Annual pilgrimage to Mecca an important part of Muslim faith

“The city of Mecca is again welcoming millions of Muslim pilgrims, making the arduous journey from all corners of the globe to what is nowadays Saudi Arabia,” says Furman religion professor Alfons Teipen. In a guest column he wrote for The Greenville News, Teipen offers some history about the ritual and points out parallels between the Abrahamic traditions of the Qur’an and those of the Bible.  In a separate note, Teipen says his hope for the article is “to make Muslims feel more welcome (in Greenville and at Furman), and demonstrate that we are a welcoming and diverse community.”