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The fear haunting Europe Mats Engström - openDemocracy

The secret meetings of Europe’s political authorities are sanctioning public policies that feed racist sentiment, argues Mats Engström.

 

Italians fear mosque plans - Islam in Europe - MSNBC.com

Mayor backs Islamic center’s construction, but residents are ‘very afraid’

 

BBC World Service |  Interview with Amr Khaled — “The Muslim World’s Answer to the American televangelists”

Owen Bennet-Jones meets the Muslim world’s answer to the American televangelists, Amr Khaled

Admirers try to get their photos taken with Amr Khaled; this is not the traditional image of a religious leader.

His television shows are broadcast on Arabic satellite TV all over the world and attract a young, modern, progressive audience. Despite being banned from preaching in his homeland of Egypt, his popularity keeps growing.

Amr Khaled preaches peace and self-advancement, including exercise and a healthy lifestyle.

His muslim critics say he is not religiously trained and is undermining the true religious authorities - but this hasn’t stopped western leaders approaching him as a face of Islam they feel they can do business with.

 

Akbar Ahmed - Dispatches from the Muslim World — Beliefnet.com

In East Asia, ‘Arab Islam’ and moderate Islam are clashing. In India, orthodox thinking is flourishing–and that’s a good thing, says Professor Akbar Ahmed

 

copenhagen interpretation: a minor on tradition and modernity

The question of tradition and its place in this “modern world” is one that vexes a minor number of Muslims in a major way. Not only in the West. But it is here, in the West, that the battle seems to rage at its fiercest. Especially since each of us is taught to believe that all tradition is evil, backward, oppressive: that success lies in ditching the “dead weight” of tradition whether by means of Protestant reform, Marxist revision, or fundamentalist recreation. Merely coming to grips with tradition and applying it seems far too dull. It is as if staircases, built pretty much the same old way for ages, have become an object of undergraduate philosophical debate.

 

MoorishGirl: The European Street - Mosques burned down in Spain

The Guardian reports that a Moroccan mosque in Ceuta was burned down, one of apparently several incidents of this nature on Spanish territory:

El
País newspaper yesterday listed a number of mosques and other
Muslim targets that have been ransacked, burned or had copies of the
Qur’an set alight by intruders.

Police said that extreme rightwingers and skinhead groups were responsible for almost all the attacks.

“They want Spain to have the same sort of violent reaction that the
Netherlands had after the murder of film director Theo van Gogh,” one
police expert told El País. “Little by little they are creating
an atmosphere for this to grow.”

Spain’s 800,000 Muslims, many of them immigrants from neighbouring Morocco, have some 600 mosques around the country.

If you think that violence against Moroccans or their institutions are
isolated occurrences in Europe, then you probably should make yourself watch this, courtesy of the Italian carabinieri.

 

Posted by Faraz at 1:11 am

TIME: Opening Up Opus Dei Photo Essay

 

Posted by Faraz at 4:31 am

Islam Online- First Hijab-clad Presenter on Danish TV - News Section

The first hijab-clad talk show presenter has appeared on the Danish television to discuss Danish society’s pressing issues topped by the cartoons that lampooned Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).

 

FrontPage magazine.com :: Ms. Jihad U by Joe Kaufman

MSA, ISNA, CAIR, and even SunniPath are “filled with hate and violence,” and a committed, intelligent Muslim sister is accused of basically being Bin Laden-ish in her outlook.

This is upsetting because there are dangerous, terrorist-types out there. If we fail to think clearly, and to know friend from foe, innocent from criminal, then we are doomed to fail in our quest for peace and security. And we’re going to make things much worse.

May sanity prevail.

 

Posted by Faraz at 10:16 pm

A challenge to European Christians


The rise of Islam in traditionally Christian Europe coincides with a rise in Germans searching for their cultural roots.

 

Wednesday 15 March 2006

Pat Robertson: Muslims are Satanic

Posted by Faraz at 7:49 am

Pat Robertson: Muslims are Satanic - vSocial The Video Clip Sharing Community

Pat Robertson doing no good for the world again, this time calling muslims demonic, satanic and other critisims of Islam.

 

The Danish Cartoon Crisis - Declaration on behalf of Muslim Religious Leaders

Basmala

All praise is due to God, and may He send His blessings and salutations upon our master, Muhammad, as well as upon his kin and companions.

The events in Denmark concerning the Messenger of God represent an aggressive act that has violated the highest sanctities of the Muslim people. Moreover it is devastating to the ideal of convivial dialogue between peoples, as enjoined in the Quranic verse which reads, ‘And We created you as nations and tribes that you might know one another’.

In consequence, we affirm the following:

1. We hold up the hand of the nation that has come to the aid of the Messenger of God, as this response on their part demonstrates that it is a nation that is still very much alive. We also point out that this “aid”
should mirror the moral code of the Prophet as reflected by the actions of his followers.

2. We call upon the Danish government and the Danish people to yield to the large number of objective and sincere voices emanating from within their society, by apologizing, and condemning and bringing an end to this attack. This is to ensure that Denmark is not isolated from the global community, a community that upholds the kind of freedom that prevents it from attacking and desecrating religious symbols or provoking animosity and antagonism towards any religion or race. We also extend this call to the countries that defended this attack, as there is no society today that advocates an unaccountable freedom without putting in place measures of regulation so as to prevent harm to come to others. Of course, societies differ in their levels of regulation.

3. We affirm here that freedom of ideas is a right guaranteed by the teachings of our noble religion to those who seek clarification or desire to engage in dialogue provided that no abuse is intended, in consonance with the Quranic directive: ‘And argue with them in the most courteous way’. This point has been agreed upon by all rationally-minded people and is stated clearly and categorically in the agreements on human rights.

4. We appeal to all Muslims to exercise self-restraint in accordance with the teachings of Islam and we reject countering an act of aggression by acts not sanctioned in Islam, such as breaking treaties and breaching time-honoured agreements by attacking foreign embassies or innocent people and other targets. Such violent reactions can lead to a distortion of the just and balanced nature of our request or even to our isolation from the global dialogue. The support that we give to our Prophet will not be given by flouting his teachings.

5. We highly esteem the unprejudiced stance taken by some religious authorities who have condemned this heinous assault. We also emphasize not holding non-Muslims accountable, whether in Muslim countries or elsewhere, for the crime committed by those who have insulted the Prophet. This principle finds its roots in the Quranic verses: ‘And no soul shall bear the burden of another’ and ‘Is the reward for good anything but good?’

6. We call upon the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) as well as Muslim countries and governments and the international community to press the United Nations to issue a declaration criminalizing any insult to Muhammad, Jesus or Moses or to any other revered prophetic figure.

7. We also take this opportunity to remind the Muslims about the necessity and importance of reviving their connection with the beloved Prophet by loving him, following his example, and embodying his moral character and noble guidance. This rising-up by the Muslims in support of the Prophet should not constitute a mere reflex that ends when the occasion ends. Rather, this vocation should forever remain alive within the Muslim people.

8. We further emphasize that it is our duty and responsibility to carry on the global dialogue and acquaint others with our Prophet by disseminating and making known his character traits, noble qualities and high moral standards. This dissemination should be manifested in both oral and written form, but most importantly it should be manifested in our conduct and interaction with others. It is also imperative that the relevant institutions as well as people of means fulfil their responsibility by supporting these efforts.

We ask God to enable us to successfully carry out that which He loves and that which pleases Him.

The Declaration in Arabic

 

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf Interview on Danish TV - The Cartoon Crisis - Video

May Allah Most High preserve Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, and make his voice and views heard ever-increasingly in these times of trouble and distress.

 

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Iraq curfew aims to curb violence

Iraq’s government has put Baghdad and three provinces under curfew for much of Friday as it tries to curb violence sparked by an attack on a Shia shrine.

At least 130 people have died in sectarian attacks on Sunnis since the shrine was bombed on Wednesday.

 

Posted by Faraz at 2:43 am

Marginal Revolution: Monsters

 

Posted by Faraz at 2:04 am

The Stealth Crusade

Inside one Southern university, Christian missionaries are being trained to go undercover in the Muslim world and win converts for Jesus. Their stated goal: to wipe out Islam.

 

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Iraqi blast damages Shia shrine

A bomb attack in Iraq has badly damaged one of the holiest sites in Shia Islam, sparking furious protests.


Thousands of Iraqis have gathered at the al-Askari
shrine in Samarra, north of Baghdad, where two men blew up the famous
golden dome in a dawn raid.

The al-Askari shrine, part of the Imam Ali al-Hadi mausoleum, is one of Shia Islam’s holiest sites.

The compound contains the remains of the 10th and 11th imams, reputed to be direct descendants of the Prophet Muhammad.

Imam Ali al-Hadi died in 868 AD and his son, Hassan
al-Askari, died in 874 AD. The golden dome topping the al-Askari shrine
was finally completed in 1905.

The spiral minaret on top of one of the city’s other holy sites, the Sunni Great Mosque of Samarra, was damaged in April 2003.

la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah

This isn’t just an attack on a “Shia shrine.” It is an attack against Islam itself, as love and reverence for the Family of the Beloved Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) is central to our faith. As Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) said, “Be mindful of Muhammad in his Family.” [Sahih al-Bukhari]

 

Misunderstanding Muslims

Commentary: The West doesn’t seem to see what’s behind the rage over the cartoon controversy.

 

Akram’s Razor - Svend White’s blog on Islam, Muslims & America: Jyllands-Posten’s acrobatics & Salon piece

Salon has a great piece, aptly entitled “Rotten judgment in the state of Denmark”, by an American-based Danish academic, Jytte Klausen.

Here’s an excerpt

 

Posted by Faraz at 3:06 am

Islam Online- Norway Criminalizes Blasphemy

The Norwegian parliament has amended the Penal Code to criminalize blasphemy in the wake of the republication of Danish cartoons that lampooned Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) by a Norwegian magazine, Christian and Muslim leaders in Norway said on Tuesday, February 14.

 

Ulema term Lahore violence “frenzy”, against Shariah - International News Network

LAHORE: A delegation of the renowned
Ulema from across the country headed by Wafaq-ul-Madaris Al-Arabia
President, Maulana Saleem Ullah Khan, Wednesday called on Punjab Chief
Minister, Ch. Pervaiz Elahi at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat.
During the meeting, the publication of the blasphemous caricatures in
Denmark and other Western countries and the situation created as result
of the same, was discussed.

The delegation comprised Jamia
Dar-ul-Alom Karachi President Maulana Muhammad Rafi Usmani, Secretary
General Wifaq-ul-Madaris Al-Arabia Pakistan Maulana Muhammad Hanif
Jallandhri, Teacher of Hadith at Jamia Farooqia Karachi Maulana Wali
Khan Al-Muzaffar, Maulana Akhlaq Ahmad from Chakwal and Maulana Khalil
Ahmad from Karachi.

Talking to the Chief Minister, the Ulema
pointed out that the publication of the sacrilegious images was of
exceptional importance for the Islamic world while the protest over the
same was a right of each and every Muslim. However, the incidents of
violence under the cover of protest demonstrations, were extremely
condemnable.

The Ulema also pointed out that Islam did not
allow acts of violence and expressed lamentation that the saboteurs
damaged the cause of Islam. They were of the opinion that action
against the elements involved in the incidents of arson and looting,
was the responsibility of the government. Speaking on this occasion,
Maulana Rafi Usmani termed the incidents of violence in Lahore as
“frenzy” which the Shariah absolutely did not allow. He also cautioned
that setting the property of the innocent people and that of the
government ablaze and ransacking, was unlawful according to the
Shariah.

 

Posted by Faraz at 9:38 pm

NPR : Muslim Cartoon Rioting Affects Spanish Rituals

After Muslim rulers were expelled from Spain in the 13th century, many small communities in the southeast region started holding annual festivals to celebrate. Effigies of the Prophet Muhammed were burned at these events. The recent violent demonstrations over cartoons published in a Danish newspaper have led these villages to change their centuries-old traditions.

 

The Danish Cartoons and the Muslim Reaction

Saturday, February 18th
2:00pm EST / 11:00am PST / 7:00pm London

 

Posted by Faraz at 10:39 pm

NPR : Iraq’s Shiites Mark Holy Day of Ashura

An apparent
suicide bomb tore through a Shiite religious procession in Pakistan
Thursday, killing more than a dozen people and wounding many more.

The
attack came on Ashura, one of the holiest days in the Shiite calendar.
Shiites turn out on this day in the thousands to mark the death of
Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammed.

In Iraq
for the past two years, Ashura has been a day of violence, with more
than 200 Shiite deaths at the hands of Sunni attackers.

 

Posted by Faraz at 10:38 pm

NPR : The Muhammad Cartoons: A European Perspective

Do cartoons mocking Muhammad show a rising intolerance toward Muslims in Europe? Eric Rouleau, who served as France’s ambassador to Turkey and Tunisia, offers his thoughts to Scott Simon.

 

Posted by Faraz at 1:43 pm

Mere Islam: A Point to Ponder: Is God Dead in Europe?

Here’s some information that’s very relevant to the reaction of Europeans to the Danish cartoon controversy. Indeed, in the post-Christian West, where nothing is sacred anymore and only often hypocritical and politically correct forms of moral outrage survive, it’s very nearly impossible for many Europeans—their minds full of stereotypical images and misinformation about Muslims—to really comprehend why Muslims are so upset by the recent charicatures of Prophet Muhammad—may God bless him and grant him peace. This is certainly an aspect of this entire saga that needs to be comprehended in order to make sense of what’s going on, so please take note of the following…. [read more]

 

Al-Miftah: Something Rotten in the State of Denmark - A commentary on the cartoon issue

The uproar caused by the Danish broadsheet Jyllands-Posten’s publication of a number of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad has put Denmark firmly on the map, but it’s the kind of attention the country would have been perfectly happy without. With Muslim ambassadors being recalled from Copenhagen, Danish embassies burning in Beirut and Damascus, angry protests from London to Lahore and a consumer boycott across the Middle east, the case has now escalated to a point where it’s gone from being another far from atypical event in an increasingly xenophobic little country - better known for its bacon, beer and the Little Mermaid - to an international crisis which Denmark now being referred to as the “frontline in the cultural battle between Islam and the West”. So how did it come to this? Danish Muslim commentator Omar Shah traces the roots of the controversy.

 

SPIEGEL Interview with Pakistani Scholar Ahmed Rashid: “This Is not an Issue of Free Speech” - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News

Pakistani scholar Ahmed Rashid weighs in on the cartoon spat between the Muslim world and the West. The cartoons, he argues, were a blatant and unnecessary provocation. He says the only way out of this mess is for European leaders to send a strong message to their people about respecting other cultures and religions of tolerance and respect.

 

Minor Wisdom: Justice, not charity: Bono’s talk at the National Prayer Breakfast

U2 lead singer Bono recently spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast. Today Sojourners circulated a transcript of his talk.
It’s worth reading. Sojo.net has had some server problems, so I’m
taking the liberty of copying Bono’s remarks below the fold — I’m
sure neither Bono nor Sojourners will mind. Here’s a taste…. [read more]

 

Zaytuna Institute & Academy

As the crisis that has emerged in the aftermath of the publication of the infamous cartoons that claim to depict the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of God upon him, escalates, we would do well by stepping back and attempting to analyze the situation as dispassionately as possible. By doing so, as Muslims, we can hopefully formulate a more productive and meaningful response, and avoid being exploited by either side in the ongoing conflict.

Saying this, I do not mean to imply that Muslims are not justifiably angry over the caricatures. However, I would agree with those who argue that responses that involve wild outbreaks of frenzied violence are inappropriate, and they only affirm what the cartoonist is trying to imply. Namely, that Islam is a religion that encourages obscurantist violence and terrorism. [read more]

 

A conversation between Umar Rabbani (4 1/2) and Fareed Rabbani (2) included the following:

Umar: Fareed! You just don’t understand about life!

 

Robert Fisk: Don’t be fooled, this isn’t an issue of Islam versus secularism

o now it’s cartoons of the Prophet Mohamed with a bomb-shaped turban. Ambassadors are withdrawn from Denmark, Gulf nations clear their shelves of Danish produce, Gaza gunmen threaten the European Union. In Denmark, Fleming Rose, the “culture” editor of the pip-squeak newspaper which published these silly cartoons - last September, for heaven’s sake - announces that we are witnessing a “clash of civilizations” between secular Western democracies and Islamic societies. This does prove, I suppose, that Danish journalists follow in the tradition of Hans Christian Anderson. Oh lordy, lordy. What we’re witnessing is the childishness of civilizations.

 

The Fiqh of Marriage - Mufti Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari
AL-QURTUBA PRODUCTIONS

This compilation of 19 CDs, based on a 6-session course delivered by Mufti Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari and facilitated by the VOICES organisation (www.urvoices.com) at Loughborough University UK, is a laudable endeavour to reinforce the value of marriage in an individual’s life and its hugely positive impact on society. It is a comprehensive work of reference for all marriage related issues such as selecting a suitable spouse, engagements, marriage ceremonies, marriage contracts, forced, arranged and secret marriages, etiquettes of intimate relations, rights and responsibilities of the spouses, polygamy, pregnancy, upbringing of children and much more. All matters, however personal, are dealt with in a sensitive yet refreshingly open and frank manner.

The Fiqh of Marriage - Mufti Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari

 

‘Da Vinci Code’: Opus Dei is trying to change public image - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News

Opus Dei, a Roman Catholic organization with powerful members and a reputation for secrecy, is trying to change its public image.

 

MoorishGirl: Translating Arabic Can Be An Offense

In an article for the Los Angeles Times, NYU professor Zachary Lochman speaks up on behalf of Mohammed Yousry, who, because he worked as a translator for a lawyer assigned to a terrorism case, is now charged with conspiracy to abet terrorism and faces up to 20 years in jail.

 

Mere Islam: Why Muslims Are Angry…

For everyone out there wondering why some Muslims around the world are so angry, I’ve gathered a few links that articulate very well what the rage over the recent cartoons is all about….. [read more]

See also:
Mere Islam: An Idiot’s Guide to Offensive Cartoons

 

Posted by Faraz at 1:00 am

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Cartoon anger is a misrepresentation

Western embassies in Middle Eastern cities have been torched. Angry crowds have marched in the streets of London carrying placards calling for beheadings and massacres.

Yet despite how it looks on television news, the response to the cartoons of the prophet Muhammad has mostly been non-violent so far.

 

copenhagen interpretation: “Not only are whites kicking us; they are telling us how to react to being kicked”

Does the right to freedom of speech justify printing the Danish cartoons?

 

An Intimate Calling
from the Wird Book of Imam Ashraf Ali al-Tahanawi

O Messenger of Allah, I come to you seeking refuge
May my Lord’s blessings be upon you and all peace

I come distressed, seeking assistance and succor
For a soul that wrongs despite not having been wronged

O Messenger of Allah, I come to you seeking your protection
And your Lord grants you protection and you can’t be let down

O Messenger of Allah, I come to you as a guest
And the rights of guests are known to those noble

I come to you indigent and needy
With a soul possessing only tremendous sins

A stranger who has come from a strange land
Without any companions or partners

…..

Help me, O Messenger of Allah, for I
Am at a loss, and despair has reached my very bones

Grant mercy, O Son of Aminah, grant mercy
For in sin have I been nursed and grown

It is your intercession I seek in distress and ease
And your healing when sickness befalls me

You are my support when darkness befalls
And in struggles you are my sure sword

If you seek forgiveness for me, O Master, even once
I’ll be of those upright on religion

Every limb of mine obeys you as if a slave
And in my heart love for you is constant

O God grant me success throughout my life
To pray weeping while others are asleep.

[Source: Munajat-e-Maqbool, 234-238, Idara-e-Islamiyat, Lahore, 1995]

 

Ask Imam :: Fatwa on the Prohibition of “Ya Rasul Allah Madad”

The Question: i just wanted to get one thing more cleared up. The folks at sunnipath,
seem to give the impression that permissibility of using words like
“Yarasoolullah madad” is the view of majority of ummah

The Answer:

It is important to understand a fundamental issue
regarding substantiations in Shari’ah. The order and sequence of
substantiations is as follows: a) Qur’aan, b) Hadith, c) Ijmaa a