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Islam Doesn’t Speak, Muslims Do

The fourth caliph Imam Ali faced Khariji rebels who insisted that he simply “apply” the Qur’an’s judgement without interpretation. In that situation of armed conflict, Imam Ali gathered the people and brought out a copy of the Qur’an and as he touched the book he exclaimed, “O Qur’an, speak to the people!” The people gathered around Ali, saying, “O Ali, do you mock us? It is only paper and ink and it is we [human beings] who speak on its behalf.” To this, Ali stated, “The Qur’an is written in straight lines between two covers. It does not speak by…

British Council – Society – Our Shared Future – Building a Shared Future

My essay, “Nation and Narrative” is in the volume The Power of Words and Images. British Council – Society – Our Shared Future – Building a Shared Future. One of the key objectives of this conference was to help fill the gap between academic expertise and public knowledge of cross-cultural relations involving Muslims. Participants broke into discussion groups around five themes to pinpoint new, more inclusive narratives to reshape the conversation about intercultural relations. They explored areas of research and partnerships among institutions in the US, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa that can help shed light on deep connections…