Willie Lowry
- I chose to use a PowerPoint as my medium with photos of Muslim culture in relation to the veneration of Christian prophets and figures. I also added some text describing the similarities of the portrayals of the individuals in both the Bible and Quran. I chose this medium because it simply shows the similarities between the religions and their figures in a way that doesn’t require much effort to take in. Unlike an oped or speech this is very palpable for all populations in the west. My audience is the west but mainly those who are uneducated about other religions but are familiar with Christianity and the individuals in the Bible. Especially those who are antagonistic or view Islam as opposing Christianity. I believe this audience is very important to tackle as they are more susceptible to increase tension in the Muslim community in the west. Their lack of knowledge could either push Muslims away directly by making them feel unwelcome, or unsafe. Or indirectly by forcing Muslims away from their culture or by participating fully as themselves in open discourse. In a pluralist society it is important that each piece of the society feels able to express themselves fully, this enhances empathy and also increases the flow of ideas available to help benefit society. I believe it would be helpful to diffuse any untrue tension between Islam and Christianity portrayed by the media. I chose to show some of the prophets and important figures in the Bible and show how they are represented in Islam. I chose photos that showed how Muslims respected these prophets and commented on how respected they are within the religion. Many of the photos were tombs that are frequented by Muslims to pay respects. Other photos highlight how Muslims join in on Christian celebrations such as Christmas, or even how food prophets ate become a part of Muslim cuisine. I wanted to highlight that Muslims respect Biblical figures just as much or even more than Christians do. As most Christians only revere Jesus, and Mary.
