Religious people have adapted and adjusted their practices to new circumstances (changes in everyday technologies, migrating to new regions, oppression by new people im charge, etc.) since religion began. On an individual level, as well, religious people are taught to do and think certain things, and as they go through life they figure out which of these things fit in well with everything else in their lives, and which don’t. It has been pointed out in other threads (such as those about, say, Senator Lieberman walking to work on Saturdays), that many of these practices are most satisfying precisely because they force the practitioner to do something inconvenient, and thus to make him/her stop and think about something important but often forgotten in the rush of daily life.
So, I’m sure that a Muslim astronaut would find a way to perform enough of his/her rituals to obtain the benefits of them, and could find a knowledgable spiritual guide (say, an imam) who could offer their thoughtful approval of the compromises that would be necessary – the departures from the usual practice.
Well, in space and unless they’re on geosynchronous orbit they don’t have one sunrise and one sunset per each 24-h period… and even with that kind of orbit, they may be using the clock of the timezone at Control, rather than the “local” timezone.
So the dawn-and-dusk issue is solved with an old-fashioned farmer’s calendar, listing dawn and dusk hours at whichever location he wishes to use as reference.
The article itself indicates that there has been an international meeting regarding the problem and that, among other possible solutions, the clerics involved have listed:
don’t try to perform the physical part of the prayer, do the genuflexions mentally; look more-or-less in the right direction but don’t sweat it too much; don’t worry about the fast and do it when you come back.
In a longer-term situation, “postponing the fast” wouldn’t work, of course.
Religion is highly adaptable. 1st century Jews survived the destruction of the Temple; 2nd century Christians came to terms with the fact that Jesus had not yet returned as expected; I’m pretty sure the Muslims will adapt to the geography of space.
The rules for fasting during Ramadan are relatively flexible. Some groups are exempt including, if I recall correctly, travelers. As long as a faithful Muslim is attempting to follow his faith to the best of his ability, Allah will overlook any difficulties cause by his circumstances.
These are not new problems. How do Muslims in the far north or south fast for Ramadan, or for that matter determine when to pray? The “Day” last six months. Smart People have decided that the correct procedure is to estimate.
When the problem becomes more widespread, we will have more rulings. But for now, wing it.
I would imagine astronauts aboard the ISS generally go by Zulu time (e.g. GMT) and so that’d be a logical choice too.
My admittedly limited understanding of Islam, which I’ve gotten mostly from Muslim co-workers, is that as long as Dr. Shukor makes an honest and logical attempt to abide by these basic tenets of his faith, God will understand his rather unusual situation.
In the preface to one of Alan Dean Foster’s Star Trek Logs (novelizations of the animated series episodes), while the Enterprise was being built in Earth orbit, the construction foreman periodically turns to face Mecca for prayers, as the city swept past below.
Then there’s the old New Yorker cartoon in which a fat guy in a big sports car stops to ask a Moslem man, prostrated on a prayer rug by the side of the road, “Hey, buddy, which way to Mecca?”
due to odd sun times in russia, scandinavia, and alaska; the orthodox church came up with 6pm to 6pm as one full church day. anywhere else it was the regular sundown to sundown full day.
islam could possibly go with 6am to 6pm for sun-up and sun down for places that are sun challenged.
There’s no reason organized religion can’t do what it has always done, namely make up new rules or exceptions in reaction to convenience or unforeseen events. If muslims can get around the prohibition against premarital sex by getting the imam to issue a temporary “marriage” valid for a couple of hours, I’m sure they can easily concoct some sort of way to resolve their customs with space travel. The only interesting question how they’ll choose to fudge the existing doctrine.
If by “practical” you mean “easily changed because it is a set of arbitrary rules invented by humans”, then yes, you’re spot-on.
Not that I’m knocking on Islam specifically, mind you, had we been talking about strictures of any other relgion, my comments would be the same. For example, how would an orthodox Jew observe sabbath in space? Just change the rules to suit the situation so that the letter of the rule can be observed, as they’ve always done. You can substitute whatever silly religion requires you to do something special at sunrise/sunset with the threat of eternal damnation.
