Category: Religion

Religion

The “ex-Muslim” Industry

islamoyankee

Critics Say Caner Isn’t Only Self-Styled Ex-Muslim. On his website, Saleem claims to have carried out terror missions in Israel, fought with Afghan Mujahedeen against the Soviets, and came to the U.S. hoping to wage jihad against America. He also once claimed on the site that he was descended from the “grand wazir of Islam,” until skeptics pointed out that it was a nonsensical term, akin to calling someone the “governor of Christianity.” Skeptics point out that Shoebat and Saleem claim to have carried out their terrorist activities in the 1960s and 1970s, long before modern Islamic radicalism emerged in…

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Politics Religion

#NYC Event on #torture: NY City event on CIA Torture Experiments

islamoyankee

Dear NRCAT Supporter, I want to encourage you to participate in this important event NRCAT is co-sponsoring with the Metro NY Religious Campaign Against Torture, Rabbis for Human Rights-North America, and Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) – details and flier below. Two of the panelists are co-authors on the recent report from PHR providing evidence of CIA medical experiments involving the torture of detainees in U.S. custody following September 2001. You'll find details about the report atwww.phrtorturepapers.org, and you can join the formal complaint requesting an investigation by the federal Office of Human Research Protection. Please also visit NRCAT's new…

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Charity Politics Religion

Action Call: Ask Pres. Obama to keep his promise on Islamic Charities

islamoyankee

From Muslim Advocates: One year after President Obama pledged in Cairo, Egypt, to ease hurdles to charitable giving, American Muslims are asking President Obama to keep his promise and help them fulfill their religious obligation, while building bridges to Muslim nations for a more secure future. … On Friday, June 4th, Muslim Advocates is urging Muslims across the country to call the White House (202.456.1111) and tell President Obama to keep his promise and reform the many federal laws complicating our ability to give zakat freely. Download a PDF of the Action Alert!

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Inter-faith Religion

Is the Bible more Violent than the Qur’an?

islamoyankee

NPR does the story. I am uncomfortable with this sort of comparison because it still buys into a paradigm of one religion being better than the other. Interestingly, I think the most intelligent comment comes from the critic of Islam who argues that the Qur’an is not about history, but the present. It is, in many ways, about always defining the present, which means it’s reading cannot be fixed in the past either. He does not take the argument to the logical conclusion. If the guidance is meant to be read for the present, than we as Muslims must struggle…

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Religion

Sen. Kerry Says #Nowruz Mubarak

islamoyankee

United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations WASHINGTON, DC FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    March 19, 2010 Contact: Frederick Jones, Communications Director, 202-224-3468 Chairman Kerry Marks The Celebration Of Nowruz, The Iranian New Year Washington, DC– Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) released the following statement today in celebration of Nowruz: “Tomorrow marks the onset of Nowruz, the beginning of spring and the first day of the Iranian New Year. It’s an ancient tradition dating back over 3,000 years, celebrated by people throughout Iran, Central Asia, South Asia, Caucasus, Crimea, the Balkans, and here in the United States. I…

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Inter-faith Intra-faith Religion

God in a 100 Words

islamoyankee

Patheos asked to describe God in 100 words. They compiled all the responses they received to this “theoblogger” challenge, and the results are interesting. Check out the site. I am one of two Muslims, the other being Svend White from Akram’s Razor, and without speaking to each other about the challenge, we focused on God’s immanence and transcendence. Nice complement. How would you describe God in a 100 words?

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Politics Religion

Law and Cultural Purity

islamoyankee

Not all fundamentalism is about violence. Sometimes it’s about using the law. Unfortunately, some of our elected representatives are aiming to use the law to define what it means to be “American” by excluding Muslims. They seek to turn back the clock on American inclusion, forgetting that when you can exclude one group, you can exclude any group. We must accept that we live in a global village. Without that basic premise, we miss many of the political patterns emerging both in the US and around the world. We can react to the “new” in two ways: embrace it or…

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Religion

Guide to Travel: Mecca Diaries – CNN.com

islamoyankee

Over a four-day period, Mecca’s population is more than doubled, with legions of devout Muslims making their way shoulder to shoulder through the dozen rituals that comprise Hajj. If it weren’t for the solemn and religious underpinnings, it would be an unnerving assembly of human beings for such a concentrated space Vice Guide to Travel: Mecca Diaries – CNN.com.

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Religion

Reading the Qur’ān as a Resident Alien

islamoyankee

A friend from Harvard has a new article out on reading the Qur’an. If you can get your hands on it, you should read it. Excerpts are below, with citation information. Whitney Bodman, “Reading the Qurān as a Resident Alien,” Muslim World 99, no. 4 (2009): 689 – 706. — Many will read the Qur’ān casually, out of curiosity. Some will read it with more academic intent and some with polemical intent (a purpose that the Qur’ān condemns, Q 2:176). All of these readers are, in the words of Paul Griffiths, consumers of the Qur’ān. These readers are less likely…

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