For years I’ve preached sermons about Church Fathers–alphabetically from A-Z. To read about them click over to Patheos.

Clearly I’m into Science and Faith. I write occasionally for Biologos and have all sorts of other things to say there too.

As a pastor and preacher, there are sermons and other thoughts at the Colonial Church website and at Colonial Church Blogma Dogma.

Thoughts on John Kiser’s Commander of the Faithful: The Life and Times of Emir Abd el-Kader

by Daniel Harrell

Part of the Patheos Book Club Roundtable

As the tenth anniversary of 9/11 nears, Christian-Muslim relations haven’t improved that much.  Immediate, stereotyped incriminations on the heels of the Al-Qaeda attack, stoked by two American Wars, find new energy from fears over what happens once the Arab Spring gives way to Summer. The somewhat tepid response of Americans to the Somali famine makes you wonder if it would be different if the famine occured in a less Muslim dominated area. Here in Minneapolis, the large Somali population is still viewed with suspicion by many, especially when women don traditional Muslim headscarves.

Where are the models for genuine interfaith connection and interreligious charity, especially in the face of conflict and discord? Emir Abd el-Kader drew high praise from Algerian Catholics as well as fellow Muslims, an American President and even his enemies. On what basis? On the basis of his faith in God as the God of all people and in the sanctity of human life as the gift of God. Nowhere was this more clearly evidenced that in his defense of Christians from attack by Muslims in Damascus in 1860. Having killed Christians earlier himself, he drew the distinction between Christians who invaded and sought to destroy Algeria, and those who merely professed strong faith in Jesus. For the latter, he had high regard, by virtue of his own strong faith. He wrote, “that which we did for the Christians, we did to be faithful to Islamic law and out of respect for human life. All creatures are part of God’s family and those loved most by God are those who do the most good for his family. All the religions of the book rest on two principles–to praise God and to have compassion for his creatures. The law of Mohammed places the greatest importance on compassion and mercy, and on all that which preserves social cohesion and protects us from division” (p. 302).

Too often contemporary Christians and Muslims, trained to view each others as enemies for centuries, interpret points of convergence as threatening the purity and integrity of personal and collective (read tribal) belief. Easier to label the other as infidel or unbeliever than to seek peace and mutual tolerance. As a Christian, can’t I affirm truth that is in Islam even if I do not affirm all that Islam teaches? Muslims regard Jesus as prophet even if they do not regard him as Lord. While that might not constitute full confession of faith, it certainly is enough to work with for the sake of the common good on earth. Moreover, can either say for sure what the full will of God is for the other? It’s as a quote from el-Kader carried by a Catholic Sister read: “If you think that God is what the different communities believe–the Muslims, Christians, Jews, etc.–He is that, but also more. … None of His creatures worships Him in His entirety” (p. xvii).

Here’s a copy of the article posted on the Good Morning America blog. Go up to the link and make a comment!

I’m a minister and not too long ago I led a small group from my former church in Boston through an experiment of living by the Old Testament book of Leviticus for a month. If you’ve even heard of Leviticus, what probably comes to mind is that obsolete part of the bible devoted to animal sacrifice, kosher food and bizarre commandments pertaining to sin infections and improper sex with your father’s daughter. Skeptics know it as ammunition for homosexual haters or as a target for animal-rights activists. Many Jews regard it as awkward and outmoded. Its unfamiliar terms and references render it apparently irrelevant for modern readers.

Nevertheless, since Leviticus is in the Bible, I thought it worthwhile as a minister to at least give it a look. But since Leviticus was meant to be lived rather than simply looked at, it made more sense to give it a try. Maybe living Leviticus would show us whether it was really so irrelevant or not. What this meant for our group was experimentation with everything from building makeshift tabernacles in one woman’s apartment to eschewing shaving and making reparation payments to people we had wronged. Needless to say, it was a very interesting month.

Clearly the biggest challenge with Leviticus is what to do with its emphasis on animal sacrifice. Goats, birds, bulls and rams were regularly slaughtered not only to atone for wrongdoing but also as a way of expressing gratitude, making peace and celebrating abundant harvests. These days, however, animal sacrifice breaks more laws than it keeps. Besides, not even the most orthodox Jews sacrifice animals any longer. No animals were harmed during our Levitical month, but still, we were left to wonder in the first place why so much seemingly senseless slaughter had been commanded  by a God who purportedly loves all creatures.

What we didn’t realize until we dug a bit deeper was that the majority of animals sacrificed in Leviticus weren’t so much burnt as they were cooked. Animal sacrifice would have smelled a lot like an summer outdoor barbecue. And not only was the sacrificial meat grilled, but it was accompanied by offerings of baked grain and poured drink too. And all of this occurred three times a day. The sacrifices that atoned for sin, gave thanks and made amends, fed people too.

Viewed this way, to eat three meals a day and be thankful for them is a participation in the ancient practice of Levitical sacrifice. To sacrifice acknowledged that all we enjoy in life comes to us as gift. We are not the owners of creation, but its stewards. For some of the participants in the Levitical experiment, to sacrificially eat also meant to purchase food that was humanely procured and organically grown. It cost more, but the sacrifice was a way to respect the gift and the giver. Other participants were motivated to share their food with hungry people in our community. This sacrifice made amends for all the ways that participants had selfishly thought only of their own hunger while ignoring the needs of others.

I love to cook. Culling ingredients from local farmers’ markets, chopping and prepping veggies, slowly sautéing or braising with a variety of spices, and then presenting a meal to partake can be a genuine religious experience for me. That food and festivals are centerpieces of every religious expression made it no surprise that food and festivity find so much expression in Leviticus too. In addition to seven chapters on animal sacrifice—aka barbecue—there is a whole chapter devoted to religious festivals. Leviticus is the party book of the Old Testament.

Of course Passover for Jews, as well as Christmas Dinner for Christians and the like, we’ve all taken part in religious festivals where food is highlighted. But otherwise, in a fast food culture where little time is spent eating well and nobody takes time to cook, to embrace everyday meal preparation and partaking as inherently spiritual can be a stretch. And yet Leviticus encourages just that, spurring us to approach procurement, preparation and eating with due intentionality and a slower, savory pace. To eat is to spend time with God.

For my family, meal preparation is often accompanied by music. Gratitude is given prior to eating, and a time of spiritual reading and prayer follows. The meal itself is a time of connection and basic obedience to that chief of Levitical commands: “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” Such a practice makes food taste better too.

Daniel M. Harrell is the author of How To Be Perfect: One Church’s Audacious Experiment in Living the Old Testament Book of Leviticus (FaithWords, 2011). He is Senior Minister of Colonial Church, Edina, MN and also author of Nature’s Witness: How Evolution Can Inspire Faith (Abingdon, 2008).

Now available at all Barnes and Now available at all Barnes and noble bookstores (this one in Hingham, MA).

And this one in Greensboro, NC