religion

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Billionaire bigot Donald Trump’s tiff with Pope Francis continued on Thursday, though Trump appears to have gotten cold feet about taking on the Pontiff toward the end of yesterday. The reason this dispute is important is that Trump cannot win the presidency with only the backing […]

Islam

No, it isn’t all one Thing: The Variety of Religious Experience in Islam

contributors

By Aaron W. Hughes | (The Conversation) | – – The rise of Islamic State has led to much speculation about the group’s origins: how do we account for forces and events that paved the way for the emergence of the jihadist group? In the fourth article of our series on the historical roots of […]

Immigration

Donald Trump attacks Pope Francis as puppet of Mexico on Immigrants’ Rights

contributors

TeleSur | – – Trump accused Pope Francis of being an instrument of the Mexican government because of his pro-immigration stance. The Vatican responded. U.S. Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump is no stranger to slinging insults and criticism, but he might have been punching out of his league when he picked a fight with the […]

Islamic State of Iraq and Syria

Why is ISIL still trying to Slaughter and Enslave the ancient Yazidi Minority?

contributors

By Brian Glyn Williams | (Informed Comment) | – – On February 3, the New York Times quoted the desperate plea of a Yazidi, a member of an ethnic-religious group facing communal extermination at the hands of ISIS jihadi terrorists. In simple, but moving terms he summed up the plight of his people, whose ancestral […]

Islam-hatred

Did Muslim-Americans lose the New Hampshire GOP Primary?

Juan Cole

AJ+ | (Video News Report) | – – “This is what the Republican presidential candidates said about Muslims in their most recent debate.” AJ+: “The GOP Has A Muslim Problem”

Holocaust

Muslims who saved Jews from Holocaust Honored (& Case of Albania)

contributors

Interfaith Peacemakers | – – [N.B. The interfaith ‘I am your Protector” Campaign, founded by Dani Laurence, last week commemorated in several cities the Muslims who saved Jews from the Holocaust. Laurence told Alarabiya, “”The way Muslims are often portrayed in the media, public discourses can lead to fear and hatred. I Am Your Protector […]

Barack Obama

Obama Condemns hatred of Muslim-Americans, Affirms their Importance to Nation

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – President Obama spoke Wednesday at a Baltimore mosque in an explicit pushback against the hatred for Muslims being promoted by billionaire real estate developer Donald J. Trump and others among the Republican presidential candidates. Trump has scapegoated all Muslim-Americans for the violence committed by a tiny […]

History

Toward a New Islamic Golden Age through Science

contributors

By Nidhal Guessoum | (Project Syndicate) | – – SHARJAH – The Muslim world’s past contributions to science and education were extraordinary. The Islamic “golden age” – during which scholarship and learning flourished across the Muslim world – lasted many centuries, and included the establishment of the world’s first universities. Today, however, Muslim-majority countries lag […]

Chaldeans

UNESCO: “Deepest Concerns” for Mideast Christianity after Daesh/ISIL Razes oldest Iraqi Monastery

contributors

UNESCO | (Media Services) | – – “I express my deepest concerns after the destruction of the Monastery of St Elijah. It was the oldest Christian monastery in Iraq and an invaluable testimony to the rich cultural and religious diversity of the country. For 1,400 years the monastery stood as a place of worship and […]