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I find myself before a group that “is culturally religious” I can ask myself if they are all like that and to what degree. Before this question, I found different levels of belief and different commitments before it.

Moroccans with a lot of faith: islamic sanctity

For Madani, his belief in Islam is everything; every moment of his life is guided, measured by the expression of his faith. “None equals Him!” This phrase is from SURA CXII, it is radically true for Madani. It fulfills all the rules of his faith; he is “incapable” of going off course, to do something that contradicts the Koran. Madani is happy at his 48 years, with his wife and eight children, with his seasonal work away from his loved ones, in a country he barely understands and with an uncertain future. He has all the conditions to think of life as a burden, and nevertheless..., the answer is his God, Allah, the Eternal one. Alan Wats, (1995, p. 19) stated, “the difference between the modern, educated, uncertain, and neurotic believer, and the calm dignity and inner peace of the old fashioned believer, makes him an enviable man." That is Madani for us: an enviable man, who comes from a countryside of the Third World, a man with little “culture,” a man with few things, many “burdens” however..., AN ENVIABLE MAN.

Moroccans with faith: follow the rules

Just as Madani, Mohammed, 34 years old, married and with three children, also comes from rural surroundings, with little academic culture and great faith in Allah. For him, the most important thing is family; a family which involves all types of kinship, and his God. He lives with Mohammed of 47 years and Said of 27; the three have the same type of faith, the three represent the convinced Moroccans, “I seek refuge in the Lord of daybreak” (SURA CXIII). The carpet facing the East is their most valuable relic in their house, from which they say their daily prayers. If they are busy with field work, they stop and look for the answer of life, which is Him, the Eternal one. They do not drink alcohol, do not eat impure animals, they respect their elders, they do not rob, they comply with fasting of the Ramadan. Everything can happen nothing has importance, nor poverty or wealth; everything is good.

Beza and Achor can also be put in this group; they are socially worse off than their previous companions, but are also integrated in this type of religiosity. If Madani is an isolated case of “Islamic sanctity,” Mohammed, Said, Mohammed, Beza, and Achor are the most numerous group of Moroccan immigrants of the zone, as far as their religious expression. They are part of the simple people of the countryside group, those that do not question their faith, as if they had read the text of the Cloud of Unknowing, which says: “thought cannot understand God” (English Anonymous of the XIV Century, 1995:182).

Moroccans with faith: god encircles both religions (islam and christianity)

Not everyone forms part of this unbreakable faith, others are capable of coexisting with our culture without being belligerent, and understanding that there is a God that encircles both religions, Christianity and Islam. This is Haly’s belief; God understands everything, and that whole gives him tranquility and allows him to adapt to his new life. Haly and Habbas are young university students from urban zones. Both are married to Spaniards; both assume their faith and extend it to the new adopted faith or live without becoming attached to the strict norms of their Moroccan companions. In his ample faith, alcohol and women are included; giving alms is not, nor is it necessary to fast during Ramadan. The important thing is to be “good people” and to help others. To respect and to be respected is Habbas’ motto.

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Source:  OpenStax, Immigration in the united states and spain: consideration for educational leaders. OpenStax CNX. Dec 20, 2009 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11150/1.1
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