Quran 14:4 and multiculturalism

What is the biblical perspective on multiculturalism?

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Chris Lee, Neo-Evangelical Protestant Christian, ecclesiology, apologist, M.Div. GCTS
I don’t think the Bible outright addresses the issue of multiculturalism, but H. Richard Niebuhr did write a book, “Christ and Culture.” There are five paradigms:

1. Christ against culture — there are times where specific elements of culture or a culture itself is antithetical to Christianity. For instance, until the Edict of Toleration by Constantine, Christianity and the Roman Empire were at odds in many ways.

This also occurs when Christianity is a minority within a larger culture that isn’t even nominally Christian. So to be Christian is to be very different — and a Christian cannot accept these things in culture that are against his or her beliefs. And some of the downsides of this belief is often “circling the wagons” and an “us vs. them mentality.”

2. Christ of Culture — there are times when cultures are aligned with Christianity. When Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire and in certain red states of the USA, being Christian was consonant with the general culture.

Unfortunately this also leads to nominalization among some other problems. If Christianity is the official religion, then people just put “Christian” in front of their titles (e.g., “I’m a Christian plumber” or “I’m a Christian fisherman”) — but were people really Christians or were they just going along with culture?

3. Christ above culture — there are those who believe our faith has nothing to do with culture and is above culture so to speak — or that is impossible to separate human culture from the grace of God. So culture is neither good nor bad.

This tends to be the paradigm within the Catholic Church. The upside is that this view tends to balance both Christians being involved with culture and yet God as outside of culture, sustaining it. The main downside is that cultural elements can become syncretized within Christianity (e.g., you can worship your family idols as well as worship God).

4. Christ and Culture in Paradox — while there is cooperation within culture and Christianity, there exists also conflict between culture and Christianity.

Niebuhr himself though that this position is static and that the Christian loses the voice to say anything meaningful in/to culture — since this view would just accept culture as is.

5. Christian transforming Culture — an extension of the fourth view, but deliberately, Christians have sought to change elements that are unChristian or antithetical to their beliefs.

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Love poetry of Ali bin Abi Talib for his wife

أتغيب يا عود الأراك بثغرها
… ما خفت يا عود الأراك أراكَ
لو كنت أهلًا للقتال قتلتك…
ما فاز مني يا سواكُ سواكَ
هكذا أنشد على بن أبى طالب، رضي الله عنه، غزلًا في السيدة فاطمة بنت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم حينما رآها تستخدم المسواك
How lucky is the tooth leaning twig to be touched by the blessed mouth.

Post righteous kingdom and trinity/antinomianism of Ishmaelites

The bloodshed in Syria is in the name of hatred of first post righteous king named Ameer Mu’awiyah and the bloodshed in Yemen is in the name of love of this post righteous king making it the political trinity of Ishmaelites. Or like Paul who is loved by Gentiles and hated by pronomian Semites. Both appear to disagree with the idea of genetic primacy of righteous Semites and Ishmaelitic Prophetic descendants. This line of thinking makes it plausible that Jewish Einstein had a tendency towards Shia Islam. I am a semi-Shia pro-Zaydi Sunni like Nasai and Shawkani.

Alperovich Anatoly I would love if you explain about shia

Ishmael Abraham They are like zionist rabbis of Ishmaelites. Zionist rabbis want to bring Jewish Moshiach into power while they want to bring Ishmaelite Mahdi into power. But both will be disappointed when Messiah and Mahdi ends up opposing them.
 Both need apolitical Scriptural spirituality to recognize the true Mahdi and Messiah.

Silent treatment of unjust brothers

Ishmaelite Prophetic descendant Imam Sadiq peace be upon him said: An oppressed brother should say to the unjust brother:” I am the oppressor” and should not give him silent treatment. God is just and he will give back the oppressed person his right.

فليرجع المظلوم إلى صاحبه حتى يقول له : يا أخي !.. أنا الظالم حتى ينقطع الهجران فيما بينهما ، إنّ الله تبارك وتعالى حَكَمٌ عدل يأخذ للمظلوم من الظالم

Zayd bin Umar the son of two Caliphs was martyred

When Busr insulted Ali, Zayd reacts violently. Zayd was very handsome.

في الكامل في التاريخ، ابن الأثير،

4/12

وقال جويرية بن أسماء كان بسر بن أرطأة عند معاوية فنال من علي وزيد بن عمر بن الخطاب حاضر وأمه أم كلثوم بنت علي فعلاه بالعصا وشجه فقال معاوية لزيد :

عمدت إلى شيخ من قريش وسيد أهل الشام فضربته ؟

وأقبل على بسر فقال تشتم عليا وهو جده وهو ابن الفاروق على رؤوس الناس أترى أن يصبر على ذلك ؟

فأرضاهما جميعا .

 

________________________________
في تاريخ الإسلام، الذهبي، 4/58

زيد بن عمر بن الخطاب ، القرشي العدوي ، وأمه أم كلثوم بنت فاطمة الزهراء

. قال عطاء الخراساني : توفي شابا ولم يعقب

. وقال أبو عمرو بن العلاء ، عن رجل من الأنصار ، عن أبيه قال : وفدنا مع زيد بن عمر إلى معاوية ، فأجلسه على السرير ، وهو يومئذ من أجمل الناس ، فأسمعه بسر بن أبي أرطأة كلمة ، فنزل إليه زيد فخنقه حتى صرعه ، وبرك على صدره

، وقال لمعاوية : إني لأعلم أن هذا عن رأيك وأنا ابن الخليفتين.

ثم خرج إلينا زيد وقد تشعث رأسه وعمامته ، ثم اعتذر إليه معاوية ، وأمر له بمائة ألف ، وأمر لكل واحد منا بأربعة آلاف ، ونحن عشرون رجلا . يقال أصابه حجر في خربة ليلا فمات .

Political theology of apolitical psychological resistance to spiritual democratic resistance

Houthis follow Zaydi political theology of armed resistance by Prophetic descendants against Muslim oppressors. But the loophole in the current movement is that they do not have a unifying moderate leader. Iran is based on a political theology of apolitical psychological resistance to Muslim oppressors but a Prophetic descendant Syed Khomeini brought Twelvers closer to Zaydi political theology. A Pakistani Prophetic descendant Syed Mawdudi taught a political theology of democratic resistance against Muslim oppressors, but lack of charismatic leaders of spiritual democratic resistance after Banna and Mawdudi makes young zealots succumb to seduction of armed resistance.

An ex Ismaili criticizes Irish convert to Islam

Ireland has a violent history like Ismailis. Which creates a profound sense of self hatred. I hope she follows a middle path between traditional Islam and Sola Scriptura Islam to avoid the errors of Catholics and Ismailis. Both have the concept of successive unifying leaders in common, while for Ismailis, unlike Gentiles, leader must have a chosen DNA. As far as infallibility of the leader is concerned, it creates problems. In Sunni Islam, the Caliph Umar considered himself  fallible and valued moral and Scriptural feedback as a gift worthy of prayer for the one who offers it.