan is a month on the Islamic calendar, and is
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Feast After the Fast: Muhammad’s Journey
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Rev. Michael Walker
generally accepted as the most important part of the year
right and wrong). And whosoever of you is
for an observant Muslim. The obligation of fasting
present, let him fast for the month, and whosoever
during Ramadan is in honor of the revelations that
of you is sick or on a journey, a number of other
Muhammad is said to have received from Allah, blessed
days. Allah desires for you ease; He desires not
be his name. This is said to have begun in the month of
hardship for you; and that you should complete the
Ramadan, in the year 609 of the Common Era (or A.D.,
period, and that you should magnify Allah for
on Christian calendars.) Those revelations, which came
having guided you, and that perhaps you may be
to him while fasting, are written down in chapter and
thankful.
verse – sura and ayah – that make up the Islamic
That was the second chapter, verse 185 of the Qur’an.
scripture, the Qur’an. In the words of the Muslim
It is the custom of Muslim people around the
Prophet:2
2
world to observe Ramadan by fasting during the day for
The month of Ramadan is that in which was
the whole month. In their usage, fasting is not only about
revealed the Qur’an; a guidance for mankind, and
avoiding food, but also any vices, dalliances or other
clear proofs of the guidance, and the criterion (of
interests that may cause a person to not mindfully
Qur’an, Sura 2:185.
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examine their lives and their relationship with the Holy,
Rev. Michael Walker
Let me tell you a story...
during this time. Muslims believe it is important to
!
submit to something greater than themselves, to sacrifice
Muhammad was from the major city in that part of
for the greater good, and in doing so, take time to
the world, at that time in history, and that was, of course,
appreciate the blessings they have received in life. There
Mecca. Muhammad was born into a powerful clan of the
are exceptions to the custom of fasting, for those who are
ruling tribe. The Sharif of Mecca – did you know that is
traveling or for many medical reasons, although it also
where we got the word, sheriff? Yes! Well, the Sharif
the custom that one would observe the fast at a later time,
was the ruler of the city and surrounding region of
if possible. It’s on the honor system – only that person
Mecca, and he was from a different clan than
and Allah would know.
Muhammad. As the future prophet grew up, he learned
This custom is to honor the Qur’an, the revelations
about competing political factions, and so much
from their prophet, Muhammad. The month of fasting
jockeying for power among the different clans in Mecca.
ends with the holiday, Eid al-Fitr, the great feast and
He was to come to understand this well, in later life.
celebration. Eid al-Fitr also coincides with the Hijra,
Muhammad was always a religious man, and he
which was Muhammad’s journey to Medina.
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would occasionally go to a cave outside the city for a few
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days at a time, for the purpose of fasting and meditation.
the competing clans, including to the Sharif. They had a
The Qur’an says, it was during one such period of self-
working political system, but the fact that this man – this
sacrifice in that cave, that Muhammad received a visitor,
religious leader – was gathering followers and
called Jibril. In English, we would know Jibril as the
questioning why some things were the way they were...
angel, Gabriel. It was then that Muhammad received the
Well, he upset the balance of power! Over many years
first verses of what was to become the Islamic scripture.
that followed, Muhammad’s critics tried to discredit him,
Whatever you may think of divine revelation,
accused him of all manner of high crimes and
Muhammad, like many spiritual teachers, learned about
misdemeanors, and tried to pressure his clan into shutting
the ways of the world, saw how things could be better,
him up.
and shared what he had learned. Sometimes, he may
During this time, some of Muhammad’s students
have been wrong – but his job was to do the best he
were merchants, who agreed that the taxes and political
could. So, he taught what he learned, what had been
patronage system was onerous for the average person
revealed to him in the cave, and started to attract a group
trying to make a living. Being traveling merchants, they
of followers, a congregation, if you will.
took Muhammad’s teachings to other places, including a
Well, this was perceived as a threat to the power of
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small city that is now known as Medina. Google maps
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tells me that Mecca and Medina are over 270 miles apart,
decided that Muhammad must die. The Sharif gathered a
and remember that back then, they traveled on foot or by
party of men – let’s call them a posse – that would arrest
riding a pack animal. Regardless of the distance, some of
Muhammad in his home. They went there and ransacked
the merchants of Medina found something attractive in
it, but Muhammad had escaped, while many of his
the teachings of Muhammad that they had heard about.
followers distracted the posse.
They sent a delegation to Mecca – ostensibly for the
Wiser, perhaps, than he was given credit for,
annual pilgrimage hosted by the Sharif – but they really
Muhammad sent a large group of his followers out of
came to meet with Muhammad, instead! You can
Mecca on the day and time that had already been
imagine how the clan leaders and the Sharif of Mecca felt
planned. However, he and just one follower left the city
about that! The men from Medina eventually decided to
under cover of darkness the night before, and travelled on
invite Muhammad to their city to teach his religious path.
a little goat-herder’s path across the region. When the
Well, the powers that be in Mecca were incensed!
Sharif’s posse surrounded Muhammad’s group of
The invitation from Medina gave Muhammad legitimacy.
followers on the main road, they found that he was not
Not content to just let Muhammad leave, or even to say
with them.
“don’t let the city gate hit you on the way out,” the Sharif
!
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Before I go on, let me say that this story of
Rev. Michael Walker
content to let him be a lame-duck, or just saying “don’t
Muhammad reminds me of another story, playing out
let the door hit you on the way out,” certain folks want to
right before our eyes...
impeach him, even now.
We called upon Barack Obama to lead this country.
What is it about people who purport to care
Whether you voted for him or not, he was elected by the
about the greater whole, but instead would damage
majority. He had – perhaps a bit like Muhammad, but
the whole thing, rather than allow a leader to lead?
without the angels – spent time thinking, learning,
Why do we do that?
watching what was wrong with the system, and had great
!
ideas on how to fix it. So we sent him to our Mecca, to
Muhammad’s journey took him and his companion
Washington, and he set about trying to fix things. But
across the desert to Medina. Very early in his time there,
this upset the balance of power! The various clans, the
he was called upon as a neutral party to settle a dispute
parties and special interest lobbies, the system of
between political factions. And, over the years, he settled
patronage, was upset. And so, we have seen widespread
into being a respected religious leader and teacher. While
efforts to discredit him (they even called him a Muslim!)
in Medina, his followers grew beyond a congregation,
Some accuse him of high crimes and misdemeanors. Not
into a fully-fledged religious movement, called the
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Umma, which is the whole body of believers in Islam.
discipline and personal sacrifice for the Ummah, the
His disciples traveled all over the Middle East, teaching
community, that are the hallmarks of this most important
his lessons that formed what was to become the Qur’an.
month of the year.
This is the holy book that Muslims still show respect for,
Knowing this may give one pause, when one
by fasting every Ramadan and finish with a great feast,
considers all the fighting that is happening in the region
Eid al-Fitr, that also marks the conclusion of
where Muhammad once lived. Knowing how sacred a
Muhammad’s journey to Medina.
time Ramadan is for Muslims may – again – give one
Again, I’m sharing all of this because that feast-
pause, when one has heard of attacks on Muslim cities
day this week. Muslims around the world will have just
during this time that is set aside for compassion and
finished a month of avoiding all vices, of being kind and
charity, a time to be thankful for the blessings in one’s
compassionate, generous to their communities and
life. Is it a surprise, then, that acts of aggression during
charitable to those in need. This has become the great
this time should provoke outrage?
benefit of Ramadan – it is a period in which their highest
!
values, compassion and generosity, and their avoidance
Returning to Muhammad: He lived in Medina for
of strife and other vices, are practiced. It is their self-
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about eight years and then returned to Mecca. By this
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time, he had negotiated a treaty with the Sharif. But the
live the way they want... The Tea Party is not going to
Sharif could not control all the various parties, the
give Obama a moment of rest – they will continue to
competing clans, and the terms of the treaty were not
agitate and persecute our elected leader. They don’t care
honored. While Muhammad was under attack from all
that they are the minority. They don’t care that they are
sides, feeling persecuted for being a religious leader,
making everyone else miserable. They don’t care that
Muhammad’s followers rallied and protected him. The
those of them who are in the House, the body that holds
little groups of naysayers and agitators, over time, had
the purse-strings, can shut everything down rather than
actually become the minority in Mecca. His followers
compromise with our leader. If we continue to let this
told them, enough was enough. Muhammad was allowed
minority control the direction of our nation, we have only
to live out his days teaching the lessons that his followers
ourselves to blame. Like Muhammad’s followers, I think
would write down and collect, as parts of the Qur’an.
it is well past time that the followers of our leader tell
!
this minority that enough is enough.
Have we seen something like this, in our own
It seems to me that we might do well to take the
culture? I’m reminded of a little group of disaffected but
example of the Muslims during Ramadan. To practice a
vocal people, a minority that demands that the rest of us
little bit of self-sacrifice for the greater good. To be
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generous and charitable. To avoid vices that distract us
was a man, he was human, and even he made mistakes.
from the real reason we were engaged with the world in
So have many of our leaders, not least of all our
the first place. To be thankful that we are part of
President. Can we not allow a mistake on occasion,
something greater than ourselves. The Ummah has
without forming a posse or a lynch-mob, or a Tea Party
realized that they are part of a great group, and that it
caucus to cause a government shutdown?
exists not for their own purposes and power trips, but to
!
do good in the world. Is this a lesson, this lesson of the
The lesson for today, the last day of Ramadan, is
clans in Mecca, one that we can teach? Can we teach it
that a generous spirit and an understanding that we are
to the power brokers in Washington?
part of something greater than ourselves far outweighs
Someone may be thinking of the other side of the
any power plays or other games, in Mecca or in
story... We know from history that Muhammad was not
Washington or anywhere else, for that matter.
without flaws. We know that as the Ummah grew, so did
During our meditation earlier, we heard these
Muhammad’s power, although he had only set out to be a
words by the 20th century Pakistani poet, Muhammad
teacher, showing people how to live a virtuous life. But,
Iqbal:
not everything about Muhammad’s life was perfect – he
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The journey of love is a very long journey,
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but sometimes with a sigh you can cross Rev. Michael Walker
BENEDICTION
that vast desert.
We close the service as we opened it, with words
Search and search again without losing hope;
from the Sufi mystic, Rumi. He sometimes spoke of
You may find sometime a treasure on your way.
houses of worship, including the Kaaba, which was the
My heart and my eyes are all devoted to the vision.
holy place controlled by the Sharif of Mecca. Rumi tells
us, however, that the holy is not found simply in a place.
In place of my usual blessing, today I will close with
these words from Islam:
These are his words:3
As-Salamu Alaykum – Peace be with you!
O pilgrims on the path, where are you?
And may it ever be so!
Here is the Beloved! Here!
!
Your beloved is your neighbor,
just the other side of the wall.
Why do you err in the desert?
If you look at the Beloved’s Face,
3
Baldock, John. The Essence of Rumi. Edison, NJ: Chartwell, 2005. p.79.
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and don’t fix your gaze on form,
you become the House, and its lord,
for you are the Kaaba! You!
Likewise, in our own faith tradition, we often say that a
church is not its building, it is the people within it.
May it ever be so and blessed be you all!
!
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