While reading No god but God, I was intrigued by many of the particular statements Aslan made. Aslan’s perspective on Islam in chronological order provided me with an understanding like no other. From this reading, I have gained an interesting perspective on Islam as a whole that I will carry with me outside of this class.
Although Christianity, Islam, and Judaism all have many monotheistic commonalities, Aslan points out from the beginning that they are constantly and wrongfully portrayed in very different ways. In hopes of breaking away from many of these misunderstandings, Aslan points out that Muslims do believe that Jesus was an important spiritual leader and messenger. The key difference is in Christianity’s supplemental belief that Jesus is the Son of God. Through explaining this in relation to the concept of jihad, I gained a better understanding for jihad as simply striving for what is just. Although extremist groups have taken this concept out of perspective, Aslan focused in on the importance of understanding its true meaning.
Additionally, I gained a lot of insight from Aslan’s perspective on Muslim woman within the modern era. Within chapter three of No god but God, Aslan discusses Muhammad’s approach to marriage. During Muhammad’s time in Medina, he was married to a total of nine different woman. Eventually, Muhammad’s wives began wearing a veil to signify their relationship with him. I was most surprised after learning that Muhammad had married some woman who were not Muslim. However, Aslan continues to point out Muhammad’s exemplar of both a compassionate and family style union. Muslim women and families are now guided by many of Muhammad’s foundational principles.