Atheists Billboard Campaign

CAIRO — An atheist billboard campaign launched on Thursday, November 19, in four British cities urging parents not to label their children with their own religious background is offending many people in the European country. "I would totally reject the advertisement," Reverend David McIlveen from the Free Presbyterian Church told Belfast Telegraph.

"I think it is totally arrogant, presumptuous and sparks of total hypocrisy."

Giant atheist posters, sponsored by the British Humanist Association (BHA), have been installed on different routes in London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.

Answering atheists Concerning God

Faith and Trust in Allah

They feature two children surrounded by shadowy Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Hindu or Sikh religious labels with the slogan "Please Don't Label Me. Let Me Grow Up And Choose For Myself." The BHA said the billboards were unveiled to coincide with the Universal Children's Day on Friday.

"It is none of their business how people bring up their children," insists Reverend McIlveen.

"It is the height of arrogance that the BHA would even assume to tell people not to instruct their children in the religion."

In January 2009, a bus campaign was launched several European countries, asking people to go atheist.

In Britain alone, nearly 800 buses nationwide carried the ads claiming that God does not exist.

The campaign has stunned many people and attracted widespread media coverage.

Insignificant

Archbishop of Wales Dr Barry Morgan criticizes the new billboards campaign.

"This is a ludicrous campaign," he told Wales Online website.

"Children do not grow up in a vacuum or as a blank canvas but have an identity formed from a range of influences, the most powerful of which will be their parents and their culture," contends the Archbishop.

"There is a difference between someone being labeled and someone having an identity."

The atheist campaign is also angering Muslims.

"Religion is not given by the family, but it is a natural religion given by our God at birth," said Sheikh Anwar Mady from the Belfast Islamic Centre.

"The role of the family is to teach the traditions of the faith. But that faith is implanted at birth."

Reverend McIlveen believes the campaign would have the least effect on people.

"I believe this doesn’t deserve a counter campaign," he said.

"It is a wasted campaign that will have no impact on family life in Northern Ireland," he contends.

"They have a defeatist attitude and are just trying to draw attention to themselves."

Source: IslamOnline

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Who speaks for Islam?

By Meena Sharify-Funk

Waterloo, Canada - Ever since the tragic events of 9/11, the diverse voices claiming to speak with authority about Islam have become increasingly cacophonous. Few contemporary topics are more controversial than that of how to interpret Islamic practices and beliefs.

In the West as well as in the Muslim world, interpreting Islam has become a virtual cottage industry. The ranks of interpreters are incredibly diverse, including counter-terrorism experts, policymakers and journalists, as well as religious studies academics, political scientists, Muslim ulama (Islamic legal scholars), Muslim feminists in the West, and people speaking on behalf of various religious groups. Interest in how Islam is understood and practiced has expanded dramatically in recent years, and it’s not always clear whom to listen to amongst the din.

A survey of language used in prominent North American and European newspapers and magazines reveals an extensive list of labels categorising Muslims based on their postures toward Western culture and politics as well as towards one another. Journalists, editors, and academics alike are inquisitive about the extent to which conservative Muslims can be integrated within mainstream Western culture (e.g. “For Conservative Muslims, Goal of Isolation a Challenge” or “Progressive Muslims Challenge Tradition”), and the extent to which they can be dissuaded from adopting radical stances vis-à-vis current political issues (e.g. “The Quest for a Moderate Islam,” “Muslim Refusenik Incites Furor with Critique of Faith” or “Islamic Extremists: How Do They Conjure Up Support”).

Among non-Muslims as well as among Muslims, it seems that everyone has become a stakeholder in the future of Islam, with everyone attempting to label groups with different perspectives: conservative Muslims compete with progressive Muslims for airtime, traditionalist Muslims denounce self-hating Muslims and Islamophobes alike. Meanwhile, moderate Muslims challenge militant Muslims, putative Muslim refuseniks denounce Muslim extremists, and would-be reformists repudiate apologists who refuse to embrace the need for change.

Everyone, it seems, has a party line about who the good Muslims and bad Muslims are. Sadly, many of the dichotomies distort as much as they reveal, and use simple labels based on superficial preconceptions and over-simplifications.

At a time of heightened insecurities and acute perceptions of threat, everyone has arrived at the conclusion that their identity and values are under attack, hence the tendency to represent the stakes as absolute: for example as a struggle to save the “real” Islam, defined in either staunchly traditional or authoritatively progressive terms.

Here in North America, there is a perception that many Muslims who feel abused by the West often fall short of their own proclaimed values, including justice. And it is true: some Muslim activists who thrive on denunciation of Western wrongs are culpable in the silencing of other Muslim voices and inclined towards genuinely immoderate views and behaviours. But one can see a similar dynamic among those Westerners who allow themselves to become entrapped by fear of the Muslim “other”.

What happened to the idea that dissent can be patriotic, or that a plurality of views can be a blessing? We seem to be losing the capacity for a commonsensical moral honesty that places principles above fear, opportunism and cultural or party politics.

While these sorts of contradictions weigh upon us heavily in a time of increased tensions, diagnosing the malady is the first step toward a cure. To avoid becoming extremists ourselves in the very process of arguing against the extremism of others, we need to develop better habits of listening and of dialogue.

Listening alone is not a path to harmony, as the substantive differences among the many parties who are in some way “concerned about Islam” are real and enduring. Yet cultivating an ability to listen has become more critical than ever, and remains the most vital means of building trust.

Only high-quality listening can enable us to hear unstated concerns and articulate the fears, anxieties and negative experiences that underpin much political and religious stridency. To overcome the West’s anxiety about Islam and reduce the volatility of debate among Muslims, we have no choice but to return to the basics of human psychology and communication, and to relearn the arts of civility: which starts not with labelling, but with listening and relating.

-- Meena Sharify-Funk, Ph.D., is the assistant professor of Religion and Culture Department, Wilfrid Laurier University. This article was written for the Common Ground and can be accessed at GCNews.
Source: Middle East Online

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Mich. School District Apologizes for Bible Study Forms

(SOUTHFIELD, MI, 10/1/09) - The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI) said today that a Detroit-area school district has apologized for handing out permission slips for Bible study classes to elementary school students.

SEE: School District Says it Erred in Allowing Church Permission Slips

CAIR-MI sent a letter to Roseville Public Schools after receiving a complaint from two parents of children who attend Huron Park Elementary School about distribution by teachers of permission slips for the Bible classes at a local Baptist church.

To see the permission slip, go to: http://www.cair.com/Portals/0/pdf/Roseville-Public-Schools.pdf

In his letter to the school district, CAIR-MI Executive Director Dawud Walid wrote in part:

“School staff and teachers are not to serve as advocates for one particular religion or congregation within a religion by passing out slips inviting parents to give permission for their children to attend religious instruction…According to the United States Supreme Court, the First Amendment clearly requires that public school students and their parents are never given the impression that their school/school district prefers a specific religion over others or sanctions religion in general.”

A school district official today apologized to CAIR-MI for the distribution of the permission slips and said district principals will discuss the issue at an upcoming meeting.

“We thank school district officials for taking quick and appropriate action once this violation of religious neutrality was brought to their attention,” said Walid.

He said CAIR offers a booklet, called “An Educator’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices,” that is designed to help school officials provide a positive learning environment for students of all faiths.

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

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Death of Iranian prison doctor raises questions

BEIRUT: An Iranian doctor who treated victims of torture at Tehran’s most feared prison has died, amid conflicting reports of a heart attack, a car accident or suicide — raising opposition accusations that the 26-year-old was killed.

Dr. Ramin Pourandarjani was pressured to change the death certificate of one of the most well known victims and later spoke to a Parliament commission investigating abuse of political detainees, opposition websites reported.

Much of the abuse took place at a facility known as Kahrizak on Tehran’s outskirts, where Pourandarjani — a general practitioner — was the only doctor, serving there once a week as part of his mandatory military service.

Hundreds of protesters and opposition activists were arrested in a crackdown that suppressed protests following the disputed June 12 presidential election.

Pourandarjani’s death on Nov. 10 was first reported by the opposition websites and later confirmed by Iranian authorities.

Hanif Mazroui, a reporter for the opposition news website Roozonline, said he was contacted by a doctor earlier this week who told him Pourandarjani had committed suicide. The doctor, a colleague of Pourandarjani, later called Mazroui back and said the cause of death was “suspicious, and (authorities) are not making it public,” Mazroui said.

At first, authorities announced that Pourandarjani had a heart attack in his sleep. Then they claimed he died of poisoning. Late Monday, the office of Tehran’s general prosecutor Abbas Dowlatabadi said “preliminary autopsy revealed he did not die of poisoning.”

The doctor’s father, Reza-Qoli Pourandarjani, said he didn’t believe any of the causes given so far by the government in his son’s death. But he didn’t go as far as accusing authorities of killing his son.

“Just the night before his death, my child talked to me on the phone, it was around 8 or 9 p.m. He sounded great, very dignified, displaying no sign of someone about to commit suicide,” the senior Pourandarjani said in a telephone interview from his home in Tabriz in northwestern Iran. The next day, the elder Pourandarjani received a call from the commander of Tehran’s security forces informing him that his son was in a car accident with a broken leg and needed his consent to have surgery. When he traveled to Tehran, “we found out that that wasn’t the case,” the father said.

The body was handed over to the family, and was buried in Tabriz on Sunday.
Source: Arab News

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Halal Food Becoming Mainstream in Europe

THE HAGUE — Amid growing demand from Muslims and non-Muslims alike, halal food is quickly becoming mainstream in Europe with more supermarket chains offering the Shari'ah-complaint food. "We are starting to see that these products are not just in specialty shops but are also starting to get into the mainstream of modern retailers," Frits Van Dijk, Executive Vice President at Nestle, the world's biggest food group, told Reuters.

He added that Nestle has recently started selling a range of meat-based and frozen food halal products in France.

Van Dijk noted that famous chains such as Britain's Tesco and France's Carrefour are also offering a wide range of halal products in their outlets.

Milk powder, cooking aids, seasoning and sauces are among the most popular halal products in Europe at the moment.

Van Dijk, who was attending the World Halal Forum in The Hague on 17-18 November, expected the halal food business to grow in Europe by 20-25 percent within the next decade.

The total European halal food market is currently valued at about $66 billion, including meat, fresh food and packed food, while the global market is worth about $634 billion.

The concept of halal -- meaning permissible in Arabic -- has traditionally been applied to food.

Muslims should only eat meat from livestock slaughtered by a sharp knife from their necks, and the name of Allah, the Arabic word for God, must be mentioned.

Now other goods and services can also be certified as halal, including cosmetics, clothing, pharmaceuticals and financial services.

Growing Demand

Nestle Executive Vice President cited a growing demand for Halal food from Muslims as well as non-Muslims.

"Twenty percent of the world's population is going to be Muslim one day and they have expectations, they have needs," he explained.

"If they want to be confident that what they eat and drink is in line with their beliefs, then a company like ours has to make an extra effort to try and meet those needs."

Nestle is the world's leading manufacturer of halal food, selling about 5.23 billion dollars worth of halal food in 2008, about 5 percent of its annual revenue.

Its established halal food markets include Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey and Middle Eastern countries.

France, Britain and Germany are emerging as its key halal markets in Europe.

The group plans to start offering Swiss supermarkets a selection of halal products with the beginning of 2010.

"We felt a strong demand from retailers in broadening their ethnic assortment, and this is a pillar of growth we want to continue to focus on," said Alexander Klein, a Nestle manager.

About 85 of Nestle's 456 factories globally are now halal-certified but Van Dijk said different interpretations of halal standards around the world were a challenge for the industry.

The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) is working on a single standard to be applied in its 57 member countries, a move that would boost the industry.

Source: IslamOnline

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VP Vetoes Iraq Election Law

BAGHDAD -- Iraq's general election was thrown into doubt on Wednesday, November 18, after Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi vetoed the law governing the January vote. "I did not veto the whole law. I have vetoed the first article of the law and I think parliament will understand my stance," Hashemi told a news conference.

"My suggested amendment is to give justice to all Iraqis living abroad, not just Iraqis displaced in neighboring countries."

Hashemi is objecting to the number of seats for refugees who fled after Iraq descended into deadly violence following the 2003 US-led invasion.

The electoral law allocates five percent of the 323 seats in the next parliament to minorities, such as Christians, and to Iraqis displaced from their homes.

But it does not spell out how the two million Iraqi refugees estimated to be living abroad will be represented.

Hashemi wants 15 percent of parliamentary seats for minorities and Iraqis displaced internally and abroad.

"The modification aims to make the representation of Iraqis abroad fairer," said Hashemi.

"It's not only a matter of those displaced to neighboring countries but of all Iraqis of all confessions and religions who live abroad."

President Jalal Talabani said on Monday he wants parliament to revise the law so that the number of seats set aside for minorities and expatriates is tripled.

Talabani made the request to parliament after receiving a letter from Kurdish MPs asking him not to approve the electoral law.

Under the constitution, any member of the presidential council can veto a proposed law a maximum of two times before the bill is returned to parliament for approval by a vote of at least 60 percent of MPs.

Dark Tunnel

Hashemi insists his objections should not delay the poll.

He believes the issue could be resolved in a single session of parliament and that electoral authorities should continue preparing without any expectation of a delay in the poll date.

But the move is likely open the door to a fresh round of political debate over the legislation that only won parliamentary approval after protracted wrangling.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, a Shiite, rebuked Hashemi and said his move was "a serious threat to the democracy and political process" in Iraq.

Haidar al-Ibadi, an influential lawmaker from Maliki's Dawa party, also criticized the veto.

"The election law veto threatens the whole political process and the presidency council's responsibility is to safeguard the constitution -- not to push the country into a dark tunnel," he told state television.

MPs passed the electoral law earlier this month only after several weeks of wrangling over how to conduct the vote in the northern disputed city of Kirkuk.

The Electoral Commission, which had already complained of little time to prepare for the elections, said it had suspended its work.

"The electoral commission is suspending all work, including registration of lists of candidates and printing of voting papers, until the adoption of an electoral law," the commission's administration chief Qassim Abudi said.

"The situation is very difficult and will certainly delay the election."

The vote, only the second national poll since 2003, is viewed as a major milestone as Iraq emerges from 6-1/2 years of bloodshed and stands on its own feet.

Any material delay to the ballot could affect US plans to end combat operations next August, ahead of a full pullout by the end of 2011.

Source: IslamOnline

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Governor-Evangelist Ties Upset US Muslims

WASHINGTON –- Even before taking the oath of office, Virginia Governor-elect Bob McDonnell is already troubling Muslims because of his close links to controversial evangelist Pat Robertson, who is infamous for his anti-Islam rants. "A lot of Muslims here are very concerned," Imam Mohamed Majid, of the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) in Virginia, told IslamOnline.

McDonnell, who won the Virginia gubernatorial race earlier this month, received a $25000 donation from Robertson, who has earned notoriety for his scathing attacks on Islam, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and Muslims.

The controversial evangelist attended McDonnell's election night victory party, asserting they share common ideas.

After the election, Robertson made his latest anti-Islam rant describing the Muslim faith as "a violent political system rather than a religion."

He suggested American Muslims, estimated at eight millions, should be treated like members of a communist or fascist party.

"This is a hate speech," says imam Majid.

"This is not the first time Robertson makes such ridiculous comments but what is new is that Robertson has shown close relation with McDonnell, our elected governor."

Imam Mahdi Bray, Executive Director of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, is equally disturbed.

"This is not new from Robertson, he has always said hateful things about Islam and Muslims," he notes.

"But I am troubled that the governor has received money from a person who is known with his Islamophobic speech."

Robertson, founder of the Christian Coalition and a presidential candidate in 1988, has called Islam the "religion of the slavers" and described Muslims as "satanic" and "worse than the Nazis".

He said the Qur'an was a "fraudulent" and Prophet Muhammad "an absolute wild-eyed fanatic, a robber and a brigand...a killer".

Robertson believes Americans who embrace Islam exhibit "insanity" and advises against appointing Muslims to government positions.

Repudiation

Muslims are urging McDonnell to distance himself from the controversial evangelist and his anti-Islam rants.

"During his campaign, McDonnell has reached out to Muslims. We want him now to keep his promise of being a governor of all Virginains," says imam Majid.

"We want him to address Muslims’ worries and publicly deny Robertson comments."

Ibrahim Hooper, communication director at the Council of American Islamic Relations (CAIR), also urges McDonnell to take very clear steps.

"It is very simple; he should return the campaign donation money to Robertson, repudiate his comments and apologize to all Virginian Muslims," he told IOL.

"No elected official should be close to somebody who makes such bigoted comments."

IslamOnline contacted the governor-elect office via the telephone and e-mail to ask for a comment, but got no answer. McDonnell has reportedly snubbed calls to repudiate Robertson's remarks.

Bray, the MAS-Freedom chief, says Virginia Muslims must have a role to play.

"There are about 48,000 Muslim voters in Virginia, and Muslims have been civically and politically active there," he notes.

"Virginian Muslims must act to keep this governor in the right direction and make him take his distance from bigotry."

Bray says Virginia had a history of being an ethnically lined, Islamophobic and xenophobic state.

"We must not let that governor take us back to the old days."

Source: IslamOnline

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Hi-tech Jamarat Bridge ready for Hajj

CAIRO – Saudi Arabia has completed a five-storey hi-tech Jamarat Bridge to ensure a smooth flow of millions of pilgrims during the devil stoning ritual of the annual hajj, the Arab News reported on Tuesday, November 17.

"The state-of-the-art Jamarat Bridge is designed to accommodate five million pilgrims," said Maj. Gen. Saad Al-Khelaiwi, assistant commander of Hajj Security Forces.

The hi-tech bridge has 10 entrances and 12 exits over its four levels to allow the flow of 300,000 pilgrims per hour.

It is also equipped with state-of-the-art technology to help authorities intervene in case of any deadly stampedes during the stoning ritual.

"We have appointed 19 commanders along the roads to stop pilgrims when the number exceeds 300,000," said Khelaiwi.

Pilgrims will not be allowed to carry large bags during the ritual.

"We’ll also monitor and control the flow of pilgrims."

Nearly three million pilgrims must hurl seven pebbles from behind a fence or from an overhead bridge every day for three days at each of the three 18-meter high concrete pillars on the spot where the devil appeared to Prophet Abraham.

Every able-bodied adult Muslim -- who can financially afford the trip -- must perform hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, once in their lifetime.

The 4.5-billion-riyal Jamarat Bridge project was launched after a series of deadly stampedes during the devil stoning ritual in past years.

In the worst hajj tragedy in 16 years, 364 people were killed in a stampede at the entrance of the Jamarat Bridge in 2006.

* Redesigning `Arafat

The Saudi government has also launched a 500-million- riyal project to redesign and develop the `Arafat Mount.

The project includes building roads, service utilities and tent locations to accommodate the pilgrims.

A sewage network would be constructed for rain and floodwater during the hajj season.

The project also includes building more than 200 toilets and a 700-meter-long road for the flow of pilgrims.

Under the project, eight small rocky outcroppings would be levelled to give more space to accommodate 100,000 pilgrims.

The hajj is expected to climax this year on November 26 when the faithful descend the Mount `Arafat where prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered his last sermon 14 centuries ago.

Standing on Mount `Arafat before sunset is the high point of hajj and pilgrims who fail to make it on time must repeat their pilgrimage in future.
Source: IslamOnline

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