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Pillars: How Muslim Friends Led Me Closer to Jesus
Gold Medal, 2022 Independent Publisher Book Awards, IPPY
Personal friendships with Somali Muslims overcome the prejudices and expand the faith of a typical American Evangelical Christian living in the Horn of Africa.When Rachel Pieh Jones moved from Minnesota to rural Somalia with her husband and twin toddlers eighteen years ago, she was secure in a faith that defined who was right and who was wrong, who was saved and who needed saving. She had been taught that Islam was evil, full of lies and darkness, and that the world would be better without it.Luckily, locals show compassion for this blundering outsider who can’t keep her headscarf on or her toddlers from tripping over AK-47s. After the murder of several foreigners forces them to evacuate, the Joneses resettle in nearby Djibouti.Jones recounts, often entertainingly, the personal encounters and growing friendships that gradually dismantle her unspoken fears and prejudices and deepen her appreciation for Islam. Unexpectedly, along the way she also gains a far richer understanding of her own Christian faith. Grouping her stories around the five pillars of Islam – creed, prayer, fasting, giving, and pilgrimage – Jones shows how her Muslim friends’ devotion to these pillars leads her to rediscover ancient Christian practices her own religious tradition has lost or neglected.Jones brings the reader along as she reexamines her assumptions about faith and God through the lens of Islam and Somali culture. Are God and Allah the same? What happens when one’s ideas about God and the Bible crumble and the only people around are Muslims? What happens is that she discovers that Jesus is more generous, daring, and loving than she ever imagined.
Personal friendships with Somali Muslims overcome the prejudices and expand the faith of a typical American Evangelical Christian living in the Horn of Africa.When Rachel Pieh Jones moved from Minnesota to rural Somalia with her husband and twin toddlers eighteen years ago, she was secure in a faith that defined who was right and who was wrong, who was saved and who needed saving. She had been taught that Islam was evil, full of lies and darkness, and that the world would be better without it.Luckily, locals show compassion for this blundering outsider who can’t keep her headscarf on or her toddlers from tripping over AK-47s. After the murder of several foreigners forces them to evacuate, the Joneses resettle in nearby Djibouti.Jones recounts, often entertainingly, the personal encounters and growing friendships that gradually dismantle her unspoken fears and prejudices and deepen her appreciation for Islam. Unexpectedly, along the way she also gains a far richer understanding of her own Christian faith. Grouping her stories around the five pillars of Islam – creed, prayer, fasting, giving, and pilgrimage – Jones shows how her Muslim friends’ devotion to these pillars leads her to rediscover ancient Christian practices her own religious tradition has lost or neglected.Jones brings the reader along as she reexamines her assumptions about faith and God through the lens of Islam and Somali culture. Are God and Allah the same? What happens when one’s ideas about God and the Bible crumble and the only people around are Muslims? What happens is that she discovers that Jesus is more generous, daring, and loving than she ever imagined.
264 pages, Paperback
Published April 6, 2021
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July 29, 2021
Summary: An account about how the author’s attitudes both toward Islam and her Christian faith changed as she and her husband lived among Muslims in Somalia and Djibouti.
Rachel Pieh Jones grew up in a warm and thriving evangelical church in Minnesota. A lot of love–and some legalism. She didn’t know any Muslims but believed that they were “violent, backward, and just plain wrong.” Yet in Pillars, after a number of years in Somalia and Djibouti, she writes:
“I had a lot to learn about how to love my neighbors and practice my faith cross-culturally. I don’t identify with the label ‘missionary,’ with its attendant cultural, theological, and historical baggage, though I understand this is how many view me. I do love to talk about spirituality–and what fascinates me is that the more I discuss faith with Muslims, the more we both return to our roots and dig deeper. As we explore our own faith, in relationship with someone who thinks differently, each of us comes to experience God in richer, more intimate ways. In this manner, Muslims have helped me become a better Christian, though things didn’t start out that way” (p. 49).
How did she change? It began with some relationships with Somali refugees in their apartment complex in Minnesota while her husband completed doctoral studies. An opportunity opened up to teach in Somalia at Amoud University. This led to an immersion in Somali life, aided by their housekeeper and the guard assigned to them as foreign nationals–for ten months, when all their plans were interrupted when several foreign nationals were killed and they had to grab their evacuation bags and flee on a moment’s notice. The found refuge in neighboring Djibouti. Over the next years, Rachel and Tom grew close to a number of Muslims, entering into shared life, and observing their devotion to Islam
They didn’t become Muslims. They learned a lot about Islam. When urged to pray the shahada, she was able to say, “No, I love Jesus.” She answered a lot of questions about Jesus. She learned how to live among the people. She celebrated weddings and births and the breaking of fasts.
Jones organizes her account around the five pillars of Islam: creed, prayer, giving, fasting, and pilgrimage. Learning how her Muslim neighbors encountered God made her reflect more deeply on her own faith, and fall more deeply in love with Jesus. The shahada, a call to convert, to submit to God who is one is really a call to revert. It reminded her of Jesus and Nicodemus, the call to be born again. The prayers, which she sometimes was able to join some women in, led her to a renewal in her own prayer life–amid a pregnancy, ever present dangers, and the everyday challenges of life. The practices of almsgiving forced her to face how she also was conscious of reward in giving and recounts her experiences of helping a poor refugee establish an outdoor restaurant. She had rarely fasted but fasted along with others during Ramadan and joined in the joyous celebrations of Eid. Learning about the pilgrimage to Mecca brought her to a realization of her own lifelong pilgrimage.
I so appreciated this narrative. It was earthy and incarnational. Jones adopts an open and learning posture, both with her Muslim friends and toward what the Lord Jesus would teach her. She can recognize difference without “othering.” She’s as open about Jesus as she is to learning from her friends, like Amaal, her spirited maid. And over time she is able to distinguish what is American Christianity and what is the core of the gospel of Jesus.
This is not a book for those interested in polemics against Islam. Jones takes us into the lived experience of Muslims in the Horn of Africa and what a real engagement with them can be like with risk, affection, difference, and real learning. We also should remember her learning journey began with the Somali refugees in Minnesota. Many of us are near Muslim communities. We may have Muslim neighbors or work colleagues or health care providers. This is a valuable book both for its exploration of Islam, but also for its model of humble, open dialogue, willing to make mistakes and take risks, to welcome and be welcomed. And it points to what can happen as we engage those of another faith. We not only learn about their faith. We rediscover our own.
____________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
Rachel Pieh Jones grew up in a warm and thriving evangelical church in Minnesota. A lot of love–and some legalism. She didn’t know any Muslims but believed that they were “violent, backward, and just plain wrong.” Yet in Pillars, after a number of years in Somalia and Djibouti, she writes:
“I had a lot to learn about how to love my neighbors and practice my faith cross-culturally. I don’t identify with the label ‘missionary,’ with its attendant cultural, theological, and historical baggage, though I understand this is how many view me. I do love to talk about spirituality–and what fascinates me is that the more I discuss faith with Muslims, the more we both return to our roots and dig deeper. As we explore our own faith, in relationship with someone who thinks differently, each of us comes to experience God in richer, more intimate ways. In this manner, Muslims have helped me become a better Christian, though things didn’t start out that way” (p. 49).
How did she change? It began with some relationships with Somali refugees in their apartment complex in Minnesota while her husband completed doctoral studies. An opportunity opened up to teach in Somalia at Amoud University. This led to an immersion in Somali life, aided by their housekeeper and the guard assigned to them as foreign nationals–for ten months, when all their plans were interrupted when several foreign nationals were killed and they had to grab their evacuation bags and flee on a moment’s notice. The found refuge in neighboring Djibouti. Over the next years, Rachel and Tom grew close to a number of Muslims, entering into shared life, and observing their devotion to Islam
They didn’t become Muslims. They learned a lot about Islam. When urged to pray the shahada, she was able to say, “No, I love Jesus.” She answered a lot of questions about Jesus. She learned how to live among the people. She celebrated weddings and births and the breaking of fasts.
Jones organizes her account around the five pillars of Islam: creed, prayer, giving, fasting, and pilgrimage. Learning how her Muslim neighbors encountered God made her reflect more deeply on her own faith, and fall more deeply in love with Jesus. The shahada, a call to convert, to submit to God who is one is really a call to revert. It reminded her of Jesus and Nicodemus, the call to be born again. The prayers, which she sometimes was able to join some women in, led her to a renewal in her own prayer life–amid a pregnancy, ever present dangers, and the everyday challenges of life. The practices of almsgiving forced her to face how she also was conscious of reward in giving and recounts her experiences of helping a poor refugee establish an outdoor restaurant. She had rarely fasted but fasted along with others during Ramadan and joined in the joyous celebrations of Eid. Learning about the pilgrimage to Mecca brought her to a realization of her own lifelong pilgrimage.
I so appreciated this narrative. It was earthy and incarnational. Jones adopts an open and learning posture, both with her Muslim friends and toward what the Lord Jesus would teach her. She can recognize difference without “othering.” She’s as open about Jesus as she is to learning from her friends, like Amaal, her spirited maid. And over time she is able to distinguish what is American Christianity and what is the core of the gospel of Jesus.
This is not a book for those interested in polemics against Islam. Jones takes us into the lived experience of Muslims in the Horn of Africa and what a real engagement with them can be like with risk, affection, difference, and real learning. We also should remember her learning journey began with the Somali refugees in Minnesota. Many of us are near Muslim communities. We may have Muslim neighbors or work colleagues or health care providers. This is a valuable book both for its exploration of Islam, but also for its model of humble, open dialogue, willing to make mistakes and take risks, to welcome and be welcomed. And it points to what can happen as we engage those of another faith. We not only learn about their faith. We rediscover our own.
____________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
September 21, 2021
(Full disclosure: I knew Rachel a little in junior high and high school, since we had a mutual friend who went to school with me and church [yes, the infamous "Oh Kill Baptists", aka Oak Hill Baptist] with her.)
If I was going to re-title this book, I would call it, "A Jesus-Safe Way to Learn More About Islam." The main intended audience seems to be evangelical Christians who may only know Muslims through stereotypes and headlines, but who are open to learning more about Islam and even (gasp!) learning to see God at work in Muslims' beliefs, practices, and communities. I'm sure there are other introductions to other major religions aimed at a general Christian audience, but I can't imagine there are too many specifically about Islam, told by a faithful woman who has lived in the Muslim world for 20ish years, using stories from her own experience. Rachel strives both to grow in her own Christian faith and to understand and experience the faith of her Muslim neighbors (to the extent she can....and sometimes beyond that!). It is brave of her to share both of these endeavors, especially when they don't quite unfold as intended. This is definitely not a book that only shows her in a good light or that romanticizes or exoticizes Islam! It is a very human book, thus it is a very holy book.
I say that I assume the book is aimed at an evangelical audience because some of the "Jesus talk" seemed to be of a "dialect" different than the one I "speak" as a mainline Protestant, but that didn't detract from the experience of the book for me. But someone with no Christian background at all might struggle with her discussions of her own faith, which presume a shared frame of reference. But, given what it aims to be, this book is a valuable contribution to interfaith understanding. (Also, props to Plough for the beautiful book design!)
If I was going to re-title this book, I would call it, "A Jesus-Safe Way to Learn More About Islam." The main intended audience seems to be evangelical Christians who may only know Muslims through stereotypes and headlines, but who are open to learning more about Islam and even (gasp!) learning to see God at work in Muslims' beliefs, practices, and communities. I'm sure there are other introductions to other major religions aimed at a general Christian audience, but I can't imagine there are too many specifically about Islam, told by a faithful woman who has lived in the Muslim world for 20ish years, using stories from her own experience. Rachel strives both to grow in her own Christian faith and to understand and experience the faith of her Muslim neighbors (to the extent she can....and sometimes beyond that!). It is brave of her to share both of these endeavors, especially when they don't quite unfold as intended. This is definitely not a book that only shows her in a good light or that romanticizes or exoticizes Islam! It is a very human book, thus it is a very holy book.
I say that I assume the book is aimed at an evangelical audience because some of the "Jesus talk" seemed to be of a "dialect" different than the one I "speak" as a mainline Protestant, but that didn't detract from the experience of the book for me. But someone with no Christian background at all might struggle with her discussions of her own faith, which presume a shared frame of reference. But, given what it aims to be, this book is a valuable contribution to interfaith understanding. (Also, props to Plough for the beautiful book design!)
April 24, 2021
I honestly thought this book was brilliant. I loved the way Rachel organized her personal stories into chapters related to the 5 pillars of Islam and then connected them to her own Christian faith traditions. As one who has also spent significant time abroad, 5 of those years in a Muslim context, I could relate to so much: the questions, the tensions, the misunderstandings, and the fresh cultural insights causing me to reconstruct my own faith. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to think outside the box and be stretched by entering into another's faith journey.
"Making a life in a foreign context means examining the local culture, values, and faith system, and turning them over and over, deciding which pieces to adopt and which to let slide as intriguing but not for me. Making a life as an expatriate is not necessarily about living like a local but rather learning to be authentic and comfortable with the ambiguity of sometimes wearing a headscarf and most times not, of sometimes having an accurate instinctive response and most times not. It is a constant attempt to untangle something complicated."
"Making a life in a foreign context means examining the local culture, values, and faith system, and turning them over and over, deciding which pieces to adopt and which to let slide as intriguing but not for me. Making a life as an expatriate is not necessarily about living like a local but rather learning to be authentic and comfortable with the ambiguity of sometimes wearing a headscarf and most times not, of sometimes having an accurate instinctive response and most times not. It is a constant attempt to untangle something complicated."
March 21, 2023
This book is beautifully, prayerfully and thoughtfully written. As an Egyptian Christian, I imagined I knew much about living among Muslims, but Rachel still taught me a thing or two, and much also about Somali and Djibouti culture. It's hard to separate the two. There are many spiritual disciplines and practices that she learned from Islam that actually originate and are still practiced in Christianity, and I appreciated it her recognition that growing up in her specific tradition, she was not connected to the global historical Christianity that would have given her those disciplines. I found the stories inspiring, and the stories of her own reflection on privilege and being an expatriate convicting.
February 6, 2022
A thought provoking read that’s honest about what it is and what it isn’t. The author is from Minnesota and moves to Somaliland and the Djibouti, and these are her reflections/short essays about her experience with religion structured around the 5 pillars of Islam. Her conservative evangelical and mostly white upbringing shapes much of the book and her starting point for reflection, but it’s also clear that’s she’s done a lot of work on a personal level to gain an understanding of the language, culture, and people she finds herself surrounded by. Though our starting points are different, I found her reflections on her own faith and the things that Christians can learn from our Muslim neighbors interesting and challenging.
January 1, 2024
Beautiful storytelling of life as an American Christian in the Horn of Africa. This book emphasized the importance of recognizing the deep and authentic faith of those we may disagree with and how to share life in relationship with them without forsaking our own.
June 1, 2025
A beautiful and tender reflection on life in a Muslim-majority country. As someone who spent a few years living in the Middle East, this book helped put words to some of the ways my own faith has shifted. What a gift to be held in the mystery of God!
December 19, 2024
My initial thoughts in the afterglow of this book’s final chapters: wow, what an utterly stunning and honest and humble and humbling book.
I have been gladly following Rachel’s writing online for the past five or six years, and even listened to her COVID-19 podcast as I was also overseas and far from family in the early days of the pandemic, but never have I loved anything of hers as much as I’ve loved this. It is truly the hard-won fruit of years of life lived as a misfit, as a foreigner, as a student of holiness, as a pilgrim. Such an offering, I believe, God will not despise.
You might find that you don’t like bits of this account—that the way these two faiths bump together makes you uncomfortable or ill at ease. There were bits that did for me, too. I would ask you, when you reach those moments, to invite Jesus into that discomfort with you—to seek His face. I find myself falling in love with Him again through Rachel’s own fiercely loving prose. Her honesty moved me deeply. I hope that it might do the same for you, too.
The final section on hajj was formidable, and undoubtedly my favorite, though it could only become so because of the development of the first four parts. The layout of the book is beautiful, and the development into its final pages is remarkable. I would so gladly revisit those pages again, and I expect that this book will hold up during rereads in the years to come.
I have too many favorite quotations to list them all here, but this one from very near the end is perhaps as emblematic as any of the terribly beautiful honesty of this book:
“Assalamu alaikum. Wa alaikum assalam. Peace be with you. And also with you. This world has no peace to offer. There are wars and rumors of wars, violence, loneliness, stress. Pressure, failure, pandemics. Children to worry about, marriages to fight for, cultures to navigate. But every time a Muslim greets me, and I respond, I hear in the words that we are wishing each other the peace and presence of God. Sakina” (250).
The peace that this book offers is not cheap; it is hard-won, painful, open-eyed and aware of risk. I am so grateful Rachel chose that risk, over and over and over again. My heart is blessed richly by her honesty.
I have been gladly following Rachel’s writing online for the past five or six years, and even listened to her COVID-19 podcast as I was also overseas and far from family in the early days of the pandemic, but never have I loved anything of hers as much as I’ve loved this. It is truly the hard-won fruit of years of life lived as a misfit, as a foreigner, as a student of holiness, as a pilgrim. Such an offering, I believe, God will not despise.
You might find that you don’t like bits of this account—that the way these two faiths bump together makes you uncomfortable or ill at ease. There were bits that did for me, too. I would ask you, when you reach those moments, to invite Jesus into that discomfort with you—to seek His face. I find myself falling in love with Him again through Rachel’s own fiercely loving prose. Her honesty moved me deeply. I hope that it might do the same for you, too.
The final section on hajj was formidable, and undoubtedly my favorite, though it could only become so because of the development of the first four parts. The layout of the book is beautiful, and the development into its final pages is remarkable. I would so gladly revisit those pages again, and I expect that this book will hold up during rereads in the years to come.
I have too many favorite quotations to list them all here, but this one from very near the end is perhaps as emblematic as any of the terribly beautiful honesty of this book:
“Assalamu alaikum. Wa alaikum assalam. Peace be with you. And also with you. This world has no peace to offer. There are wars and rumors of wars, violence, loneliness, stress. Pressure, failure, pandemics. Children to worry about, marriages to fight for, cultures to navigate. But every time a Muslim greets me, and I respond, I hear in the words that we are wishing each other the peace and presence of God. Sakina” (250).
The peace that this book offers is not cheap; it is hard-won, painful, open-eyed and aware of risk. I am so grateful Rachel chose that risk, over and over and over again. My heart is blessed richly by her honesty.
May 3, 2021
This is the book I wish I could have written. While my overseas experiences are obviously different than Jones's, as I read her story, I felt like my heart journey mirrored hers. Jones shares details of her life in Somaliland and Djibouti but more, she talks about how her Muslim friends have helped her grow in her own faith as a Christian. This is the book I will be recommending to friends in the US who want to understand how I've changed and grown in the years I've lived in Turkey, Morocco and Jordan. It's also a book I recommend to my Muslim friends who want a glimpse of how their lives have impacted my life with Jesus. Obviously recommended!
April 21, 2021
What a powerful and important book! Rachel's personal narrative is woven beautifully with her own reflections and research. It seems flawless how she tells stories from the Bible and the Quran while also capturing the tension of years of her own journey. In her story, I found my own questions and experiences.
"I hadn't just left my passport country. I had left my native spiritual country, to take up residence in this place where the religion chafed against the edges of my Christianity and insisted that there was goodness here too. I was now an expatriate, between two worlds, and I found beauty in both, brokenness in both."
"I hadn't just left my passport country. I had left my native spiritual country, to take up residence in this place where the religion chafed against the edges of my Christianity and insisted that there was goodness here too. I was now an expatriate, between two worlds, and I found beauty in both, brokenness in both."
August 16, 2024
READ THIS BOOK! Rachel walks out her faith and explains it with a grace that I aspire to. If we, as Christ's ambassadors, can extend an open mind to learn while clinging to our faith, instead of extending a club to change the world, I believe we will be living out the gospel. I recommend this book to anyone living as a Christ follower or who has been hurt by a Christ follower. This is what faith should look like.
April 6, 2021
I'm really grateful for Rachel's honesty and passion evident as she weaves together the lessons she has learned serving in a Muslim context and the story God has written in her life. Definitely recommend!
February 2, 2023
Pillars fed me intellectually and spiritually. I made my way through it slowly allowing myself real time reflection. I will definitely be reading other titles by her.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2024
Excellent book with lessons on interfaith relations and learning from brothers and sisters of other faith.
March 16, 2021
Jones does a great job of describing her journey into an Islamic culture, the amusing and the difficult side of adjusting to her new home. She also carefully shows how her understanding of follow God, of being devoted to him and similar ideas were enhanced by her encounters with Muslims who helped her break down stereotypes and see the common humanity.
October 25, 2023
I admire the ambition of this book, and appreciate Pieh-Jones' writing. It was easy to read, with interesting stories and shows a real effort to understand Muslims through friendship, which is something I value and practice myself. Yet somehow it felt like the (gracious) critiques of evangelicalism were tired...the same things I keep reading among evangelicals of my generation, and that she felt a need to push the envelope to make you almost think she was a syncretist or pluralist in order to show the aspects of beauty she appreciates in Islam. So I finish the book with much appreciation for the author, but mixed feelings about the work itself.
May 5, 2021
Just....wow. Every Christian I know should read this book. Unfortunately, probably very few will. And that's super sad, because it is a gold mine.
July 31, 2021
As someone who has worked with Muslim refugees in an American inner city, experienced short trips into Muslim countries, and then lived in a Muslim background country for more than a decade, I found myself resonating with Rachel’s stories in Pillars, often jumping up and down with excitement about her insights, championing her challenges to faith, but sometimes coming to different conclusions myself.
I love how Rachel’s stories reveal the collision of cultures and religion, upending expectations and stereotypes. Insightful observations/applications like how Yusuf and Amaal’s professed belief about how giving to the poor earns eternal rewards exposed Rachel’s own secretly held belief that giving up her culture and convenience was a sacrifice that would earn her eternal reward as well. While this self-reflection and awareness in making these connections is honestly inspiring, I wondered exactly how realizing this mixed motive in going cross-cultural led Rachel closer to Jesus and deepened her faith. She didn’t really say, and I genuinely wanted to know.
I can see how Rachel’s Muslim friends led her closer to Jesus by challenging her faith, forcing her into more authenticity, against the childish notions she grew up, that many people are sometimes too attached to in western churches. But I wanted her stories to go farther – I wanted to know more specifically about how her faith in Jesus grew stronger or how it may have mutually challenged her Muslim friends’ long-held beliefs and traditions. Did the interfaith dialogue go both ways? It’s evident Rachel’s faith was impacted, but in the end I was left wondering how that was mutual.
Indeed, Rachel artfully crafts words into engaging stories, inviting us into her honest exploration to learn from her cross-cultural experiences and interfaith dialogues. I highly recommend Pillars for Rachel’s talented literary craftsmanship.
I whole-heartedly recommend this book for anyone who’s lived cross culturally – you will delight in it! For those who haven’t experienced cross cultures firsthand this book can transport you into one and challenge some of what you always thought was true, those unexpected gifts of any cross-cultural experience.
I love how Rachel’s stories reveal the collision of cultures and religion, upending expectations and stereotypes. Insightful observations/applications like how Yusuf and Amaal’s professed belief about how giving to the poor earns eternal rewards exposed Rachel’s own secretly held belief that giving up her culture and convenience was a sacrifice that would earn her eternal reward as well. While this self-reflection and awareness in making these connections is honestly inspiring, I wondered exactly how realizing this mixed motive in going cross-cultural led Rachel closer to Jesus and deepened her faith. She didn’t really say, and I genuinely wanted to know.
I can see how Rachel’s Muslim friends led her closer to Jesus by challenging her faith, forcing her into more authenticity, against the childish notions she grew up, that many people are sometimes too attached to in western churches. But I wanted her stories to go farther – I wanted to know more specifically about how her faith in Jesus grew stronger or how it may have mutually challenged her Muslim friends’ long-held beliefs and traditions. Did the interfaith dialogue go both ways? It’s evident Rachel’s faith was impacted, but in the end I was left wondering how that was mutual.
Indeed, Rachel artfully crafts words into engaging stories, inviting us into her honest exploration to learn from her cross-cultural experiences and interfaith dialogues. I highly recommend Pillars for Rachel’s talented literary craftsmanship.
I whole-heartedly recommend this book for anyone who’s lived cross culturally – you will delight in it! For those who haven’t experienced cross cultures firsthand this book can transport you into one and challenge some of what you always thought was true, those unexpected gifts of any cross-cultural experience.
May 16, 2021
This fascinating memoir shares stories from the author's experiences living in community with African Muslims. She writes about her childhood prejudices against Islam, her overly simplistic view of faith, and the American evangelical assumptions that she had to work through as an adult, seeing that life was much more complex than she had ever seen it within the context of her childhood church.
I had trouble with some of the timeline shifts in this book, and had a hard time keeping track of the order of events and different characters, but this is very well-written and insightful. Jones organizes her vivid stories and reflections under the Five Pillars of Islam, and writes about how her friendships with Muslims helped her connect with historic elements of the Christian faith which she wasn't familiar with during her earlier life. Even though I was concerned at first that this book might devolve into a message that we're all the same and fundamentally believe the same things, she maintained her Christian faith and honors the distinctive, unique elements of Islam.
I found this very interesting and insightful, and would recommend it to other people who are interested in learning more about the similarities and differences between faiths, or about culture and religion in parts of Africa. Americans who are preparing to go to a Muslim-majority country for missions or humanitarian work should definitely read this, learning from the author's mistakes and insights before they face similar situations in their context, and I would encourage family members and friends of people involved in this work to read this as well, so that they can check their cultural assumptions and better support their loved ones.
I received a temporary digital copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I had trouble with some of the timeline shifts in this book, and had a hard time keeping track of the order of events and different characters, but this is very well-written and insightful. Jones organizes her vivid stories and reflections under the Five Pillars of Islam, and writes about how her friendships with Muslims helped her connect with historic elements of the Christian faith which she wasn't familiar with during her earlier life. Even though I was concerned at first that this book might devolve into a message that we're all the same and fundamentally believe the same things, she maintained her Christian faith and honors the distinctive, unique elements of Islam.
I found this very interesting and insightful, and would recommend it to other people who are interested in learning more about the similarities and differences between faiths, or about culture and religion in parts of Africa. Americans who are preparing to go to a Muslim-majority country for missions or humanitarian work should definitely read this, learning from the author's mistakes and insights before they face similar situations in their context, and I would encourage family members and friends of people involved in this work to read this as well, so that they can check their cultural assumptions and better support their loved ones.
I received a temporary digital copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 18, 2025
This book deserves a longer and better review than I have time for right now. I learned so much about Somalia and Djibouti culture. I absolutely loved how honest the author was about the ups and downs and the deep heart struggles of her experience there. The writing was excellent, weaving her stories with her themes in a seemingly effortless way, held together by a loose structure of the five pillars of Islam. She asks really hard questions and shares openly thoughts and struggles that many missionaries (a title she doesn't claim) surely feel but maybe wouldn't so openly admit. She also challenges the cultural prejudices of Christian evangelicals towards Islamic culture. This book made me feel uncomfortable at times. It was probably meant to! I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about all of her views. But I am one hundred percent glad for the thought-provoking journey of interacting with them.
One interesting note is that in her exploration of Christianity and Islam, she seemed unafraid of offending her traditional Christian audience, but she seemed very careful not to say anything offensive to her Muslim audience (she included Muslims in the review process, and the foreword was written by a Muslim friend). I appreciate how respectful she was, but it also sometimes left me unsure of her own views. She was clear that she kept her own faith, but how does she view others? Does she still believe in salvation through Christ alone? Does she believe that Christ offers something Islam can't? If so, I got the feeling she didn't feel free to say so.
There's more to say but that's a start at least.
One interesting note is that in her exploration of Christianity and Islam, she seemed unafraid of offending her traditional Christian audience, but she seemed very careful not to say anything offensive to her Muslim audience (she included Muslims in the review process, and the foreword was written by a Muslim friend). I appreciate how respectful she was, but it also sometimes left me unsure of her own views. She was clear that she kept her own faith, but how does she view others? Does she still believe in salvation through Christ alone? Does she believe that Christ offers something Islam can't? If so, I got the feeling she didn't feel free to say so.
There's more to say but that's a start at least.
August 7, 2021
I came across Rachel's blog before my first visits to Djibouti in 2015. As far as I've seen, her writings are the best English-language resource for all things related to life in Djibouti. 'Pillars' isn't the type of book I would typically choose to read, but I so appreciated Rachel's perspective on other subjects, that I decided to check it out. What an incredible book this is. Using the five pillars of Islam as guide posts, Rachel shares her experiences as a white American Christian woman living in Somaliland and Djibouti, as well as her own faith journey. Her honesty shook me to the core. For those who may be hesitant to read this type of book, it isn't all gooey and kumbaya, and Rachel absolutely doesn't have an attitude of white saviorism or missionary zeal that one might expect by simply glancing at her bio. She shatters all stereotypes about both Christians and Muslims. One thing I would note, which she also points out in the intro: while she covers some universal concepts in Islam, a lot of the examples and anecdotes she gives related to practice are very specific to Djibouti/Somaliland. That in itself is something else very unique about this book; I imagine it is one of very few contemporary English accounts of religious and cultural practices in the region (albeit from the lens of a white American). As a white American Muslim convert myself with a Djiboutian husband, I related to and understood *so* much of her experience, but I would highly recommend this to any person of faith (in any and all its forms).
January 8, 2024
As a fellow ex-pat who has lived over twenty years in the Middle East and North Africa, I was intrigued by this book by Rachel Pieh Jones and how she organized her stories through the lens of the five pillars of Islam. Jones is clear in her introduction that her view of Africa and the Muslim world is through her Somalian lens, so that helps with some of the issues that made her book distinctively from that people group or region.
I so appreciate how she and her husband engaged with culture and people on both sides of the ocean, and I think that speaks volumes to anyone who seeks to better know and understand immigrants in their own nation or the local people in a cross-cultural experience. Be among them, speak their language, eat their food, ask them questions. Rachel did this well.
I struggled the most with ways she seemed to compare Christianity and the faith of the people around her, and though she revealed growth in understanding as the book progressed, I'm not always sure it was clear as to the reality of the differences between the two religions. I finished the book with the feeling that she was not as firm in her own faith as she desired, and that may be just a part of the reality of where she was by the time of her return to the States. Cross-cultural living changes you, so I get that. I was just looking for a stronger finish. I wish I could sit down with her and debrief my reading experience!
It's a good book to better understand Somali culture and their expression of Islam.
I so appreciate how she and her husband engaged with culture and people on both sides of the ocean, and I think that speaks volumes to anyone who seeks to better know and understand immigrants in their own nation or the local people in a cross-cultural experience. Be among them, speak their language, eat their food, ask them questions. Rachel did this well.
I struggled the most with ways she seemed to compare Christianity and the faith of the people around her, and though she revealed growth in understanding as the book progressed, I'm not always sure it was clear as to the reality of the differences between the two religions. I finished the book with the feeling that she was not as firm in her own faith as she desired, and that may be just a part of the reality of where she was by the time of her return to the States. Cross-cultural living changes you, so I get that. I was just looking for a stronger finish. I wish I could sit down with her and debrief my reading experience!
It's a good book to better understand Somali culture and their expression of Islam.
April 24, 2023
The author was raised in American evangelicalism. I was not raised in that culture. I entered that culture as a nineteen year old. Living Somaliland then Djibouti, she started reflecting on her upbringing in the church. I started a similar reflection when I was older than Rachel after I had lived cross culturally. I connected mentally, spiritually and emotionally with her thoughts. I appreciated her vulnerability. She balanced concerns about "American evangelicalism" at the same time appreciating and honoring her upbringing and church life.
The book then shifts to connecting the pillars of Islam with her faith walk. I learned tons about Islam. She respectively writes about Islam at the same time standing firm in her faith in Jesus. Due to her character and attitudes toward the Muslim people in the Horn of Africa, she was often told, "You should become a Muslim." I guess all you have to do is repeat the Sharia and voila, you're Muslim. Well, not exactly.
It was good to read what I would consider a fair explanation of aspects of Islam as well as history. It's just too easy to see Islam as only extreme, violent, strange and think,"how can they believe that?" I would say most people I know have no understanding of Islam except for what is on media. This book really helped me understand Islam although I still find the religion unattractive, if that is the right word.
The book then shifts to connecting the pillars of Islam with her faith walk. I learned tons about Islam. She respectively writes about Islam at the same time standing firm in her faith in Jesus. Due to her character and attitudes toward the Muslim people in the Horn of Africa, she was often told, "You should become a Muslim." I guess all you have to do is repeat the Sharia and voila, you're Muslim. Well, not exactly.
It was good to read what I would consider a fair explanation of aspects of Islam as well as history. It's just too easy to see Islam as only extreme, violent, strange and think,"how can they believe that?" I would say most people I know have no understanding of Islam except for what is on media. This book really helped me understand Islam although I still find the religion unattractive, if that is the right word.
April 5, 2021
“Pillars” by Rachel Pieh Jones graphically details how Somali Muslim friends led her, an American Evangelical Christian, into a much deeper walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. Her personal friendships calmed her deep-seated fears and deep-rooted prejudices, deepening her appreciation for Islam, and giving her a much greater understanding of the Christian faith. Centering around the five pillars of Islam, Rachel’s Muslim friends help her to rediscover the revitalizing power of ancient Christian practices.
Viewing God and faith through the lens of Islam amidst a backdrop of Somali culture, Rachel discovers that Jesus is more generous, daring, and loving than ever. Focusing on Christians living in Muslim contexts, Rachel highlights the similarity of the Five Pillars of Islam with foundational principles of the Christian faith.
Rachel’s personal experiences and unique perspective highlights the bridge building that takes the Gospel to the heart of the world. Her untested faith was challenged by devout Muslims who live out ideals and values parallel to those of Christianity. This is an extremely thought-provoking approach to interfaith dialogue, while teaching us how to be a good neighbor to the people of the whole world.
Viewing God and faith through the lens of Islam amidst a backdrop of Somali culture, Rachel discovers that Jesus is more generous, daring, and loving than ever. Focusing on Christians living in Muslim contexts, Rachel highlights the similarity of the Five Pillars of Islam with foundational principles of the Christian faith.
Rachel’s personal experiences and unique perspective highlights the bridge building that takes the Gospel to the heart of the world. Her untested faith was challenged by devout Muslims who live out ideals and values parallel to those of Christianity. This is an extremely thought-provoking approach to interfaith dialogue, while teaching us how to be a good neighbor to the people of the whole world.
May 22, 2025
Rachel Jones and her husband lived and worked in Somalia and then Djibouti, both Muslim countries. She looks at the five pillars of Islam and shows what she learned from her Muslim friends and how this made her own faith stronger.
I found the book very interesting as we lived in a village in Niger for sixteen years as almost the only Christians in the town and even the surrounding area. Through trial and error and much prayer, we had to decide what Muslim practices were ok to participate in? And, like the author, we learned many good things from our neighbors such as hospitality and that when living in community you can do hard things together. We saw negative aspects, too, like polygamy and legalism.
While I appreciated this book very much and could identify with the author, sometimes her take on Islam seemed to focus on the good things while ignoring harmful things. Also, it's helpful to find where we have common ground - and there are a lot more than you might think - but we can't fall into thinking all religions are ok if people are sincerely seeking God. I'm not sure that she was taking it that far, but it almost felt like it.
Still, overall a good book.
I found the book very interesting as we lived in a village in Niger for sixteen years as almost the only Christians in the town and even the surrounding area. Through trial and error and much prayer, we had to decide what Muslim practices were ok to participate in? And, like the author, we learned many good things from our neighbors such as hospitality and that when living in community you can do hard things together. We saw negative aspects, too, like polygamy and legalism.
While I appreciated this book very much and could identify with the author, sometimes her take on Islam seemed to focus on the good things while ignoring harmful things. Also, it's helpful to find where we have common ground - and there are a lot more than you might think - but we can't fall into thinking all religions are ok if people are sincerely seeking God. I'm not sure that she was taking it that far, but it almost felt like it.
Still, overall a good book.
June 28, 2021
I don't usually read religiously oriented books. In full disclosure, I read this book because it was my book club's pick for the month and the author would be participating in the discussion. What I encountered in this book, however, was not only about one woman's religious journey but really a cultural awakening. An evangelical Christian, sure of herself and her faith, travels to Somaliland then Djibouti. Evacuation from Somaliland and living in Muslim cultures tests what she thought she knew about her faith. I enjoyed learning of her journey as she got to know people of different world views, cultures and religion. Much of what she went through is what so many of us experience as we start to encounter "the other" in foreign countries around the world. While she presents it through a faith lens, really her journey was so much about learning how to be open to different ways of thinking, doing, worshiping, and simply being. Reading about her journey makes we want to live my life with as much self-reflection and openness as the author.
June 22, 2023
Jones' memoir of her brief stint in Somalia and her continuing work in Djibouti is honest and compelling. It's the kind of book I'd give any young person considering cross-cultural work (religious or otherwise); she is honest about her failings, prejudices, misunderstandings, and the difficulty of living cross-culturally. This isn't to say she's had a terrible experience, but rather that often idealistic folks dive into life-altering changes without considering the full extent to which they will have to reckon with themselves and what they thought they knew was true about the world.
She's a good storyteller; her section on the pillar of prayer put to words some of my own struggles to pray.
She's a good storyteller; her section on the pillar of prayer put to words some of my own struggles to pray.
December 24, 2025
Rachel Pieh Jones jumped into the deep end of African Muslim culture with both feet. Her reflections prove well-earned—expensive in the way wisdom typically charges for its acquisition. In hearing about the fundamentalism and superstition of her friends, neighbors, and fellow residents of Somalia and Djibouti, I recognized how silly and credulous the religious assertions of my formative environments also have been. At the same time, Jones demonstrates the differences between Islam and Christianity are as extreme as those of her Minnesota roots and her desert adulthood. She does so with kindness and curiosity, indicting herself at least as much as she does those who became part of her expatriate story.
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March 17, 2021Pillars is a beautifully vulnerable telling of a journey toward embodying Christ through interfaith relationships. Rachel's stories and insights regarding personal and spiritual formation are woven together with shared religious texts from both Islam and Christianity. The stories presented welcome interfaith conversation while also highlighting cultural and religious tension. Bravo, to Rachel for walking through life with intentional energy and passion to bridge the gaps of cultural and religious misunderstanding. Rachel's faith reveals the depth and ability to journey into interfaith relationships through the crossroads of transformed character and lived integrity.
May 6, 2021
This is a fascinating, informative book about the Muslim community. It looks at the Muslim culture, faith and the strong desire of her friends in Djibouti to draw closer to God. I loved it and wish Christian leadership and missionaries would add this outstanding missions book to their reading list. It makes the reader pause and rethink their own belief system. Rachel is a great author and a woman with a tender desire to learn and grow in her own faith. I have interacted with her on several occasions and find her vulnerability and faith journey inspiring. This book is similar to the book by Barbara Brown Taylor, "Holy Envy". Love it!!
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