The US Conference of Catholic Bishops hopes that a national dialogue with Muslims can change perceptions of Islam in the United States. In the past, efforts to foster Catholic-Muslim have succeeded at local levels. But in the face of rising Islamophobia, Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski, of Springfield in Massachusetts, who chairs the committee, said a wider conversation was needed. “As the national conversation around Islam grows increasingly fraught, coarse and driven by fear and often willful misinformation, the Catholic Church must help to model real dialogue and good will,” he said in a statement. This national dialogue will begin at the start of 2017. In the Midwest, Catholic-Muslim dialogue began in 1996 and meets once a year. The co-chairs represent both faiths. One document produced explored how Muslims and Catholics interpret revelation. In the Mid-Atlanic, a representative from The Islamic Circle of North America co-chairs the yearly meetings that started in 1998. Out in California, a number of Islamic Societies join the yearly dialogue which began in 1999. They co-published Friends and Not Adversaries: A Catholic-Muslim Spiritual Journey in 2003. A 2014 directive reaffirmed a commitment to Catholic-Muslim dialogue. How Catholics view other faiths changed following the Second Vatican Council. [...]
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Georgia with its devoutly Orthodox Christian set of communities, is proposing a ‘blasphemy bill’ that will make religious caricaturing and comedic lampooning of faith, punishable in law. The bill, which has been approved at committee stage, has led to critics suggesting that it will cause a chilling effect on those critics of the official church line and more importantly, on dissent regarding religion. Some have suggested that even theatre, art and plays which explored faith could fall of the blasphemy bill. The proposed bill attaches fines to those who target “insults to religious feelings” with a 100 lari fine ($120) attached to any comment deemed to fall foul of the law. This would double if there was a repeat of the incident and desecration of a religious icon would lead to a fine of 1000 laris. Given that the average salary in the country is about 800 laris, the new bill seems to hit those in the pocket willing to take a dissenting line to faith and belief. This bill comes on the back of opposition to the opening of mosques and madrassas in the west of Georgia where groups have been active in lobbying against Muslim institutions.
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There has been an increasing focus on what it means to be a citizen in society in recent years; the nature of responsibilities, rights and how different aspects of our identity contribute towards shaping our sense of belonging.[1] In this debate, the Islamic perspective becomes even more complex. Muslims in Britain often pose many questions: Who am I? Where do I belong? Where do my loyalties lie? Am I a British Muslim or a Muslim living in Britain? Am I part of an Islamic umma ‘Nations’? What are my responsibilities towards my umma? All these questions are important and deserve thorough consideration; but “is there indeed a Muslim identity and, if so, is it of a religious or a cultural context?”[2] In essence, is it permitted for Muslims to be a citizen of a non-Muslim state? From an Islamic point of view, citizenship is wholly religious, and this is based on the principles “enshrined in the revealed word of Allah in the Holy Qur’an and on the action, judgment and conduct of His Prophet [Muhammad]”.[3] The Qur’an tells us that God created Adam to be his vice-regent on Earth. The late Prof. Zaki Badawi, who worked tirelessly toward integrating Muslim [...]
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Protesters gathered at a popular beach in Mogadishu to condemn al-Shabab. Less than a week ago, militants from the group had murdered twenty people at a restaurant in Lido beach. The demonstration attracted hundreds to the same beach in solidarity with the dead. Some used the hashtag #LiidoDemonstration to promote the protest. Hundreds of Somalis have gathered at the scene of an attack on a local beach Liido to demonstrate against #AlShabaab pic.twitter.com/pAcmBln6Tz — Farhan Jimale (@farhanjimale) January 28, 2016 #LiidoDemonstration in support of victims that lost their lives in #Alshabab attack last week. pic.twitter.com/jo0TrkjjkV — Omar H. Ibrahim (@MrOmarHaji) January 28, 2016 Others joined the conversation to highlight broad disdain for Al-Shabab inside Somalia. And praise those attending the protest. Others chanted that al-Shabab has ‘no religion’. #LiidoDemonstration = act of bravery from people daring to defy & differ from terrorists trying to hold their city hostage. #Somalia — A A Mohamoud (@AliMohamoud) January 28, 2016 SOmalia will never die, lets keep hope alive #givepeaceachance #liidodemonstration — Mohamed Jama (@MascuudJaMa) January 28, 2016 Glad to see #LiidoDemonstration taking place in #Mogadishu & for ppl to speak against terror. — H. (@Le_anah) January 28, 2016 #LiidoDemonstration leave alone somalia, terrorism/ [...]
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A Ukip MEP called for an end to immigration from Islamic countries during a debate on the crimes of ISIS on January 20. Gerard Batten, who represents London, argued that ISIS represents “a literalist interpretation” of the Qur’an. Batten claimed that “ISIS represents a revival of the original ethos of the Mohammedan cult”. He defended these comments and told Religious Reader yesterday that “ISIS represents the worst excesses of the Mohammedan cult”. When asked for further clarification he insisted that his purpose “was not to upset any individual but to talk about a belief system, an ideology”. Batten maintains that “Islam is of course a cult”. A ‘cult’ that “up until relatively recently was properly referred to as ‘Mohammedanism’ in the West'”. This religious literalism, for Batten, remains antithetical to ‘western liberal democracy’. And drives his desire to end immigration from Islamic countries. As ‘importing millions’ from Islamic countries may constitute a security risk since “we cannot be sure of just how many of them take their religion literally?” Batten holds little sympathy for men fleeing ISIS. He told Religious Reader that: “Most of the waves of migrants coming to Europe, and queuing up at Calais are not fleeing ISIS, [...]
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A Maryland county will allow Muslim and Hindu students a day off from school to celebrate Diwali and Eid al-Adha. The Howard County Board of Education faced a tough decision: to foster inclusion by removing all religious holidays from the academic calender; Or add extra days to include non-Abrahamic celebrations. A unanimous decision in favour of the latter will result in school closings or professional development days for staff in the 2016/17 academic year. The board also voted to allow staff to take a professional development day off for Lunar News Years Eve, after requests from the local Chinese and Korean communities. As it falls on a Saturday, students remain unaffected. Schools in the county have shut during Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. But a recent motion threatened to end this tradition. It proved controversial enough to attract more than 300 people to a public hearing in December. State and federal laws prevent schools from closing on religious holidays (unless mandated otherwise). Adjusting academic calenders requires a secular reason. Baltimore County had recorded a large levels of absenteeism during these Jewish holidays. Art Abramson, Executive Director of Baltimore’s Jewish Council, welcomed changes to academic calenders on the [...]
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Europe’s continued anxieties towards the refugee crisis has allowed fringe groups to exploit tensions. Finland’s “Soldiers of Odin” is one such example. This ‘street patrol’ movement promises to protect native Finns from immigrants and Muslims. It considers itself “a patriotic organisation fighting for white Finland”. They claim that Islam causes insecurity and increased crime. At protests they have carried signs that read “Migrants not welcome”. You can trace the origins of the movement to a protest in the town of Kemi, near the northern city of Tornio, last October. Its founder Mika Rana, justified their patrols under the guise of security. Social media allowed the movement to connect online. And share their anxieties (and hatred) of different cultures. A Facebook post alleging that asylum seekers housed near a school in Kemi had spied on young girls brought them onto the streets. Rana’s own social media account reveals his white supremacist beliefs. His Facebook ‘likes’ include Holocaust denial, nostalgia for Nazism, and a ‘Stop Islam’ page. The Internet has always enabled far-right ideologues and groups to disseminate materials with ease. Social media serves to intensify the process. And it allows groups to mirror other far-right groups across Europe. Take for example, [...]
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Muhammadu Buhari, a Sunni Muslim and a former military dictator, has surprisingly won the 2015 Presidential elections in Nigeria after three consecutive defeats. Buhari has campaigned on a platform of ‘change’, promising economic stability, to curb corruption and to utilise political strength in tackling the terrorist group, Boko Haram. The Buhari government, however, has faced international criticism, due to the clash between the army and the minority Shia community in Zaria. Reports of events prior to the clash are unclear, the army asserts that the Nigerian Chief of Army Staff, Genenral Tukur Buratai, was blockaded near Zaria and the convoy was attacked by a petrol bomb. The Shia Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) deny any attack occurred and demand the release of their leader Ibraheem Zakzaky. The government forces raided Zakzaky’s home and the whereabouts of his wife and sons are unknown. The IMN have stated that they have been killed in the raid, however, the Nigerian authorities have declared that his wife is in custody. Iran has condemned the attacks and called for the release of the Shiite leader. The movement has also been confronted by Boko Haram. The problem remains complex: it would be too simplistic to apportion [...]
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A campaign to canonise a Catholic priest who stayed on the RMS Titanic instead of fleeing remains ongoing despite renewed interest in his story. The story of Father Thomas Byles and his acts of selflessness, however, deserves re-telling. Roussel Davids Byles was born in 1870 to a Protestant family in Leeds. His father, Reverend Dr. Alfred Holden Byles and mother Louisa Davids also had six other children. He excelled at mathematics and gained a scholarship to Balliol School, Oxford. When at Oxford, Byles gravitated towards the Church of England. His younger brother, William, however, converted to Catholicism first. In 1894, he had a conditional baptism (sub conditione) at St. Aloysius Church in Oxford. Upon entering the Catholic faith, Roussel adopted the name of Thomas. After spending two years in Rome, Byles became the ordained priest of St Helen’s Church, Chipping Ongar, Essex in 1904. In 1912, he had boarded the ship to attend the wedding of his younger brother William, in New York. This last minute decision to board the Titanic instead of a different ship cost him £13 (roughly £1,100 today). His second class ticket was number 244310. His duties included performing mass for second and third class passengers. [...]
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Netherlands The festivities begin with the arrival of Sinterklaas (Saint Nicholas) on a boat from Spain. History alludes to a Catholic priest in fourth-century Myra – in modern Turkey. Under protestant rule, celebrations of Sinterklaas moved from the public into the private sphere. Jan Schenkman’s 1850 novel ‘Saint Nicholas and his Servant‘ popularised many modern Sinterklaas traditions. Schenkman’s writings reflected the culture – Sinterklaas interrogated children about their behaviour and religious knowledge. Rewards came in the shape of gifts and food. Naughty children were sometimes carried away by the servant in a large sack. One of the most controversial legacies involves Zwarte Piet or ‘Black Pete’ – a character who accompanies Sinterklass. White people put on blackface makeup, with exaggerated lips, curly wigs and costumes. The United Nations has called on the Netherlands to ditch Black Pete due to its racist and negative stereotyping. In recent years, the anti-racist response to Black Pete has received more mainstream attention. Jerusalem Christians account for less than 2 per cent of the population in Jerusalem. For many in the city, Christmas is just another day in the city. Christmas Day falls on the Sabbath so individuals will be off regardless. In some parts [...]
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