To The Place Where the Streams Flow

By Rabbi Laura Sheinkopf

I spent my high school years at a New England boarding school called Northfield Mt. Hermon where I recently returned for my 25^th reunion.  Yes, it did make me feel old.  But it also made feel lucky – lucky to have attended such a beautiful and enlightened school.  Truthfully my landing in 9^th grade was more like a crash landing.  I was thoroughly consumed by my own adolescent drama when I came for my interview.  It was the morning after a heavy snowfall and I was sleeping in back of the car.  I woke up just as the campus came into view.  It looked like a postcard – impossibly picturesque, a cluster of buildings that included a big stone chapel and bold red barn huddled together on a blanket of thick new snow.  I fell in love with it instantly.  It looked like a place where there might be a place for me – whoever that turned out to be.  

Friends of Iman Interfaith Iftaar

Source: Episcopal News Service

 

Christ Church Cathedral in Houston hosted an interfaith Iftaar on July 11, presented by the Friends of Iman, a group of young adults who organize education and interfaith activities in memory of Iman Haq, a young Muslim woman who died two years ago at the age of 20. An Iftaar is a traditional Islamic dinner observed during the month of Ramadan, when the community gathers together to break their daylong fast as the sun goes down.

 

Ten Reasons Why I Pray During Ramadan

By Rev. Nell Green

Source: APB Blog

 

 

My initial experiences with Ramadan years ago in West Africa were at times confusing to say the least. I will never forget getting caught in an awful traffic jam in the main thoroughfare of one of the most congested neighborhood markets. People were scurrying, buses and cars were honking, and voices were raised as everyone wanted to hurry and make it home to break the fast. Unfortunately, the sun began to set and the jam was at a standstill. Out from the market flowed vendors with dates, juice, water, bits of bread etc. to serve the stranded motorists and break the fast.

Religious Freedom Implies Protection of all Religions

By Ramona Siddoway

 

“[Religion] remains the most powerful community builder the world has known,” says Jonathan Sacks, chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. “Religion is the best antidote to the individualism of the consumer age. The idea that society can do without it flies in the face of history.” Many secularists and young adults erroneously believe that personal freedoms and religion can be separated, that religious freedom (or lack of) has little or no effect on other liberties of our day-to-day life.

 

What July 4th Means to an Immigrant

By Shahina Bashir

Source: Germantown Patch

 

Sixteen years ago at the Immigration and Naturalization Services offices in Baltimore, Maryland I repeated these words of oath: "I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the armed forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."

Blasphemy Laws Hurt No Matter Who They Target

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Tikkun Daily

 

The term blasphemy law is an immediate turn-off for most people, implying intolerance for freedom of speech and religion, mostly in an Islamic context. Not surprisingly, in recent times, Muslim countries have become notorious for their blasphemy laws, punishing everyone who has a different view of religion than their own. We hear almost on a daily basis of Christians and other minority groups within Muslims being punished under blasphemy laws in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt and even moderate Indonesia for the slightest of assumed offences.

Freedom versus Free Exercise of Religion

By Ramona Siddoway
 

“We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.” Article of Faith #11, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On May 16^th, Dallin H. Oaks, an Apostle in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a former professor at the University of Chicago Law School and former justice of the Utah Supreme Court, was awarded the prestigious Canterbury Medal for lifetime service in promoting the cause of religious freedom.

Free Speech on Social Media: Anything Goes

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Tikkun Daily

 

 

In continuation of my series on First Amendment rights as they impact religious minority groups, I address current controversy over social media posts maligning religious groups. My previous post in this series entitled Does Freedom of Speech Allow Stereotyping discussed a greeting card that stereotyped Muslims as terrorists in an unusually offensive and glaringly inaccurate way. This week I have chosen another unfortunate event, a Facebook post that ignited debate over the possible classification of certain types of content as threats instead of free speech. Tennessee County Commissioner Barry West posted a picture on his Facebook page showing a cowboy aiming a shotgun at the camera with the caption “How to Wink at a Muslim”.

Religion as a Bridge of Cooperation

By Nancy Agafitei

In January of 2013, the Barbara Bush Branch Library received a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Library Association entitled Bridging Cultures: Muslim Journeys. Termed a “bookshelf” grant, it provides a collection of 25 books, 3 DVDs, and other special resources chosen with a view to familiarizing the American public with Islam and the cultural heritage of Islamic civilizations around the world.

Dispelling Mormon Myths Part 2

By Ramona Siddoway

 

Last month I wrote about some common myths about the Mormon church. I continue the discussion this month with Myth #3: Mormons have more than one wife. The practice of having more than one wife – polygamy – is strictly prohibited and not endorsed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today.

 

Interfaith Communities Respond To Disasters Together

By Esmeralda Valague, MA 

June is the beginning of the 2013 Atlantic hurricane season but this year, we have already had several disasters including the one in Moore, Oklahoma on May 20 to remind us of how fragile our safety and security can be in an ever-changing world. Though every disaster is traumatic and causes a lot of pain and suffering, disasters also tend to bring out the best in humanity – particularly in drawing together diverse groups toward the common cause of relief and recovery. Go to any disaster scene yourself and ask people what their religion is and you will find that people are doing what needs doing and not caring about the differences.

I Became a Mother on Mother's Day

By Rabbi Laura Sheinkopf
 

I became a mother on a stormy Mother’s Day in the year 2000.  My labor may have been induced by an infection and accompanying fever.  And what a labor it was! The sun rose and set. Nurses came and went. By the time my son was born, I barely knew my name, let alone the day. But it was Mother’s Day, and everyone made quite a fuss about that. In my post-partum haze, I thought it was strange, if sweet, to focus on this seemingly superfluous detail. Nothing could have made me any happier or more relieved than I already was. In the hours just after my son was born, my thoughts centered on physical wellbeing, not the larger meaning of the moment.

Does Religious Freedom Allow Stereotyping?

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Tikkun Daily 

These days, anything and everything can be uttered under the guise of free speech. We can hurt the religious sensitivities of others, call people names, stomp our foot on someone considered the son of God by billions. It’s all protected in the name of free speech. Don’t get me wrong, as an American Muslim I am indescribably thankful for the freedoms I receive in this great nation of ours. Without the First Amendment, I’d be unable to practice my religion freely, take time off for Friday prayers, invite friends over to my local mosque or even write posts such as this one in a Jewish publication. No doubt about it, freedom of speech is probably the greatest liberty and blessing we all enjoy here in the United States. But sometimes I think we misunderstand this freedom altogether. 

American Muslims are Moderate and Peaceful - Who Knew?

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Tikkun Daily

 

The Pew Research Center this week revealed another extensive and newsworthy piece of research: The World’s Muslims: Religion, Politics and Society. The results of the survey, which consisted of more than 38,000 interviews of Muslims in Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Asia in approximately 80 languages, reveals many things on many topics. Some revelations are interesting, others curious, and a few even downright alarming. As an American Muslim, though, I was mostly interested in the appendices, which discuss the attitudes of U.S. Muslims and compared them to similar themes among Muslims of other countries. Here’s my take:

My Boston Takeaway

Rev. Nell Green

Source: ABP News Blog

 

These posts are truly difficult to write; partly because if you want to be real then you have to confess some things and partly because events such as occurred last week are not easy to process. I am not sure you ever finish processing them. I try to imagine what it must have been like to be in that crowd enjoying a national event with family and friends only to have it literally ripped apart by explosives. 

Dispelling Mormon Myths Part 1

By Ramona Siddoway

 

A couple of months ago an Women’s Interfaith Discussion Group met to discuss common misconceptions people have about other religions. Besides walking away with much more respect for other religions and the amazing women in that group, I think we all agreed that for the most part we don’t know squat about anybody else’s religion. Not really. We tend to lump everyone into large stereotypical groups with not much more than media, hearsay, and Hollywood to back any of our claims.

Athiests Find a Sunday Morning Connection with Other Non-Believers

By Kimberly Winston

Source: Religion News Service

 

HOUSTON (RNS): Sunday mornings at Houston Oasis  may have the look and feel of a church, but there’s no cross, Bible, hymnal or stained glass depictions of Jesus. There’s also nary a trace of doctrine, dogma or theology. But the 80 or so attendees at this new weekly gathering for nonbelievers come for many of the same reasons that others pack churches in this heavily Christian corner of the Bible Belt — a sense of community and an uplifting message that will help them tackle the challenges of the coming week, and, maybe, the rest of their lives.

Boston Attack a Test Case for Interfaith Relationship Building

By Saadia Faruqi

Source: Tikkun Daily

 

The nation is still reeling from shock after Monday’s attack on the Boston Marathon. Gun violence notwithstanding, this is perhaps the first real terrorist attack on US soil after 9/11. Understandably emotions have been running high; no surprise then, that as the events unfolded many people, including the media, jumped on the “Blame the Muslims” bandwagon. The New York Post famously inflated casualty numbers and reported that a Saudi man was apprehended as a suspect by the police. Social media was inundated by predictions of guilt and accusations of violent jihad, at the same time as the Muslim community mobilized to condemn the attacks.

 

Muslim Women Don't Need To Be Rescued

By Saadia Faruqi
Source: Tikkun Daily

It seems that controversy over the hijab – the Islamic tradition of covering a woman’s hair and body – will not die down anytime soon. Governments such as France and Germany seem to be dead set against it, while theocracies such as Saudi Arabia go the other extreme by forcing women to cover. But ask the average Muslim woman, and she will probably wonder what the fuss is all about. Since when is dress a political statement, even a weapon? FEMEN – a feminist Ukrainian protest group – seems to think it is, and is up in arms over the hijab, declaring April 4 as International Topless Jihad Day. What FEMEN activists perhaps did not expect was that Muslim women who wear the hijab are a tad possessive about their right to wear it, and don’t take lightly to a declaration of jihad (Arabic for struggle) against it. 
 

What Pope Francis Might Mean for Muslim-Christian Relations

By Saadia Faruqi
Source: Tikkun Daily

The news out of the Vatican seems to be getting more and more fascinating every day. An avid researcher of all religions - and especially interested in all things Catholic because of my educational ties with convents - I have been following the abdication of Pope Benedict and the election of Pope Francis, and all that's happened in between these two major events, with great interest. When Benedict resigned, I felt a moment or two of incredulity, because it's practically unheard of. Then I followed the whole voting process, including the betting, with bated breath. And I haven't been disappointed, for Pope Francis is proving to be an absolute gem in so many ways. As I said, fascinating news... even though I'm a Muslim.