Moments of the Sacred: Part I

The Call to Prayer, it happens 5-times a day in the Muslim world. And at least that many times, on each and every day is a call to acknowledge the Sacred. 

I have often woken up in the morning to the sound of the Mu'adhin calling out - it's the noon call, the Mosque in Buyukdere is only a few blocks from where I stayed. They call out on intercoms that are attached to the Minuets. There have been days where the gentleman sounds like he has something stuck in his throat and has to clear it before continuing. Though amusing, in it's own form, he is dedicated to a call for Prayer, Holiness, reflection,...at this, many Muslims will drop to their knees - facing the most holy place they know and seek Heaven. 

I remember the first time I heard it, a cup of coffee in hand, waking up, standing in a garden in my favorite sweats, the cool morning air and the Call itself beckoned my own prayer, my own thankful surrender to God. The moment demanded my attention, compelled my mind to hold still - just for a moment. And so on I went. 

I imagine, like any other human, the Muslim believers ask for help, they ask for blessings, they pray away their sins, they ask for direction, they look find what else they can do live a better life. Are they so far from anyone else? No. Five times a day, they pause for a moment, they look to Reverence and ask for better.

How often, in the Christian world is this done? On Sundays? During a Bible study once a week or a holiday? How often is it done anywhere else - among those with or without any kind of faith? Yes, it begins to sound like a ritual, a regulation of the Religion. But I have found, watching, in only 2-weeks, that this call is precious. The ground they stand on, for so many Muslims, immediately becomes an alter. There is nothing else that matters or makes more sense than that moment. This, truly, is fascinating. It is so because it is necessary. 

How often do we each focus what is truly important? Those from the West and more specifically, the US are always in such a rush to be satisfied and right and right now, ahead of the game and above all else, there is no surrender, God is not *really* factored into the equation, only human worthiness and who is in or who is out of the "Club." Religion is on a fast track, it has become a self-righteous *political* statement and the practice of cleansing isn't even a recognized. There is no meditation or focus on the pause that needs its moment, the quietness of Soul and Spirit. 

This is the beauty in the Call to Prayer. It is, like the word "Islam" itself, a call...to genuine surrender.