Qur’an

Killing One innocent Soul is the Same as Killing all of Humanity: Jewish and Muslim Teachings against Cosmocide

The below is an excerpt from my essay, “The Sin of Cosmocide,” for Renovatio, the literary magazine of Zaytuna, the Muslim liberal arts college in Berkeley, Ca. It underlines how both Jewish and Muslim spiritual teachings forbid the killing of innocents who are guilty of no crime, and equate this deed to killing all humankind […]

Christianity

A Merry Muslim Christmas from India’s Hyderabad, c. 1630: Jesus, the Dutch, and Diamonds

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The nativity of the Christ child is not solely an occasion of Christian spirituality, but has been celebrated through the ages by Muslim writers and painters, as well. As I have pointed out, the story of the Annunciation and the birth of Jesus is told in the Qur’an: Verses 19:17-35: […]

Christianity

Juan Cole: Infidel or Pagan? Understanding Kufr (كفر) in the Qur’an | Muhammad the Prophet of Peace

Juan Cole

Gabriel Said Reynolds of Notre Dame writes: “In this video I interview Professor Juan Cole, the Richard P. Mitchell Collegiate Professor of History at the University of Michigan. We discuss the historicity of Muhammad’s raids as well as the picture of the messenger that is obtained when one focuses on the Qur’an alone. The bulk […]

Featured

Top Ways Dangerous Cult Hamas Broke Islamic Law with Oct. 7 Massacres

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Some American political leaders are talking about a religious war between Christianity and Islam in the aftermath of the Hamas attacks on Israel of October 7 and after. This rhetoric is ignorant and bigotted. Although Hamas calls itself an “Islamic” resistance movement, it is in fact a dangerous cult that […]

Featured

ISIL Extremists Bomb Mosques in Pakistan, in Bid to outlaw Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet Muhammad (Yes)

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Muhammad Shahid at The National (Dubai) reports that there were two attacks on mosques in northern Pakistan on Friday. The bigger explosion targeted worshipers in Mastung, Baluchistan, near the provincial capital of Quetta. This bombing appears to have been aimed at Muslims who were staging a public procession to commemorate […]

Christianity

Sinead O’Connor’s Music and Life were infused with Spiritual Seeking, From the Hebrew Prophets, to Rasta, to Islam

The Conversation

By Brenna Moore, Fordham University | – When news broke July 26, 2023, that the gifted Irish singer Sinead O’Connor had died, stories of her most famous performance circulated amid the grief and shock. Thirty-one years ago, after a haunting rendition of Bob Marley’s song “War,” O’Connor ripped up a photograph of Pope John Paul […]

Featured

Muslims are understandably Protesting Qur’an Burning in Sweden, but the Qur’an itself urges them to do so Peacefully

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Swedish police permitted the burning of the Muslim scripture, the Qur’an (Koran) in front of the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm, on the grounds that previous attempts to stop such acts have been overruled by the courts on freedom of speech grounds. Hate acts targeting minorities are not actually free […]

Islam

A Ramadan primer: Why Muslim Americans Fast

Minnesota Reformer

Abdulrahman Bindamnan ( Minnesota Reformer) – While growing up in Yemen, I was introduced to the practice of fasting. It ‎was a common practice, in which all the families ‎will encourage their children, as young as 7, ‎to practice fasting. In my household, I had ‎parents who were very observant of Islam. In fact, […]

Afghanistan

Muslim Authorities Condemn Taliban Ban on Women in Universities, as NGOs Close in Protest

Michael Jansen

By Michael Jansen | – ( The Irish Times ) – Four global aid agencies have suspended services in Afghanistan in response to a Taliban ban on women working at non-governmental organisations (NGOs). In a joint statement, Care, Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and the International Rescue Committee said: “We cannot effectively reach […]

Qur'an