Don't Burn the Qur’ān; Read It!

Sometimes Christian pastors are really stupid. I can get away with saying that because, as of next week, I'll have been one for 18 years. And I've done some (okay, a lot of "some") stupid things as a pastor.

But nothing as monumentally stupid as Pastor Terry Jones' dubbing of September 11, 2010, as "International Burn a Koran Day." Granted, as pastor at a pretty small church myself, there's a bit of envy that he's brought world-wide notoriety to his tiny Dove World Outreach Center (where do people come up with such names for their churches?). But this is not what the Lord Jesus has in mind when he teaches his disciples that the world will hate them.

For an better plan, Martin Luther is actually quite relevant. You see, one of the reasons the Reformation had staying power in the 16th century was that Christian Europe was in the midst of a grand struggle with the Muslim Ottoman Turks. Under Suleiman the Magnificent, the Turks captured Belgrade in 1520. Then it was the defeat of the troops of King Louis II of Hungary (who was killed) at the Battle of Mahács August 29, 1526 -- which terrorized Christian Europe even more than September 11, 2001, terrorizes Americans. Suleiman would lay siege to Vienna in 1529 and attempt it again in 1532. While those campaigns failed, the Turks controlled much of eastern Europe, finally occupying Buda (the western part of modern Budapest), Hungary, in 1541. Most of Hungary would be under Ottoman dominion for the next 150 years; the Balkans into the 19th and 20th centuries.

It's this context that explains Luther's regular references to the Turks even from the very beginning of the Reformation. It turns out that Luther mainly knew about the Qur’ān from Italian sources. He finally read a poor Latin translation at the beginning of Lent 1542, which led to his translation into German and the publication of an early-14th century (or earlier) document as Refutation of the Alcoran by Brother Richard.

In 1542 Theodore Bibliander of Zurich produced the first scholarly Latin translation of the Qur’ān, but he couldn't get it published (Basel authorities censored it and jailed the either Bibliander or his printer -- historical footnotes in Luther's Works conflict here) until Luther intervened.

The Qur’ān was published, with a preface by Luther and other notes by Melanchthon. Far from burning the Qur’ān so that it would be destroyed, Luther wanted Christians to read it so that they would know what taught and compare and contrast that with the Holy Bible. As far as I can tell, Luther's preface hasn't been published in English, but you can read this summary on the LutheranWiki, including such points as:

Some fear that weak minds might be confused by the publication of the Quran in Latin – but there is no one in the church who is not absolutely sure that no religion or doctrine concerning God can be true that totally differs from the prophetic and apostolic writings.

Mohammed confesses to have come up with a new opinion that differs from the prophets and apostles – as the heathen opinions of old are to be rejected, so also Mohammed’s figments.

Those who do not even know that on the religion in agreement with the prophets and apostles is the true religion, how do they arm themselves against Mohammed’s ideas they might hear even if they do not read the Quran?

We who teach in the church have seen many different enemies – papists, Jews, Anabaptists, Servetus, and others – let’s also arm ourselves to fight against Mohammed: one cannot say anything about things one does not know.

“Therefore it is useful for the learned to read the writings of the enemies in order to refute, shake, and overthrow them all the more powerfully, in order to be able to heal some and certainly to arm our people with firmer arguments.”

Pastor Ronald Marshall of First Lutheran Chruch of West Seattle offers a handout of Luther's Preface to the Qur’ān for his class, Reading the Koran with Pastor Marshall, which he has held for several years.

So, Pastor Jones, if you want to perform the true service of a Christian minister, read the Qur’ān, learn how and where it conflicts with the Holy Scriptures, teach that to confused Christians and anyone else willing to listen, and proclaim the Gospel of the Jesus Christ. It was good enough for Martin Luther; it ought to be good enough for you. Don't burn it!

The Still-Clueless Priest

As we begin the day we celebrate the heavenly birthday of St. Patrick, who used the shamrock to teach the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish, we return to the saga of the Rev. Dr. Ann Holmes Redding courtesy of the Providence (Rhode Island) Journal, who is the subject of this article posted to the paper's web site Sunday afternoon.

Dr. Redding's saga first made Pastor Zip's Blog in July 2007, after the Seattle Times picked up the curious story in the newspaper of the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia featuring a priest who claimed to be both Christian and Muslim. Olympia's Bishop didn't seem to think there was a problem. But then it turned out that Redding, while serving in Olympia, is canonically resident in the Diocese of Rhode Island and that Bishop recognized otherwise and quickly suspended her from any priestly activities for a year of "Pastoral Direction," a year that was extended due to the Lambeth Conference. Last October Bishop Wolf inhibited Dr. Redding, giving her a deadline of this month to show why she ought not be defrocked.

Writes the Journal's Richard C. Dujardin,

But these days, as she approaches the 25th anniversary of her ordination as an Episcopal priest on March 25, Redding, who lives in Seattle, faces controversy of a different sort. She is on the verge of being defrocked by Rhode Island Episcopal Bishop Geralyn Wolf because of her insistence that she can be a Muslim and Christian at the same time.

Bishop Wolf, who is Redding's canonical superior, has told Redding that her conversion to Islam through her recitation of Shahada, the basic Islamic creed, constitutes an abandonment of the Christian faith and that unless she recants by March 30, she will no longer be a priest.

The warning, formally issued by Bishop Wolf with the backing of the diocesan standing committee last September, has been among the communications that began in September 2007, soon after Bishop Wolf attended a meeting of the House of Bishops and heard stories about a priest claiming to be both Muslim and Christian.

Bishop Wolf recalls getting up at that meeting and saying such a stand was misguided because the fundamental teachings were incompatible. Only after returning to Rhode Island, she says, did she discover that Redding, a former parishioner at St. Stephen's Church in Providence, had been ordained by her predecessor, Bishop George N. Hunt. Because Redding never shifted her canonical residence, Bishop Wolf is her superior.

"I had her come in because I didn't want to rely on a newspaper story," the bishop recounted. "I said to her, 'This is a spiritual challenge for you to decide where you are in terms of your understanding of the Christian faith, especially Christ's passion, and resurrection and incarnation. I want you to take some time to seek spiritual direction.' "...

When the bishop and priest met again last September, Redding repeated her view that she saw no conflict between embracing Islam and following Jesus. It was then that Bishop Wolf said she would begin proceedings to have her deposed.

In Bishop Wolf's view, the moment that Redding recited the words of the Shahada, the creed that says "there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger," she gave her allegiance to Islam and abandoned the Christian faith.

"As I understand it, Muslims do not believe in the divinity of Christ. They don't believe in the death of Christ or that he is the Son of God, which are cornerstones of the Christian faith. Yes, there are people in every religion who try to stretch the basic tenets of a belief, but if you choose to be a priest within the Episcopal Church you are speaking for the church and its teachings. It demands a commitment."

Reached at her home in Seattle, Redding said Thursday that unless something causes her to radically change her convictions in the next few weeks, she will "continue to be faithful to the call and invitation that God has given to me."

She says that while she had been familiar with some of the teachings of Islam, she began looking at them more seriously after inviting Muslims to speak at the cathedral in the aftermath of 9/11.

But it was a personal crisis, one she does not wish to share, that led her, she says, to a realization that "I needed to totally surrender myself to God. Surrender to God is what Islam is about."...

"It never occurred to me I was leaving Christianity any more than the early disciples of Jesus would have felt they were leaving Judaism by becoming his followers," she said. "It was only after the fact that I recognized it could be very confusing to many people."

And how does Redding place herself between two faiths, one which holds that Jesus is the Son of God and another that regards Jesus as a prophet and forerunner to Muhammad but not God's Son?

Redding, who'd like to be a bridge between the two faiths, insists that the two religions are closer than many think. The Koran, like the New Testament, teaches that Jesus was born of a virgin. She says she finds that Muslims are more firm in that belief than many Christians she knows, who seem not to be sure.

She says she continues to believe that Jesus is divine but goes on to explain that she believes there is an element of the divine in all of us. "We are all children of God."

"When Christians say that Jesus is the only-begotten son of God, we are putting into words an understanding of the uniqueness of Jesus and the unique intimate relationship we have with him and his mission," she says. "But I don't think that the 'only begotten Son' language is to be taken literally."

In a departure from traditional Islamic teaching, Redding holds that Jesus was crucified and was resurrected. She argues that the Koran doesn't explicitly deny that Jesus was crucified but only that the Jews did not crucify him.

However, Imam Abdul Hameed of the Islamic Center of Rhode Island disputes her reading. The Koran, he says, makes clear that Jesus was not crucified or killed, but was "lifted up" to God.

"I think she is a little confused. There is no possibility for one to be both a Muslim and a Christian," Hameed said. "If she doesn't believe that [Jesus] is the son of God, she is not Christian. And she can't be a Muslim if she believes Jesus died on a cross."

Redding says she prefers to stay away from some of the constructs theologians have built to help decide "who is in and who is out, who is going to heaven and who is not."

"The Trinity is a wonderful way of thinking about God. … But will I reduce God to a formula? No.

"To those who say you have to believe in the formula, I say, 'No, God cannot be packaged.' "

Even now, facing the possibility of being defrocked, Redding continues to worship at various Episcopal churches and to receive communion. On Fridays, she goes to recite prayers at the Islamic center....

But even Redding believes she is in an uphill battle. She says her situation might be easier if the the U.S. Episcopal Church itself weren't under pressure from conservative prelates in other countries who want the church to be thrown out of the Anglican Communion for ordaining a gay bishop. She notes that many of the church's sharpest critics are Third World prelates who are competing with Muslims every day.

Bishop Greg Rickel, who became leader of the 33,000-member Olympia Diocese after the controversy started, said he agrees with Bishop Wolf that Redding can't be a member of two faiths.

But he adds: "I also want to say I love Ann Holmes Redding. She has taught me a lot and I enjoy her company. As a person of faith here, she gets a lot of support."...

Read it all here. Tip of the biretta to TitusOneNine.

Rev. Redding, Still Clueless, Is Inhibited

I last mentioned the case of Dr. Ann Holmes Redding here. She's the woman who, while serving as the director of faith formation at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, Olympia, Washington, became a Muslim. As I've earlier reported, the then-Bishop of Olympia seemed to think with was an exciting interfaith possibility. Fortunately, Dr. Redding's own Bishop, Geralyn Wolf of Rhode Island, recognized otherwise and issued Redding a Pastoral Direction "to reflect on the doctrines of the Christian faith, her vocation as a priest, and what I see as the conflicts inherent in professing both Christianity and Islam," and preventing Dr. Redding from acting as an Episcopal Priest.

Now Episcopal Life Online reports that Bishop Wolf has inhibited Dr. Redding, giving her until March 31, 2009, to "reclaim" her Christian faith, If she does not, she will be defrocked. In the article, Dr. Redding is quoted, saying,

“It’s still a mystery as to why, on March 25, 2006, which happens to be my ordination date and the annunciation, I felt called to say the Shahadah with the intention of becoming a Muslim. I’m continuing to explore what it means to be both a Muslim and a Christian, and I expect to be the rest of my life. Being a Muslim makes me a much better Christian, and being a Christian makes me the kind of Muslim I want to be. I see as my calling and privilege witnessing the deep reality of one God.”

“I’m grateful for the chance to meet with Ann twice and to speak with her several times on the phone,” said Wolf. “She’s a very bright person, and I cannot say enough about the depth of her integrity. Hers is not a superficial decision, and this is why I been very deliberate and have taken over a year to talk things through. We’ve been in dialogue since June, 2007.

“However, I believe that Islam and Christianity have enough differences to make it impossible to adhere to them both with integrity. The church wants to be diverse and inclusive, but we’re decidedly Christian. We’re Christ-followers,” said Wolf.

“Despite my respect for and genuine like of Bishop Wolf, I do not believe the canons were written with this situation in mind,” said Redding. “I think the people who wrote them were thinking of other Christian denominations. So my situation gives the church an opportunity to re-examine what it means to be in communion. If we want to survive as a Church, and be faithful witnesses of Christ, I believe all the people of the world must be in communion.”

Again, read it all here. Seems to me that Bishop Wolf is bending over backwards to put a best construction on Dr. Redding's thought process which, if not superficial, is certainly fundamentally confused.

Hat tip to TitusOneNine.

Update on the Rev. (?) Dr. Redding

It's been about a year since the case of the Rev. Dr. Ann Holmes Redding hit the press. She's the Episcopal priest who, while serving at the Cathedral of the Diocese of Olympia, announced that she was both Muslim and Christian.

While that didn't seem to be a problem for the then-Bishop of Olympia, it was a problem for her own Bishop, Geralyn Wolf of Rhode Island, where Dr. Redding is canonically resident. Bishop Wolf put Dr. Redding under a year's Pastoral Direction, "giving her the opportunity to reflect on the doctrines of the Christian faith, her vocation as a priest, and what I see as the conflicts inherent in professing both Christianity and Islam. During the next year she is not to exercise any of the responsibilities and privileges of an Episcopal priest or deacon."

Over the weekend, Bishop Wolf sent the following:

June 20, 2008
To: Members of the House of Bishops
From: The Rt. Rev’d Geralyn Wolf
Re: The Rev’d Dr. Ann Holmes Redding

In June of 2007, I issued a Pastoral Direction to The Rev’d Dr. Ann Holmes Redding, a priest canonically resident in the Diocese of Rhode Island but living in Seattle. She claimed to be both a Muslim and a Christian. Among other things, she was suspended from all priestly duties for one year, at which time I would review the situation. If it became necessary to take further action the Standing Committee of the Diocese of Rhode Island would be engaged in early July, 2008.

I met with The Rev’d Dr. Ann Holmes Redding on May 22, 2008, and believe that she remains committed to her profession of both Christianity and Islam. As I am leaving for pre-Lambeth engagements on June 28, prior to the end of her suspension, I have extended the Pastoral Direction until September 15, 2008. I do not think that it is fair to make a decision of this nature from afar; without ready access to either Dr. Redding or the Standing Committee.

The decision for extension was not requested by Dr. Redding, nor does it indicate a change in my understanding of the theological conflicts inherent in professing both traditions.

Dr. Redding is a woman of utmost integrity and our conversations remain open and mutually gratifying. I have great respect for her and the process of exploration to which she is committed. I also remain devoted to our Christian faith and the ordination vows taken by those who have entered the sacred priesthood.

The media is requesting an update from me. Recalling the attention this attracted a year ago, I share this communiqué with you.

Looking forward to seeing you at Lambeth.

GW:ec

Cc: the Rev’d Dr. Ann Holmes Redding; Standing Committee; Diocesan Council;
Email: All Clergy; Ms. Neva Rae Fox; Ms. Janet Tu

Thanks to Fr. Scott Gunn who posted the letter on his Seven whole days blog, and linked on Canon Harmon's TitusOneNine.

That Bishop Wolf is being quite gracious to Dr. Redding might be a bit of an understatement -- especially considering how some other Bishops (including the Presiding Bishop) are dealing with more orthodox dissidents to the directions the Episcopal Church is heading. But it is probably salutary that a final decision wait until after the Lambeth Conference.

At least it is still clear that one can't be Muslim and Episcopalian.

Follow-up: Just What Are They Thinking?

A few days ago I mentioned the case of the Rev. Dr. Ann Holmes Redding, a priest in The Episcopal Church who had announced that she was both a Christian and a Muslim.

While the Rev. Redding has been serving in the Diocese of Olympia (Washington), it turns out that she is canonically resident in the Diocese of Rhode Island. Which means that, contrary to the reports I used for that blog entry, her bishop is the Rt. Rev. Geralyn Wolf (and not the Bishop of Olympia, the Rt. Rev. Vincent Warner). Here is Bishop Wolf's response, as reported in The Living Church, by Stand Firm, and on Canon Kendall Harmon's TitusOneNine blog:

To: Clergy, Members of Diocesan Council and Standing Committee
From: The Rt. Rev. Geralyn Wolf
Re: The Rev. Dr. Ann Holmes Redding

As many of you know, The Rev. Dr. Ann Holmes Redding is an Episcopal priest who has recently professed her faith in Islam. Dr. Redding is canonically resident in the Diocese of Rhode Island, though she has not served here for over twenty years.

After meeting with her I issued a Pastoral Direction giving her the opportunity to reflect on the doctrines of the Christian faith, her vocation as a priest, and what I see as the conflicts inherent in professing both Christianity and Islam. During the next year she is not to exercise any of the responsibilities and privileges of an Episcopal priest or deacon. Other aspects of the Pastoral Direction will remain private.

I am sending this e-mail to you because the continued web-site coverage suggests that I be as clear as possible with those exercising leadership in our diocese.

I do not know much about Bishop Wolf. But she is thinking like, and has acted as, a Christian shepherd in this matter, for both Dr. Redding and the whole Church. That probably happens more often than we know, but it is very good to see a Bishop act this way in public.

Just What Are They Thinking?

Several years ago someone came up with a slogan describing their church as one where "you don't have to check your brain at the door." One can find a variation on that from the Church Ad Project (originally called the Episcopal Ad Project), where one popular display ad they offer churches says, "He died to take away your sins. Not your mind."

Then there's the Rev. Ann Holmes Redding, who was referred to in my previous entry. In case you haven't heard about her case, the Journal Star's Mike Miller describes it on his Faithfully Yours blog as Episconfusion Part Deux. Rev. Redding is an Episcopal priest (ordained some 20 years ago) in Seattle who recently revealed in the Diocesan newspaper that she is a Muslim, having confessed that faith "early in 2006." (Note: her interview is on page 9 of that last link, which is a nearly 1 megabyte pdf file.) That made the Seattle Times and has been all over the blogosphere. She's also been director of faith formation at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, the seat of the Bishop for the Diocese of Olympia. Which brings to mind the old Olympia Beer slogan, "It's the water. And a lot more."

According to the Times' article, "Redding's bishop, the Rt. Rev. Vincent Warner, says he accepts Redding as an Episcopal priest and a Muslim, and that he finds the interfaith possibilities exciting." Indeed, it must be the water. Or the priest and bishop have indeed checked their brains at the door. What else can one say about her explanations of the place of Jesus Christ in the Christian Faith and Islam? Here's Rev. Redding in the Diocesan paper:

“We Christians, in struggling to express the beauty and dignity of Jesus and the pattern of life he offers, describe him as the ‘only begotten son of God.’ That’s how wonderful he is to us. But that is not literal,” she continues. “When we say Jesus is the only begotten one, we are saying he’s unique in some way. Islam says the same thing. He’s the only human aside from Adam who is directly created by God, and he’s different from Adam because he has a human mother. So there’s agreement—this person is unique in his relationship to God.” Christianity also says that we are all part of the household of God and in essence brothers and sisters of Jesus. Muslims take the figurative language of “only begotten,” make it concrete and contradict it: God neither begets nor is begotten.”

So much for the Nicene Creed's declaration of Jesus as the only-begotten Son of the Father.

“I agree with both because I do want to say that Jesus is unique, and for me, Jesus is my spiritual master,” Redding says. “Muslims say Mohammed is the most perfect. Well, it depends on who you fall in love with. I fell in love with Jesus a long time ago and I’m still in love with Jesus but I’d like to think my relationship with Jesus has matured.”

She added that what Islam does is take Jesus out of the way of her relationship with God, “but it doesn’t drop Jesus. I was following Jesus and he led me into Islam, and he didn’t drop me off at the door. He’s there, too.”

Yeah. I won't claim to be an expert in Islam, but I took a course in it from Prof. Benjamin Weir while in seminary at the GTU. She is just wrong. And any Christian -- especially one who has studied Christian theology (as every Episcopal priest has done) -- ought to be able to recognize that. Granted, there are things that Islam and Christianity can share. Arabic-speaking Christians pray to "Allah," and both faiths have roots in the Jewish patriarch Abraham.

But to confess, "There is no god but Allah and Muhammed is his prophet," (the "First Pillar of Islam") is an explicit rejection of Jesus Christ being the Messiah, whether Rev. Redding thinks so or not.

“The renunciations [of Satan, evil powers and sinful desires] any Muslim can say,” Redding says. “The affirmations are tough for any Christian who is at all progressive because there are certain of us [Christians] who have taken these and made them in to something like fraternity hazing—you have to say these words in order to be part of the club. I see them as taking Jesus as the human example to follow toward God. Most Muslims see Mohammed rather than Jesus as the pattern of life to follow, and I do not see him as the only example. I just am not willing to put ‘onlys’ in front of all those affirmations about Jesus.

For more of Rev. Redding's bizarre (for a Christian priest) "thought," see this Seattle Times reader Q&A.