My friend Eboo writes a piece for NPR on how to reach out to Jews during this most recent Eid al-Adha. I appreciate the sentiment, my daughter and his son are about the same age, and I think it is an important way to bridge the gap. Where I disagree is that this is an opportunity for inter-faith dialogue. In so far as religions share certain basic principles we can reach out, but the loss and horror of Mumbai is far more primal. His story highlights the more basic, human losses we share and support we need. It’s not about Muslim and Jew. It’s about right and wrong. It’s about love and hate. These things transcend religion.
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Interfaith Alliance – Free Speech – Press Release
The Interfaith Alliance For Immediate Release September 26, 2006 Contact: William Blake, (202) 639-6370, ext. 113 (w), (202) 680-8765 (c) House Vote Reduces First Amendment to Second Class Status The Interfaith Alliance Denounces Bill to Limit Religious Freedom (Washington, D.C.) Today the House of Representatives scheduled a vote on H.R. 2679, the “Public Expression of Religion Act.” The bill would eliminate damages and awards of attorneys’ fees for individuals or groups in successful cases brought to ensure their constitutional rights under the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This bill would limit long-standing remedies available under…
The Meaning of the Koran – NYTimes.com
Someone who has actually read the Qur’an and figured out like all scripture, it is full of contradiction. The Meaning of the Koran – NYTimes.com. But I should concede that I haven’t told the whole story. Even while calling Jesus the word of God — and “the Messiah” — the Koran denies that he was the son of God or was himself divine. And, though the Koran does call the Jews God’s chosen people, and sings the praises of Moses, and says that Jews and Muslims worship the same God, it also has anti-Jewish, and for that matter anti-Christian, passages.
The Joy and Worries of Parenthood
Two of my friends, Rachel the Velveteen Rabbi and Ayesha, Ms. Rickshaw, are both pregnant. They are both blogging about their experiences, and both posted the linked articles very close to one another. I tend not to get too personal on this space, but both pieces brought out powerful memories of when my wife was pregnant. As cliche as the practice hospital run is, we never did it in NY. We had the “go” bag, but we just needed to hop in a taxi. The only limit we had was that my wife could not go into labor during rush…