RSS Feed
Archive: Islam and West
Mubarak Responds
Here's Hadia Mubarak's response to online Question No. 2. First the Question: 2. Here's my questions on Islam in America. Boy, I sure wish that I were there to ask them in person. Can Islam in America ever be consistent...
By David Waters | April 24, 2007; 11:15 AM ET | Comments (1)
More Questions
4. Is there a mechanism by which Muslims in America and Muslims worldwide are in dialogue together? Was this in place before 9/11 and all that has occurred since then and is it still viable? How has it changed? How...
By David Waters | April 20, 2007; 12:18 PM ET | Comments (4)
So Many Questions, So Little Time
Thanks to everyone who sent questions online for the Georgetown/On Faith symposium on "What it Means to be Muslim in America." More than 200 people attended the 90-minute event Thursday at Georgetown and many were still standing in line waiting...
By David Waters | April 20, 2007; 12:09 PM ET | Comments (0)
Ending With a Song and a Promise
After the question-and-answer session, Salman Ahmad, who started the popular Asia rock band Junoon, took the stage with his guitar. He told a short story of a student in an Islamic school. The student asked his teacher why he should...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 05:33 PM ET | Comments (2)
More Questions on the Media
The last question from the audience was another question about the media: Why does the media focus so much attention on wrong Muslims? "Media is not ideologically biased. We're biased toward conflict. The culture of the media is that conflict...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 05:26 PM ET | Comments (4)
Muslims Speaking Out
The next audience member asked why don't more Muslims speak out against terrorism? Mubarak said that's another misperception. She said Muslims everywhere are condemning terrorism. She said there's a fatwah against terrorism that says terrorism is absolutely forbidden. She said...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 05:11 PM ET | Comments (2)
Islamic Laws, Rules and Guidelines
The next audience question was about Muslims and money. "Are Islamic rules against borrowing and lending keeping Muslims from becoming middle class Americans?" Hendi said that's another misunderstanding people have about modern Islam. He said nothing in Islam prevents Muslims...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 05:04 PM ET | Comments (0)
Church and Mosque and State
The next question from the audience was about the separation of church and state. Does Islam allow for and accept that concept? Is Islam a religious movement only or is it also a political movement? Jackson said all religions also...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 04:55 PM ET | Comments (1)
News Coverage of Muslims in America
Meacham picked up the thread of Quinn's question and said it's important for people of faith to honor each other as Americans. "I think there is a long and noble tradition in this country .. about people of divergent faiths...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 04:45 PM ET | Comments (2)
Perceptions and Reality
Esposito next turned to Sally Quinn of the Washington Post, who with Meacham is co-moderator of On Faith. Quinn said that she, like many Americans, has been trying to learn as much as she can about Islam. "I had a...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 04:35 PM ET | Comments (230)
Pop Culture, Media and Identity
Esposito then turned to Salman Ahmad, the Sufi rock star from Pakistan who grew up in New York City. Ahmad also has a medical degree. How does pop culture define Islam? Ahmad said that he moved to America when he...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 04:26 PM ET | Comments (3)
Assimilation and Women
Esposito directed the next question to Dr. Sherman Jackson, University of Michigan professor and a convert to Islam. Can Muslims assimilate into American culture and is that the goal? Jackson said there is a difference between assimilation and integration. He...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 04:19 PM ET | Comments (1)
First Question on 9/11
After Hendi's prayer, Newsweek editor Jon Meacham welcomed everyone to the program and made introductions. Then Georgetown's Dr. John Esposito, the moderator, began with an instruction. "This is not an academic lecture," Esposito said. "This is a dialogue . ....
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 04:10 PM ET | Comments (2)
Start with a Prayer
Imam Yahya Hendi of Georgetown began the symposium with a moment of silence and prayer, in memory of the victims at Virginia Tech. He spoke in Hebrew, Arabic and English. "Blessed is the name of God, the Lord of the...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 04:04 PM ET | Comments (0)
About to Begin
Looks like more than a full house at the 200-seat Copley Formal Lounge at Georgetown. According to Imam Hendi, one of the panelists, there are people here from the State Department, the Defense Department, the local Muslim community and Georgetown....
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 03:41 PM ET | Comments (0)
Want to Come to the Discussion on Islam?
Join us at 4 p.m. today at Georgetown/On Faith's symposium on "What it Means to be Muslim in America. The Georgetown/On Faith event will be held from 4-5:30 p.m. April 19 at Georgetown University's Copley Hall Formal Lounge. The discussion...
By David Waters | April 19, 2007; 12:49 PM ET | Comments (8)
Got Questions? We'll Try to Get Answers
What does it mean to be Muslim in America? Is the answer political? Social? Cultural? Spiritual? On Faith is going to ask some experts at a symposium Thursday afternoon at Georgetown University. What questions do you have? We'll take time...
By David Waters | April 18, 2007; 06:18 PM ET | Comments (25)
Books Recommended by Sally Quinn and John Esposito
"The Face Behind the Veil" by Donna Gehrke-White. "Islam, The Straight Path" by John Esposito. "Caucasus: A Journey to the Land Between Christianity and Islam" by Nicholas Griffin. "1453: The Holy War for Constantinople and the Clash of Islam and...
By David Waters | April 18, 2007; 05:21 PM ET | Comments (2)
Hadia Mubarak's Book List
"What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam" by John Esposito. "The Great War for Civilization: The Conquest of the Middle East" by Robert Fisk. "Scattered Pictures" by Zaid Shakir. "Islam, Fundamentalism and the Betrayal of Tradition" by Joseph Lumbard. "Mecca...
By David Waters | April 18, 2007; 05:06 PM ET | Comments (1)
Lisa Miller's Book List
--"American Islam: The Struggle for the Soul of a Religion" by Paul M. Barrett. --"Islam: Past, Present and Future" by Hans Kung. --"Journey into Islam: The Crisis of Globalization" by Akbar Ahmed. --"Mecca and Main Street: Muslim Life in America...
By David Waters | April 18, 2007; 02:06 PM ET | Comments (1)
Ingrid Mattson's Book List
--"American Islam: The Struggle for the Soul" of a Religion by Paul M. Barrett. --"Mecca and Main Street: Muslim Life in America after 9/11" by Geneive Abdo. --"Servants of Allah: African Muslims Enslaved in the Americas" by Sylviane A. Diouf....
By David Waters | April 18, 2007; 01:50 PM ET | Comments (0)
Homework: This is a College Event
Several Georgetown/On Faith panelists have handed out reading lists -- just in case you'd like to learn more about Islam before or after the symposium. Fortunately, there will be no tests. Here's Sherman Jackson's list: --"On the Boundaries of Theological...
By David Waters | April 18, 2007; 01:36 PM ET | Comments (0)
Newsweek's Miller joins discussion
Lisa Miller, Newsweek's Society editor since 2000, has joined the panel for the April 19 Georgetown/On Faith symposium. Miller, an "On Faith" panelist, edits the magazine’s reporting on religion, education, family and health. She edited Newsweek’s “Spirituality in America” double...
By David Waters | April 17, 2007; 05:11 PM ET | Comments (1)
Assimilation is Not a Disappearing Act
Opening Statement from Hadia Mubarak: “So, where are you from?” sounds as familiar to my ears as the crashing of waves on Panama City Beach and the echoing of the adhan (call to prayer) from the minarets of Jordan’s mosques....
By David Waters | April 16, 2007; 03:55 PM ET | Comments (31)
Quinn and Meacham: Q and A
At "On Faith," moderators Sally Quinn and Jon Meacham get to ask the questions. This week at Georgetown University, they'll be answering them as well. Quinn and Meacham will be two of the seven panelists discussing "What it means to...
By David Waters | April 13, 2007; 01:50 PM ET | Comments (0)
Hadia Mubarak: Student of Two Worlds
Hadia Mubarak has felt like an outsider here in America, where she was born, and in the Middle East, where her parents were born. She writes that she didn't feel comfortable in her American Muslim identity until she went to...
By David Waters | April 12, 2007; 01:41 PM ET | Comments (2)
Yahya Hendi: Georgetown's Imam
Georgetown University was the first university in America to hire a full-time Muslim chaplain. The man they hired in 1999 is Imam Yahya Hendi. "Muslims in America are very frustrated with the way Islam has been portrayed. Muslims do not...
By David Waters | April 12, 2007; 12:56 PM ET | Comments (1)
Sherman Jackson: "Blackamerican" Muslim
He has a given name he uses as an American college professor: Sherman A. Jackson. He also has a Muslim name: Abdul al-Hakim. As a self-described "Blackamerican" convert to Islam, he hopes his two names will be one of the...
By David Waters | April 11, 2007; 01:57 PM ET | Comments (2)
Salman Ahmad: Sufi Rock Star
Salman Ahmad is lead guitarist and founding member of Junoon, South Asia's most popular rock band. Because of that, and because of his work for peace and justice, Ahmad is often referred to as the Bono of Asia. Truth is,...
By David Waters | April 11, 2007; 01:01 PM ET | Comments (0)
Ingrid Mattson: A Canadian Convert
Ingrid Mattson was raised Catholic in Canada, but she didn't feel close to God until she prayed the salat for the first time at age 23. She embraced Islam. Nearly two decades later, she became the first woman, the first...
By David Waters | April 11, 2007; 12:11 PM ET | Comments (0)
What do Muslims Believe?
Are all Muslims the same and where do most Muslims they live? How is Islam similar to Christianity and Judaism? Does the Quran condone terrorism? Is Islam compatible with democracy? Are women second class citizens in Islam? Those are some...
By David Waters | April 10, 2007; 04:11 PM ET | Comments (0)
What Does it Mean to be Muslim in America?
Is it a moral compass? A political agenda? A spiritual journey? A culture apart? These are questions that will be discussed and debated when Georgetown University hosts the first "On Faith Live" event April 19. The 90-minute symposium will inaugurate...
By David Waters | April 10, 2007; 04:01 PM ET | Comments (1)
