christian reconstructionism

Christian Reconstructionism is movement which has been quietly but steadily gaining influence these days. They believe "that every area dominated by sin must be 'reconstructed' in terms of the Bible." More specifically they want society to be run according to their understanding of Old Testament law. So some of the leaders of this Christian movement have openly called for establishing the death penalty for actions such as sodomy, blasphemy, and being a rebellious offspring (And they endorse stoning as their prefered method of execution.) They even talk about legalizing slavery and flirt with Holocaust revisionism. The more hard-core end of the movement blurs into the racist and militant right-wing of the Christian Church but their ideas (not always under the label of "Christian Reconstructionism") are still influencing more mainstream Christians.

They are sometimes called the "American Taliban" by their critics but I'm not sure who should be more insulted by the label. The existence of groups like these help to show that just as there are also many different kinds of Muslims, there are also many different kinds of Christians. And instead of painting all "Christians" or all "Muslims" or "Buddhists" with the same brush, we should look examine why a particular set of conditions (whether economic, political, historical or social) might tend to produce different kinds of believers (from the deeply spiritual philanthropist to the deely troubled fanatic)

Here is a short, relatively "neutral" overview of Christian Reconstructionism from the Religious Movement Homepage.

To learn more about the mainstreaming of Reconstructionist ideas you can read Christian Reconstructionism: Theocratic Dominionism Gains Influence by Frederick Clarkson

Here is a categorized list of statements by Reconstructionist leaders on various subjects including "the Indian", "the Negro", "stoning" and "world conquest". (Links to more extensive critical discussions of the movement are available from the homepage)

And just to be fair, here is what the movement is about, straight from the horse's... mouth. The most prominent Christian Reconstrctionist organization is called the Chalcedon foundation and here is their website.

intelligent design

On the Gene Expression blog yesterday. there were some thoughtful remarks on the whole "intelligent design" contraversy. (I didn't agree with the thrust, but the way the issues were laid out seemed useful to me).

And on Islam Online, last month there was a piece by Ahmed K. Sultan Salem called The Non-Science of Intelligent Design. Salem tries to walk the line betwteen asserting (since he is Muslim) that the universe actually does have an intelligent Designer, while still being critical of ID as a movement. Personally, I'm coming down to a similar position but I want to think about the subject a little more before inflicting my ideas on my readers...

Wikipedia on Intelligent Design and the Intelligent design movement

patrimonio lingüístico de orígen árabe en el idioma español

Similar list to the last one except from a Spanish-language Islam site called WebIslam

1000+ arabian something or other

This entry isn't super-deep but seeing them written out makes a strong point. Here is a list of over 1000 words which Spanish borrowed from Arabic.

the lottery by shirley jackson

The Lottery has been on my mind these days. It is a really good short story written by Shirley Jackson, and published in the New Yorker magazine in 1948. It later got turned into a play and when I was in 8th grade our drama teacher had us perform it as a class. (My Old Man Warner got rave reviews in the school paper...lol...) I don't want to give away the ending so I won't say much more. It is about a lottery in a small town. The story is really short and you can read it in a reasonably quick period of time. But I'll probably blog on some related topics in a different entry.

sidi shaykh muhammad is in the us

Sidi Shaykh Muhammad Sa'id al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i ash-Shadhuli who is the head of the Shadhuliyya sufi order is currently visiting the United States. Alot of resources from this order are available online. You can find more about the Shaykh's visit and the teachings and practices of this particular sufi order from the Shadhiliyya Sufi Center Website You can also find other resources at the Sidi Muhammad Press

immortal technique, again

I just got Immortal Technique's album Revolutionary, Vol I yesterday and it's really good. I definitely recommend it. Minimal tight beats, clear delivery. It reminds me of some old KRS-ONE. Elenamary was recently blogging on political hip-hop and Immortal Technique in particular.

rabia al-adawiyya

If I adore You out of fear of Hell, burn me in Hell!
If I adore you out of desire for Paradise,
Lock me out of Paradise.
But if I adore you for Yourself alone,
Do not deny to me Your eternal beauty.

-Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya, 8th century Muslim woman saint from Basra (Iraq)

Rabia was one powerful soul. A former slave who is easily among one of the most charismatic figures in Muslim history. Given the stories which are told about her, she must have been a formidable woman.

It is related that Ibrahim ibn Adhan, a very holy person, spent fourteen years making his way to the Ka`ba because in every place of prayer he prayed two ruk`u and at last when he reached the Ka`ba he did not see it. He said to himself, "Alas, what has happened to my eyes. Maybe a sickness has come to them."Then he heard a voice which said, "No harm has befallen your eyes, but the Ka`ba has gone to meet a woman who is approaching." Ibrahim was seized with jealousy and said, "O indeed; who is this?" He ran and saw Rabi`a arriving, and the Ka`ba was back in its place.

Extensive set of links on Rabia from the Other Women's Voices site

too good to be true?

Sahih Muslim
Book 001, Number 0050:

It is reported on the authority of Abu Huraira: We were sitting around the Messenger of Allah (may peace and blessings be upon him). Abu Bakr and Umar were also there among the audience. In the meanwhile the Messenger of Allah got up and left us, He delayed in coming back to us, which caused anxiety that he might be attacked by some enemy when we were not with him; so being alarmed we got up. I was the first to be alarmed. I, therefore, went out to look for the Messenger of Allah (may peace and blessings be upon him) and came to a garden belonging to the Banu an-Najjar, a section of the Ansar went round it looking for a gate but failed to find one. Seeing a rabi' (i. e. streamlet) flowing into the garden from a well outside, drew myself together, like a fox, and slinked into (the place) where God's Messenger was.

He (the Holy Prophet) said: Is it Abu Huraira?

I (Abu Huraira) replied: Yes, Messenger of Allah.

He (the Holy Prophet) said: What is the matter with you?

I replied: You were amongst us but got up and went away and delayed for a time, so fearing that you might be attacked by some enemy when we were not with you, we became alarmed. I was the first to be alarmed. So when I came to this garden, I drew myself together as a fox does, and these people are following me.

He addressed me as Abu Huraira and gave me his sandals and said: Take away these sandals of mine, and when you meet anyone outside this garden who testifies that there is no god but Allah, being assured of it in his heart, gladden him by announcing that he shall go to Paradise.

Now the first one I met was Umar.

He asked: What are these sandals, Abu Huraira?

I replied: These are the sandals of the Messenger of Allah with which he has sent me to gladden anyone I meet who testifies that there is no god but Allah, being assured of it in his heart, with the announcement that he would go to Paradise.

Thereupon 'Umar struck me on the breast and I fell on my back.

He then said: Go back, Abu Huraira,

So I returned to the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him), and was about to break into tears. 'Umar followed me closely and there he was behind me.

The Messenger of Allah (may peace and blessings be on him) said: What is the matter with you, Abu Huraira?

I said: I happened to meet 'Umar and conveyed to him the message with which you sent me. He struck me on my breast which made me fall down upon my back and ordered me to go back.

Upon this the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: What prompted you to do this, 'Umar?

He said: Messenger of Allah, my mother and father be sacrificed to thee, did you send Abu Huraira with your sandals to gladden anyone he met and who testified that there is no god but Allah, and being assured of it in his heart, with the tidings that he would go to Paradise?

He said: Yes.

Umar said: Please do it not, for I am afraid that people will trust in it alone; let them go on doing (good) deeds.

The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Well, let them.

If you stop to think about it, this hadith is pretty amazing. Some might try to downplay the significance of this message and say that other conditions for entering Paradise are implied but the import of the prophet's (saaws) words had to be radical and upsetting enough for Umar (ra) to strike Abu Huraira (ra) and knock him on his back and be worry that people would stop doing good deeds.

no god but God

The last quote from Ibn al-Arabi made me think about the question of what does Islam say we must do to enter Paradise. Some people seem to have a very narrow notion of what those conditions are while others seem to have a very expansive notion.

There are a number of interesting hadith which suggest the latter:

Sahih Muslim
Book 001, Number 0039:

It is narrated on the authority of 'Uthman that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said. He who died knowing (fully well) that there is no god but Allah entered Paradise

Sahih Muslim
Book 001, Number 0048:

It is narrated on the authority of Mu'adh b. Jabal that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Mu'adh, do you know the right of Allah over His bondsmen? He (Mu'adh) said: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Messenger of Allah) said: That Allah alone should be worshipped and nothing should be associated with Him. He (the Holy Prophet) said: What right have they (bondsmen) upon Him in case they do it? He (Mu'adh) said: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) said: That He would not punish them.

Sahih Bukhari
Volume 1, Book 3, Number 131:

Narrated Anas:
I was informed that the Prophet had said to Mu'adh, "Whosoever will meet Allah without associating anything in worship with Him will go to Paradise." Mu'adh asked the Prophet, "Should I not inform the people of this good news?" The Prophet replied, "No, I am afraid, lest they should depend upon it (absolutely)."

That raises the whole question of what it means to believe that "there is no god but Allah"? Should we just tell ourselves "since I'm not worshipping sticks and stones, or Zeus and Odin, or Mary I'm okay" or is there more to it than that?

race relations: an islamic perspective

This is another very brief piece from the ISPI site called Race Relations: An Islamic Perspective by Inam-ul-Haq. In some ways, alot of it has been said before. But I think the most interesting part of the piece is the quotation from Ibn al-Arabi's poetry:

My heart has become capable of absorbing all forms
It is a pasture for gazelles and
A monastery for the monks
A house idols
Kaaba for the pilgrim
The tablet of Torah and the scripture of the Qur’an
I adhere to the religion of love in whatever direction its caravan advances
This true religion of love shall be my religion and my faith

More later...

a network of the just

Here is a paper entitled "A Network of the Just": A Muslim-American's reflections post 9/11/'01 from the International Strategy and Policy Institute, which is a kind of Muslim think-tank based in Chicago. Even though the paper was written in the wake of 9/11 there are some interesting comments about the immigrant Muslim perspective, and its call for a future "network of the just" is even more relevant today.

rappers rhyme for change in senegal

Locally produced rap has been growing since the early 1990s. It is one of the top-selling genres in a country obsessed by Youssou N'Dour, the world-famous artist who sings rather than raps. Senegal is a centre of west Africa's vibrant home-grown music scene centred on the Mbalax style of dance music, derived from traditional beats and popularised by N'Dour. In the early '90s, bands such as Daara J recorded albums in Wolof, the most widely spoken African language in the former French colony. They became the voice of a generation eager for jobs and education but frustrated by corruption, inefficiency and a lack of opportunities.

Unlike American equivalents, Senegalese rappers rarely glorify violence or the ruthless pursuit of money but tackle issues from poverty, religion and sexuality to politics. "Each time the people go to the ballot boxes, it's because they're hoping for a true change. But sadly I always hear the same cry," says the opening line of Didier Awadi's song Le cri du peuple (The Cry of the People).

to read the whole article from The Austrialian
pickpocketed from Ginny's blog

islam and world peace: explanations of a sufi

The book (available online) Islam and World Peace: Explanations of a Sufi comes from the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship. I read this book a long time ago around the time I first became Muslim. It stood out for me because in a practical sense Bawa Muhiyaddeen is a Muslim pacifist. Even though he passed away in 1986, I've been hearing about him more these days. I think his message is appealing more and more to Muslims.

Here is the rest of their online library and here is the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship website.

ihsan: badshah khan

A recent entry on the Ihsan blog about Badshah Khan's Islamic Nonviolence. Badshah Khan was a Muslim from the Indian sub-continent who "fought" against the British along with Gandhi using the analogous methods to lead a non-violent Muslim movement.

the quran and non-violence

Whenever the issue of Islam and non-violence and Islam comes up, I almost always think about how the Quran describes the story of Cain and Abel, and how it differs from the Bible's account. Reading the Bible, I got the impression that Cain basically snuck up on Abel and hit him upside the head with a big rock. But in the Quran, it is described as follows:

[5.27] And relate to them the story of the two sons of Adam with truth when they both offered an offering, but it was accepted from one of them and was not accepted from the other. He said: I I will most certainly slay you. (The other) said: Allah only accepts from those who guard (against evil).
[5.28] If you will stretch forth your hand towards me to slay me, I am not one to stretch forth my hand towards you to slay you surely I fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds:
[5.29] Surely I wish that you should bear the sin committed against me and your own sin, and so you would be of the inmates of the fire, and this is the recompense of the unjust.
[5.30] Then his mind facilitated to him the slaying of his brother so he slew him; then he became one of the losers

So instead of being surprised by Cain, Abel totally sees it coming and chooses not to kill his brother. This is not to say that Islam insists on pacifism (it obviously doesn't). Islam teaches that in this violent unjust world, sometimes aggression needs to be held in check by force. But what the above shows is that within the Quran there are also examples of non-violent resistance.

more on sherman jackson

I might as well be shameless. Why buy the cow... as they say in the dunya. Here is more on Sherman Jackson from The Manrilla Blog

might as well make it sherman jackson day

Here is Marqas at The Manrilla Blog blogging on Prof. Sherman Abdul-Hakim Jackson and providing quicktime audio of an interview with him. Here is a Planet Grenada entry from when Jackson's book, Islam And The Blackamerican: The Third Resurrection came out.

wandering into a place and beyond

a friend's blog I hope she keeps writing because I won't be seeing her for a long time and it would be nice to know what she is up to from time to time.

azhar usman

Azhar Usman, is a Muslim stand-up comedian living in Chicago. His website features a bio, satire, poetry, and information about bookings.