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The delicate politics of school holidays (COMMENTARY) – Religion News Service

The delicate politics of school holidays (COMMENTARY) – Religion News Service. Changing school calendars is a politically difficult maneuver because it makes statements about community identity. Our initial school calendar was determined by a mix of agricultural schedules and dominant religious thought. The result: summers off to work the land, and the end of December off to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Despite changing economies and demographics, we hold on to this system because it tells a story of who we are as a nation.

Tweeting the #Quran – #Ramadan [Updated]

Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting, is approaching. We expect it to begin around August 21. Traditionally, Muslims read the Qur'an in its entirety over this time, in a section a day. The Qur'an is split into thirty sections, called juz', and one section is read each night. This year, I have been thinking it would be fun to tweet the Qur'an for Ramadan. Coincidentally, Shavuot came, and several people I follow on Twitter tweeted the Torah. Since that experience seemed to be successful, it further cemented my belief that this would be a good idea. Some guidelines for tweeting…

Ramadan Mubarak and L’Shana Tov [updated]

For us, Nizari Ismailis, the night of October 4, 2005, was the first night of Ramadan. This holy month for Muslims coincides with Rosh Hoshana. Over at City of Brass, he’s talking about something called the Tent of Abraham. Sounds interesting. Check it out. Also, the Bohras (official website), or Mustalian Ismailis, like the Nizari Ismailis, do not rely on moon sighting, but on astronomical calculation. I was always under the impression that we shared our calculated calendar from the Fatimid period, but since they started a day earlier, there must a divergence somewhen. Anybody know when and/or why? Update:…