My Modern Interpretation of John Donne's Sonnet 14-Batter My Heart

Review: Islamic Science and the Making of the European Renaissance by George Saliba

Islamic Science and the Making of the European Renaissance by George Saliba.
MIT Press: Cambridge, MA and London, UK; 2007.
ISBN: 0-262-19557-7. Hardcover, 315 pages with endnotes, a bibliography and a subject index.

This monograph is a series of lectures which challenge the dominant narrative of the history of science culminating in the European Renaissance. The dominant narrative is that Muslim rulers in the early Abbasid period, under the influence of the Mu'tazila theological school (aka rationalists), sponsored a translation of Persian, Indian and Greek scientific and philosophical texts. When the ahl al-hadith theologians (aka irrationalists), who in large part adopted the Asha`ari theology and who are most identified later with Imam al-Ghazali, persuaded later Abbasi rulers to cease sponsoring rationalist theology, scientific production began to decline. Finally, the Mongol destruction of Baghdad in 1258 CE combined with religious hostility to science to cement cessation of scientific thought and production throughout Muslim lands. In key contact points, such as Sicily and al-Andalus, Europeans were able to reacquire the Greek scientific and philosophical legacy which had been faithfully transmitted by Muslims, and these Europeans later used this legacy to develop the Renaissance. In short, Muslims were a storage facility for Europeans' intellectual property, supplemented with unclaimed items left by the ancient Indians and Persians, until the Europeans could complete renovations.

Houston, TX-Dr. Ezzat's Paintings on Display Until Sept 30

Clear Lake City-County Freeman Public Library in Houston, TX is hosting a display of Dr. Ezzat Abouleish's paintings until September 30. Here is a note I received from him:

The opening ceremony went very well, Alhamd LELLAH, on Monday 8.3.2009. The show has been well received by Moslems and non-Moslems alike. The high spirituality and beauty of Islamic art was astonishing to the show visitors and expressed in their written comments. If you have not seen the exhibit yet, I recommend to visit and to take along the family. I feel our children need it more than us. The venue is Freeman Library of Clear Lake, 16616 Diane Lane (off Bay Area Blvd), Houston Texas, 77062. Tel. 281 488 1906. The display will continue to Sept. 30Th, but the sooner the better.

Film: Christian Zionists: On the Road to Armageddon by Stephen Sizer

Christian Zionists: On the Road to Armageddon. By Stephen Sizer. Distributed by Presence Media. http://www.presence.tv/dvd

2 DVDs with six 20-minute segments.

These six segments are lectures by Dr. Stephen Sizer (http://www.stephensizer.com/) which trace the historical roots, theological bases and political consequences of Christian Zionism. The DVDs come with a study guide to facilitate discussion.

The weakest part of this DVD is the section on historical roots, and I think that is primarily due to the lack of time to explain to those unfamiliar with dispensationalism the importance of this doctrine. It was shocking to me to learn that many high-ranking British politicians, including Lord Balfour, the author of the Balfour Declaration, followed this strand of Anglo-Protestantism. Another piece of news to me was that the principal editor of the version of the Bible used by American fundamentalist Protestants, Cyrus Ingerson Scofield, was a disciple of John Nelson Darby, the leading proponent of dispensationalism.

The second section, theological bases, is best suited to an audience able to understand Christian doctrines. I believed Dr. Sizer did a good job, and I felt I understand this segment, but I think it would be difficult for someone unfamiliar with Christian theological doctrines. I hope that a reader with more background in this area might add some additional comments to this blog entry concerning this section.

The third section, political consequences, is accessible to all, and it is of course the reason why this video can appeal to those who seek some peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Book Review: A Deadly Misunderstanding: A Congressman’s Quest to Bridge the Muslim-Christian Divide by Mark D. Siljander

A Deadly Misunderstanding: A Congressman’s Quest to Bridge the Muslim-Christian Divide. By Mark D. Siljander. New York: HarperCollins; 2008. pp. 260. ISBN: 978-0-06-143828-8.
Mark Siljander served his Michigan district in the United States House of Representatives from 1981 to 1987. He came into office supporting Ronald Reagan’s, Newt Gingrich’s and Tom DeLay’s policies of economic deregulation, supply-side economics and confrontation with the Soviet Union and other communist and socialist nations. In a conversation with a trusted advisor, he revealed all he needed to know and all he wanted to know about Muslims and Islam:

… if I didn’t mind his asking, as a follower of Jesus, what was my strategy in relation to other people in my travels around the world? I replied without hesitation: it was to convert them to the Christian faith. [p. 16]

Review: Tears of the Desert by Halima Bashir and Damien Lewis

Tears of the Desert: A Memoir of Survival in Darfur. By Halima Bashir with Damien Lewis. 2008. One World Books. Hardcover. 316 pp. ISBN 978-0-345-50625-2.

Reading this book should strengthen one’s resolution to oppose the falsehoods that one person is better than another by virtue of one’s birth and that one person should usurp the rights of another if the opportunity presents itself. It is the failure of peoples of the world to nip these falsehoods in the bud which lead to the massive casualties the author Dr. Halima Bashir describes in Tears of the Desert: A Memoir of Survival in Darfur.

Review: This is Palestine by George Azar

This is Palestine is a data CD collection of photos by George Azar, with commentary by Mariam Shahin and accompanying music. It is published by the United Nations Development Programme, Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People. It is compatible with Windows and Macintosh personal computers.

I bought my copy from Palestine Online Store. It took nearly five months for it to fulfill the order, so if you need it soon, call ahead and confirm that it is in stock. When I placed my order electronically, an employee contacted me and alerted me to its being out of stock and asked me if I would prefer to cancel my order or receive the item later. So, I thought the customer service was OK.

The photos themselves show the Palestinians as human beings in various phases of life, including the political. It also shows Muslims and Christians. The pictures are from a variety of locations in Palestine.

There is a also a collection of photos of fashion and jewelry.

If you are having a public event about Palestine, I'd recommend using this slide show to play while people are waiting for the program to get started and/or after the program is over and people are milling about.

I have not seen the companion book, Palestine: A Guide. The UN also maintains a photo gallery.

Review: Radical Reform by Tariq Ramadan

Read Muslima Media Watch's review of Tariq Ramadan's new book Radical Reform. I have not read it yet.

Interview with Founder of Georgia Student Scholarship Organization

On August 4, 2008, I posted a blog entry discussing the state of Georgia's new law which allowed Georgia residents to divert a portion of their state income taxes to student scholarship organizations which would pay the money to accredited private schools in Georgia to pay for children transitioning from public schools.

On May 20, 2009, I conducted an interview with Ziad Minkara, the founder of Liberty Scholarship Foundation. To my knowledge, he is the only Muslim involved with a student scholarship organization. I encourage you to listen to the interview to understand aspects of the school choice movement and how you can support such efforts.

In addition, South Carolina is considering similar legislation. Americans United for Seperation of Church and State is hosting a debate on this proposed legislation on Sunday, June 7, at 6 pm at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Columbia at 2701 Heyward St, Columbia, SC, 29205. Below is a description of the event.

Sen. Robert Ford's bill to give tuition tax credits to families to pull their kids out of public schools may have died in this last session of the General Assembly, but you can bet that the issue of "school choice" is not deceased. We will debate the issue of tuition tax credits in particular and of school choice in general at our upcoming AU meeting. Tim Moultrie, a Libertarian candidate for SC Superintendent of Education, will argue for the merits of school choice, while Ronny Townsend, former Representative from Anderson and Chair of the SC House Education and Public Works Committee, will advocate for public education. Both will also take questions from the audience. This should be an informative and invigorating discussion.

Review: Great Muslim Philosophers and Scientists of the Middle Ages (The Series) by Rosen Publishing

I read two books in the series Great Muslim Philosophers and Scientists of the Middle Ages by Rosen Publishing. They were the books about al-Khawarizmi and al-Biruni.

I liked both books for the following reasons:

1. They were in general not "religious", meaning they did not attribute scientific progress or lack thereof to religion, particularly Islam. When discussed, secular factors, primarily sponsorship by the wealthy and powerful, were identified as the cause of scientific progress.
2. They contained illustrations with informative captions, sidebars introducing tangential lines of inquiry, and discussions of the subjects' ideas and their place in their intellectual milieu.
3. They have a glossary and a recommended reading list.

I got these two books from my public library. I encourage librarians to acquire these books. For this blog, I'm planning to start tagging books I believe appropriate for public libraries with the tag "Good for Public Library."

The publisher recommends this for grades 5-8. I think it could benefit students at all levels, yet the writing is accessible to the younger age group the publisher recommends.

Review: The Writing on My Forehead by Nafisa Haji

Pamela Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reviewed The Writing on My Forehead by Nafisa Haji. Here is an excerpt of the book.

I have not read the book.

Review: Secret Son by Laila Lalami

Aaminah Hernndez's review of Secret Son by Laila Lalami

I have not read the book.

Review: Torture and the Twilight of Empire: From Algiers to Baghdad by Marnia Lazreg

Torture and the Twilight of Empire: From Algiers to Baghdad, by Marnia Lazreg, is an eloquent plea to end torture. Professor Marnia pursues a historical, anthropological and philosophical inquiry into France's use of torture in its war against Algerian independence from 1954-1962.

Review: Al-Mudarris Quran Software

MuslimMatters.org published a review of Al-Mudarris Quran Software.

I have not used the software or any software like it.

Review: Son of Mountains by Yassin Aref

Son of Mountains: My Life as a Kurd and a Terror Suspect by Yassin Aref is now on my Amazon wish list. So look for an upcoming review.

Yassin Aref's lawyer appeared on Democracy Now! The War and Peace Report.

Film: New Muslim Cool

June 23, 2009 is the broadcast date for the PBS documentary "New Muslim Cool."

Review: American Muslim Women: Negotiating Race, Class and Gender within the Ummah by Jamillah Karim

Jamilah King reviewed American Muslim Women: Negotiating Race, Class and Gender within the Ummah by Jamillah Karim.

I have not read the book. It is available from Amazon.

Updated January 19, 2015:

A discussion with @jamillahkarim on gender and race in Islam @HindMakki @RamiNashashibi http://t.co/jQ187Y39SA
— Jamillah Karim (@jamillahkarim) January 16, 2015

Film: Warring Factions, by Justin Mashouf

See Hena Ashraf's review at altmuslim.com.

I have not seen the movie.

Film: 'Bama Girl

'Bama Girl follows University of Alabama seniors in their campaign to be elected homecoming queen. It ended up focusing on Alpha Kappa Alpha member Jessica Thomas, an African-American who had set her sights on being the homecoming queen since her first year in the university.

I saw the movie as part of the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers when Rachel Goslins screened her film in Augusta, GA's Imperial Theatre.

I had held a lot of anti-white fraternity/sorority life ideas since my undergraduate days. I used to repeat phrases like "buying friends" and "muffies and buffies" (before Buffy the Vampire Slayer). Now I've mellowed a lot since then, and I realized that people participate in white fraternities and sororities for a lot of different reasons, and I should not just judge people right off the bat. In addition, I did not spend my university life feeding the poor, so it's not like I was really that morally superior to people who spent their time dressing for socials and singing arcane songs.

But some of those anti-Greek ideas still remain, and I did not think I would be sympathetic to any students who cared about homecoming (I have yet to buy University paraphenalia such as sweatshirts), much less actively campaigned to become homecoming queen. As I watched the film and learned about the Machine's efforts to coordinate the white Greeks' votes behind a candidate and Jessica Thomas's gathering of her friends and supporters, including one who worked in an electoral campaign for the mayor of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, I asked myself why could not these people work to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and reduce carbon emissions and demand an end to the prison-industrial complex and the war on drugs.

But if I go beyond my crass Marxism, I admit to myself that this coalition building and canvassing is training for lives of public advocacy. While I may scorn university bodies such as student government and homecoming, I have to admit that those activities are an effective introduction to corporate and government work.

My other problem with the homecoming queen (and king) is its sexism. A quick search on the term "homecoming queen protest" came up with the following headlines:

• University of Vanderbilt
• Northern Kentucky University
• George Mason University

I don't remember even hearing about a homecoming queen election at the University of Virginia, and fellow alumni told me that University of Virginia did not have a homecoming queen.

In addition, I have come to believe that part of being an "ally" with the "oppressed" is respecting the goals they set for themselves. While I may not consider an African-American winning the homecoming queen election at University of Alabama to be a milestone on the road to ending American white supremacy, obviously some African-Americans have considered things like homecoming queen elections important.

The film itself is humorous, gentle in its treatment of the people who appear in it and short enough that my interest did not stray.

Review: Love in Headscarf

Muslima Media Watch's review of Love in a Headscarf.

I have not read the book.