A (synonym)
UNIT 8 UNIT 8
Reading for Islamic Higher Education | 83 Main Aims:
to develop students’ reading comprehension skills and strategies using an authentic reading material related to Islam
and Society.
Objectives:
By the end of this session students will have:
practiced scanning practiced skimming
identified words related to Islam and society practiced setting reading purposes
identified and practiced grammatical construction so + adjective+ that
| Muhsinin 84 A. Get Ready to Read
1. Build background knowledge
a. What is the main source of Islamic teaching?
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
b. What is the role of Qur’an for Muslims?
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
c. Do you think that Muslims people still follow ethnic law instead of Islamic teaching?
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
d. Mention other sources of Islamic teaching!
1. ______________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________
4. _____________________________________________________
2. Set purposes for reading a. Author’s objective
Based on the title, the writer intends to inform readers about:
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
b. Your reading purposes
Based on the title of the text, write down your purpose (s) of reading.
When I finish reading the text I will get information about:
1. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
Reading for Islamic Higher Education | 85 3. Vocabulary Preview
Use the words from box A and box B to fill in the synonyms and the meaning of the words taken from the text in the following table.
No Words Synonyms Meaning
1 encouragement
2 celibacy
3 redress
4 repudiate
5 virtue
6 accusation
7 confirm
8 enacted
9 extols
10 disinherited
B (meaning)
dorongan, menyangkal,
ganti rugi, tuduhan, kebaikan, menegaskan,
memuji, menetapkan, mencabut hak waris,
membujang
A (synonym)compensate, deny, goodness, motivation,
charge, assert, established, disowned,
praises, chastity
| Muhsinin 86
4. Write your Sentences
To make sure that you know and understand the list of words above, please write a sentence using each of the words. You may change the tenses. Don’t worry to make mistakes.
1. encouragement
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
2. celibacy
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
3. redress
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
4. repudiate
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
5. virtue
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
6. accusation
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
7. confirm
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
8. enacted
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
9. extols
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
10. disinherited
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Reading for Islamic Higher Education | 87 B. While Reading
1. 1st Reading
Read the text for the first time as quickly as possible (skimming) and underline the word or groups of words discussed in the vocabulary preview and some Islamic terms used in the text.
2. 2nd Reading
Read the text for the second time (scanning) to find out the main idea of each paragraph.
Islam and Society
The Qur’an not only served as a guide in spiritual life;
it also guided Muslims on good practices and right living in daily life. A basic social teaching of Islam is the encouragement of marriage, and the Qur’an regards celibacy definitely as something exceptional—to be resorted to only under economic stringency. Thus, monasticism as a way of life was severely criticized by the Qur’an. With the appearance of Sufism, however, many Sufis preferred celibacy, and some even regarded women as an evil distraction from piety, although marriage remained the normal practice also with Sufis.
Polygamy, which was practiced in pre-Islamic Arabia, was permitted by the Qur’an, which, however, limited the number of simultaneous wives to four, and this permission was made dependent upon the condition that justice be done among co-wives. Medieval law and society, however, regarded this “justice” to be primarily a private matter between a husband and his wives, though the law did provide redress in cases of gross neglect of a wife. Right of divorce was also vested basically in the husband, who could unilaterally repudiate his wife; however, the woman could also sue her husband for divorce before a court on certain grounds.
| Muhsinin 88
The virtue of chastity is regarded as of prime importance by Islam. The Qur’an advanced its universal recommendation of marriage as a means to ensure a state of chastity (ihsan), which is held to be induced by a single free wife. The Qur’an states that those guilty of adultery are to be severely punished with 100 lashes. Tradition has intensified this injunction and has prescribed this punishment for unmarried persons, but married adulterers are to be stoned to death. A false accusation of adultery is punishable by 80 lashes.
The general ethic of the Qur’an considers the marital bond to rest on “mutual love and mercy,” and the spouses are said to be “each other’s garments.” The detailed laws of inheritance prescribed by the Qur’an also tend to confirm the idea of a central family—husband, wife, and children, along with the husband’s parents. Easy access to polygamy (although the normal practice in Islamic society has always been that of monogamy) and easy divorce on the part of the husband led, however, to frequent abuses in the family. In recent times, most Muslim countries have enacted legislation to tighten up marital relationships.
Rights of parents in terms of good treatment are stressed in Islam, and the Qur’an extols filial piety, particularly tenderness to the mother, as an important virtue. A murderer of his father is automatically disinherited. The tendency of the Islamic ethic to strengthen the immediate family on the one hand and the community on the other at the expense of the extended family or tribe did not succeed, however. Muslim society, until the encroachments upon it of modernizing influences, has remained basically one composed of tribes or quasi- tribes. Despite urbanization, tribal affiliations offer the greatest resistance to change and development of a modern polity. So strong, indeed, has been the tribal ethos
Reading for Islamic Higher Education | 89 that, in most Muslim societies, daughters are not given their inheritance share prescribed by the sacred law in order to prevent disintegration of the joint family’s patrimony.
Matt Stefon (ed), 2010
3. 3rd Reading
Read the text for the third time. This time you have to read more carefully to find out the answers to the following comprehension questions:
1. Which of the statements below is not right about the role of the Qur’an based on the text?
A. Al-Qur’an is a guide for spiritual life as well as for good practices in everyday life.
B. Al-Qur’an forbids polygamy.
C. Al-Qur’an praises those who live in piety.
D. Al-Qur’an does not promote celibacy.
E. Al-Qur’an severely punishes those who are guilty of adultery.
2. It can be inferred from paragraph 1 that Sufism … A. forbids marriage.
B. practices polygamy.
C. prefers to get married to celibacy.
D. avoids marriage.
E. honors women.
3. To be able to live in a state of chastity (ihsan) al-Qur’an recommends us to …
A. practice Sufism B. get marriage C. convert to Islam D. practice monogamy E. practice monasticism
4. What happens if someone murders his father?
| Muhsinin 90
A. He will inherit all inheritance from his father.
B. He will not get any inheritance from his father.
C. His father will devolve his possessions to him.
D. His mother will take all his inheritance.
E. He will get inheritance from his mother.
5. Abuses in the family according to the writer frequently happens due to …
A. the legislation to tighten up marital relationship.
B. the laws of inheritance.
C. the easy access to polygamy.
D. the absence of divorce right on the wife.
E. the easy divorce from the husband.
6. The greatest resistance to follow Islamic law according to paragraph 5 is …
A. ethnical affiliation B. modernization C. urbanization D. Islamic ethic E. law of inheritance
7. Which of the following statements is not true according to paragraph 2?
A. Polygamy is allowed by the Qur’an.
B. Polygamy was practiced before the coming of Islam.
C. A wife does not have a right of divorce.
D. Justice is the condition that a husband has to fulfill to be able to practice polygamy.
E. A husband can divorce his wife on his own will.
8. To be stoned to death is a punishment applied to A. male adulterer
B. female adulterer C. unmarried adulterers D. male married adulterer E. married adulterers
Reading for Islamic Higher Education | 91 9. According to paragraph 1 the only acceptable reason for
celibacy is … A. sufism B. piety
C. spiritual life D. economy E. monasticism
10. Muslim people still reluctant to practice Islamic law and prefer ethnical law for certain reasons. This idea is implicitly mentioned in …
A. paragraph 1 B. paragraph 2 C. paragraph 3 D. paragraph 4 E. paragraph 5
C. After You Read
1. Checking Your Purposes a. Author’s objective
Look back at the author’s objective you have stated. Can you prove it? Which part of the text support your proof?
b. Your reading purposes
Check your reading purposes. Do you think you get your purposes?
2. Grammar Practice
A. The following sentence is taken from the text. Please work with your partner or groups to add more sentences which have the same constructions.
1. So strong, indeed, has been the tribal ethos that, in most Muslim societies, daughters are not given their inheritance share prescribed by the sacred law in order to prevent disintegration of the joint family’s patrimony.
| Muhsinin 92
2. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
4. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
5. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
B. Write other examples using your own words.
1. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
4. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
5. _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
3. Write your reading
Polygamy has always become a controversial issue especially for those who claim themselves as women activists. However, Islam permits polygamy with strict conditions. This means that there must be some positive things about polygamy. Please write whether you agree or not with polygamy. State your reasons to support your stance.
I agree with polygamy for several reasons. First, _________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Reading for Islamic Higher Education | 93 _________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
I do not agree with polygamy for several reasons. First, _________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
| Muhsinin 94
Main Aims:
to develop students’ reading comprehension skills and strategies using an authentic reading materials related to
Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh).
Objectives
By the end of this session students will have:
practiced scanning practiced skimming
identified words related to Islamic terms (fiqh) practiced setting reading purposes
identified and practiced passive form (S+to be+V3)