Month: November 2008

Current Affairs

inna lillahi wa inna ilahi raji’un – for Mumbai

islamoyankee

Starting yesterday afternoon, New York time, Mumbai (Bombay) came under a terrorist attack. Currently more than 100 people are dead and over 300 are wounded, with multiple hostage situations. I can offer nothing that the news is not giving, except a prayer for the souls of the deceased; a prayer for the wounded; a prayer that those who perpetrated this act face wrath of the God whom they so easily defame. Choose your mainstream news source: I’m using BBC, both for the local coverage, and to get some sense of distance from it all. Sepia Mutiny links to sources of…

Read More
Inter-faith

The Truth of Oskar Schindler

islamoyankee

The NYT does a review of books on Schindler. I like the little details that get left out. I think the last line says it best “Much as the rescue could not have occurred without many small contributions along the way, the credits for the blockbuster “Schindler’s List” should begin not with a successful novelist or a powerful Hollywood director but with the immigrant proprietor of a luggage store.” Schinder

Read More
Inter-faith Intra-faith

Jews, Muslims, and Orthodoxy

islamoyankee

Over at Talk Islam, Abu Noor talks about what the face of Islam in America will look like. He picks up two issues that I have argued previously: 1. The Catholic-Protestant divide is not a useful analogy for discussing the Sunni-Shi’ah divide. 2. We do not need a Reformation in Islam. (See more recently, my talk on Muslims in the Media (part 2)) Where I have difficulty with his argument is the extension of the analogy with Judaism. I agree that the movement approach (Conservative, Reform, Orthodox, etc.) better fits the Muslim experience. We generally speak of turuq (paths), of…

Read More
Inter-faith Intra-faith Media

On a New York Times Roll

islamoyankee

The NYT had an interesting series of unrelated articles about Muslims over the last week. Deprogramming Jihadists I respect that the article is trying to show how the Saudis are attempting to deal with demon they helped create, but really does not address some of the inconsistencies in the approach. For example: Saudi schools teach a version of world history that emphasizes repeated battles between Muslims and nonbelieving enemies. Whether to Afghanistan in the 1980s or present-day Iraq, Saudi Arabia has exported more jihadist volunteers than any other country; 15 of the 19 hijackers on Sept. 11 were Saudis. and…

Read More
Inter-faith Intra-faith

A Conversation in a Mosque

islamoyankee

A friend recently went to Turkey and the tour guide started explaining Islam. It’s actually pretty good, and the guide is funny. Of course, I have objections to both a five pillar definition of Islam and linking of religious acts as dependent on science, but overall it is fun. It’s also nice to have a Muslim, from a Muslim-majority country, explain Islam in a way that resonates with the way many of us understand our own faith. Turkey

Read More
Weblogs

Kudos

islamoyankee

Congrats are in order to two of my regular read: 1. Svend at Akram’s Razor made it on to Beliefnet’s Top 10 list of Muslim blogs. 2. Aziz is now at Beliefnet with City of Brass. This news is old, but I’m late to the party. Great job by two deserving individuals. Also, good job by Beliefnet recognizing the talent these guys represent.

Read More