I finally found something to watch on Tuesday.
This National Geographic show was tremendously informative and insightful:
National Geographic Specials Inside MeccaMecca's Grand Mosque With more than 1 billion believers, Islam is one of the most widely practiced religions in the world. Once a year, adherents from around the world converge on Mecca, Saudi Arabia — the birthplace of Muhammad. This pilgrimage to Mecca is called hajj, a religious duty that Muslims must perform once in their lifetime. As Muslims ask pardon for their sins and renew their spiritual commitment, National Geographic takes its cameras inside Mecca to capture the rites and rituals of this event.
The show followed three people on their pilgrimage: a South African man, a Malaysian man, and a woman from Texas who had converted. It explained how the logistics were handled (two million people descending on Mecca doesn't just "happen" without an awful lot of planning), the rituals that pilgrims participated in and their biblical origins, and the personal spiritual nourishment that each person gained. It was refreshing to see a TV program expose the humanity of Muslims since so many others seem content to stoke further ignorance and foster bias and suspicion.
Edited 2/24.