Professor Sherman Jackson, the King Faisal Chair in Islamic Thought and Culture and Professor of Religion and American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California, came to speak to us on the American Common Good in terms of the Islamic faith. He wrote numerous books and is an instrumental people for shedding light on not only what it means to be a Muslim, but also a black Muslim.

His talk was extremely profound. His messages were applicable to, in my opinion, everyone. Even though he spoke mainly to Islamic ideals and beliefs, I saw many opportunities for it to apply to others of various religions. His one sentiment that I agreed with the most was his idea that we do not need to hide our faith in order to contribute to the “American common good.” He spoke mainly to the Muslim community that is post 9-11, saying that after this world-changing event, many Muslims felt the need to hide their beliefs in order to contribute to the American common good as they were “smeared with collective guilt,” which is not the case. True Muslim values are in fact aligned with the American common good.

I also heavily agreed with his notion that all religions need to work together. It is essential that religions don’t slander each other or to pass judgements. I do believe that if religions set aside the key differences, they will see the same basic beliefs match up: be a good person in the eyes of God. I think that working together rather than fighting over these differences could solve a lot of problems, and essentially contribute to this American common good.

Overall, this was a great talk and definitely informative. It raised several good issues and led me to think more about the issues of politics and how they intertwine with religion, even though church and state are supposed to be separate.