Letter of the Law

9/3/2010

I knew this already, but I’m realizing it at a new level here.  Islam is all about the rules, and about following them to the letter.  Not the spirit, but the letter.

It’s Ramadan, which means that devout Muslims will not allow anything to pass their lips from the first prayer of the day to the last.  Total fast.  And, if you live in a country that’s not predominantly Muslim, that’s a pretty big deal.  But not here.  Egypt has just rearranged all of life for the month of Ramadan.  Stores close at odd times during the day.  As the time for the final call to prayer approaches, everyone prepares for iftar, the breaking of the fast. They all have a drink or something to eat ready and waiting to go as soon as the call to prayer starts.  They stay up all night binging on huge meals, so they’re not really hungry during the day anyway.  Many people sleep for most of the day, so they can party all night.  They entire country even changed the time, like with Daylight Savings Time, so they can break fast an hour earlier.

So far, I’ve seen several women in full burqas, but most aren’t.  The majority of the women make a point to cover their heads with scarves, and to cover arms and legs to their wrists and ankles.  They’re mostly very modest, usually wearing full skirts or trousers and blousey tops.  But lots of women, especially younger, more “modern” women stretch the rule.  They’ll wear short-sleeved or sleeveless tops with a long-sleeved shirt underneath, often with tight jeans or leggings.  It pretty much defeats the whole purpose of “modesty” when you can see her whole body—but hey, she’s covered.  She’s kept the law.

All these laws, and the many ways to bend the laws, make me think a lot about grace.  I’m so grateful that I don’t have to spend my life remembering a list of rules and trying not to break them.  How different is our God, that all He wants from us is our love, our obedience, our devotion.  That everything boils down to loving Him and loving others… and nothing else really matters.  The letter of the law and the spirit go hand-in-hand.  They complement each other perfectly.  It’s not about seeing how far you can bend the rule without breaking it.  It’s just about love.