By Rabbi Allen S. Maller
From an Islamic perspective the experience of Isra, Prophet Muhammad’s night-time journey to Jerusalem, and Miraj, Prophet Muhammad’s ascension to heavens, is a very significant event in the history of religion.
But why, in Prophet Muhammad’s ascension to the heavens, was he first taken to the ruins of the sacred site of the Jerusalem Temple of Solomon? Why did Prophet Muhammad not ascend to the heavens directly from the Ka’ba?” Read more….
By Rabbi Allen S Maller
“During October 1517 Martin Luther wrote the “The 95 Theses,” a list of questions and propositions for Christians to debate; and on the last Friday in October, 1517 he nailed a copy of his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle church. None of the issues he chose to debate then were about Jews or Muslims; although later he had lots of negative things to say about both religions.
Now, for the Reformation’s 500th anniversary, Germany’s main Protestant church has officially renounced its mission to convert Jews to Christianity. As a rabbi I applaud this statement. However I hope and pray that the church will also stop trying to convert Muslims to Christianity…”
By Rabbi Allen S Maller
“The Jewish and Muslim New Year will fall on the same day, or days this year; September 20, at sunset and September 20 until it gets dark. This is not surprising since both Islam and Judaism use a lunar calendar, which begins with the first evening sighting of the new moon. ..”
By Rabbi Allen S Maller
“The ritual slaughter of Qurbani (Korban in Hebrew) Halal/Kosher animals toward the end of all the ritual reenactments comes to teach everyone that: “Their flesh and their blood do not reach Allah, but the devotion from you reaches Him.” (Quran 22:37). This is the same basic understanding that the Hebrew Prophets and the Rabbis gave to the offerings in the Temple of Solomon.
Thus we can understand why “Prophet Muhammad was once asked by his Companions: “O Prophet of Allah! What is this qurbani?” He replied, “It is the Sunnah of your father Ibrahim.”
By Rabbi Allen S Maller
“Our society has increasingly become one of self indulgence. We lack self discipline. Fasting goes in direct opposition to our increasing “softness” in life. When people exercise their will-power and fast, they are affirming their self-control and celebrating mastery over themselves. We need continually to prove that we can do it, because we are aware of our frequent failures to be self-disciplined…”
By Rabbi Allen S Maller
“Ramadan is the month when the Sacred Scriptures of Christians, Jews and Muslims were first revealed, so it is a good time to understand how they relate to one another.
Since all monotheistic scriptures come from the one and only God, we all should view other monotheistic religion’s scriptures as potentially enriching our understanding of our own scripture. Yet for almost 14 centuries almost all Jews, Christians and Muslims have read each others holy scriptures from an adversarial perspective.
This is because in the middle ages almost all readers thought of revelation as a zero sum sport like tennis (with only one winner) rather than a multiple win co-operative sport like mountain climbing. …”
By Rabbi Allen S Maller
“President Donald Trump’s executive order banning refugees from entering the USA left much of the American Jewish community horrified — particularly as the announcement came on International Holocaust Remembrance Day…”
By Rabbi Allen S Maller
“Throughout the Middle Ages in Europe, North Africa and west Asia, Jerusalem and Mecca were frequently portrayed by Christians, Jews, and Muslims in the center of their maps and thought of as the navel, heart or lungs of the world.
God willing, someday everyone may see both cities and their sanctuaries as central to our spiritual connection to the One God of Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac.”
