Who wants to help me on my paper?

[kayleigh]

I'm doing an essay exam for my anthropology if Islamic societies and cultures, and I was hoping I could pick your brains about a few things. It's due tomorrow, and I've got it mostly done, but I wanted some more ideas/to see if what I've written so far is correct.

1. Presentism is, if I understand it correctly, when you use your own modern day values and understanding of things and project them into the past to evaluate and judge things. I have to write on presentism when it comes to understanding the terms Muslim, shirk, mu'minun, and mushrikun. But I need another example. Would the way people view polygyny and Muhammad's marriage to Aisha presentism as well?

2. How did the ulema develop during Umar's reign? Meaning, what political events or what social environment was there at the time that would have pushed the ulema to develop? Is it because Umar was big on learning and because people needed a way to understand and learn Islam once Muhammad had died? Secondly, how did one become an alim at that time?

3. How are monotheisms different? I know this is really vague, but that's all I've been given. If it helps, the rest of the questions before and after this deal with polytheism, paganism, and monotheism, and how they relate to tolerance and a pragmatic world view.

Any input would help. I'm familiar with basic Islamic theology and very history, so that isn't really what I need. It's anthropology, not theology. This professor is really intimidating and I'm terrified or writing something stupid in my paper.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Aapa]

Assalaam walaikum,

Ok...I will give it a try.

If my understanding is correct a presentist (?) must have qualifiers for everything. You can not think about the future as it is not quantified. Kinda sorta a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. They are pragmatic. You can not hold onto anything that can not be reduced to the here and the now.

They are careful with the use of words. It is a new twist of the old deconstructionists. We have to get to the bottom of the issue.

If I am on the right track the issue of the marriage of the Prophet to his wife Aisha would be presented in the view of the Prophet being a man..any man. There is a need to find facts and reconcile the truth. The presentist does not wish to have any non-fact. So yes, the marriage did take place. It was a norm back then. We have evidence from historical data.

If I understand this the presentist worries to death about the relevance of language. Why do we use the words we use..and in terms of semantics what are we saying.

As a Muslim..we know the words of the Quran and the Sunna are true. We know this because Islam developed a complex system of authentication. In addition to the revered written word the legacy of Islam has given us a rich oral tradition. Through the ages the oral tradition has been very careful in keeping the denotation of a particular word exact. We all know the written word will not change through the passage of time.

Islam is beyond the spatio-temoporal paradigm. The language of Islam is exact, correct, and true. Thus a Muslim does not have the problem of quasi-truths as Islam to a Muslim is absolute truth.

Presentism is a man made model attempting to derive the truth. It is limited to understanding the truth as it is right here right now in the box. It can not be absolute. It is relative.

Monotheists are different. Although many profess to believing in one God..the Christian view of the one god is the trinity. The monotheism of the Jewish faith is waiting for the sign..while being the chosen ones. Islam rectifies the inconsistencies. We do not have to divide god nor do we have to wait. In a presentist sense it is correct. We have it all right here, right now.

Anthropologists study groups. The truths a community holds dear can not be boxed in to a batch that is true and a batch that is false. We can not place limitations on phenomenological experiences. We can try to identify the experiences and label them. However, humans hold on to truths and quasi truths i.e I call this faith.

Hope this makes sense to you.

 

[tariq353]

I'm doing an essay exam for my anthropology if Islamic societies and cultures, and I was hoping I could pick your brains about a few things. It's due tomorrow, and I've got it mostly done, but I wanted some more ideas/to see if what I've written so far is correct.


3. How are monotheisms different? I know this is really vague, but that's all I've been given. If it helps, the rest of the questions before and after this deal with polytheism, paganism, and monotheism, and how they relate to tolerance and a pragmatic world view.


Thanks in advance.

I think last part of ur question is thoroughly dealt in "Karen Armstrong's Book the history of God" (Attaching)

Here is the documentry on her book this deals with monotheism in 3 religions....Islam, Christianity n Judaism


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This is the best i can do

Wa salam