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The Importance of Being Ambiguous Or the Sin Tax of Ignoring Syntax
Posted from Medina Munawwarah, the City of the Prophet, God bless and grant him peace.“If a profligate comes to you with news, make sure you understand it (tabayyanu) and make sure you know it indeed happened (tathabbatu), or else you will attack people out of ignorance and end up in great remorse” (Qur’an 49:6).1How many fault-finders of statem...
On Libya
I want to share some quick thoughts and recollections inspired by the current turmoil taking place in Libya, which pains me deeply. Ghaddafi reminds me of Shakespeare’s tyrant, Richard III: conniving, mutant, dark, and absolutely cruel, with no concern for his family, friends, or companions, let alone the people he rules over. He kills to get to...
About the Translation and Recording of the Prayer of the Oppressed
Imam al-Dar’i wrote this prayer in a simple yet enchanting style, using the rajaz meter known to the Arabs as the poet’s donkey because of its facile rhythm and the ease even tyros find in learning it. The desert cameleers, who led the caravans of old, traditionally sang in the rajaz meter and by it spurred on their beasts to move more swiftly t...
When the Social Contract is Breached on One Side, It’s Breached on Both Sides
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they shou...
Deferred Dreams, Self-Destruction, and Suicide Bombings
There was a story in the New York Times a few days ago about how the “revolution” in Tunisia was sparked in December by the self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi, a 26-year-old, befuddled roadside green grocer. Like so many young Arabs, he was born poor and only dreamed of providing for his siblings and his mother. He had been to college, where he...
How Do We Respond? Part 3
6. Strengthen our community centers. One of the most important things we must do is strengthen our community centers, but this is not possible without wise leadership in our centers. A major problem is that, notwithstanding their sincerity, unqualified people too often take the helm. Our centers need a level of professionalism that is grossly la...
How Do We Respond? Part 2
This is the second part of the blog I posted on November 4, 2010, laying out ways in which Muslimscan respond to the problem of anti-Islamic sentiments in America, which I wrote about in my earlier blog “When You’re a Statistic” posted on October 17.4) Seek common ground with conservatives too. As Muslims, we don’t have a political party. We are...
Pilgrims with a Purpose: Turtles Make Hajj Too
Note: I hope to publish the continuation of my last blog post “How Do We Respond?” in the next week. Meanwhile, given the timeliness of the topic, I wanted to write about Hajj now.There is no animal on earth, nor yet a bird on the wing, but forms communities like you. We have not neglected anything in the Book; and they will ultimately be gather...
When You’re a Statistic
It’s been said that a liberal is just a conservative that hasn’t been mugged yet. Sometimes it takes something traumatic to wake us up to the realities of our situation, and to force us to rethink our beliefs and behaviors.Americans are essentially civil and decent people and not prone to violent reactions, but now millions of Americans are bein...
Trip to Princeton
I just returned from Princeton, New Jersey. I participated in a Catholic led interfaith service on the sanctity of life. I was invited to this by Professor Robert George, whom I got to know through the Witherspoon Institute. We had a wonderful conversation with a lively audience of what seemed to be mostly Muslims, both students at Princeton and...
Islam: A Religion of Life, Not Death
“Answer the call of God and God’s Messenger to what brings you to life.”– Qur’an“If I asked for people to die for the sake of God, I would have them lining up at my house; but when I ask people to live for the sake of God, I can’t find anyone.”– Shaykh Abdallah bin BayyahI am traveling to New Jersey next week to present for the Princeton Pro Lif...
I am Beginning My Blog
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.I am beginning my blog, though it was something that I had actually been resisting for a long time because I am not really a “computer person.” And I am troubled by a lot of the so-called social networking: Facebook, Twitter, and all of the other social networks because I am committed to and be...
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