Praying together in their prayer communities, the married women in the Islam class were presented with a little bag. After they prayed, they opened the bag and pulled out a piece of black material. This was not just any piece of black material; it was a veil that married Muslim women wear in Saudi Arabia.
Dr. Barbara Pemberton, associate professor of Christian missions, said, “I noticed that there were eight married women, so I went shopping with a dear friend and bought veils as wedding gifts.” The married women were experiencing the aspect of the Islamic culture of being veiled firsthand. “They realized you kind of lose your identity,” Pemberton said.
Offered for the first time in the fall of 2008, Islam is a class that Pemberton said she had been looking forward to for a long time.
In this class, students are introduced to the key concepts of the religion of Islam.
“I wanted students to experience the Islamic mindset,” Pemberton said. In the class, the men sit at the front of the room, and there is no contact between men and women, except for the two married couples because this is how it is in a Muslim society.
Though the class centers on the Islamic culture and religion, Pemberton said, “We always end with Scripture — the identity of Christ. I don’t want them to leave with the focus on Islam. I want the focus to be on Christ.”
Pemberton loves to teach her classes. Her love and excitement to impart knowledge is evident through her actions and her voice as she talks about it.
“I love everything I have an opportunity to teach,” Pemberton said. “I think every course is huge. I like to make it practical.”
Pemberton travels to Saudi Arabia to visit her husband, Jim, who works in safety for Saudi Ramco Oil.
“He truly took the job so I could study there,” Pemberton said. “There are no visitors’ visas to the kingdom. You have to have someone working to get there.”
During her visits, she has had many opportunities.
“When I’m there I have great opportunities to interview and study with scholars. That has been really exciting,” Pemberton said.
While in Saudi Arabia, “I like spending time with American women who have converted to Islam — every one of them because they married a Muslim,” Pemberton said. “We talk about what their life is like. As you can imagine there are some pretty interesting stories — not all happy.”
One story that she recounted was about a young American girl who wanted to do something to hurt her dad. She converted to Islam, married and had kids. Now she cannot leave Saudi Arabia because once you have kids there you cannot leave.
Pemberton’s passion is to equip. “I want to excite students to learn about other religions,” she said. “I want to equip them for today’s world.”
The need to be competent in world religions is seen by others who are seeking Pemberton’s expertise.
“The Arkansas state police have asked me to come this spring to train them in world religions. They see there is a great need,” Pemberton said.
She also goes to various universities and churches to lecture. In the spring, she has a sabbatical and will be guest lecturing at a university in Barain and attending a conference in Egypt.
“Nothing is more humbling than talking to a Muslim who can quote Bible to you,” Pemberton said. “We should be ready. It’s very serious in today’s world.”
Her advice to her students is “to look at opportunities to learn as a gift from God and take them very seriously. Then realize that God’s going to use them.”
“I want my students to take what they learn, to go on and to do more with it,” Pemberton said.
