Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year and commemorates the creation of the Earth. During this two day celebration, the traditional greeting “L’shanah tovah”… “for a good New Year” rings loud among members of Jewish communities. Ancient Hebrews relied upon the Torah, which celebrated it on the “seventh month” or Nisan. Passover also begins in Nisan. Today, Rosh Hashanah falls between September and October (or Tishrei). Jews believe that God weighs a person’s good and bad deeds over the previous year, and decides what the year ahead will bring. God records this information in the Book of Life. God seals this book on the festival of Yom Kippur. Rabbi Jonathan Romain, noted that the Book of Life created a ‘theological catastrophe’ that created false assumptions and blame upon God for human deeds. Romain pointed to Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) 3.19 to remind Jews of their free will and agency in decisions that impact the year ahead. Rabbi Naftali Brawer reflected that this time of year creates of a paradox of comfort and fear under God’s scrutiny. He wrote “It is frightening, because under God’s scrutiny there is no place to hide. Indeed, this is the major theme of the [...]
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A footnote to Europe’s ongoing crisis is the rising use of anti-Muslim rhetoric. Hungary’s nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, defended the erecting of a razor-wire fence on its southern border through the language of cultural and religious difference. Orbán stated that “most of them are not Christians, but Muslims,” and that “Europe and European identity is rooted in Christianity. Is it not worrying in itself that European Christianity is now barely able to keep Europe Christian?” Antal Rogan, the parliament caucus leader of Orbán’s Fidesz party, said on Tuesday that “the very existence of Christian Europe” was at stake. Rogan also told the pro-government newspaper Magyar Idok “Would we like our grandchildren to grow up in a United European Caliphate? My answer to that is no”. Ivan Metik, a spokesperson for Slovakia’s interior ministry spokesman said last month: “We want to help Europe with the migration issue. We could take 800 Muslims but we don’t have any mosques in Slovakia so how can Muslims be integrated if they are not going to like it here?” In July, Slovakia’s prime minister, Robert Fico, argued that Christians would cause less tension. He added that terrorists might attempt to mingle among Muslim refugees. [...]
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Continue ReadingThe man who admitted killing three people at two suburban Kansas City Jewish sites told jurors he hoped to “die a martyr” for the shootings. It took the jury little over two hours to find Frazier Glenn Miller Jr., 74, guilty of capital murder, three counts of attempted murder and assault and weapons charges. As jurors left court, Miller raised his right arm in a Nazi salute and told them: “You probably won’t sleep tonight.” None of his victims were Jewish. Their names are William Corporon, 69, a physician; his 14-year-old grandson, Reat Underwood; and Terri LaManno, 53. A fact Miller did not learn until six days after the shootings. Frazier Glenn Miller, also known as Frazier Glenn Cross, wrote on a courtroom poster board “Diversity is a code word for white genocide”. Miller’s virulent antisemitism and white supremacist ideology has never been in doubt. His website, with its rudimentary design, mixes the iconographies of the Ku Klux Klan and the Confederate flag. He recommends visitors check out ex-KKK grand wizard David Duke and get ‘jew-wise’. Miller published his own book, titled ‘A White Man Speaks Out,’ written between 1987-1990 (when in prison), and completed in 1999. He joined the [...]
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Continue ReadingHertfordshire Police arrested a man after three incidents of criminal damage caused at churches in Hitchin and Letchworth on August 25. A 38-year-old man from Letchworth was also arrested in connection with further incidents of criminal damage on August 26. The vandalism saw a stained glass memorial to World War I personnel smashed at St Mary’s Church, in Hitchin, alongside a depiction of Jesus Christ. Vandals attack St Mary's Church #Hitchin in an apparent religously aggravated crime any info call @HertsPolice on 101 pic.twitter.com/ha5QTdgWVP — HE Heritage Crime (@HEHeritageCrime) August 27, 2015 At St Paul’s Church, in Letchworth, the vandal threw more than 50 pieces of flint and brick through its windows. The attacks soon switched to St Mary’s, with the first incident at 2.10pm then 9pm. In total, damages total above £10,000. Before the arrest, Sergeant Stephen Oliphant told local press:”We are currently following a line of enquiry that they are religiously aggravated and, due to the damage caused to these historical buildings, the incidents are also being treated as a heritage crime”. In spite of the distress, Simon Moore, vicar of the Letchworth church, stressed forgiveness for the accused. Congregants banded together to sweep away broken glass. On [...]
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Continue ReadingThe Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has stated that IS (Islamic State) executed over 90 people in the last month in Syria, with a third of them being civilians. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that 32 civilians were among 91 people executed for ‘crimes’ that took place between July 29th and August 29th 2015. These included residents in areas controlled by the so-called Caliphate and which included forces loyal to Bashar Al-Assad, rebel fighters and even those affiliated with IS. Some of the crimes that are punishable by death include ‘witch-craft’, homsexuality and working with the US-led Coalition. To date, since the Caliphate was announced across Iraq and parts of Syria, approximately 3,156 people have been executed by IS. This includes about 1,841 civilians who have also lost their lives. Some of these executions have been filmed and promoted by the media arm of IS, Al-Hayat, which produced high definition videos on the gruesome beheadings and crucifixions of individuals. Videos have also been circulated of alleged homosexuals being thrown off the roofs of buildings.
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Continue ReadingWelcome to the age of post-ism. Racism is over, ageism is over, classism is over and so is sexism too, or at least this is popular thought. However, feminism is needed more now than ever and yet our feminist movement is beginning to eerily reflect the sort of attitudes we should be striving against, and at times blatantly demonstrating racist and illiberal attitudes. Feminists have in the past seemed ill at ease with the religious, who have in some cases campaigned against abortions and gay marriage – the cornerstones it could be argued of modern feminist achievement. However with more dangers against women from the state than ever before, how can Western feminism become more inclusive of minority values, and in turn the religious? First we must reflect on what feminism has always been about – was it to focus solely on the individual of the day or to empower women to be able to make decisions about themselves, for themselves? Focusing on a specific religious action with little understanding of context can cause unnecessary divides, whereas uniting on common ground such as wage disparity, maternity rights, and homelessness is plain common sense. Women: the all too often disproportional victims [...]
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It is too often erroneously claimed that Sunni Islam is divided into a legalistic conservative mainstream presided over by jurists, and a mystical, liberal marginalised minority comprised of mystics. However such a perception came to emerge, it is inaccurate. From the beginnings of Islam in the Qur’an and in the person of the Prophet Muhammad himself, through to his companions and the jurists who established the four Sunni schools of Islamic Law, the external application of the law and the internal cultivation of the spirit have always been intertwined. Consider the ritual prayer, performed by Muslims five times a day, as this most demonstrates the interdependence of the external and the internal. In the Qur’an it is said, “Perform the Prayer to remember Me.” In this it is made clear that the Prayer is not simply a series of movements and supplications performed in accordance with an established formula. Rather, its objective is the remembrance of God. The Prophet Muhammad elaborates that, “When performing the Prayer, one is conversing intimately with one’s Lord.” However, he makes clear that, “A man gets credit only for that part of his Prayer of which he is conscious,” and it is not sufficient to [...]
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Continue ReadingThe harvest festival of Onam is a moveable feast: it colours the landscape of Kerala in South West India in a rhythm of elaborate dances, music, sports and banquets. A festival of secular tradition, where different faiths and castes celebrate. It falls on the Malayee month of Chingnam, which coincides with Shavan Masa of the Indian calender. This ten day celebration falls between August and September 15. It honours the homecoming of the beloved King Mahabali, who makes a yearly return to Kerala. Legend dictates that the jealous king of the gods, Indra, hatched a plan to oust Mahabali. Indra begged Lord Vishnu for protection who then transformed into a Brahmin boy, or dwarf, named Vamana. The people of Kerala adorded the wisdom and generosity of King Mahabali; Vamana sought to exploit the latter. He approached King Mahabali and asked for as much land as his feet could cover in three steps. Upon granting what appeared a simple and humble request; Vamana grew at an exponential rate; one footstep covered the sky and the stars. The second step covered the netherworld. Vamana then turned to King Mahabli, who came to realise that a third step would destroy the Earth. To [...]
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Dr. Imam Mamadou Bocoum is a holder of two Masters and a PhD from The Muslim College, and Heythrop College, University of London. He is a lecturer in Islamic Studies; a Board member of the Muslim Law Council UK and an interfaith consultant. He is currently a consultant at Faith Matters and Tell Mama. Mamadou has authored a number of written works which have included: The Position of Jews and Christians in the Qur’an; Faith and Citizenship in Islam; The status of Women in Islam; Islamic Fundamentalism and the Qur’an. He can be reached at mbocoum@yahoo.com; Mamadou@tellmamauk.org. While delivering a talk on ‘extremism in the religion of Islam’, an audience member shouted: “Bush, Blair and Bin Laden are all f——s”. I pretended that I had not heard but this was to no avail as the same individual shouted again – but this time in a louder tone – “All of them are f——s”. The heckler’s pronunciation was rather difficult to interpret (like mine!) and I thought that he meant the offensive six-letter designation. It proved a great relief when someone clarified that the ‘f word’ was fundamentalist. I then responded that besides sharing initial ‘B’ in their respective family names, [...]
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Continue ReadingA dozen skeletons found in a rubbish dump were Jewish victims of Portugal’s Inquisition, according to researchers. The excavation team uncovered the remains in Evora, east of Lisbon, at the former Jail Cleaning Yard of the Inquisition Court. The dump functioned between 1568 and 1634. Inquisition manuscripts confirmed that 87 prisoners died when the jail was in use. The three male and nine female victims died with no funeral rights or burial goods. Researchers noted that “the sediment surrounding the skeletons is indistinguishable from the household waste layer where they were placed, suggesting that the bodies were deposited directly in the dump”. In death, the humiliation compounded those accused of being Jewish or heretics. Pope Gregory IX created the Inquisition in 1233, after a period of consolidation in Europe, to ensure heretics did not undermine papal authority. For example, they branded the Cathers and Waldensians heretics for their metaphysical Christian beliefs. Suspicion followed Jewish converts; some believed they continued to practice Judaism in secret. A converso faced fines, imprisonment or burning at the stake if found guilty of practising their old faith. Under the Inquisition, the accused had no right to face or question their accuser; it validated the testimonies [...]
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