Spiritual Healing (Rūḥanī Shifā) in South Asia

December 2, 2010

I am back in South Asia researching how Muslims respond to illness and the need for healing. Part of my research includes how Muslims view the miracles that Jesus (as) performed by Allah’s (swt) leave. Do some Muslims pray in Jesus’ (as) name? Are they willing to receive prayer if a Christian prays in his name? What are some of the misunderstandings that Christians and Muslims have held about praying in Jesus’ (as) name? These are some of the questions I’ll be investigating and will be sure to post some of the answers I discover.

Often in interfaith dialogue, Christians use the miracles and healings of Jesus (as) as evidence that he is more than just a prophet, but that this is conclusive evidence that he is in some way divine.

From the Muslim perspective, usually the miracles of Jesus (as) are not discounted, but rather are understood in light of God’s permission given to Jesus (as) to perform them.  It in actuality is not Jesus (as), but God acting through Jesus (as) that is bringing healing and other supernatural occurrences.  Often Muslims can be found rejecting prayers offered in Jesus’ name because of the response and beliefs that Christians hold, and the concern that by praying in Jesus’ name, is the pray-er in some way acknowledging a partner in heaven with God?

So far all I’ve given is examples of how Christians and Muslims have viewed this issue, but what do our Holy Books say about Spiritual Healing?

In this series, we’ll be looking at various Islamic and Christian topics regarding intercession, healing and miracles, and how we can better dialogue about these issues among Muslims and Christians.

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From Heaven to Earth Day Four

July 24, 2010

Day Four

Today I met my friend Ali at his home.  We spent some time praying at his home, asking God for specifically who we should pray for and where we should go.  One name I heard God speak to me was “Kumar.”  So, off we went to a place in Artesia called Little India.

We went to a number of stores.  Ali, the more vocal of us, would ask the shop owners if anyone wasn’t feeling well or had some sort of pain in their body.  If there was anyone, Ali, his wife, and I would offer to pray for them.  At the first store there was a woman who had knee problems who after we prayed for her, she felt much better.

Another store we visited, there was a Muslim family working there.  We prayed for the shopowner’s back which was in pain.  She felt much better.  As we were leaving, Ali saw her mother sitting down with a walker next to her.  He asked the owner if her mother had a stroke.  She replied yes.  He then asked her if her mother’s pain was on the left side of her body.  Again she said yes, but now she was looking very surprised.  She asked if we told the future and read palms.

Ali told her he was willing to pray for her and I mentioned to her that the power she was seeing today is not from us, but from God, Khuda se.  He began to pray for her again, asking God’s Spirit, RuhAllah to speak to her.  After we prayed, we said our goodbyes, Khudahafiz.  And made our way to the next store, but as we left I sensed that those in the store had encountered God today in a very personal way.  They knew they were loved by Him.  That’s at least what I could see from their eyes.  It was a great moment.

Right before we were to leave, Ali and his wife stopped at a grocery store to pick some things up for later.  As we were waiting in line, Ali asked the shopowner if anyone needed prayer for healing.  He responded, “Do we have to need healing in order to receive prayer?”  Ali asked if he’d like prayer anyway and he said yes.  Ali then asked him his name, “Kumar” he said proudly.  Wait a minute!  God gave me that name during our prayer time.  So, Ali, his wife and I all prayed for Kumar.  I felt God impressing on me that Kumar is a strong man.  He has a lot of human strength, but that God wanted to give Kumar His strength instead of Kumar just relying on his own.  So I began to pray that for him.  Then I prayed the same thing for Kumar to have God’s love so that anyone entering his store would encounter God’s love.  By the end I and Kumar were both very touched to have met and prayed with each other.  What a great day!

As we left Little India, I remarked to Ali that so many Americans have a naturalistic worldview that makes no room for the supernatural.  It is really hard to offer to pray for these people because they don’t believe in God.  But, what I have found in India is the exact opposite.  Most people believe in God/gods, and so they are open to being prayed for, just as long as you’re not trying to push your religion on them, which we weren’t, so people were more receptive than I had expected.  What an interesting and fun day.  What if every day could be like this one?

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Dreaming al-Najashi.org Into Reality

June 1, 2010

"Seek and You Will Find"

From Dream to Reality

Last Monday, May 24 I had a dream where I was driving through a city in what I thought was the U.S.  As I was driving I saw this building that looked like an Islamic Center, it had Arabic writing on a sign at the front as well.  I then looked next door to the Islamic Center and saw another sign which said, “al-Najashi.”  I couldn’t believe it!  Then God showed me the inside of the office where there were two rooms, one for the office and another  I sensed He was releasing freedom for me to choose what this second room should be used for.

So a number of ideas came through my mind (in my dream), but sensed His pleasure in using this second room either as a library or an art studio.  Wow!  I awoke from this dream feeling so encouraged and excited about its significance.

I liked the idea of being next to an Islamic Center since our goal is to build bridges for Muslims and Christians.  I also liked the idea of having a library in the office which would contain books where Muslims and Christians seek to explain their faiths as well as to understand their counterpart’s faith.

Supernatural School of Abrahamic Faith

More importantly though would be if this library was connected to a school–a place for Muslims and Christians to go deeper in understanding one another and relating with each other.  If there were no restrictions or complications, it would be amazing if this school could promote praying for each other, asking God for healing, learning how Muslims and Christians can do development projects together, possibly develop curriculum using the Holy Books that would be for character formation and peacemaking among the Christian and Muslim youth, and of course a school where people from both faiths learn about each others’ faiths so that we can take what we’ve learned and experienced to our own community of faith to help them further understand the other.

Faith Art

Lastly, the art studio was also a surprising aspect of this dream because a month ago during a time of worship, God began showing me visions of paintings He wanted me to paint all having to do with the idea of not propagating a specific religious tradition, but rather sharing my own experience of God and how He is relating Himself to me.  This vision I had during worship was so strong that I actually could smell paint as I was experiencing it.

So, all to say, I’m continuing to ask God how and what He would like me to do in this new season that is upon us.  We feel like we’ve been in a waiting pattern and things are starting to gain clarity, al-hamdulillah (praise God)!

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