Originally published in Pak Tea House With the death of anti-Pakistan outlaw Hakimullah Mehsud, our right-wing anchors and politicians have begun howling foul and have termed his killing as ‘murder of peace’. As head of TTP, Mehsud had taken responsibility for (i) the attacks on Mehran naval base, (ii) the killing of Pakistan army officers and soldiers, and (iii) numerous suicide attacks against...
Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent As I kicked back in my humble American bungalow, pictures of modern Arabia peppered the television screen; images of immaculate mosques surrounded by dusty homes, desert planes under a beaming sun, and a sea of white robes, indistinguishable of race or gender, in pilgrimage to the holy city of Islam. While these images transported me to a distant...
Originally published in Duluth News Tribune Listening to Martin Luther King’s speech on its 50th anniversary reminded me of a sermon of Prophet Muhammad historically known as his “Farewell Sermon.” In that sermon, Prophet Muhammad stated, “All mankind is from Adam and Eve; an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority...
Originally published in Duluth News Tribune Listening to Martin Luther King’s speech on its 50th anniversary reminded me of a sermon of Prophet Muhammad historically known as his “Farewell Sermon.” In that sermon, Prophet Muhammad stated, “All mankind is from Adam and Eve; an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority...
Originally published in The Baltimore Sun Mr. President, you and I having a similar challenge: selling a military strike against Syria as a “moral imperative.” But we have different audiences. Your constituents come from all parts of the country; mine from different parts of the world. Yours are driven by myriad interests; mine are simply seeking justice. Yours are young and old; mine...
Originally published in The Huffington Post As Syrian President Bashar al-Assad uses chemical weapons at the outskirts of Damascus and President Obama mulls a U.S. military response, some theologians hope for an alarming endgame to the 30-month-long Syrian conflict. For these Christians and Muslim, the civil war in Syria is a prelude to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Before you label...
Originally published in Religion News Service (RNS) As Syrian President Bashar al-Assad uses chemical weapons at the outskirts of Damascus and President Obama mulls a U.S. military response, some theologians hope for an alarming endgame to the 30-month-long Syrian conflict. For these Christians and Muslim, the civil war in Syria heralds nothing less than the Second Coming of Jesus Christ...
Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent “While we should be thankful of being able to fast during the month of Ramadan, we should be particularly thankful of the freedom that we have as American Muslims,” Imam Shamshad Nasir related to a packed congregation in the Bait ul Hameed mosque in Chino, California, during Eid-ul-Fitr. Often shorted to Eid, this celebration is at the end...
Originally published in Minnesota Sun Post “Wait, so why do you have to starve yourself?” is the question I would always get during Ramadan at my school. I would have to explain that keeping away from food is only a part of the fast. During Ramadan, Muslims turn away from food, as a means to detach from the physical world. Doing so allows us to focus on our spiritual well-being as well...
Originally published in Indiana Gazette It is July, and, as most of the nation enjoys summer, the Muslim world is enthralled in the spirit of sacrifice and humility as it passes through the holy month of Ramadhan. In Ramadhan Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. The spiritual and mental benefits of fasting are evident, but many are misled to believe that fasting deprives the body of health...