Education is also important in the Arab context because of its special status in Islam, which, like Judaism and Christianity, is a religion of the book. The Gospel of St. John says, “In the Beginning was the Word”; the first word that was revealed to the prophet Muhammad by the Angel Gabriel was “Read…” Among the Prophet’s sayings is, “It is the duty of every Muslim man and woman to seek learning.”
其实在阿拉伯语境中教育也是非常重要的，教育在伊斯兰教——和犹太教以及基督教一样——中享有独特的地位，因为人们都对经典教义信仰备至。《新约·约翰福音》开篇第一句话中就是“太初有道（“道”在此释义为解释/说明）”；天使吉卜利勒向先知默罕默德传达安拉启示的第一个词就是“宣读……”，而先知默罕默德言行录中则记载说“学习是每一男女穆斯林之责。”