By: Monica Gupta,
on 7/6/2016
महिलाएं, नमाज, ईदगाह और हमारा बदलता समाज मेरा देश बदल रहा है का शानदार उदाहरण कि अब महिलाएं भी ईदगाह जाकर नमाज अदा कर सकेंगी. लखनऊ इस शानदार और एतिहासिक पहल का उदाहरण बनेगा. ईद की हार्दिक बधाई और ढेरों शुभकामनाएं !! ईद मुबारक !! भारतीय महिलाए और समाज – Monica Gupta महाराष्ट्र के शनि […]
The post महिलाएं, नमाज, ईदगाह और हमारा बदलता समाज appeared first on Monica Gupta.
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By: Samantha Zimbler,
on 12/9/2015
With the most widely-celebrated winter holidays quickly approaching, test your knowledge of the cultural history and traditions that started these festivities. For example, what does Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer have to do with Father Christmas? What are the key principles honored by lighting Kwanzaa candles?
The post Ready for the winter holidays? [Quiz] appeared first on OUPblog.
By: Ayana Young,
on 6/18/2015
Ramadan is an important time for Muslims, whether they live in New York City, Tehran, Cairo, or Jakarta. While there is great diversity in Islam, for most Muslims this month reflects an intensification of the religious devotion and contemplation that characterizes many Islamic traditions from prayer (salat) to pilgrimage (hajj/ziyarat). Ramadan is structured around food, a lack of food, and prayer—the early meal before dawn, the fasting during daylight, the meal at the end of the day, and the daily prayers.
The post Ramadan and remembrance appeared first on OUPblog.
By: Alice,
on 7/13/2014
As 16 teams reached the knockout stage of the World Cup, the blasts of canons sounded to signal the beginning of Ramadan, the holy month in the Islamic lunar calendar in which Muslims are to abstain from food, drink, smoking, sex, and gossiping from sunrise to sunset. The World Cup offers Muslims an opportunity to celebrate both their faith and fútbol with the world.
Muslim soccer players and Muslim fans inevitably are impacted. Although only two national teams from countries with a significant Muslim population (Algeria and Nigeria) competed in the knockout stage, Muslim players are also representing European nations. Islamic religious leaders have given Muslim athletes permission to abstain from fasting during Ramadan, but it remains the player’s decision.
However, Ramadan involves more than physical deprivation; it is a time of personal spiritual evaluation and renewal. Ramadan is a month of reflection in which Muslims assess their behavior in light of religious teachings with a goal of cultivating religious piety. Hardships Muslims endure during fasting (such as hunger, thirst, desire, etc.) facilitate this internal examination. In their self-reflection, Muslims consider their responsibility to follow God’s will: do good, avoid wrongdoing, strive for social justice, and seek peaceful relations with others. However, in a world filled with distractions, like the World Cup, cultivating these practices is difficult.
Feira de domingo. Curitiba – Paraná. Photo by Gilmar Mattos 2008. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 via gijlmar Flickr.
For a small minority of ultra-conservative Muslims, soccer games are considered a “public abomination” that promote cursing, gambling, profiteering, excess partying, and hostility between fans of opposing teams. As a result, Yasser Borhami, a Salafi preacher and leader of the Egyptian al-Daawa Movement claims, “World Cup matches distract Muslims from performing their [religious] duties. They include forbidden things that could break the fast in Ramadan as well as [other forbidden things] in Islam like intolerance and wasting time.”
The vast majority of Muslims, however, reject such a position. Instead, as the Grand Imam of al-Azhar Ahmed al-Tayeb noted in a speech he submitted to World Cup officials at the invitation of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, the games are “an opportunity to spread peace and equality among the people, to transmit feelings of love and brotherhood, to get rid of injustice, evil and discrimination among humanity, to help the weak, the poor, the patient and the underprivileged.” The values that al-Tayeb encouraged World Cup enthusiasts to embody lie at the heart of Ramadan observance.
Brazilian Muslims are taking measures to help Muslim sports fans minimize distractions that might arise during the games (such as breaking fasts, missing prayers, and/or engaging in un-Islamic entertainment) that could hinder this self-analysis. The Federation of Muslims Associations in Brazil (FAMBRAS) printed The Guide – Muslim Fan, a 28-page booklet providing Muslim tourists with essential information about Brazil and Islam. This pamphlet includes a history of Islam in Brazil, embassy addresses of Arab and Islamic countries, and brief city profiles of game locations. Local times for the five daily prayers and addresses of mosques in each area are highlighted. In addition to the booklet, FAMBRAS operates a 12-hour telephone hotline and provides a smartphone app to offer information on halal restaurants and entertainment options. Their efforts are twofold: helping Muslims observe Islam and enjoy the World Cup.
Muslims visiting the World Cup are not alone in facing potential soccer distractions. In the Arab world, the evening hours of Ramadan are prime time for the television industry. Networks are altering programming to accommodate World Cup games broadcast in these time slots. Since kick-off times coincide with peak television viewing hours in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe, FIFA officials anticipate higher viewership for the 2014 World Cup than the 3.2 billion people who tuned in to the 2010 games. The establishment of public viewing centers in countries with large Muslim populations, such as in Indonesia, Nigeria, and Algeria, suggest additional Muslim viewers will watch this year.
Although Muslims watching these games may not overtly discuss religious themes, their friendships and engagement with others over an international sporting event provides a foundation for deeper spiritual reflections. Thus, it’s possible for Muslims to celebrate their love of fûtbol and their faith during Ramadan.
Ramadan Kareem.
Melanie Trexler is a Ph.D. candidate in theological and religious studies at Georgetown University. Originally from Richmond, Kentucky, Melanie completed her B.A. at Furman University where she double-majored in political science and religion. She continued her education at Vanderbilt University, receiving a Masters of Divinity in 2007 before entering Georgetown’s Ph.D. program in theological and religious studies with a focus in religious pluralism. She studies Islam and Christianity, concentrating on Muslim-Christian relations in the United States and in the Arab world.
Oxford Islamic Studies Online is an authoritative, dynamic resource that brings together the best current scholarship in the field for students, scholars, government officials, community groups, and librarians to foster a more accurate and informed understanding of the Islamic world. Oxford Islamic Studies Online features reference content and commentary by renowned scholars in areas such as global Islamic history, concepts, people, practices, politics, and culture, and is regularly updated as new content is commissioned and approved under the guidance of the Editor in Chief, John L. Esposito.
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The post Fútbol and faith: the World Cup and Ramadan appeared first on OUPblog.
By: AlyssaB,
on 6/27/2014
Immigrant Muslims continue to rely on the Ramadan culture of their regional origins (whether African, Middle East, South Asian, etc.). What is the culture of Ramadan for American Muslims? Is that culture already present, or do American Muslims have to invent it? Whether pre-existing or to be invented, where does that culture come from? Does having or cultivating a culture of Ramadan diminish or enhance American cultural citizenship? Can the same question be raised for a culture of Thanksgiving or Christmas?
I am not suggesting by raising such questions that there is a single monolithic culture of Ramadan for all American Muslims, but mean to argue that American Muslims should reflect on how to socialize their children a common core of values and practices around Ramadan for this holy month to be as enriching for the children as it has been their parents. Part of the inquiry should also be how to avoid aspects of the culture of Ramadan for the parents which will be negative or counterproductive for their children. To begin this conversation, let me begin by presenting what I believe my own culture of Ramadan has been growing up along the Nile in Northern Sudan.
Ramadan Prayer. Photo by Thamer Al-Hassan. CC BY 2.0 via Flickr.
Fasting for a Muslim is total abstention from taking any food, drink, or having sex from dawn to sunset. Religiously valid fasting requires a completely voluntary and deliberate decision and intent (niya) to fast that is formed prior to the dawn of the day one is fasting. This intent to fast is entirely a matter of internal consciousness and free choice, but has two highly significant implications. On the one hand, the entirely voluntary nature of fasting and all Islamic religious practices is that the state cannot interfere with the choices Muslims make. That means that the state must be neutral regarding religious doctrine (i.e. secular) and cannot claim to be Islamic, or pretend that it can enforce Sharia because that would encroach on the ability of Muslims to act on their individual conviction and choice. On the other hand, abstention from food, drink, and sex with the required free and autonomous intent to fast must also be accompanied by maintaining appropriate decorum by avoiding harming other people, hurting their feelings, or using abusive language. Moreover, the more affirmative good a person does while fasting, as opposed to simply refraining from causing harm, the more religious benefit she or he achieves. The Prophet repeatedly cautioned against the futility of fasting, as abstention without realizing any religious benefit because of failure to observe the etiquettes (adab) of fasting.
The practice of fasting draws on much more than a religious mandate. There is a whole culture of Ramadan that sustains the practice, including the communal expectations and rewards of social conformity beyond the commands of religious piety. A culture of Ramadan defines and affirms the religious practice, including all the sounds and smells of the season, the shifting of the rhythm of social life to the carnival of evenings of sweet food and special drinks. Fasting the days of Ramadan entitles me to participate in the carnival of the evenings and sanctions my belonging to the community of believers.
As children we used to be excited with special activities, different foods, and delicious unusual drinks in the evenings, with slight apprehension for our own disrupted meals during the day, when grownups were too dehydrated and hungry to cook for us while they fasted. Although children are not allowed to fast until they reach puberty, so we used to dare each other to fast a few days, but often break the fast when we get hungry. Our social code of honor tolerated breaking the fast as children, but imposed harsh stigma and shame upon those who pretend to fast but cheat by eating or drinking in secret. I also remember my parents telling me not to fast because I was a child, but once I began fasting a day, I must keep fasting until sunset because breaking the fast may become a habit. Those were some of the values of the culture of Ramadan I grew up with.
Other values of the culture of Ramadan draws on what we observed in the behavior of our elders. As I recall, it was unthinkable for adults to speak of their ambivalence about fasting Ramadan. Yes, it was also clear to us that our parents were struggling to be productive and take care of us despite the hardship of fasting. All these mixed feelings were so deeply engrained into our consciousness as children that we grew up with a complex combination of love and apprehension of Ramadan. We were also socialized into the values of self-discipline and management of ambiguity and the ambivalence of religious piety and social conformity. When we became old enough to fast regularly, failing to fast was so alien and abhorrent to us, utterly out of the question. This deeply engrained aversion of failure to observe Ramadan may have been more social than religious, but it was social because fasting is one of the essential requirements of Islam.
Another social ritual of Ramadan is arguing about the sighting of the new moon, which signifies both the beginning and ending of the month of fasting. At one level, the debate has always about whether Ramadan should begin, or should end, because a new moon is confirmed. Who has the authority to confirm, however, is a highly charged political question within each country, and contested regional politics across the Muslim world. At another level, the underlying issue is whether to follow the literal language of the Quran and Hadith (physical sighting) or rely on astronomical calculations and trust human judgment and scientific advances. If either side concede the position of the other, that will have far reaching consequences in every aspect of religious doctrine and practice, indeed the totally of Sharia can be transformed as a result of the prevalence of one view or the other among Muslims globally. The debate over the sighting of the new moon also has some immediate practical implications for the ability of American Muslims to negotiate for religious accommodation in their work schedule by giving their employers (or school authorities) advance notice of religious holidays.
Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na’im is the Charles Howard Candler Professor of Law at Emory Law, associated professor in the Emory College of Arts and Sciences, senior fellow of the Center for the Study of Law and Religion, and senior faculty fellow of the Emory University Center for Ethics. An internationally recognized scholar of Islam and human rights, An-Na’im is the author of six books, including What Is an American Muslim?: Embracing Faith and Citizenship. He is the former Executive Director of Human Rights Watch/Africa.
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The post Is there an American culture of Ramadan? appeared first on OUPblog.
By: Hannah,
on 7/20/2012
from Sharing Our Homeland
Today marks the first day of Ramadan, a month-long celebration for Muslims around the world. Ramadan occurs during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and is a time for prayer, fasting, and self-reflection. According to Islamic tradition, Ramadan is when Allah, God, revealed the first verses of the Qu’ran, the holy book, to the prophet Muhammed.
We asked our former intern, Mitul Daiyan, to share with us how she and her family celebrate and what the holiday means to her:
Ramadan, to me, is a time to start fresh. It’s a month of self-improvement and realizing that there’s more to the world than just yourself. I use this month as an opportunity to deeply reflect on who I am and how I can better myself as a person. I love that Ramadan brings families together. During the day, we read Quran and try to do as many acts of good as we can. As a child, there would be many iftaar (the breaking of the fast) parties and after eating, we’d remember God by praying together.
My mom continues to make delicious meals of Piyaji (a mixture of blended lentils, onions, peppers that is deep fried), Beguni ( Eggplant tempura), and chickpeas with muri (kind of like rice krispies). In our family, we ALWAYS make lemonade for iftaar. It’s a a very sweet ending to the day! Also, every Ramadan, we always select two days out of the month to provide our local masjid (place of worship) with iftaar for everyone. It’s an enormous task where we typically end up cooking from sunup till an hour before sundown. It’s totally worth it though.
To all those who are celebrating Ramadan this year, we wish you a good and meaningful holiday!
For more information about Muslim traditions and culture, check out Coming to America and Sharing Our Homeland!
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By: Read Now Sleep Later,
on 8/15/2011
By: Michelle,
on 12/8/2010
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In this two-part series, Michelle and Lauren explore some of the most hot-button issues in religion this past year.
Subscribe and review this podcast on iTunes!
Featured in Part 1:
Christopher Hitchens and Tariq Ramadan Debate: Is Islam a Religion a Peace?
Highlights and exclusive interviews with Hitchens, Ramadan, & New York Times National Religion Correspondent Laurie Goodstein
Read more and watch a video courtesy of the 92nd St Y HERE.
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Nick Mafi, Oxford University Press employee extraordinaire
* * * * *
David Sehat, author of The Myth of American Religious Freedom
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By: Lauren,
on 10/8/2010
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This past Tuesday, October 5th, Tariq Ramadan and Christopher Hitchens met at the 92nd Street Y to address the question: Is Islam a religion of peace? The footage below is from the latter, Q&A portion of the event, reposted with permission from 92Y Blog.
Click here to view the embedded video.
With the Obama administration in its nascent years, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict proving as intractable as ever, relations with Iran reaching a boiling point and the political landscape changing rapidly both in the United States and the Middle East, wrestling with the issue of Islam is more crucial than ever and will be a defining feature of the 21st century. In the video clip above, famous atheist and prolific author Christopher Hitchens and the accomplished and controversial scholar Tariq Ramadan debate one of the most pertinent questions of our modern age. Conversation was moderated by Laurie Goodstein, national religion correspondent for The New York Times.
For more comprehensive view points from those in attendance, Danny Groner, Online Assistant Editor at TheWeek.com filed a report for The Huffington Post as did Marc Tracy at Tablet Magazine.
* * * * *
Prior to the Q&A, both gentlemen engaged in a proper debate. Here, I have done my best to present a sample of what was said.
Hitchens
- “I want to maintain that there is no such thing as a religion of peace, by definition.”
- I find it problematic, “the idea of the perfect human being – the prophet Muhammad, and the idea of the perfect book – the Qur’an.”
- On literal interpretations of the Qur’an: “Demands that you believe the impossible do not lead to peaceful outcomes.”
Ramadan
- “I do not like this question, ‘Is Islam a religion of peace?’ Islam is a religion for human beings, and if you deal with human beings, you deal with violence…You must ask, ‘Is my religion helping us towards peace?’”
- “Islam is as complex [as any other religion]…the problem is not the book, the problem is the reader.”
- “Peace is what you achieve after self-education.”
- “What is the will of God? Diversity. But the risk of diversity is lots of knowledge and lots of wars.”
- On Islam being a young religion: “Respect the Christians, respect the Jews, respect the religions before you.”
- “I will never deny that some Muslims, some theologians are using the verses in a way which is – for me – unacceptable.”
Hitchens
- “You’re right – and I’m surprised to find my self saying this, Professor – that the problem is not the book, but the reader.”
- “I don’t like the idea that there is the promise of paradise for martyrs.”
- “Where is the authoritative statement in the Sunni world
By: Vivian,
on 10/23/2006
On Today’s Show: A multi-media text set of children’s books and audio that focus on acts of courage and acts of kindness. Save Our School by the Children of Selsted Primary Si Se Puede, Yes We Can The Streets are Free Selavi and Radyo Timoun. IndyKids BabagaNewz Kids Can Make A Difference® (KIDS) Sage Tyrtle on Deamonte Love and schools in Louisiana [...]
By: Vivian,
on 10/9/2006
Teachers at work Behind the Scenes : A Ramadan Story On Today’s Show: A Ramadan Story by Celia Oyler: About a student teacher who took a chance and changed school for a number of children. Thank You to: Celia Oyler , for contributing to the show, as well as Mark, Andrea, Bayla, and Lucy for the station ID. [...]
Thank you for sharing today. It is interesting to see such a timely title being reviewed, as this is the month of Ramadan for this year. I think it is lovely for young people to get a taste of different cultures and religious beliefs, as well as how these affect a young person's everyday life. For me this sounds like a thought provoking fun read.