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Video: Faith in London

Faith in London is a short silent film celebrating the common instruction towards compassion that exists in all world religions and honouring what is perhaps the finest example of multi-faith coexistence in the world: The City of London. … It challenges opposition to the prevalence of organised religion in modern society by giving a voice to those who embody the true spirit of their faith.

Interview on NPR on Riyaaz Qawwali

I was recently interviewed on NPR about Riyaaz Qawwali, a group out of Austin, TX. Hussein Rashid, a professor of religion at Hofstra University, says that many qawwaliartists working in South Asia today have limited themselves. He believes this American group is bringing the music back to its roots.  “You know, I think there’s been so much concern about what is Islam, and what isn’t, politically speaking and artistically speaking,” Rashid says, “that there’s been a push in modern qawwali to actually sanitize it and make it very sterile — and almost rule-bound — rather than ecstatic and devotional. For me, I think…