Teachers Notes for the Lesson on Religion and Faith in Modern Cairo

Teacher's Notes on the Lesson on Religion and Faith in Modern Cairo

This unit primarily describes the popular practice of religious festivals in Egypt, both Muslim and Christian. Religion is a dominant force in many parts of Egyptian life, and that influence can best be appreciated through a combined use of this lesson and the following lesson dealing with life in modern Cairo.

There are many holidays listed here, and only the briefest description is afforded to each. Encourage students to conduct further research into a particular holiday that they find interesting. Of particular interest may be the depiction of Ramadan as a month of celebration. Many students are introduced to Ramadan as a month of fasting from daybreak until dawn, a concept which is both alien and forbidding and often leaves the impression that Muslims dread Ramadan because of the restrictions they must obey during that month. Instead, the opposite is true, and students may want to look into the joyous and festive aspects of the month.

Have your students look at the way in which Coptic Christians celebrate the major holidays. Many students may assume that the Copts fast during Lent as a result of cultural influence -- or even forced domination -- by the Muslim population. In fact, the practice of fasting during Lent, and at several times during the year is one that was abandoned in favor of less stringent restrictions by the western churches. Have your students compare the practice and rituals of the major Christian holidays -- Lent, Easter, Christmas, the day of the Annunciation and Epiphany -- in Protestant, Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Coptic tradition.

Talk about the central beliefs of Islam. What does Islam teach? How do the views of Islam compare to the views of Christianity and Judaism? How are they different? How are they the same? Have Muslim students share their faith with the rest of the class, and have them talk about how the major holidays and what they do to celebrate them. (Note: it would be inappropriate to ask Muslim students to demonstrate how they pray.)

Divide the classroom into 5 groups, and have each group present on one of the five pillars of Islam (profession of faith, prayer, fasting, alms, pilgrimage). Have them talk about what each pillar represents, why it is important, and have them draw a comparison between that pillar and a practice of their own faith. Don't let students claim there are no comparisons or similar practices - each pillar has one! (For example: the Profession of faith (shahada) is the rough equivalent of the Apostles Creed or the Lord's prayer. Muslims pray five times a day, while observant Catholics are supposed to pray when they wake up, when they sleep, before and after each meal, which equals eight daily prayers. Muslims fast during the month of Ramadan, while Catholics and Orthodox Christians have restrictions on what they can eat during Lent, and Orthodox Christians must fast on Good Friday. Muslims pay an alms tax to the mosque once a year, while nearly every Christian church has a collection plate that is sent around at least once during services every Sunday. Muslims are supposed to make a pilgrimage once during their lives to Mecca, and, while not necessarily a requirement, pilgrimage is also an important ritual for Christians and Jews.)

Have students draw up a chart listing the main beliefs and practices of the three monotheistic faiths like this one:

	Judaism	Christianity	Islam
God:	YHWH	God, the Lord	Allah (means "God")
Prophets:	Abraham, Moses, the Old Testament Prophets	John the Baptist, Mary, Jesus, John of Patmos	Muhammad
Holy books:	The Torah (Hebrew)	The Old Testament (Hebrew); the New Testament (Greek)	The Qur'an (Arabic)
Founder/when:	Abraham @ 1300 BCE	Jesus @ 27 CE	Muhammad, 610 CE
Holy Places:	Jerusalem	Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Rome, Nazareth	Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem
Statements of Faith:	Hear O Israel the Lord is our God, the Lord is one	For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but shall have everlasting life; also the Lord's Prayer	There is no God but God and Muhammad is his prophet.
Each believes they received the last word of God	Only believes in the Old Testament; waiting for the Messiah to come	Believes in the Old and New Testament, and that Jesus was the Messiah	Jesus was a prophet, Muhammad is the last prophet; there will be no more.
Rituals and Customs	Kosher dietary laws; do not eat pork	Fasting on special days	Do not eat pork or consume alcohol
Holy Days	Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Passover	Easter, Good Friday, Christmas, Lent	Ramadan, 'Eid al-Adha, 'Eid al-Fitr, the Prophet's Birthday
Calendar	Lunar Calendar of 12 months of 29-30 days each, current year is 5761	Solar (Gregorian) Calendar (365 day year except every fourth year, which has 366); current year is 2000 (except Ethiopia, which still uses the Julian calendar of 365 days; current year is 1993.)	Lunar Calendar of 12 months of 29-30 days each; current year is 1421
Symbols	Star of David, the Menorah	The cross	The crescent moon; stylized Arabic "Allah"
House of Worship	Synagogue, temple	Church, cathedral	Mosque, masjid
Day of worship	Friday sunset – Saturday sunset	Sunday	Friday
Branches / Denominations	Reform Conservative Orthodox	Roman Catholic Eastern Orthodox (Greek, Russian, Serbian) Coptic Orthodox (Egyptian, Ethiopian) Protestant (many different sects)	Sunni Shi'i
Number of Followers	Approx. 20 million	1.5 billion	1.5 billion
Where Located	Worldwide, primarily Israel, Europe, U.S.	Worldwide, primarily the Americas, Europe, Africa	Worldwide, primarily Indonesia, the Middle East, Europe, North America

Have students research the stance of each religion on a particular issue, such as marriage and divorce, conversion, right to own property, right of inheritance, the legal status of women, etc. You can get into controversial issues as well: what does each religion say about abortion, premarital sex, homosexuality, or other issues?