Remarks at the Divine Feminine gathering

[Note: The following is an edited version of my remarks at the MFC organized monthly gathering, held Sunday May 13, 2018 at Trinity Episcopal Church. ]

Good evening:

In terms of the theological aspect of this subject, the religion of Islam has a very clear and straightforward teaching. The ninth century Sunni Islamic theologian named Abu Ja'far Ahmad b. Muhammad At-Tahawi, better known simply as Imam Tahawi writes " Indeed, God is one, without partner, nothing is like him, nothing is beyond his power, He is eternal, without a beginning point, everlasting, without end...nothing occurs except what He wills, He does not resemble the creation, He lives and dies not, self-supporting who sleeps not, He creates and is never in need.." ['Aqeedat At-Tahawiyyah]


The contemporary discussions surrounding the phraseology and particular  pronouns to use for The Divine Reality have no Islamic equivalent. While it is true that God is referred to as "He", it is also true that the use of such pronouns does not imply natural gender. Muslim scholars also understand the name "Allah" as being the the unique name of the Divine, and thus do not view Allah has being neither male nor female."Allah" is unique and unparalleled.

Human cultures universally have associated the feminine with characteristics such as Nurturing, Loving, Patient, Beautiful, and Forgiving. Those attributes are certainly known within Islam as being among the 99 names of Allah. Also worth noting is that contrary to popular belief, Islam at it's core demands respect for women.  One of the chapters of the Qur'an is called "Women", and both genders have the same spiritual potentials.  Prophet Muhammad tells us that "Paradise lies under the feet of mothers"- a good narration in light of mother's day.

The Qur'an speaks of God throughout the text, among them are

"He is Allah, besides whom none deserves worship but Him. The one who knows the unseen and the seen, He is the Merciful, The Compassionate. He is Allah, Besides whom none deserves worship but Him, The Sovereign, The Sacred, The Source of Peace, The Protector, The Mighty, The Powerful, ..." [Q 59:22-23]

"Say: He is Allah alone, Allah the Eternal. He does not give birth to any, nor was He given birth to, and there is nothing like Him." [Q 112:1-4].

Thank you.