Reenactors portraying Muslim soldiers.

major bill

Brev. Brig. Gen'l
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Aug 25, 2012
On another thread we are discussing honoring Muslim Civil War soldiers. My home state of Michigan has a fair number of Muslim residents. I was wondering if anyone had seen a reenactor portraying a Muslim soldier? I do not see a Muslim reenactor as an issue and some spectators might be unaware that at least a few Civil War soldiers were Muslims.
 
Which I'm sure, in reality, they were at the time.
With a Captain and a sergeant documented according to this book.
 
It would be interesting to put together something highlighting the religious diversity of the time. That book looks like it would be useful for ideas, perhaps also incorporating the African American community and their shared Muslim Faith would result in an interesting dynamic?

I’m an humanist, so I’m not much one for preachers, but listening to something different at re-enactments would be a welcome relief.
 
It would be interesting to put together something highlighting the religious diversity of the time. That book looks like it would be useful for ideas, perhaps also incorporating the African American community and their shared Muslim Faith would result in an interesting dynamic?

I’m an humanist, so I’m not much one for preachers, but listening to something different at re-enactments would be a welcome relief.
I think its well documented both sides experienced waves of religious revivals during the war. Various Christian denominations preaching at camps would be fairly accurate depiction of camp life.
 
Oh, decidedly accurate. But it wouldn’t hurt to have more faiths represented, especially if put in the context of the different ways they envisioned the war.
 
Oh, decidedly accurate. But it wouldn’t hurt to have more faiths represented, especially if put in the context of the different ways they envisioned the war.
If the faiths being depicted weren't relevant to the religious revivals it wouldn't be accurate....So far in these Muslim threads I've only seen numbers of mabye 300 on both sides.......there wouldn't have been much a Muslim revival going around........What other faiths other the Christianity were widespread in either army? Perhaps Judaism, but were any units made up of concentrations of Jews to make it feasible?

If a minority faith of say even a 1000.....is scattered out among 3 million men of both sides, its rather irrelevant as far as revivals.....now if 500 of the 1000 was in one brigade or Regt, it may have happened there
 
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I'm having difficulty grasping why one would want to reenact someone who was such a minority in the ACW armies. Just to be different? To highlight some ancestor or a person found while doing research?
I would think its more of a effort of some to demonstrates today's PC, then to demonstrate actual demographics of ACW armies...........which would be predominately WASP.......and by predominately its pretty overwhelmingly predominate

Though the next biggest group after native born whites would have been Germans, but none of the reenactments i have been to, have I noticed Union soldiers trying to portray German accents or speech....even tho some Missouri Union units were heavily German.
 
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I think its well documented both sides experienced waves of religious revivals during the war. Various Christian denominations preaching at camps would be fairly accurate depiction of camp life.
I was thinking about starting a thread on this. How many reenactors portray Chaplains at the various reenactments? That would be an interesting question to have answered.
 
Minorities can, and should be depicted, end of story. To do anything less is a disservice both to the men who fought to make the United States a nation which believes that all men are created equal and to the claimed educational mission of reenactment.

There is nothing wrong with portraying a Muslim, Jewish, or other historical denomination of person. There is nothing wrong with having a mature discussion about how different faiths existed during the war and discussing how faith shaped peoples views of the war. And there is nothing wrong with having a reenactment or group dedicated to reenactment of a different faith than your own.

Personally, I dislike all religions. But the war had a strong religious component and to ignore it would be silly. Ignoring other denominations is equally silly.
 
Minorities can, and should be depicted, end of story.
How can you 'depict' a religion? Faith is held as a belief. Unless there is an outward physical expression of a person's faith, such as a Yamulke, then you've got nothing to go on. And I'm just trying to bring your suggestion to a logical conclusion. Which is why I'm curious about representations of Chaplains who would have serviced the majority of Christians, who were the majority of soldiers during the CW.
 
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Minorities can, and should be depicted, end of story. To do anything less is a disservice both to the men who fought to make the United States a nation which believes that all men are created equal and to the claimed educational mission of reenactment.

There is nothing wrong with portraying a Muslim, Jewish, or other historical denomination of person. There is nothing wrong with having a mature discussion about how different faiths existed during the war and discussing how faith shaped peoples views of the war. And there is nothing wrong with having a reenactment or group dedicated to reenactment of a different faith than your own.

Personally, I dislike all religions. But the war had a strong religious component and to ignore it would be silly. Ignoring other denominations is equally silly.
Ah yes make sure the odd black confederate is portrayed I guess, its the same thing.
 
How can you 'depict' a religion? Faith is held as a belief. Unless there is an outward physical expression of a person's faith, such as a Yamulke, then you've got nothing to go on. And I'm just trying to bring your suggestion to a logical conclusion. Which is why I'm curious about representations of Chaplains who would have serviced the majority of Christians, who were the majority of soldiers during the CW.

Part of the problem with these PC portrayals is they give a false impression because reenacting is so limited in the first place.........if there was one out of a thousand historically..........portraying that one in a group of 15-20 reenactors gives a false impression of how really rare they actually were..........and if you portray one Jew. one Muslim, one black, one Mexican, one ect in the same group of 15-20 reenactors your really giving a false impression of CW demographics...…....

Its amazing they stress on trying to have the gear exact.....then want to portray something that was .0001% of CW armies.......meh might as well wear gear only .0001% actually did as well..........to complete your "historically accurate" protrayel
 
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How does one portray a Civil War soldier who happened to be a Muslim?

One would pray five times per day facing to the east. Reenactment visitors would notice the difference between the typical Christian kneeling on one knee or both knees and the style of prostration used while praying is done by Muslims in which seven body parts touch the ground, the knees, the toes, the palms of the hands, and the forehead. Muslims also do wudhu before praying (ritual washing). Note some Christians would have seen full prostration (laying on the ground with the arms extended forward in some Christian churches. Reenactment visitor might find the style of kneeling used by Muslim soldiers while they pray different.
 
One would pray five times per day facing to the east. Reenactment visitors would notice the difference between the typical Christian kneeling on one knee or both knees and the style of prostration used while praying is done by Muslims in which seven body parts touch the ground, the knees, the toes, the palms of the hands, and the forehead. Muslims also do wudhu before praying (ritual washing). Note some Christians would have seen full prostration (laying on the ground with the arms extended forward in some Christian churches. Reenactment visitor might find the style of kneeling used by Muslim soldiers while they pray different.
Do you have an actual account of this being done by a CW soldier in front of his non Muslim comrades? I would be surprised how limited Muslims were, and the racism and anti immigrant views at the time, that they would outwardly do anything in public to draw attention to themselves....

As in the Muslim thread where it was pointed out most the early ones were slaves, and most of those converted to Christianity as practicing Islam had to be done in secret. Today being different may draw some looks......in the 1800's being different could draw tar and feathered.......
 
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