Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2020 February 5

Welcome to the Wikipedia Humanities Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is a transcluded archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

February 5

Islam mixed with other world religions

I have been told that Yazdism is a mixture of Islam and Christianity, Druzism is a mixture of Judaism and Islam and Sikhism is a mixture of Hinduism and Islam. If this is true, then how? Also, is there a world religion that is a mixture of Buddhism and Islam and a world religion of Zoroastrianism and Islam? If so, what are they? Donmust90 (talk) 16:46, 5 February 2020 (UTC)Donmust90Donmust90 (talk) 16:46, 5 February 2020 (UTC)

Those are oversimplifications. Luckily, we happen to have an encyclopedia nearby where you can research Yazidism, Druze, Sikhism, etc. and arrive at your own conclusions. We also have an article on Islam and other religions you might find useful. Matt Deres (talk) 20:49, 5 February 2020 (UTC)

... and maybe the article on religious syncretism. ---Sluzzelin talk 21:29, 5 February 2020 (UTC)

First off, Yazidism is not a "world religion", and I'm doubtful about Druze status as such. Second, both those groupings (and even more so Mandaeanism) have been influenced by Gnosticism, which was a kind of cross-religious tendency in the early centuries A.D., with Jewish, Christian, and Hellenistic manifestations (not to mention that Manichaeism is kind of a Gnostic offshoot of Zoroastrianism). Second, Islamic contact with other religions can result in the incorporation of some old pre-Islamic customs into Muslim societies, or sometimes the formation of small divergent groups (such as the Druze, Qarmatians etc), but mainstream Islam is intolerant of any kind of overt hybrid -- if many Muslims are unwilling to grant Muslim status to Ahmadis, they would be even less accepting of more obviously hybridized religions... AnonMoos (talk) 21:45, 5 February 2020 (UTC)

Actually, I just today looked at a study on religiosity in Germany (https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/fileadmin/files/BSt/Publikationen/GrauePublikationen/GP_Religionsmonitor_verstehen_was_verbindet_Religioesitaet_und_Zusammenhalt_in_Deutschland.pdf), and Muslims are the most likely of the major religious groups to practice some kind of syncretism, at 42%, with the big Christian denomination coming in at 26% and 24%, respectively. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 22:11, 5 February 2020 (UTC)

What does "syncretism" mean in that particular context? AnonMoos (talk) 01:46, 7 February 2020 (UTC)

It means that people use religious practices and ideas from more than one source religion in their personal life. A trivial and unlikely example would be to pray towards Mecca five times a day, but using the Lord's Prayer. Or having pagan eggs for the Christian Easter ;-). --Stephan Schulz (talk) 12:43, 7 February 2020 (UTC)

However, those are examples of the infiltration of a few surrounding cultural customs (analogous to a "Hannukkah bush"), and not a true theological hybrid religion in the sense that DonMust90 was asking about, or like those which appear in Frank Herbert's works ("Zensunni" etc). Also, if past experience is any guide, then when new waves of immigrants from majority-Muslim countries arrive in Europe, some of them will loudly denounce such "Hannukkah bush" style syncretism, and demand a "purification" of Islam as practiced in Europe... AnonMoos (talk) 21:53, 8 February 2020 (UTC)

Every religion is a blend. Take a few steps back. What is Islam a mixture of? What is Christianity a mixture of? What is Judaism a mixture of? What was ancient Canaanite religion a mixture of? Temerarius (talk) --Preceding undated comment added 01:00, 7 February 2020 (UTC)

There's a passage near the beginning of Seven Pillars of Wisdom where the author mentions that lots and lots of hybrid Islamic-Whatever religions had sprung up in the region, many of them died out quickly, some stayed around, many of the beliefs blended together, and some made it back into larger Islamic sects. It's like watching biological organisms mutate and evolve. 173.228.123.190 (talk) 08:47, 7 February 2020 (UTC)

An officer of distinction in the Dardenelles Campaign

In Churchill, Winston S. (1938). "Part II 1915: Chapter XIII: The Case for Perseverance and Decision". The World Crisis 1911-1918. Vol. 1 of 2 (New ed.). London: Odhams Press Limited. p. 674. Churchill quotes someone he describes as "An officer of distinction who filled throughout the whole of the operations a position of high responsibility" on the effect of gunfire upon the battleships. Do we know who this officer of distinction was? Thank you, DuncanHill (talk) 23:42, 5 February 2020 (UTC)

Betting on Rear Adm. Keyes, maybe in testimony to the Dardanelles Commission of Inquiry[1], but only results for likely quotes are from Word Crisis. Also de Robeck suffered from sciatica[2].—eric 00:47, 7 February 2020 (UTC)

I did think Keyes was likely, will have to keep digging! DuncanHill (talk) 18:16, 8 February 2020 (UTC)

For some reason Archive only has one volume of The Keyes Papers. No likely hits at British Library or Navy Records Society but maybe their search engine isn't all that great.—eric 16:39, 12 February 2020 (UTC)