Being Just in the love of the Prophet ~ Innocence of Muslims / Desert Warrior

Note: This post is continuously updated, modified on 3 Oct., 2012

Western defenders of ‘free speech’ need to look in the mirror, October 03, 2012, Toronto Star Haroon Siddiqui

The Arbitrary Limits to Freedom of Expression, Abubakar Kasim, Huffington Post, 10/01/2012

Why ban Kate’s images, but not Muhammed’s? The record (Kitchener, Waterloo), Sep 21 2012

Blasphemy in Islam: The Quran does not prescribe punishment for abusing the Prophet, by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan | Oct 2, 2012, The Times of India

Dr. Hamid Slimi discusses how the Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم‎ - Peace be upon him) would have responded to any matter, in times of trials, tribulations, and massive misinformation-- based on a Chapter of the Quran, Kausar (i.e., Surah # 108).

See also the sequel to the above khutba, "What did this Imam just say about Slander?..."

Extract from Sound Vision, Chicago:

"Let not the hatred of a people swerve you away from justice. Be just, for this is closest to righteousness…” (Quran 5:8). While Muslims love and deeply respect Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, others regularly heap abuse on him. Around the world, and here in the U.S., blogs, television shows, some preachers, commentary, and talking heads regularly insult our beloved Prophet and attack his character in ways that are very painful for Muslims to bear. We need to understand this abuse for what it is: a form of psychological violence intended to hurt and harm. Our response when we encounter such attacks must be to seek God’s forgiveness and respond with what is better: prayers on the Prophet and Duas for him. ... It’s also important to remember to just move on. We cannot allow these attacks to hurt us, for that is their very purpose. It’s also vital to keep in mind that you are limited in your responsibility for what you can do to counter these insults. You don’t control the world, you don’t change hearts. Try your best and then put your trust in Allah. That is all you are required to do. continue reading: Being Just in the love of the Prophet, By Abdul Malik Mujahid

On the same shelf:

Free speech vs. reverence for Muhammad: Can they coexist? -- did you know this CS article? Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor

Offensive Propaganda: The Aesthetics of an Islamic Response, Khalid's Blog

Some Muslims Don't Get It: Freedom of Speech and the Legitimacy of Muslim Protests, Mike Ghouse, Huffington Post

Muslims Invited to View Film on Muslim-Christian Relations in USA, By Imam By Habeeb Ali, Toronto

Interfaith groups react to anti-Muslim film, condemn violence abroad, By Samer Hijazi, The Arab American News

Stop Dehumanizing Muslims! By Abubakar N. Kasim

Montreal Muslims react to violence, call for calm and dialogue CTV Montreal

Moderate And Hardline Muslims Struggle Within Popular Rage Against Anti-Islam Film And America Huffington Post

Here Is the Original Script for Innocence of Muslims (Desert Warrior), Adrian Chen

Moderates in West must raise their voices: Haroon Siddiqui, Toronto Star

Greetings in your own way: Religious, Secular, and Others

Extract on Good Morning: This Blog Will Change the World

Perhaps the different outlooks in question here can be reduced to three different ways of saying "Good morning". Most of us mean it as an expression of good wishes: "I hope you have a good morning". The secular humanist intends it as a prediction: "You will undoubtedly have a good morning, and an even better one tomorrow." The totalitarian dictator makes it a demand: "You will have a good morning."

Extract from another site: Catholic Online Forum, GOOD MORNING! Oh, and BTW, The Lord be with you...

There’s also another, more humanistic aspect of this that I find objectionable that goes back to my original post. The greeting, “good morning”, is a generic, often formal or “cold”, greeting and is understood by everyone as such. When you pass someone on the street that you know, but don’t know that well, you often use this greeting. The person to whom the “good morning” is addressed understands that the greeting is generic and formal, so it is understood that it is a nicety and nothing more. It doesn’t matter if the person being greeted is having a horrible day or not.

However, changing the circumstances turns the nicety into something quite different. Take for example: ... continue reading

Other tips:

Sabah al-khair = Good Morning (response = sabah al-noor). Masaa al-Khair = Good evening (response = masa al-noor);

Good morning in Hindi: good morning - सुबह अच्छा (subaha acchā)

in Hebrew, "good morning" is "boker tov,"

On the same shelf:

Spirituality May Boost Mental Health, University of Missouri researchers

THURSDA Y, Aug. 23 (HealthDay News)

Spirituality Correlates to Better Mental Health Regardless of Religion, Say MU Researchers, Aug. 20, 2012

Story Contact(s):
Timothy Wall, walltj@missouri.edu, 573-882-3346

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Despite differences in rituals and beliefs among the world’s major religions, spirituality often enhances health regardless of a person’s faith, according to University of Missouri researchers. The MU researchers believe that health care providers could take advantage of this correlation between health – particularly mental health – and spirituality by tailoring treatments and rehabilitation programs to accommodate an individual’s spiritual inclinations.
Continue reading

On the same shelf:

Meditation Reduces Loneliness -- Yoga reduces stress; now it's known why / UCLA Newsroom
Extract: Researchers from UCLA and Carnegie Mellon University now report that a simple meditation program lasting just eight weeks reduced loneliness in older adults. They also found that meditation could help reduce inflammation.

Muslims and Jews finally come together — to defend circumcision, National Post

Jonathan Kay Jun 27, 2012 – National Post

Extract:
And so it has come to pass that after centuries of hate, Muslims and Jews finally have been brought together by the human penis — in particular, the shared desire to chop part of it off.

This week, a district court in the German city of Cologne ruled that male circumcision of newborn babies is illegal, except for medical reasons — because the practice causes “irreversible damage against the body” that cannot be excused on the basis of religious freedom. The primary effect will be felt among Germany’s Muslims, of whom there are about 4-million. But the country’s 100,000 Jews will be affected as well. Continue reading: Muslims and Jews finally come together

On the same shelf:

Circumcision in news

Three rules of religious understanding -- Thought for the day

Sharing religious insights with other traditions enriches our own faith, Dow Marmur, Toronto Star Apr 15 2012.

 Extract:

"The late Krister Stendahl, a famous Swedish bishop and for many years dean of Harvard Divinity School, formulated three rules of religious understanding that seem to have guided the editors of The Jewish Annotated New Testament:
 • When you are trying to understand another religion, you should ask the adherents of that religion and not its enemies.
 • Don’t compare your best with their worst.
 • Leave room for “holy envy,” i.e., recognize elements in other religious traditions that you admire and wish that, in some way, they could be reflected in your own.
I can think of no better way of turning the proximity of Easter and Passover into a motivation to celebrate these principles all year round."

How Muslims View Easter

New Yorker 2012-04-06:

Extract: With Easter on the way, I became curious about what the Koran has to say about the crucifixion. I called an imam I know, Ibrahim Sayar, and we got together over glasses of Turkish tea. Sayar does a lot of interfaith work, much of which involves getting people from different religions together to eat kebabs. In the company of Christians, he said, mentioning the status of Jesus in Islam can be a great icebreaker. “I always tell people, there are millions of Muslims named after Jesus and Mary—we call them Isa and Mariam,” he said. “Nobody names their children after someone they don’t like.” ... more »

On the same shelf:

• The Muslim Jesus: Sayings and Stories in Islamic Literature (Convergences: Inventories of the Present)
  Tarif Khalidi
• Muslims, Christians, and Jesus: Gaining Understanding and Building Relationships
  Carl Medearis
• Jesus and the Muslim: An Exploration
  Kenneth Cragg
• Jesus in the Qur'an: His Reality Expounded in the Qur'an
  Hamid Algar
• The Islamic Jesus: The Portrait of Jesus in Islamic Literature and Tradition
  Daniel Deleanu
• Jesus and Muhammad: Profound Differences and Surprising Similarities, Mark A. Gabriel
  
• Five reasons to stop questioning the president’s faith, By Faheem Younus Washington Post -- 1. The president has answered the question, repeatedly; 2. If a bunch of loose correlations are enough to call Mr. Obama a Muslim, then you might as well declare Thomas Jefferson to be a Muslim too!; 3. The question is a dirty trick; a trick that does not work; 4. The question is an insult, not to the president or the Muslim faith, but to our Constitution; 5. We know the right question to ask.