RECENT FROM Attitudes
Study: Radicalized Muslims Have Little Actual Knowledge Of Islam...
Extremists and Islamophobes alike have attempted to paint violent factions within Islam as the true expression of the faith. But a new study gives credence to what countless Muslim leaders, activists and scholars have argued: that groups like the self-proclaimed Islamic State are Muslim in name alone. A group of German scholars at the Universities of Bielefeld and Osnabrück analyzed 5,757 WhatsApp messages found on a phone seized by police following a terrorist attack in the spring of 2016. The messages were exchanged among 12 young men involved in the attack. The attack itself was not identified in the report. Deutsche Welle noted that the timeframe suggested it may...
RECENT FROM Sports
Boxing Champ Launches Sports Hijab...
A boxing champion from the East End has created a sports hijab to help more Muslim women get into combat sports. Ruqsana Begum (below) – who is the current British female Atomweight Muay Thai boxing champion – runs personal training sessions and women-only sessions in the sport at the Osmani Centre in Whitechapel. She said: “I came up with the idea during the Olympics. I was interested in the story of an American athlete who was told she couldn’t compete wearing her hijab due to health and safety reasons, so her father created one that was approved for her to fight in. “I thought if they can create one...
RECENT FROM Service
Is Islamic Law an Answer for Humanitarians?...
DUBAI, 24 April 2014 (IRIN) – Humanitarian action today is largely taking place in Muslim-majority countries where some combatants turn to Islamic law, among other sources, to guide their military behaviour. As a result, in the last decade, aid and advocacy agencies have increasingly tried to understand Islamic law in order to use its humanitarian provisions as tools of negotiation with armed groups in the Muslim world. This is particularly helpful in engaging Islamist armed groups, some of whom reject international humanitarian law (IHL). Some aid agencies try to situate their arguments for access or protection of civilians within a religious context, sometimes using scholars, mullahs or other religious...
Massachusetts Catholics Revoke Invitation to Islam Critic
WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — The Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester has rescinded an invitation to a speaker at a men’s conference after Muslims objected to what they call the speaker’s anti-Islamic views. The diocese on Wednesday withdrew an invitation for Robert Spencer to speak at the March conference. Spencer, a Catholic, runs blogs and has written books that some consider anti-Muslim. A spokesman for the diocese says Spencer’s appearance at the conference ‘‘is being seen as harmful to Catholic-Islamic relations.’’ A spokesman for the Islamic Council of New England called Spencer a ‘‘hatemonger’’ and lauded the diocese’s decision. Spencer in emails to The Boston Globe (http://b.globe.com/11a1CKU ) said there is ‘‘nothing hateful or bigoted’’ about his views, and called...
Survey: Muslim Americans Happier with Conditions in US than Broader Public
For the most part, Muslim Americans disavow Islamic extremism, are happy with the way things are going in the country and in their lives, and are about as religious and educated as the general American public. Those are a few of the lessons from a new report from the Pew Research Center that surveyed Muslim Americans and paints a detailed portrait of their demographics, experiences, opinions, and perceptions. Pew’s last survey of this group was in 2007, and the current one was sparked, in part, by a desire to know whether recent concerns about home-grown terrorism and other pressures had led to increased alienation and anger among Muslim Americans and support for extremism, says Scott Keeter, Pew’s director of survey research and a...
CNN Covered Interfaith Call to Oppose Koran Burning. Who Didn’t?
Despite the passions stirred by the Islamic center near ground zero and a plan to burn Korans on Sept. 11, cable news outlets showed limited interest Tuesday afternoon in a press conference where church leaders from a variety of faiths called for a united religious front against perceived examples of Islamophobia. The Islamic Society of North America organized a press conference at the National Press Club in Washingtonwhere leaders from the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim faiths argued against what organizers called “an atmosphere of fear and intolerance” toward Islam. C-SPAN and CNN carried the interfaith press conference live. Fox News Channel had no live coverage, but instead had commentator Lou Dobbsholding forth on President Obama and the “sad isolated state this president has put himself in.” Meanwhile, rather than live coverage, MSNBC offered talking heads...
From Fear of Islam to Outreach: How 9/11 Prompted Interfaith Efforts
After the deadly attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, the first person Rabbi Ted Falcon called was his friend, Jamal Rahman, a Sufi imam. On the following Sabbath, the rabbi invited the imam to hisSeattle synagogue to speak to the congregation. Soon after, the two spiritual leaders, along with Pastor Don Mackenzie, commenced a series of frank conversations about their beliefs, both shared and exclusive. The talks eventually inspired a radio show, a pair of books, and worldwide speaking tours. The men’s willingness to ask and answer tough questions about faith in the wake of 9/11 had clearly struck a nerve with many Americans. In particular, many people wanted to talk about a religion they had barely considered before the attacks, but which now...
Those Defending US Constitution from Sharia Must Have Failed High School Civics
There are those who would have you believe that Islamic law, or sharia, is taking over America. They seem to allege that the 1 percent of the American population that is Muslim is on the verge of a total takeover of the United States, and if Americans are not vigilant, soon we’ll all be stoning adulterers and chopping off the hands of thieves. Take Rep. Allen West (R) of Florida, who recently alleged that, “there is an infiltration of the shariapractice into all of our operating systems in our country as well as across Western civilization. So we must be willing to recognize that enemy.” If that kind of hyperbolic statement sounds ludicrous, it’s because it is. Yet nearly two-dozen states have...
Muslim Cricket Player Won’t Wear “Beer” Logos on Jersey
Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has criticised “bigoted” comments about Pakistan-born leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed not having to wear a beer sponsor’s logo on his playing shirt on religious grounds. Former rugby international David Campese said Ahmed should `’go home” if he did not want to wear a beer sponsor’s logo on his playing shirt because of his Muslim faith. Campese has tweeted in agreement with comments by former test cricketer Doug Walters, who was quoted as saying: “I think if he doesn’t want to wear the team gear, he should not be part of the team.” Campese tweeted: “Doug Walters tells Pakistan-born Fawad Ahmed: if you don’t like the … uniform, don’t play for Australia Well said doug. “Tell him to go home.” Sutherland said...
The Role of Merchants in Spreading Message of Islam
To call people to Allah is the duty of every responsible and conscientious Muslim. Since there is no priesthood in Islam or sacerdotal class among Muslims, the duty of the call to Allah cannot be limited to an ill-conceived and imaginary group called the “men of religion as is the case with other religions.” In Islam, everyone is a man (or woman) of religion and everyone will be accountable to Allah as to whether or not one fulfilled their obligations sincerely and to the best of their abilities. Urging Muslims to own up to their responsibilities in this respect, Almighty Allah says: “And who is better in speech than one who calls to Allah and does righteousness and...
Hispanic Muslims: Why Are Catholic Hispanic Americans Converting To Islam?
By Susmita Baral, Aug 21, 2013 11:06 AM EDT Islam is most commonly associated with the Middle East and the Arab world, but the simple truth is that 85 percent of the world’s Muslims are non-Arab. Current estimates suggest that one-fourth of the world’s population is Muslim (roughly 2.6 billion). When looking at the countries with the largest Muslim populations, most are from the Eastern World: Indonesia, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Egypt, Nigeria, Ian, Turkey, Algeria, Morocco, Iraq, Sudan, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, China, Syria and Russia. But the prevalence of Islam doesn’t just lie in the Eastern world, as new reports are suggesting that Hispanics are converting to Islam. The Hispanic community is one that has strong roots in...
‘Fatwa’ Condemns Killings Of Innocent
‘ISLAMIC terrorism’ is a phrase that has become part of the active vocabulary of mainstream media in the world. But the phrase is an oxymoron, argues Advocate Jafar Samdani, Senior Associate at Kuwait Mediation and International Arbitration Chamber. As the head of a forum that has proclaimed peace and understanding as its core objectives, Jafar is currently actively promoting a book by a world famous scholar to create awareness on the Islamic perspective on terrorism. Armed with a degree in Islamic Studies and International Affairs, Jafar is able to shed light on the book and also courses through history and politics to put the phenomenon of terrorism in perspective. However, he agrees that creating harmony without bringing about...
Dubai Reverts Take First Steps Into Islam
DUBAI – Assisting new reverts in their first steps in Islam, an Islamic center in Dubai has hosted a gathering to welcome new reverts who have found Islam recently to offer them a better understanding of the faith and help them stay firm in their beliefs. “I feel different now, for me Islam is peace,” Fatima, a former Protestant receptionist who became Muslim on July 20, told UAE newspaper The National “It was so difficult for me to fast but it also taught me patience. Being faithful and embracing Allah is everything for me,” the new Muslim who fasted for the first time during Ramadan added. Gathering with more than 250 converts from various faiths, Fatima was speaking...
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