Pluralism in Islam — Between Scripture and Praxis

Aug 02

A version of this article first appeared in the July/August issue of Islamic Horizons. Egyptian writer Mona Eltahawy in a New York Times article recounted her 2005 encounter with Mohammed Akef, the then spiritual leader of Muslim Brotherhood. When she suggested to Akef that the verses in the Quran regarding women’s dress have several interpretations, Akef...

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Love Thy Neighbor

Jan 05

Question - I have an impression that Islam, like Judaism, is a bit legalistic.  Even though I consider myself a rationalist, I am convinced that Christianity is an emotional response to God and Christ.  Christ’s great teaching is “to love your lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind and to love your neighbor as...

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Polygamy and Marraige

Nov 09

Question – What is the origin of polygamy in Islam? Was it a “revelation” or economic necessity or a result of Muhammad’s lifestyle? Is it common about Arab tribes? The sacred texts of Islam, Christianity and Judaism do not explicitly prohibit polygamy or polygyny (a man married to more than one woman at a time). Biblical prophets, like Muhammad, practiced...

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Islam and Muslims

Oct 19

Question – What is the difference between Islam and Muslims? Islam is a religion or faith. Muslims are the people who follow the religion or faith of Islam. As an analogy consider this – Christianity is the faith. Christians are the people who follow the religion of Christianity. Judaism is the faith. Jews are the people who follow the religion of...

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U.S. Constitution and Shariah

Sep 26

Visit my blog to read a short article about this issue: http://drparvezahmed.blogspot.com/2010/12/is-islam-compatible-with-american.html Also, read a scholarly article about the commonalities between American constitutional law and Islamic law. Undoubtedly there are major differences in the details of the but not on overarching principles. This point is being made by...

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What are Abrahamic traditions? How to compare these traditions?

Sep 26

Judaism, Christianity and Islam claim a common father figure – Abraham. I am attaching file that shows the lineage of Moses, Jesus and Muhammad and how they all trace to a common father – Abraham. Muslims sees Judaism and Christianity as earlier versions of Islam. Muslims view Islam as the final revelation of the Abrahamic traditions. The Islamic...

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