Muslims Face Backlash After Terror Attacks

An interview of Interfaith Houston editor Saadia Faruqi with Art Rascon of ABC13.

The Day my American-Born, Muslim Son Asked for a Christmas Tree

By Mansoora Bhatti

Source: Brown Girl Magazine

 

I’m so excited mama!’ exclaims my 3-year-old son, after an exhausting day of shopping. ‘I’m just so excited for Christmas!’

These words bring a flood of thoughts to my mind. Being a Muslim American, this is the first time I will have to explain to him the Muslim perspective on the most prominent display of religion in the U.S., Christmas.

This Holiday Give the Gift of Muslim Cultures

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Huffington Post

 

If I know one thing as an author, it is this: fiction has a unique way of breaking stereotypes and showcasing the naked truth in more ways than one. In my book Brick Walls: Tales of Hope & Courage from Pakistan, I use every story to advance a non-stereotypical agenda. Yes, it has oppressed Muslim women, but they rise to challenges and break free of their oppression. True, there is a terrorist, and even mention of the Taliban, but accompanying those men are others who possess amazing courage and hope for a better future. Bottom line: as an author, I know how important it is to change mainstream media narratives and tell our own stories.

My Muslim-American Thanksgiving

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: NBC Asian America

 

"Amma, will we have to eat turkey?"

"Amma, are you sure we can celebrate Thanksgiving even though we're Muslim?"

 

The questions start even before Thanksgiving break comes around, usually around the time of the fall party at school and the coloring papers with Mr. Turkey who begs to be hidden so that nobody eats him. My first generation Pakistani-American children, now 9 and 6, struggle with much these days, and Thanksgiving is just another worry as they try to live life with dual identities. Imagine how much harder it is for an immigrant like myself.

Muslim Reaction after the Paris Attacks

Source: Houston Matters

 

What Exactly is Interfaith Dialogue

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: J-Vibe Houston

 

I’ve been working in the field of interfaith activism for almost fifteen years, and when I started it wasn’t actually a profession and it didn’t even have a name. People would look at me strangely if I said I wanted to visit a church or a temple, because I was obviously a Muslim. There was an idea that we were all different and we stuck to our kind, stayed in our spaces. There was little overlap. I remember how difficult things were after 9/11 and how my ideas of meeting with other faiths was met with resistance and even ridicule. 

Why I Turned to Fiction

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: The Story Prize

 

Since Brick Walls has been published I’ve had the opportunity to visit a lot of cities and give a lot of talks. I’ve spoken to a diverse audience about my interfaith work, my article writing, my non-profit consulting. The most frequent question I get asked, though, is why I decided to write fiction. I’ve been writing for years, and it’s mostly been boring, technical, non-creative work. Where did the sudden urge to write not one but seven short stories come from?

Can Interfaith Dialogue Lead to Racial Justice?

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: State of Formation

 

 

O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. – The Holy Quran 49:13

 

I was born and raised in Pakistan, a country predominantly Muslim. I never knew about lofty ideas such as interfaith dialogue, although I had friends who belonged to other faiths. Religion wasn’t really discussed, it made us all uncomfortable and slightly offended. How do you talk about different beliefs if everybody thinks they have a monopoly on the truth?

The Jewish New Year

By Rabbi Howard Siegel

Source: Houston Chronicle

 

“Fact” is defined as “a thing that is indisputably the case.” One such indisputable fact is Change. Nothing in life stays the same. This is the result of another indisputable fact-Time. Time and Change co-exist in tandem with one another. The passing of time is often measured by change.   A baby is born, learns to walk and talk, grows into adulthood, marries, has children, ages, and dies. Every stage of life is accompanied by changes in fashion, culture, and philosophy. One may argue the only constant in the entire universe is God, and even God changes!

The Power of an Image

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Tikkun Daily

 

A picture is worth a thousand words, even more so in the digital age than ever before. My experience has been that images are amazing things, with the power to anger, comfort or heal. They have the power to change opinion, to reflect harsh realities. And the last two days have been fraught with all the baggage that comes from one tiny image with a huge message. You know the one I’m talking about, of course. Who hasn’t seen the image of little Aylan’s still body on the beach? Who hasn’t been moved by the thought of a little boy drowning for the mistakes of his countrymen? I know I have. Yesterday while driving on the highway to pick up my kids from school, I listened to NPR’s account of refugees like Aylan’s family and their dangerous trek through Hungary, and I burst into tears. I had to navigate to the side of the road to calm down before I caused an accident. Why? Because it could be me, it could be my child’s drowned body, it could be any of us.

Ever Wonder Where is God?

By Rabbi Howard Siegel

Source: Houston Chronicle

 

In every generation the same question is asked: Where is God? Seldom is there a satisfying answer. We celebrate a birth by proclaiming God’s divine presence, a wedding by crediting God with a “match made in heaven” (even though reportedly 50% fail!), and we comfort mourners with the notion their beloved has been returned to his/her divine maker. So, is God “here” or “there” or “everywhere”? The simple answer is “yes” to all three. Still, I’m left asking, “Where is God” now?

Inclusion & Dialogue During Ramadan

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: State of Formation

 

The holy month of fasting for Muslims, called Ramadan, is finally here and there has never been more media publicity about it. Have you noticed how even mainstream news publications are writing about Ramadan these days? From photo essays of fasting scenes around the world, to op-eds about what it means to fast and how the act of fasting can bring everyone closer together, everyone seems to be writing about Ramadan.

It's Time for Community in Ramadan

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: ABC Religion & Ethics

 

Last Friday at congregational prayers, I had an eye-opening experience. As I entered my mosque parking lot, I saw two Caucasian women, possibly a mother and daughter, holding up a sign that read, "Please Help, Need Money for Food and Rent." I found it disturbing, even though my hometown of Houston is ridden with poverty and homelessness. So what was wrong with this picture? The mosque I attend is a Pakistani community, with the occasional Indian or Bangladeshi standing out like a sore thumb. Yet here were two white women standing outside practically begging.

Getting to Know Our Neighbors

By Nancy Agafitei

 

About five years ago, I was visited at the library by Saadia, one of the Muslim ladies in our community who used the library with her young children. She came with a request to hold a book fair at the library. She wanted to display books that informed people about her faith, and to offer short talks that addressed topics of current interest about Islam. I think she expected me to decline, or at least debate, her request. For me, though, it was a simple choice -- public librarians are all about giving people access to all kinds of information. I got out the calendar and booked a room for them on a Saturday afternoon.

Faith Behind Bars

By Alex Hannaford

Source: Texas Observer

 

Thomas Whitaker grew up in his parents’ devout Christian faith, but after eight years on death row, he’s rejected the religion he followed for 27 years. In fact, he’s rejected any belief in a divine power at all. Whitaker was sentenced to death in 2007 for organizing the murder of his family in order to collect an inheritance of $1.5 million, prosecutors said. Fueled by what they described as an “irrational hate,” he paid his roommate, 21-year-old Chris Brashear, to carry out the shooting of his brother, mother and father. Whitaker’s dad was the only one who survived.

The Seeds of Intolerance

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Tikkun Daily

 

Hate disguised as free speech is a particularly ugly thing. Google Maps labeling the White House as N****r House is no less disgusting than a French magazine drawing the Prophet Muhammad in a stereotypical or untrue sketch. As I see the intolerance among us grow and ultimately divide us, I fear for the world we will leave our children and grandchildren in. Instead of learning to live in peace and love, we still think of ourselves as Muslims, Jews, Christians, white, black, brown, Israeli, Palestinian.

Taboo Topics

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: State of Formation

 

I’ve been working in the field of interfaith dialogue for more than a decade. On good days it’s a lot of fun, and I really see the benefit. On bad days, it’s nothing but headache and heartache. Why? Maybe because there are some topics that are off-limits, and so become the elephant in the room in a very difficult way.

Racism Masquerading as Environmentalism

By Stephen Fuqua

Source: Texas Interfaith Center for Public Policy

 

A disturbing thing happened at Earth Day Texas – racists and nativists showed up masquerading as environmentalists. A tweet from the Southern Poverty Law Center alerted me that anti-immigrant groups with white supremacist ties would be out at Earth Day Texas. Seeing one of their (unmanned) booths was, therefore, not a surprise. But being verbally accosted at my own booth was.

Quba Islamic Institute Rebuilding

By Bishop Michael Rinehart

 

As you may recall, on February 13 a fire was started at the Quba Islamic Institute in Houston. Christians and Jews rallied around leaders at Quba, who eventually asked for the charges to be dropped. 

Just Perish: Faith & Social Advocacy

By Felicia Woodard
Source: Girl Learns World

The story of Esther is one of the most popular stories in the bible, especially for young women.  It has been extremely romanticised and even commercialized in movies, Pinterest quotes, & used for every women's conference to motivate women to "receive their breakthrough" & "prepare to meet their king".