Fasting: A Learning Experience on Another's Spiritual Journey

IN GOD'S PRESENCE: Pastor Yap praying at the Fatih Mosque in Istanbul. His visit to Turkey has left him touched by the deep spirituality of a religious people who live in a secular society. -- PHOTO: TURKISH CULTURAL CENTRE

The Turkish Cultural Center received a request by the leading national television station Samanyolu to send a non-Muslim representative from Singapore to participate in a documentary series on Ramadan observance in İstanbul.

Turkish Cultural Center Director Necmettin Eckişi extended an invitation to me to join the program, since I had been part of a delegation that visited İstanbul last year to study the educational system inspired by the renowned Islamic scholar and religious teacher Fethullah Gülen.

Samanyolu TV made a documentary series on Ramadan observances in different countries in 2006. This year they developed a reverse scenario by inviting foreign visitors to come to İstanbul to stay in homes and join in the Ramadan activities of the family. This was a wonderful opportunity for me as a Christian pastor to get to be up close and personal to the spiritual life of the family and the community as they observe Ramadan. At the same time it promoted intercultural exchange and interfaith relations.

The TV crew was assigned to record my day of fasting with the host family and edit it for national and international telecast by satellite to their subsidiaries, especially in the United States, Europe and Australia. It was a major segment within a three-hour program each day just before the breaking of the fast.

I arrived at the home of my hosts on a Friday evening and was introduced to the family members and the TV filming crew who briefed me about the following day's schedule. My gracious hosts were Mustafa and his wife, their 15-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son. He is a successful housing developer. His wife and daughter wear the headscarf. The government does not allow the wearing of the headscarf in government offices and public educational institutions. His home was in a new up-market housing development.

Since this was going to be my first experience of fasting during Ramadan, I was given the choice of not participating in the full fast and doing a limited form giving allowances to my age of 78. My choice was clear -- I wanted to fast along with the family. They kindly suggested that I go to bed earlier that night since they would wake me at 3:30 a.m. for the meal before daybreak.

The TV crew members were punctual. They set up the lighting and camera and filmed the morning meal which was to last me throughout the day without food or drink.

After the meal, they performed their morning prayer and requested that I go back to my room and get some more rest to prepare me for the day's activities. After resting I read the Quran and the poetry of Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi, the Islamic mystic.

A day in the city without eating

The day began with going to the open market to buy the groceries for the iftar dinner in the evening for the breaking of fast. There were the essential dates to break the fast, lentils for soup, bread, and meat and vegetables for the kebabs. The bazaars were crowded with shoppers. At noon we went to the Eyüp Sultan Mosque for prayers. This is a 15th century mosque built in honor of Eyüp Sultan who has the distinction of being a companion of the Prophet Mohammed. He hosted him for seven months in Medina. When his grave was discovered, he was entombed and the historic mosque was built next to the mausoleum. It is a magnificent mosque and was filled with worshippers who overflowed into the courtyard. I was told that every day during Ramadan there would be crowds in the mosques performing their prayers (salat), responding to the muezzin's call to prayer from the minarets. Their religiosity was awe-inspiring.

This was followed by a visit to another majestic mosque, the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Mosque. Sultan Mehmet II is the conqueror ("fatih" in Turkish) who captured İstanbul from the Byzantine Empire. This fascinating mosque was built originally in the mid-15th century on the very site of the former Church of the Holy Apostles. It was damaged by an earthquake and rebuilt. The present structure dates back to 1767. The 26-meter main dome is surrounded by smaller domes and supported by four marble pillars. Near the front there were rows of people reading the Quran. Worshippers came in and said their private prayers. The tranquility and solemnity of the sanctuary brought me to my knees in prayer to God too. I felt I was truly on holy ground and in God's presence. For in my reading of the Quran it said that God is one and is the same as that of the God of the Torah and of the Bible. We are all children of Abraham and believe in the same God. At the mausoleum of Fatih Sultan Mehmet there were women praying and reading the Quran, sitting along the walls and facing the tomb where the Sultan laid. When we walked outside, through the window we saw a man praying and we joined him in his devotion. The prayer of the faithful is certainly an inspiration to us all.

In the evening we gathered around the family dining table for iftar. The family members and the TV crew joined in the sumptuous meal. The prayer of thanksgiving was offered by the young son. I was informed that out in the city there were tents in different areas as well as near the mosques where private groups sponsor and serve the dinner to the poor and needy and there is an open invitation to everyone. This is an expression of care and compassion toward those in need. This is done throughout the month of Ramadan. The whole community participated and no one was left out of iftar in the city.

At home when the dinner was over there was the prayer time. They faced southeast, laid their prayer mats in the living room and conducted their prayers. It was led by the people themselves and they were all familiar with the prayers. The family members have their daily prayers at home and their Friday prayers in the mosques. Prayer is very much an important part of family life.

After the dinner we recalled the day's events and recorded our observations. What impressed me was the spirituality of the people who observed Ramadan. In the fasting period they were turning away from worldly things and focusing on things spiritual. It was a time of reflection and self-examination. They were seeking forgiveness from Allah in their prayers. It seems to me that it was also a time for them to forgive themselves and one another. It was an occasion of showing compassion and caring for others in need. Throughout the day they were concerned even about my personal welfare and whether I was alright with fasting. They were genuinely seeking renewal and transformation of their personal lives.

Before the day ended, I expressed my appreciation to the family for their warm hospitality and to the TV crew who accompanied me the entire day. I presented my hosts with a gift of my wife's Chinese scroll painting of bamboo. It is connected with Mevlana's verse about the reed flute. The bamboo flute like the reed flute comes to life when air is breathed into it. The reed of the flute sings about separation from the reef-bed and seeks the moment of reunion as we seek union with our creator in our meditation. In turn Mrs. Mustafa gave me a painting, which was hanging in the room where I slept, of the Maiden Tower on an island of the Bosporus. Legend tells us about the love of the father for his daughter, whose life was being threatened. She was placed in the tower for her protection but was finally killed by a snake which was snuck into the tower. The tower symbolizes love and devotion. In the background of the painting is the skyline of the shores of the Bosporus with the outline of the famous Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque and the Süleymaniye Mosque.

Learning from others

I count it a great privilege to observe a week of Ramadan with the faithful Muslims in İstanbul. It was a learning experience for me in joining them on their spiritual journey and knowing more about the religious life of the community. I have discovered this though it is a secular state but it does not mean that they dismiss the role of religion. The secular state is more in terms of governing by elected leaders elected by a democratic process and not by those who govern by virtue of their office as religious leaders. The elected officials are often members of their religious faith communities and committed to their faith.

The religious influence is strong in the lives of the people. There are many of them inspired by the teachings of the religious leader Gülen, who, due to health conditions, has been residing in the United States for the last few years. Gülen is a follower of the distinguished Turkish thinker and scholar Said Nursi, who passed away in 1960. Within İstanbul today there is a close friend of Gülen by the name of Mehmet Ali, an active inspirational religious teacher. I had engaged in discussions with him previously both in Singapore and İstanbul. I met him again and he told me that he was very busy during the month of Ramadan and had many speaking engagements with different groups in the city. There is a spiritual hunger here. The influence of Gülen and his friends is significant and has brought about a change in the culture of the Muslim community in Turkey.

The movement, which is not institutionalized, exists in the lives of the people who form informal, voluntary and autonomous decentralized structures for service. It is spread by those who read the writings of Gülen and influenced by his ideas of moving into the 21st century. The focus is on education in developing leadership in all sectors of society. It is education plus intentional moral training and character formation. Related to this is the promotion of intercultural understanding and interfaith relations. Diversity is acknowledged and we need such leaders for the pluralistic globalized world. The religious teachers and school teachers lead by personal example and one can detect their distinctiveness. The schools motivated by Gülen's teachings are known in Turkey as "hizmet" schools, where service is emphasized. The movement has established schools in different countries in the world including the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia. They are established by the followers of Gülen, who organize themselves to support schools and other social and cultural institutions.

Their influence has gone into setting up media agencies in Turkey like Samanyolu TV, national daily Zaman, Light Publishers, the Society for Social and Economic Solidarity with Pacific Countries (PASIAD) and the Association of Journalists and Writers, who also assume the responsibility of conducting intercultural and interfaith dialogue. They have all proven to be successful services and profitable enterprises with decentralized structures, in contrast to other institutionalized movements for change and renewal. There are lessons to be learned from the enlightened and progressive Islamic movement in Turkey, poised literally as a bridge between Asia and Europe.

*A former Bishop of The Methodist Church in Singapore and Malaysia