Combatting Islamophobia Through the Arts – Video

Sorry for my prolonged absence from substantial posting. Been a busy few weeks. I tried to keep up with the basic interesting links post, and then lost that well. I hope to catch-up on the backlog and comment on the new stuff soon. Until then, here’s something to keep you amused.

A few new books added to our sidebar items. One is on mystical poetry and symbolism in Islamic literatures, by Annemarie Schimmel. Another is a theoretical framework for understanding some of the issues plaguing Muslim majority societies. It covers a wide-range of disciplines including religion, economics and history. The newest one is a discussion of the stories of Joseph/Yusuf found in the Hebrew Bible and in the Qur’an.

The Arab world and the Saudis in particular seem surprised by the recent bombings in Riyadh. How could this happen against fellow Arabs and Muslims? How could this happen during the month of Ramadan? Why were women and children targetted? The Saudis are waking up to the fact the the intolerance they have spread around the world through their funding of madrassas, Islamic centers, and publications, has not only come home, it perhaps never left. The bombing can not be blamed on a Zionist conspiracy or on American foreign policy. This was a deliberate attack on Muslims by Muslims. A…