This lesson is to be taught after the trinity lesson and in preparation for student essay writing ‘Compare the Christian and Muslim belief in the nature of God’
Title: Is Allah a personal God? To know and understand something of the n______ of Allah and understand why these c___________ are important. Title: Is Allah a personal God? Are these believers praying to a personal or impersonal God?
Teacher’s notes Personal = “belonging to or affecting a particular person rather than anyone else” Impersonal = “not existing as a person” Many people think of Allah Allah is an impersonal god, one who cannot be fathomed or known - only submitted to and obeyed. However, many Muslims will tell you Allah can be known intimately in this life. By the end of the lesson you will have evidence to argue Allah is either personal or impersonal. We can learn of Allah through his creation. What can we learn through Dawud Wharnsby’s song? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GDiL7d21CE You want students to discover: Nothing can be compared to Allah. Nothing shares his power, and he certainly does not have any partners or any kind of family. The name al-lah is also used by Arab Christians. It means ‘the Almighty, the Supreme’ ‘Father’ would be shirk. According to Shi’a Islam the second fundamental pillar is Justice (adalat). It means that Allah (swt) is equitable and fair Quran 16: 35-36 reads And the polytheists said, 'had Allah willed, we would not have worshipped anything save Him, neither we nor our fathers' nor we would have forbidden anything apart from Him thus did those before them; then what is on the messengers, but to deliver clearly. And no doubt, We sent a messenger in every nation (saying) that 'Worship Allah, and avoid the devil (Satan) then some of them were guided by Allah and upon some of them astraying came rightly. Before the class discussion – play this video to see if it makes students change their mind on the question https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/-honour-your-parents-6191612
Learning and understanding for today’s lesson: Essential: To be able to explain Muslims’ belief of Allah using some of the 99 names of Allah. Extended: To know the characteristics* of Allah are shown in the Qur’an and why they are important. * Tawhid (inc Surah 16:35-36) Immanence, transcendence, omnipotence, beneficence, mercy, fairness and justice. (Spec 1.3) Challenge: To be able to compare the Christian and Islamic belief in God and discuss the notion of ‘personal’.
Which colour would you associate with this song and why?
Written task What does Wharnsby’s song tell us about the nature of Allah? Complete the sentence: Wharnsby explains Allah as … when he sings… 2. How successfully does Wharnsby communicate the characterstics of Allah which we find in the Qur’an: Tawhid (inc Surah 16:35-36) Immanence, transcendence, omnipotence, beneficence, mercy, fairness and justice? How far would the meaning of this song (nasheed) be changed if the word surrender was changed to submit?
Complete these sentences using the sources and what you have learnt today. 1. Muslims believe that Allah is merciful (forgiving), evidence of this can be found… 2. Muslims believe in tawhid (oneness), this means God is One and not divisible. Evidence of the believe of tawhid is found in… 3. Muslims believe that shirk is a terrible sin. Shirk is the act of likening or comparing Allah to anything else. To explain… 4. Muslims believe Allah is omnipotent, evidence for this can be found… 5. Allah has the characteristic of beneficence (goodness, kindness, charitable), evidence for this can be found… 6. Muslims believe in the immanence of Allah, this can be understood … 7. Muslims believe in the transcendence of Allah, this can be understood… 8. Allah is understood by Muslims as a God od fairness and justice. The Qur’an explains… 9. Belief in Allah as all of the above are important to a Muslim because…
‘Allah is an impersonal God’ Study the sources, you can do this alone or in a group. Remember you are trying to find out about the characteristics of Allah. You will probably want to record what you find out in a list or mindmap as you move from source to source. Make a group (3-5 people) who share the same response to the statement above. Make sure every member of the group has evidence to present. You will be matched with another group to discuss the statement and your evidence. One nominated person will feedback to the teacher and whole class.
‘Allah is an impersonal God’ Agree Disagree