New at AltMuslimah: Men and Matrimony

Mecca Development Veers to Kitsch – Critic’s Notebook – NYTimes.com. It is an architectural absurdity. Just south of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the Muslim world’s holiest site, a kitsch rendition of London’s Big Ben is nearing completion. Called the Royal Mecca Clock Tower, it will be one of the tallest buildings in the world, the centerpiece of a complex that is housing a gargantuan shopping mall, an 800-room hotel and a prayer hall for several thousand people. Its muscular form, an unabashed knockoff of the original, blown up to a grotesque scale, will be decorated with Arabic inscriptions and…

Slideshow: Ashura, the Unique Face of Shia Islam | Religion | FRONTLINE | PBS. The holy day of Ashura marks the martyrdom of Hussain ibn Ali, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad, in a historic seventh century battle. The Battle of Karbala, as it’s known, cemented the schism between Sunni and Shia Muslims that arose from a succession dispute after the prophet’s death.  Every year around Ashura, the media is flooded with images of blood-soaked Shias self-flagellating. But Shias around the world — who make up between 10 to 13 percent of Muslims – observe the month in a myriad of ways.…

The following piece is by my friend Zeba Iqbal. Guest Voices: Young Muslim voices: Taking back our religion – On Faith at washingtonpost.com. We are at a crossroads, and our position today offers us the unique opportunity to choose our way forward. We can continue to be wholly reactive, or we can choose to be more wholly proactive, and set out to renew and reform our vision, our actions and our way forward.