SCRIPTURES FROM THE STORM
Christians, Muslims share passages of comfort.
The gathering of the faithful had been a regular practice for more than a year, but this one was different. Every one had been affected by Hurricane Harvey, probably the worst natural disaster in Houston history.
Some homes were flooded. Some people evacuated to a safe zone. And others who had not been physically impacted seemed shaken by the sadness, loss and trauma wrought in the storm’s aftermath. Yet, this group thought it was the right time to come together.
In the summer of 2016, some congregants of Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church and several Turkish-American Muslims in Houston, myself included, decided to join in a different approach to deepening our interfaith understanding. The idea was to share our sacred scriptures by choosing a topic and related verses-during a gathering at a participant’s home.
Interfaith gatherings (at least in my experience) invariably-involve food. We were not only reading and reflecting together but also eating together with the host honoring guests like Prophet Abraham did when he prepared a meal for the strangers who came to his house. After all, the participants of our group, whether Christian or Muslim, traced their histories of hospitality, submission and sincerity back to Abraham.
I was offered the role of moderator for our sessions. Every participant was expected to read a passage from his/her holy text And then, rather than a scholarly interpretation or exegesis rooted in centuries of tradition, they share what they personally understood from it. Then the other participants would talk about their understanding of that particular text, even though that text is not theirs.
The first meeting was, as I recall, a bit of all kinds of feelings: We started excited and nervous, continued as respectful and insightful, and ended the session amazed and determined for more sessions.
When fellow organizer Kathy Herrin and I discussed these study groups initially, we never imagined it would be sustainable.
Our third meeting had been scheduled for Sept. 9, a few days a post-Harvey Houston seemed to get back to “routine.” A week before I checked in with several friends in our study group. To my surprise and sadness, some of them were struck by Harvey.
As our meeting day was approaching, I needed to choose a topic but was not able to find one. I realized that I was going through the trauma that everybody else was — my friends, patients and colleagues. After some reflection and talking with Kathy, we decided to invite everyone to choose a passage that really spoke to them duringHurricane Harvey. We wondered what nurtured them spiritually and continued to provide solace, hope and determination in the face of this enormous event.
One who was stranded in his home several days shared first. He said that reaching out to help those in need is like reaching out to God Himself and finding Him next to those people. He found the similarity of the principles from Christian and Islamic traditions to be striking. Matthew 25:3540 and a hadith reported from Prophet Muhammad emphasized a teaching expressed in different words:
When we give food to hungry, water to thirsty, shelter a stranger, or visit the sick, we would indeed find our Lord next to them, and it is as if we have done it to Him.
“I saw things during this hurricane I have never seen before,” said a participant whose home was immensely damaged. “I want to take a more proactive role now. As a professional, I always want to be in control. But when my house was flooded and I saw people’s help, I realized that God is the one who really is in control.”
She also “felt overwhelmed by people’s kindness.” The passage that spoke to her was Philippians 4:4-9:
“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” Have trust in God
One member and his family were safe and sound, but he recalled how anxiously he was running from here to there to ensure that he had covered the to-do list.
“After I have done all preps for the hurricane, I knew it was time to fully trust in God and leave everything to Him,” he said. “I wanted to turn fully to God in the depths of those dark moments and the unknown.”
He found comfort in Quran 2:155-157:
“And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient, who when disaster strikes them, say, ‘Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return.’ Those are the ones upon whom are blessings from their Lord and mercy. And it is those who are the (rightly) guided.”
“When my mother died, I felt so lonely, even though, I was surrounded with my family and friends,” one participant related. “I grabbed a Quran and read the first verse I found. Interestingly, it is the same verse that also brought tranquility to me during hurricane.” It was Quran 9:40: “If you do not aid the Prophet — Allah has already aided him when those who disbelieved had driven him out (of Makkah) as one of two, when they were in the cave and he said to his companion, ‘Do not grieve; indeed Allah is with us.’ And Allah sent down his Sekine (tranquility) upon him and supported him with angels you did not see and made the word of those who disbelieved the lowest, while the word of Allah — that is the highest. And Allah is exalted in might and wise.”
It is well worth noting the similarity between Sekine (tranquility) in the Quran and Shekhina (the presence of God) in the Rabbinic literature.
“When I was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the catastrophe, I looked out to God’s help,” another participant said. “When I saw people helping, I realized that it was God who was helping through them. I saw those people as hands of God. Since we are days and nights struggling through water that surrounded us, the following verses (from Isaiah 43) were my comfort:”
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name; You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you.
For I am the Lord your God.”
She also thought that people’s help was truly a gift. But, she also realized that allowing those people to help is a gift to the ones who are helping. At this moment, we remembered the foot washing that our Episcopalian participants do every year on Maundy Thursday to honor and remember how Jesus Christ washed the feet of his disciples. Even though Peter did not want this at all, it was exactly what Jesus did. In reflecting upon this, we realized that letting others serve and help is a great gift to them. ‘Inside the ark’
One of our study group participants had to evacuate his family for several days to the Turquoise Center, a Turkish community center. He did not know what to expect when they returned home.
“As flooding started, I wanted to turn to the Quran to see what is in there about flood,” he said. “I found the story of Noah. A story that is also mentioned in the Bible. In this story, some people were saved because they were in Noah’s ark, yet, others were drowned. I wondered whether we were inside the ark or outside. While thinking through this anxiously, I saw so many people trying to help others. They were like little ‘Noah’s arks’ who were saving people. Then, I knew well in my heart that we were inside the ark.”
Another friend said, “My house was flooded. I lost a lot, not everything, but a lot. But those were the things that probably were obstacles between me and God. Then I remembered the following passage in the Bible. Now, might I find new ways of approaching God after losing my possessions?” From Matthew 19:23-26: “Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’ When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, ‘Who then can be saved?’ But Jesus looked at them and said to them, ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’ ”
As we departed with joy, I was astonished and inspired by faith and how each participant connected the respective teachings both to their own life and to Hurricane Harvey, and at how our holy scriptures continue to unfold in meaningful and fresh ways and dimensions, even centuries after their times of revelation.