Part 3
Interviews and Visit to House of Worship
Judaism
Luckily for me, in my same Theology 107 class I have a close Jewish friend that I talked to and she was more than happy to answer my questions for this interview. Ofelia is a Jewish practitioner and she has been raised Jew, with traditions that have been going from generation to generation until the present day. I asked a couple of questions that as an outsider of that religion really interest me and I really wanted to hear the correct answer from someone I know instead of the internet, that sometimes you don’t find what you are looking for. She answered the following:
1. At what time in your life did being Jewish first hold meaning for you and how did it become so …show more content…
What do you believe to be the central challenge facing contemporary Judaism? How are you addressing that challenge?
“”
After this interview, I went to visit a synagogue, which is the Jewish house of prayer. The synagogue had the main sanctuary that is where people pray. From previous studies, I know that some synagogues can have smaller rooms for study and sometimes social halls and offices, and some have a separate room for Torah study. Basically and resumed, synagogues are consecrated spaces used for the purpose of prayer, Torah reading, study and assembly; however, it is not always destined for worship.
Islam
In my orientation week here in Loyola, my orientation leader Maya, said that she was a Muslim but that she turned into that religion because she felt that it was her destiny to practice Islam. She said that originally her parents were Catholic, but not practitioners, so basically she turned Muslim despite her ancestors had Catholic practices during decades from generation to generation. At the end of the tour, I asked her to give me her number because as a new student, I knew nobody and I wanted to get to know more people. I texted Maya a couple of days ago and ask for her help for an interview because I had some questions for a research paper, and she was totally fine with it and told me that she could help me anytime. These were the questions and her …show more content…
It became central in my life because it gives me the stability that I need to live my life with peace and have the hope to reach salvation.”
2. How did being Muslim distinguish you from other people?
“Muslims have certain beliefs in our traditions that are essential for the saving of the soul; there are people that do charity work because it is the right thing to do, but we do it because it is our vocation to do it. Certain things like sponsor an orphan to guide them in their life, become the host family to new Muslims, making a big deal out of the family meal, and establish an Islamic culture in the home are things that mark our ancient traditions.”
3. What does Islam teach?
“For me and for what I’ve learned, Islam’s primary message is the continuation of monotheism, it’s an Abrahamic tradition that center its belief in one God. There are three major dimensions in Islam that include beliefs, ritual practices, and the goal and effort to improve one’s actions. There are also six major beliefs in Islam, and five central practices which are referred to as the Five Pillars. The last dimension of Islam focuses on good works and excellence in character in both one’s spiritual relationship with God and one’s everyday