Origins of a moral act

RJK · May 7, 2009

I'm posting here because I think I'll get the most response. I think the origin may be in the old testament but I'm not all that familiar. I've been doing key-word searches of the online bible, but have no luck so far.
I have a character who is a fanatic Muslim. His brother, a non-practicing Muslim was killed in the Iraq war. They are both US citizens. The brother leaves behind a widow and a 4-year-old son. The fanatic Muslim insists that it is duty to care for his nephew and to see that he is properly raised in the faith.
I vaguely recall listening to a sermon in church when I was a child, where the uncle had a duty to care for, and raise the children of his deceased brother, similar to the duty of a godfather. I just can't find the origin of that requirement.
Can anyone point me to a chapter or verse that I could refer to?

DeleyanLee · May 7, 2009

Just out of curiosity--why are you searching the Bible for a Muslim character? Why not use the Koran?

RJK · May 7, 2009

I searched the Quran and couldn't find the reference. Much of the Muslim faith is based on the Old Testament Bible.

DeleyanLee · May 7, 2009

The only reference in the Old Testament is that a man should marry his brother's widow and care for his brother's children as is own. Don't remember the chapter or verse is, but it might help your search.

RJK · May 7, 2009

That sounds like the one I heard years ago. I found a reference to caring for your relatives in 1 Timothy 5:8, but I don't think that's the one I was thinking of.

KCathy · May 7, 2009

I think you're thinking of Deuteronomy 25:5-10:

5 If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband's brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her. 6 The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.

7 However, if a man does not want to marry his brother's wife, she shall go to the elders at the town gate and say, "My husband's brother refuses to carry on his brother's name in Israel. He will not fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to me." 8 Then the elders of his town shall summon him and talk to him. If he persists in saying, "I do not want to marry her," 9 his brother's widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, take off one of his sandals, spit in his face and say, "This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother's family line." 10 That man's line shall be known in Israel as The Family of the Unsandaled.

ToddWBush · May 7, 2009

RJK said:
Much of the Muslim faith is based on the Old Testament Bible.

Um, I'm wondering where you got this from. Because the Christian faith (and because you are mentioning the Old Testament, the Jewish faith) are light years away from the Muslim faith. And I believe that Muslims would agree with me.

Little Earthquake · May 7, 2009

ToddWBush said:
Um, I'm wondering where you got this from. Because the Christian faith (and because you are mentioning the Old Testament, the Jewish faith) are light years away from the Muslim faith. And I believe that Muslims would agree with me.

IIRC, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam come from the same roots. Take a look here and here.

From the Wikipedia article:

They do not regard Muhammad as the founder of a new religion, but as the restorer of the original monotheistic faith of Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. Islamic tradition holds that Jews and Christians distorted the revelations God gave to these prophets by either altering the text, introducing a false interpretation, or both.

Gehanna · May 7, 2009

Try Genesis chapter 38.

Sincerely,
Gehanna

Cyia · May 8, 2009

1 Timothy 5:8 (Amplified Bible)

If anyone fails to provide for his relatives, and especially for those of his own family, he has disowned the faith [by failing to accompany it with fruits] and is worse than an unbeliever [who performs his obligation in these matters].

Exodus 22:22 (Amplified Bible)

You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child.

Genesis 38:8 (Amplified Bible)

Then Judah told Onan, Marry your brother's widow; live with her and raise offspring for your brother.

Roger J Carlson · May 8, 2009

While I agree that Islam has it's roots in the Old Testament, the fact that they regard much of it as mis-interpreted, would make me uncomfortable with quoting the Old Testament to establish its origin.

I suggest that you find a Mosque nearby and talk to the local Imam, or prayer leader. Or, perhaps, contact a university that has a Muslim Studies curriculum.

ChristineR · May 8, 2009

Muslims believe that the original teachings of Moses, Abraham and Jesus were essentially identical to Mohammad's teachings, but that Christians and Jews changed them and wrote them down wrong. Most Muslims have spent about as much time reading the Bible as most Christians have spent reading the Koran (i.e., almost none).

If there is such a Muslim teaching, and it's not in the Koran, and it's not just a general sense that you should take care of your family, then it's likely in the Hadith. The Hadith are sayings of Mohammed and descriptions of his life that are not the prophetic utterances of the Koran. There are several different searchable Hadiths online. Be warned though, that different sects use different Hadith, and that if you mess this one up, it will be glaringly obvious to a Muslim.

RJK · May 9, 2009

I'd like to thank all of you for your responses. I plan for my radical Muslim character to say that it is his duty to raise the son of his deceased brother. I won't be quoting any passages. I just want to have something to fall back on. His duty could be construed as a family duty, or from his deeply religious beliefs. I need it to be a strong enough motivator to make him chase the heroine across the country to get his hands on the boy.

In addition to this motivator, the heroine witnessed the Muslim character murder someone, and the Muslim want to keep her from talking too.

Origins of a moral act

RJK

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DeleyanLee

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KCathy

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Gehanna

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RJK

Sheriff Bullwinkle the Poet says: