Counter-reformation II
Ali Eteraz posted a reply to an article I posted last weekend, in reply to his three articles on Islamic reform and the alleged “counter-reformation” which has gained pace since 9/11. Here is my reply to parts of his reply.
Category: Islam
Response to Ali Eteraz on “Islamic reform”
Ali Eteraz has recently posted a series of articles on Comment is Free on what he calls "Islamic reform" ([1], [2], [3]). He defines Islamic reform as what happens when "a Muslim dissents from...
“Radical” books in east London libraries
BBC NEWS | UK | Radical books in London libraries A report by the so-called Centre for Social Cohesion, a project of the right-wing think tank Civitas, has found that libraries in Tower Hamlets,...
“Old really is gold”
Terrorism, Stability and Other Personal Thoughts « AE Abu Eesa has an interesting take on the recent phenomenon of turncoat "reformed extremists" who present themselves as some sort of true face of Islam, with...
Mars now using animal rennet
The Guardian: A Mars Bar a day? No longer an option if you are vegetarian It’s not a rumour this time – I’m well aware how annoying these food rumours are which do the...
Fight the people?
A Maltreated Hadith translated from Muhammad Al-Ghazali's (may Allah have mercy on him) Al-'Ilal wal-Adaweyyah by Umm Majeed – The Translators The Translators (in this case, Umm Majeed) give a correct understanding of the...
Shaikh Nuh Keller: takfir and the Subcontinental divide
Jinnzaman recently blogged a lengthy article by Shaikh Nuh Ha Mim Keller on the subject of the rulings of takfeer, who is entitled to pronounce it, when and why, and how it relates to...
Reflections on Salafism’s rise and fall
Umar Lee recently posted a ten-part history on the rise and fall of the "salafi da'wah" in the USA (last post, with comments and links to the other nine, here). The whole series made...
Advertisers targeting Ramadan
BBC News Video: Advertisers targeting Ramadan A BBC news report on how Ramadan keeps Muslim families at home together – which often, in practice, means in front of the TV, which advertisers see as...
Pope criticises, Anjem embarrasses
It's depressing to see Muslims once again resorting to violence in response, no doubt, to rumours about what the Pope may or may not have said in his speech at Regensburg last week (extracts...
Upcoming RMW event and anti-RMW programme
Radical Middle Way Event: Shaikh Walead Mohammed, an American graduate of al-Azhar (who has also studied in Damascus) is to give a talk this Tuesday in London and next Sunday in Oxford on the...
Ben Marshall on Runnymede and Islamophobia
In this month’s New Humanist there’s a one-page article by Ben Marshall (a freelance journalist) on Islamophobia, in which the author “embraces his phobia”, defending it as “an entirely reasonable and honourable intellectual position”. The magazine is a bi-monthly, founded in 1885 as the Literary Review, and claims that it “has distinguished itself as a world leader in supporting and promoting humanism and rational inquiry and opposing religious dogma, irrationalism and bunkum wherever it is found”. A typical issue will feature ridicule of some aspect of religion – the present issue has a short piece about Malaysians discussing where to face in prayer when in space, for example. Marshall starts off by attacking those who try to defend Muslims from Islamophobia, including the Runnymede Trust (a race relations body which published a report on Islamophobia in 1997) and the blog Islamophobia Watch. He also makes it clear that he is generally anti-religious and, like a lot of secular humanists, lumps religion in with superstition.
Murtadd Nazir-Ali on defending all faiths
The BBC reports that the bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali, has some opinions on the Prince of Wales' plan to be "Defender of Faith" when (or if) he takes the throne: The Prince of...
Bin Bayyah fatwa a fake
Much discussion ensued on Deenport when someone posted a synopsis of a supposed fatwa from Abdullah bin Bayyah to the effect that the fake jumu'ah prayers held with Amina Wadud as the "imam" were...
I agree with the Cardinal
A week ago an Italian cardinal [gave a warning](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4559990.stm) to Italian women that they should not marry Muslim men, what with the country’s Muslim minority gaining in numbers and 20,000 mixed marriages taking place...
Shaikh Nuh Keller on niqab (updated)
Shaikh Nuh Ha Mim Keller has issued a new lecture on the subject of niqab via the website Suhba.org. It is available to the public in the "lessons" section of the website. In the...
New website for Imam Zaid Shakir
Thanks to Qadeeb al-Ban at Mere Islam, I've found a new website "dedicated to disseminating the work of Imam Zaid Shakir through print and audio formats". The site is called New Islamic Directions, and...
Mufti Ibn Adam in Yemen
Via Seekers' Digest, Mufti Muhammad ibn Adam has written a lengthy piece on his recent trip to Yemen, including many asides on the country's history, the hadeeth literature on it, and some social commentary...
Mawlana Rumi defence
Via SunniPath via Sunni Sister, an article has been posted defending Mawlana Jalal al-Deen Rumi from both the attacks of sectarians and the “universal mystics” who seek to co-opt his writings. It shows him...
Palazzi reveals his disbelief
Massimo “Abdul-Hadi” Palazzi hasn’t been heard from much lately in the sections of the Internet I inhabit – a couple of years ago one of his minions was a persistent presence on one of...