Religion Dispatches
…tionally (Turkey in NATO) or simply altogether and undeniably Western (Bosnia, Albania, Kosovo). These should be the basis of future relationships. We’re willing to pour billions of dollars into the machinery of conflict, but don’t want to sustain exchange programs, educational cooperation, or international visitors programs at nearly the same pace. We have the chance to; most Muslim countries, on the other hand, are too poor to do this. Such effo…
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…lity. Instead, I have confidence that Islam will live through these torrential times, as it has lived through other torrential times in history. I believe not in peripheral issues, diversity of perspectives, or even core issues to such as an extent as to over look a simple order of the universe. And that’s what makes me Muslim after having lovingly practiced Buddhism and Christianity. The universe is organized around the principle of God’s abiding…
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…n four White evangelicals said the federal government should declare Christianity the official religion of the United States. Far more (61%) said that Christianity should not be the official religion, but that government should promote Christian “moral values.” That was substantially higher than any other group. But promoting Christian values garnered majority support among every Christian demographic, except for Hispanic Catholics, who were equal…
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…viously) European? Are their “culture and politics” more like white, Christian, Italian-Americans or brown, Muslim, Pakistani-Americans? This isn’t really a question the essay sets out to answer, but it’s revealing, isn’t it? American Islam is tremendously variegated, as indeed is the conservative movement, as the essay itself reveals. But do all American Muslims cluster together, culturally and politically, because they are Muslim? Is their (our/…
Read More…imes need punishment — and, he notably added — sex education. Gays and lesbians deserve protection from “unjust discrimination.” And while he clearly upheld his church’s teaching that marriage is only between a man and woman, he noted that unconventional unions do indeed form. And they are not, he wrote, without their “constructive elements.” CNN’s Richard Allen Greene noted, along those same lines, that Francis wrote, “By thinking that everything…
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…members could lead a hypothetical movement to consider mass suicide as a viable option. Despite his good intentions, Jones has faced some backlash from critics who claim his project is in bad taste. He understands the reaction, but defends the right of comedians to make light of anything. Jones is confident that when critics see the finished film, they’ll get it. He added poignantly, of the Heaven’s Gate followers: “People forget, they were just…
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…it concern you that schools or employers might offer meditation in lieu of desperately needed material resources? I am not concerned, but it’s for a bad reason. The reason I’m not concerned is that those communities that are deprived don’t get mindfulness in lieu of more resources. They don’t get more resources, period—whether they have mindfulness or not. It sucks, but it’s a fact. Politicians aren’t saying, “Hey, we’re doing this to save money….
Read More…he Jerusalem Post, the reported remarks “around fiery reactions on Arab social media networks, where a campaign under the hashtag ‘Odah permits homosexuality’ was launched.” Pink News adds: The cleric, an influential figure in Saudi Arabia who was once held as a political prisoner, has provoked a fierce reaction in the country, where public opinion is strongly anti-LGBT. It is often difficult to confirm data about gay people charged under Saudi Ar…
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…in scope. Recent attacks have claimed religious minorities—including Christians, Hindus, Sufis, and Shias—professors, students, LGBT activists, and even the wife of a police investigator. While the attackers may all claim a common religious inspiration—a Wahhabi version of Islam fomented in the country’s growing number of fundamentalist religious schools—the victims are not necessarily homogenous in their religious beliefs. Attacks in Bangladesh h…
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…our community has where we can heal our hurts. I caution the mainstream media to not misappropriate our anger and sadness as anti-religious or Islamophobic. We are mourning an attack on the sanctity of our community. We are in pain as we have lost our fellow healers. The warriors and healers of our past and present are with us as we march forward in pursuit of whatever it is that defines our new home at the end of this painful journey. We have los…
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