Religion

The World's Most Toxic Value System

The more I travel, study history and read the papers, the more convinced I become of the superiority of rationalism. With that attitude, I should spend all my time traveling to northern Europe and Japan. However, fate has also seen fit to send me to many places where people think with their viscera and gonads instead of their brains. The more I see it in action, the more convinced I become that societies that place personal "honor" before everything else are truly cursed. This value system has ramifications that pervade the societies infested with it. It is, in my view, the most toxic value system on the planet. The term toxic is carefully chosen and meant to be taken with the utmost literalness because societies pervaded by this value system are deeply poisoned spiritually.

Laina Farhat-Holzman: In Turkey, a head scarf is a red flag

Passionate public demonstrations have been held in Turkey recently against Prime Minister Erdogan's selection of Abdullah Gul to run for the republic's presidency. These thousands of demonstrators were Istanbul's secularists, who rear the creeping Islamism of Erdogan's government. Gul's wife wears the Islamic head scarf as a sign of her piety — a silly issue in Western eyes, but to the secularists, the head scarf is a red flag. Their freedoms, guaranteed since 1923, when the secular republic was created, are being challenged by resurgent Islam. The courts backed the demonstrators, as did the Turkish military, which has been a guarantor of a secular Turkey since the republic was created. Mr. Gul will not run.

The Islamist threat in Malaysia has lessons for us all

When Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, gave his thoughtful lecture on Sharia law and his slightly less thoughtful BBC interview about its “inevitability” in Britain, he could have taken a little more time to study the reality of politics in the Muslim world. In countries as different as Pakistan and Malaysia, the struggle is not between Islamists and others but between moderate Muslim leaders and hardliners proposing Sharia.

Hitchens Bests Hannity in God Debate

Sean Hannity ventured way out of his intellectual depth when he attempted to engage author Christopher Hitchens in a debate about the existence of God. Hitchens has written a new book debunking the idea of God, entitled "Go Is Not Great." Comment at www.newshounds.us

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Somali Islamist leader rejects talks with gov't

A senior Somali Islamist leader rejected on Sunday an offer of talks by the interim government to end insurgent attacks, including beheadings, that have sparked one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. Somali Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein said last Wednesday his government was ready to negotiate with opposition groups to end a 15-month insurgency against government troops and their Ethiopian military allies.

Are Muslim enclaves no-go areas, forcing other people out, asks historian John Cornwell

Where are the Muslim enclaves in our towns and cities? Are they really no-go areas and are they forcing others out? John Cornwell, one of Britain’s leading historians and commentators on religion, navigates the multicultural minefields that are polarising the nation.

Kenya: Africa Insight - Africa Can't Run Away From Somalia

The Somali refugee crisis is now a continental problem causing ethnic tension even in the far-flung South Africa, hence presenting states with a tricky choice between hosting refugees and protecting their national interests. The explosion that killed a man and injured 39 people in Nairobi on June 11 has put back refugees into sharp focus security-wise. So far, The Kenya Police has interrogated nine suspects most of them Muslims of Somali origin. The most sought suspect, whose photograph was published on the media, Farah Ahmed Hirsi, handed himself to the police. Farah, a Kenyan citizen born in Mandera District in Northern Kenya, is a businessman in Eastleigh, Nairobi, which houses thousands of Somali refugees. He has a Masters Degree in Islamic Studies. In August 2006 Farah was arrested and questioned about his alleged links to terrorism-and was threatened with deportation to Somalia for allegedly being in Kenya illegally. This adds to the perception, in certain quarters, of ethnic Somalis in Kenya as a state security risk since the Shifta (bandit) war in the 1960s. This has also presented intractable difficulties to the protection of the increasingly criminalised Somali asylum-seekers and refugees. Somalia has been ravaged by decades of civil war after the fall of the Siad Barre regime in 1991 sparking off one of Africa's most protracted refugee crises. In the same vein, Somalia-based al-Jihaad fighters alleged to have links with al-Qaeda have the potential to change the security dynamics in the Greater Horn of Africa.

Muslim Converts in Prison

New research, in contrast to some political and media views, shows that the process of religious conversion and pathways to Islam can provide prisoners with a moral framework from which to re-build their lives. "Converting to Islam is a way for prisoners to gain a strong sense of identity. But it is important to stress that the process of conversion itself is often long and complex, and so many prisoners will have begun their pathways to conversion before their incarceration." Muslim communities should be encouraged to help re-settle Muslim offenders.

Islamists Target Schools. Where's the outrage? /update

The killing of Buddhist teachers by Islamists in Southern Thailand has become so common place that the last time the NYT considered worthy of reporting was in February. Then, the estimate was 60 dead teachers. Of course, the NYT blamed the government's harsh response for the Islamist brutality. In the meantime, a coup determined to follow the sage NYT advise and appease the murderers. Today the number of teachers murdered is over 70. Yesterday, two female teachers were killed in the library. A third male teacher was killed in his car. 130 schools were closed.

Radical Muslim preacher caught on film giving advice on how to 'hoodwink' the Government over benefits

A radical Muslim preacher has been filmed talking about fraudulently claiming benefits and giving advice on how to cheat the Government. Self-proclaimed extremist Abu Waleed was speaking at the London School of Shariah event in preparation for Ramadan, during which he also made jokes about Muslims taking backpacks on to the Underground. The British-born radical retold fables from the koran before encouraging his audience to hoodwink the Government.

The Influence of a Moderate Muslim Cleric

My profile of Sheik Ali Gomaa, the grand mufti of Egypt, provides a brief look at the work of an important Muslim jurist who argues that traditionalism, particularly traditional Islamic jurisprudence, is the best antidote to Islamic extremism. Followers of the grand mufti, including many of his former students at Cairo's Al-Azhar University, believe that his approach to Islam and Islamic law has a profound influence not just on Egyptians but on Muslims throughout the Middle East and even beyond. But others are more skeptical. They say that his position as a state-appointed official makes him suspect in the eyes of most Egyptians.

Mirror, Mirror: Looking At Iraq

Rarely in American history has a war been so often spun, praised, renounced, disowned, and finally neglected. And the result is that a number of questions remain not just unanswered, but unasked. We have not been hit since 9/11, despite the dire predictions from almost everyone of serial attacks to come. Today if a Marine recruitment center is bombed, we automatically assume the terrorist to represent a domestic anti-war group, not al-Qaeda -- a perverse conjecture impossible to have imagined in autumn 2001.

Cozying up to Islamists is a dangerous game

Tony Blair's policies only helped to excuse those who condemn terror but refuse to denounce jihad. The sight of a burning SUV stuck at the entrance of Glasgow airport's passenger terminal had me begging God for reprieve. "Please let it not be a Muslim," I prayed. But the odds were stacked against me. Fortunately, this clumsy attempt by Islamic terrorists failed. But what was extraordinary about this attack was the profile of the accused. Among those arrested were Arab professionals, one a neurosurgeon, the other a physician.

The Future of Religion

As with any evolutionary process, when the environment changes the organisms have to adapt. This is true not only for living organisms but for social and religious organisms as well. During the Dark Ages religion was stable for very long periods of time. But those days are gone and the human race is in the middle of a huge evolutionary jump. New technology is changing how we understand things and how we process information.

Let the dismantling begin

In writing about the need to dismantle multiculturalism, the advice of Sophocles from the fifth century B.C. comes to mind. The Athenian playwright and author of the tragedy Oedipus the King counselled, "One must wait until the evening to see how splendid the day has been." It is with the evening of multiculturalism at hand that we can discern how utterly flawed is the liberal notion proclaiming equality of all cultures at the expense of individual freedom, which has guided governments in western liberal democracies for some time.

Islamists’ growing boldness foretold clash

A chronology of the Red Mosque's standoff with the government since the start of 2007: January: Burqa-clad female students from Jamia Hafsa, a school attached to the mosque, occupy a state-run children's library in protest at plans to demolish several mosques illegally built on government land in Islamabad

Women's Rights Lawyer Quits, Says She Feels Threatened

A prominent Berlin women's rights lawyer and critic of Islam has closed her practice, saying her life is in danger and the state has failed to protect her. For years, Seyran Ates has been a prominent figure in Germany on account of her books and public engagements reinforcing her fight against forced marriage, headscarves, so-called honor killings, domestic violence and the subjugation of women in many Turkish and Kurdish families.

The Importance of England's Ex-Islamists

The sense of grievance may not justified but it is widespread. A 2004 study by Home Office survey found 26 percent of British Muslims felt no loyalty to Britain, 13 percent defended terrorism, and about 16,000 were prepared to engage in or actively support terrorism. In addition, four out of 10 British Muslims want Sharia law (which includes punitive stoning and amputation) introduced into parts of the country, and a fifth have sympathy with the "feelings and motives" of the suicide bombers who killed 52 people in the London terrorist bus and tube attacks.

A magic touch for religions?

Religious institutions can attain some of the success of the Harry Potter books by sharing the Bible's stories of the battles between good and evil and the triumph of faith and hope.

Egypt's Grand Mufti Counters the Tide of Islamic Extremism

"Maybe we just need to buy CNN," says Sheik Ali Gomaa, more than a hint of exasperation creeping into his voice. After taking more than an hour to explain to yet another western journalist why a traditional conception of sharia law—along with knowledge of Islamic jurisprudence—is the best antidote to Islamic extremism, the grand mufti of Egypt is not able to disguise his frustration. Why, he wonders, does the West still not recognize who the moderate Muslims are, much less heed what they are trying to say? Shrugging his shoulders, he answers his own question: "The western media has paid no attention."

A Tale of Two Archbishops

In these excerpted statements from the heads, past and present, of the Church of England, we see encapsulated two approaches to democracy and the challenges posed to it so divergent that they look as though they emerged from different planets. Put plainly, Carey sees democracy as tender and in need of consolidation; Williams sees it as something rigid and in need of modification. Williams might deny this formulation.

Interview with Tunisian human rights activist Abu Khawla

What's behind the success of the Islamic radical movements in the Middle East? Government support and oil wealth. Governments intentionally support, directly or indirectly, the Islamists by providing them with more tribunes to disseminate their vies (mosques). They also back them when they fail to improve woman' status and reforming education, that would inevitable undermine the Islamists. In addition, governments try hard to harm the secular groups active in our countries. The latter emigrate abroad, creating a gap that Islamist groups will be eager to fill.

Edict against liberals raises violence fears

Riyadh: A religious edict by a prominent Saudi cleric suggesting liberals are not real Muslims has inflamed debate over reforms in the country, with self-professed liberals fearing they will be attacked. Responding to an online request for a religious edict, or fatwa, Shaikh Saleh Al Fozan said last month: "Calling oneself a liberal Muslim is a contradiction in terms ... one should repent before God for such ideas in order to be a real Muslim".

Somalia: That Question Again, Terrorists Or Freedom Fighters?

Charges against three Somalis in Oslo of providing "support to terrorism" have outraged many Somalis in Norway. The charges are that the Somalis may have sent money to rebels in Somalia, but their defenders say they were supporting freedom fighters. On Feb. 28 police in Norwegian capital Oslo arrested three Somalis, and are still detaining one of them. The Somalis, the security services say, have been sending money to terrorists in Somalia fighting the UN-supported transitional federal government. This has not gone down well with a large section of the 18,000-strong Somali population in Norway.

Why Shariah?

Last month, Rowan Williams, the archbishop of Canterbury, gave a nuanced, scholarly lecture in London about whether the British legal system should allow non-Christian courts to decide certain matters of family law. Britain has no constitutional separation of church and state. The archbishop noted that “the law of the Church of England is the law of the land” there; indeed, ecclesiastical courts that once handled marriage and divorce are still integrated into the British legal system, deciding matters of church property and doctrine. His tentative suggestion was that, subject to the agreement of all parties and the strict requirement of protecting equal rights for women, it might be a good idea to consider allowing Islamic and Orthodox Jewish courts to handle marriage and divorce. The practical application of Shariah in most Muslim countries (as here, in this Egyptian courtroom) is in matters of family law. Then all hell broke loose.

Sharia – a matter of interpretation

Dorthe Bramsen uncovers the reality of and argumentation behind Sharia in her recent thesis called “Divine Law and Human Understanding: Interpreting shari’a within the institutions of ifta’ and qada’ in Saudi Arabia”.

Teens in Bikinis Sunbathe in Tripoli Not Far from Bullets

Teens in bikinis sunbathe on the beach by Tripoli, Lebanon's second and Sunni-dominated city, while barely 15 kilometers further north a battle rages between the army and Fatah al-Islam terrorists. "The Islamists tried to carry out a coup d'etat in Tripoli and impose Islamic Sharia (law). We are practicing Muslims but like most Tripolitans we reject fanaticism."

Islamists demand that Taslima be kicked out of India

The All India Minority Forum said last week that writer and NSS honorary associate Taslima Nasreen should be kicked out of the country because she has “hurt the sentiments of Muslims”. "Taslima has not only hurt the sentiments of Muslims, but she has defamed the Indian Constitution."

The Jihadi-in-a-Burqa Meme

The news item itself was headshaking enough: Here was a fundamentalist Muslim cleric, the kind who fulminates loud and hard against all things secular or Western, whose whipped-up followers agitate for the imposition of sharia law, holed up in a mosque surrounded by a tightening cordon of soldiers — and he is caught on Wednesday trying to slip away from the scene unnoticed by donning a burqa, the full-length black veiling robe worn by many pious Muslim women. Never mind that this particular ploy was probably doomed from the get-go.