Scriptural Reasoning: A Creative Approach to Interfaith Engagement
For the first three weeks of July, emerging Jewish, Christian, and Muslim faith leaders from around the world converged in an English country estate outside of Cambridge for the Cambridge Interfaith Programme (CIP) Summer School. Although we had many goals and activities, one of our main objectives was to receive training in the method of “scriptural [...]
Branches of the Same Tree: Overcoming Sectarian Divides Among Muslims
“Hold fast to the hope of God, all together, and be not divided.” –Quran 3:103 “Islam is simple,” the taxi driver explained to me as he drove me to the Center for Shariah Studies in Muscat, the capital of Oman, in the southeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula. “Basically, Islam is like a tree, and [...]
Muslim Women Have Love Lives As Well!
Ever since I heard about the book project of Love, Inshallah last Fall through the Facebook grapevine, I have been eagerly awaiting its publication. The co-editors of the anthology, Nura Maznavi and Ayesha Mattu, had to work hard to get their idea picked up by a publisher and only succeeded when they were picked at [...]
Point/Counterpoint: Expectations of American Muslim Leaders
as-salam alaykum Aamir,
Thank you for your thoughtful reflection, you bring up an important issue, which is one of the biggest challenges facing American Muslims nowadays: getting other Americans to realize that we are just as American as they are. As American-born Muslims, we are tasked with the responsibility to change the way Islam is perceived by mainstream America as well as to change American Muslim institutions from within. American Muslim youth have grown up in America, with varying degrees of religiosity at home, just like American youth from other religious traditions– the only difference is that some Americans treat them as if they were foreigners in their own country.
Looking Beyond “All-American Muslim”
A few weeks have gone by since the November 11 premier of the TLC reality show “All-American Muslim.” I have only just found some time to sit down and watch the first two episodes of the show. Having already read reviews about it and seen the previews, there was nothing in it that surprised me, [...]
Contemplating America’s Reaction to 9/11
Here in the US, much of the rhetoric surrounding 9/11 is centered on never forgetting what happened on that tragic day. Thousands of articles, documentaries and programs have been circulating in the days leading up to the tenth anniversary of 9/11. We read and talk often about 9/11, but what are we getting from this [...]
Rose Aslan
Rose Aslan is a doctoral student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Department of Religious Studies, where she specializes in Islamic Studies. She received her MA in Arab and Islamic Civilizations from the American University in Cairo and her BA in Religious Studies from the University of British Columbia.
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Contributing Scholars
Funlayo WoodFunlayo is an initiated Orisa priestess dedicated to contributing her voice as a scholar-practitioner of her tradtion. A writer, public speaker, avid traveler and lover of life, she is currenlty pursuing a PhD in African Studies and Religion at Harvard University where she is a Junior Fellow at the Center for the Study of World Religions. Visit her at www.AseIre.com.
Andy CookAndy Cook, 24, has a longstanding interest in religion, spirituality, and civic engagement. Growing up in the Conservative Jewish tradition, Andy learned from an early age the importance of asking questions, knowing why one believes what they do, and placing importance on the work of improving our world.
Robyn Henderson-EspinozaSelf-identified as a Christian Agnostic and QueerMestizo (of Mexican & Anglo heritage), Robyn is a Ph.D Student at the University of Denver/Iliff School of Theology, Denver, CO focussing on Social Ethics with an primary interest in ethics in the US Borderlands. Robyn uses queer theories, Critical Chican@ Studies, and queer epistemologies to consider Ethics.