This was probably the section I have been the most excited for being it was relatively unknown to me. Being a Jewish studies major, my classes have mainly focused on the origins of, you guessed it, Judaism. So here goes....
When reading Chapter 11, I felt like Armstrong used words to try and make the reader sympathize or root for early Islam. She portrayed the religion as an overly peaceful, idealistic religion, which was probably the case. Armstrong said that, "Originally Muhammad believed that the Jews and Christians belonged to the same faith. He was shocked to discover that they had quarreled about doctrinal matters that nobody could prove one way or the other" (220). Again, at one point did their values become so different than those of the Christians and Jews that they practiced an entirely different religion. Islam came about in a relatively hostile way and seemed to be the result of outside pressures from Jews and Christians because they did not have a "true prophet" or God had not appeared to Arabs in some way. They were described as the little kid in the sandbox getting teased by some of the older kids for something that was out of their control. I found it fascinating that the Islamic sacred geography was forced upon the people because Muhammad quickly realized that people need physical representations to pray to or relate to. It is not enough to have abstract concepts when virtually selling your new religion to a group of people already practicing a different religion.
It appears that Jerusalem may be in a state of harmony for once, but of course its just a lofty idea that lasts for the historical equivalent of about five minutes. Islam seemed to bond together Jews and Christians as the third Abrahamic faith. Ultimately some Muslims began to preach that Islam was the one true religion. How could there possibly be coexistence if one group claims they are better than the other? It goes back to Armstrong's quote stating how Muhammad could not understand how people could claim they belonged to different faiths. This altered the situation entirely. The Sufis reacted in the opposite manner and continued to practice in a way that Jews, Christians, and Muslims were still connected through Abraham and that was all that mattered. It is interesting that they are believed to be mystics, because it seemed to me that they kept true to Islam's original message and purpose. It doesn't seem overly spiritual or different to me. Similar to the beginning chapters, I had trouble focusing on the various arguments and destruction of ideas and physical structures expressed in this chapter. I really enjoyed seeing the interplay between Christianity, Islam, and Judaism in these chapters. It is fascinating to see how they interacted on such a close level within one city when today they are very spread out and have little interaction even within Jerusalem.
The Crusades were again another blur of a chapter to me. The various attacks by the Catholic Church on Jews and later Muslims were appalling and brutal to say the least. In the beginning the attacks were based upon the desire to have sole control over Jerusalem. Although Crusaders were divided between wanting to restore Jerusalem to its original state and creating a new image of Jerusalem. These events demonstrate a bastardization of the peaceful ideas religions held at their conception. This seemed to be a reoccurring theme for these three chapters and for the greater part of history. Once a specific group believes that they are better than another or have an idea that is more "right" or "correct"the system falls apart. Groups have to assert these ideas in violent ways that end in atrocities on both sides.
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