September 16, 2007
The Al Queda Reader
Email from a friend:
There's an interview on CSPAN BookTV of Raymond Ibrahim, the editor and translator of The Al Qaeda Reader.
Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower, is the interviewer. I don't know if he was just doing it as an interviewing technique, but Wright kept trying to equate Islamic and Christian and Jewish fundamentalism and kept trying to propose moderate interpretations of Islamic texts. Ibrahim, who seems to have a thorough knowledge of Islamic tradition and history, would have none of that. He was refreshingly straightforward about what is written in the Koran and Hadiths, how they've been interpreted and how they've been put into practice.
I am watching this right now, and it is all she says.
Judith | 09/16/07 at 11:50 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
July 17, 2007
The Catholic Church and Conversion of Jews
This is a guest contribution from Ines Weber.
You may be aware of the recent decision of Pope Benedict XVI to authorize a more widespread use of the traditional Latin mass. You may have also read about the response from certain Jewish circles that vehemently protested this decision. In so far as this is considered to be a further shift to the right of the official stand of the church, it has caused outcries also from within the more mainstream and progressive segments of the Catholic Church.
The reason for the Jewish protest is based on the original Tridentine Mass (Latin Mass used by the Catholic Church between 1570 to 1962) in particular, a Good Friday prayer. In it, Catholics ask that God "lift the veil covering the hearts of Jews so that they may recognize Jesus Christ our Lord."
This prayer was modified as a result of the Second Vatican Council (1965) to read as follows:
Continue reading "The Catholic Church and Conversion of Jews"
Van | 07/17/07 at 05:55 AM | 11 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
July 01, 2007
Your Favorite Epithets, a KT Contest
The Jerusalem Post continues its coverage of the Latin Mass controversy, with a story that states,
The text of a "Motu Proprio" (papal decision) regarding the revival of a controversial Latin mass will be made public this week, The Jerusalem Post has learned. Vatican officials stressed that the current text, which formerly called Jews "perfidious," contains no derogatory reference to Jews.
On one level I'm relieved, but on another I'm saddened that I won't find a colorful term for Jews in the Latin mass. That suggests a Kesher Talk contest -- what's your favorite epithet for Jews? With perfidious on the way out of the Latin Mass, where can we turn for an invigorating dose of oppobrium?
Send us your favorite terms. These ground rules apply, to force creativity. The terms CANNOT use the words "Christ" or "Nazi" in any form or gerund. On the other hand, terms in languages other than English are welcome, to show the range of the rich linguistic heritage of Jew hatred.
Van | 07/01/07 at 10:52 PM | 6 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
June 05, 2007
That's Right, We Bad, We Perfidious: The Upside of the Latin Mass
I read recently that Pope Benedict wants to revive the Latin, or Tridentine, Mass. That's caused an uproar in interfaith circles because the Latin Mass mentions Jews in an unflattering light. According to CBS News,
Rabbi David Rosen, who is in charge of interfaith relations at the American Jewish Committee, said he wrote to several cardinals in March expressing concern about a prayer for the "unfaithful" in the Mass, as well a prayer used during the church's Holy Week liturgy which had contained references to "perfidious," or faithless, Jews.He was assured by Cardinal Walter Kasper, who is in charge of the Vatican's relations with Jews, that the Tridentine missal used now doesn't contain the reference to the "perfidious" Jew.
I don't know what the fuss is all about. I rather like being called "perfidious." It makes me feel like Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor in Stir Crazy, when they strut along and proclaim, "That's right, we bad!" Doesn't it sound hip and edgy, in a theological sense, to be perfidious?
Continue reading "That's Right, We Bad, We Perfidious: The Upside of the Latin Mass"
Van | 06/05/07 at 06:57 AM | 6 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
April 06, 2007
Is the TX Senate influenced by the weirdness of Austin?
Long time readers of this blog know that although I was born and raised in Dallas TX I lived in Austin for many years and have a great affection for the place, including its idiosyncratic population. My cute bungalow (now rented out) is in the infamous "Keep Austin Weird" zipcode of 78704.
So I cringe at some of the comments below this piece on another radical imam giving another controversial invocation for another elected body in the US:
Continue reading "Is the TX Senate influenced by the weirdness of Austin?"
Judith | 04/06/07 at 07:27 PM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 23, 2007
Individual jihad symdrome
I posted last week about a blog which is keeping track of incidents of Sudden Jihad Syndrome. There was some discussion in the comments about whether some of the episodes were "sudden" enough to qualify. For example, I brought up the crash of Egypt Air 990 and Sirhan Sirhan. Both of those attacks were well-planned. Other attacks listed at that blogpost may also have been planned.
Rusty Shackleford is calling it "individual jihad syndrome":
Continue reading "Individual jihad symdrome"
Judith | 03/23/07 at 01:27 PM | 11 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 15, 2007
Erasing History, One Objection at a Time
Does objecting to history because it hurts your feelings make it go away?
The University of Leeds was accused of infringing free speech last night when it cancelled a lecture on “Islamic anti-Semitism” by a German academic.For security grounds, read "insecurity grounds." Namely, the fact that some Muslims can't deal with the free discussion of history. And some academics in the west seem eager to pander to their every insecurity.Matthias Köntzel arrived at the university yesterday morning to begin a three-day programme of lectures and seminars, but was told that it had been called off on “security grounds”.
Continue reading "Erasing History, One Objection at a Time"
Alcibiades | 03/15/07 at 01:03 AM | 3 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 12, 2007
Waskow vs Chesler on the Secular Islam Summit
Rabbi Arthur Waskow and Phyllis Chesler - once ideological companions and mutual admirers in the 1960s American Jewish Left - are facing off in a public dispute about the Secular Islam Summit where Chesler chaired the opening panel. Chesler - a seminal theoretician in Second Wave Feminism - has written about her consciousness-raising experience as the wife of an Afghani living in an Islamic society, and subsequently critiqued politically correct feminism and Leftism.
Waskow has been a leader in “progressive” Judaism since his days as a civil rights activist alongside Martin Luther King, and a creative interpreter of Jewish scripture to address political issues. I have found many of Waskow’s works valuable and included him in my Pitele Yid series, but - as with so many leftist activists - I think he has gone off the rails since 9-11, as evidenced by his tribute to Cindy Sheehan and petition to withdraw immediately from Iraq, supposedly because we are the ones oppressing and visiting violence on the Iraqis and this will end when we leave:
. . . For just as Passover celebrates freedom from ancient slavery and the Pharaoh’s military mindset, so today we seek freedom for both Americans and Iraqis from the death and destruction imposed by stubborn attachment to a destructive occupation. Our grief on 9/11 calls us to move beyond violence, not to escalate it. And upon the heels of 9/11 comes the wisdom of Rosh Hashanah and Ramadan, also calling us to Turn Toward Peace in our world as well as in our hearts. . . .Ask the UN, regional bodies, and non-governmental organizations to offer their services to help Iraqis peacefully resolve their future. “Justice, justice, shall you pursue.” (Deut 16: 20. Tradition adds: Why “justice” twice? To achieve just ends, we must use just means.) . . .
Tradition teaches: “Seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34:15) means we must pursue peace even if it is running away from us. We expect no less of our government.
Cherry-picking Torah verses to support this idiocy only makes it more reprehensible.
I was given permission by Chesler and Green Party activist Lorna Saltzman (a critic of divestment in Israel initiatives in the Green Party) to reproduce the following email exchange, and Waskow below encourages the publicizing of his views, so I am taking the risk of not asking his permission.
Continue reading "Waskow vs Chesler on the Secular Islam Summit"
Judith | 03/12/07 at 08:04 PM | 6 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 10, 2007
More Wisdom from the Sage at MSNBC
Chris Matthew's blathers his pearls into the microphone:
The liberals will talk about poverty, injustice, and racism, and nuclear war, and pick that part of the Christian message from Jesus, and the conservatives will find the evils of sodomy, the evils of, uh, uh, infidelity, the evils of sex of any form. It seems like the conservatives don’t like sex and they’re very focused on that and the liberals are focused on social injustice.
Wonder how they make all those babies then?
Meanwhile, I wonder what his IQ is. He clearly thinks this is a true dichotomy - or maybe he is just playing to the hunger of his audience, who lap up these pronouncements like swine in a trough.
Audio from msunderestimated.com
Alcibiades | 03/10/07 at 09:08 AM | 2 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 08, 2007
In Honor of International Women's Day: Phyllis Chesler Unedited
In honor of International Women's Day, it seems fitting to pay tribute to one my feminist heroes - Phyllis Chesler. A professor, author and tireless activist, Phyllis Chesler is one of the few members of today's feminist movement to tackle the oppression of women endemic to the Muslim world. For doing so, she been ostracized by her fellow Western "feminists," most of whom are too beholden to the anti-American/anti-Israel vagaries of modern multiculturalism to take on Islamism, the greatest threat to women's rights today. But Chesler knows from firsthand experience as the former wife of a Muslim husband who took her to Afghanistan and essentially imprisoned her, that politically correctness only allows barbarity to go unchecked.
Continue reading "In Honor of International Women's Day: Phyllis Chesler Unedited"
Cinnamon | 03/08/07 at 03:55 PM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 07, 2007
Lovely: German Bishops Compare West Bank to Warsaw Ghetto
Of all the people in the world who ought to be careful about making insensitive remarks comparing Jews to Nazis, you think high among them would be German Catholic religious leaders. Unfortunately that is not the case.
Yad Vashem lambasted a group of visiting German Catholic bishops on Tuesday for comparing the situation in the Palestinian territories with the Holocaust, calling the contentious remarks "political exploitation and demagoguery" and a gross distortion of history.The sharp condemnation ... followed reports in the German press of comparisons made by senior German bishops between conditions in the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II and current conditions in Ramallah, resulting from Israeli military activities.
"The remarks illustrate a woeful ignorance of history and a distorted sense of perspective," Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev wrote in a Tuesday letter to Cardinal Karl Lehmann, who led the Conference of German Catholic Bishops on a 10-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Continue reading "Lovely: German Bishops Compare West Bank to Warsaw Ghetto"
Alcibiades | 03/07/07 at 02:03 AM | 5 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 05, 2007
Not-So-Strange Bedfellows: Jews and Christian Zionists
The New York Jewish Week's March 2 issue had a long article about Zev Chafetz and his new book A Match Made in Heaven: American Jews, Christian Zionists, and One Man's Exploration of the Weird and Wonderful Judeo-Evangelical Alliance. Chafetz is a great reader and anything he pens is worth reading.
Jewsonfirst.org has a critical but generally positive view of the book, from Calev Ben-David of The Israel Project's Jerusalem Media Resource Center. Jewsonfirst.org is full of predictable but useful reading on Christian-Jewish relations from a liberal perspective, detailing the threat of the baleful, anti-progressive Christians.
I can't find an article about the book but the Amazon page gives a good overview of it.
Van | 03/05/07 at 07:10 AM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
February 22, 2007
Secular Islam Summit: The Next Islamic Enlightenment?
Having expressed the need for an Islamic reformation (or whatever its equivalent) on many occasions, I was pleased to hear about the Secular Islam Summit taking place this upcoming March 4-5 in St. Petersburg, Florida. The summit is in fact billed as the beginning of the "next Islamic Enlightenment" and according to the website:
Delegates from Egypt, Jordan, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and elsewhere will address secularist interpretations of Islam, the need for Koranic criticism, the state of freedom of the expression in Muslim societies, educational reform.
Continue reading "Secular Islam Summit: The Next Islamic Enlightenment?"
Cinnamon | 02/22/07 at 09:27 PM | 2 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
February 12, 2007
Rev. Ted and the Protocols of Zion
The declaration last week that Rev. Ted Haggard is "completely heterosexual" sparked plenty of comments, some serious, such as this article from Church Executive, and some less so, like this joke round-up. I have another perspective.
A few weeks before Rev. Ted decided he finally got his head screwed on straight, I saw him in the documentary, Protocols of Zion, a documentary by Marc Levin. Levin interviews Rev. Ted in one sequence; I can't remember the context, perhaps about evangelical views of Jews. Probably not about Rev. Ted's views of how hot Jewish men are. No, definitely not about that. But compared to the cool, urbane Levin, Rev. Ted came across as a very odd and overheated duck. He may have been typical for a high-profile evangelical minister, but he showed no ability to modulate his tone for the interview.
Maybe a lack of modulation caused all his problems in the first place.
Van | 02/12/07 at 10:59 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
February 11, 2007
Strange Stuff: The Workmen's Circle and the Islamic Society of Boston
The Workmen's Circle in Boston got drawn into a lawsuit involving the Islamic Society of Boston against various Jewish and media groups. The story is convoluted, but this blog link has details, including a careful summary from the local Workmen's . . . more »Van | 02/11/07 at 08:15 AM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
February 09, 2007
Stuck on Stupid
[ From Judith: if you want to send an automated email to various opinion-makers defending Marcotte and McEwen go here. Of course, you can also edit the email to say anything you want ..... But it's amusing just to read, . . . more »Alcibiades | 02/09/07 at 11:20 AM | 9 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
February 03, 2007
Human Interest Stories with an Islamic Twist
Can you renounce Islam in Malaysia (where it is illegal) if the hospital sent you home at birth with the wrong family? And here's something novel - if the story reflects accuracy, a Jewish school in Birmingham, UK, that is . . . more »Alcibiades | 02/03/07 at 05:12 PM | 2 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
February 01, 2007
Our Heroux
Ben, occasional Kesher Talk contributer, writes: As we all must have heard by now, the almost non-existant little Quebec town of Herouxville has had the audacity to publish a list of what it expects out of immigrants (if it had . . . more »Alcibiades | 02/01/07 at 10:47 AM | 2 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
January 31, 2007
"A 21st century battle of faiths"
I sent my musings about the Christian Zionists to a bunch of bloggers, got this back from Richard Fernandez (posted with permission): Richard: Very interesting exchange in comments. The assertion that "replacement theology is dead" intrigued me most of all, . . . more »Judith | 01/31/07 at 07:32 PM | 0 Comments | 1 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
January 29, 2007
"We Are Living In A State of Chaos and Lawlessness"
Bethlehem Christians Break Their Silence Over Muslim Treatment by Khaled Abu Toameh, who is himself a Palestinian Muslim. Rowan Williams - our favorite archidiot - loves to blames the Jews for the condition of the Bethlehem Christians. But Jews do . . . more »Alcibiades | 01/29/07 at 09:09 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
Separate Bathrooms for Muslims?
It's separate bathrooms for Muslims now in LaTrobe University in Australia. And why is that? Victorian Muslim community leader Yasser Soliman said the washrooms were necessary. He said the separate facilities were also due to concerns from non-Muslim students. "Muslims . . . more »Alcibiades | 01/29/07 at 11:42 AM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
January 21, 2007
Everything Old is New Again: Greeks Hail Zeus, Hera
Across the wine-dark sea, a Greek group, Ellinais, finally got around to honoring Zeus, of all deities, only 1,600 years after the last such ceremony. According to this story, Watched by curious onlookers, some 20 worshippers gathered next to the . . . more »Van | 01/21/07 at 11:18 PM | 3 Comments | 1 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
January 07, 2007
Squick to the Millionth Degree
In his new book, Terry MacAuliffe reports that Arafat repeatedly rubbed his leg under the table at a dinner in Washington in 2000. The idea of this has me gagging into my cereal. It's Arafat. Rubbing leg. Enough said. Oriana . . . more »Alcibiades | 01/07/07 at 10:49 AM | 4 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 31, 2006
A Comedy of Errors
Update: Graphic content warning: Sweetness and Light provides a graphic look at the circumstances in which injuries occurred. Over a thousand Turks spent the first day of the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha in emergency wards on Sunday after stabbing . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/31/06 at 04:57 PM | 2 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 30, 2006
Are the Pathans Descended from the Tribe of Ephraim?
A new study suggests a genetic link exists between the Pathans and the Jews, a connection rumored for many years. According to Aafreedi's study, which was published as an e-book, about 650 out of the 1,500 members of the Afridi . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/30/06 at 11:46 PM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 24, 2006
Christmas Trees in Kabul
It is good to note that the capitalist spirit is alive and well during the Christmas season in Flower Street, Kabul: Located in the heart of Kabul, Flower Street is different at Christmas from any other time of year, transformed . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/24/06 at 10:18 AM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 23, 2006
Carter's Christian Triumphalism
Below I mention a quotation at the Corner which references the Christian approach of Carter's new book: I'm reading Carter's book right now. I'm shocked by how Christian itis. A running theme is that not only are the Muslims being . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/23/06 at 06:51 PM | 5 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 22, 2006
Carter Criticism Roundup
Sneaking in a last post just before Shabbat begins - and wah! the computer just ate is - now I'm really crunching it to reproduce the links: For those of you from a more liberal political persuasion, Professor Mel Konner's . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/22/06 at 04:11 PM | 9 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 21, 2006
More On the British Perspective on Bethlehem
Ruth Gledhill from the London Times, blogs about Bethlehem: [W]hen it comes to the undoubted plight of Christians in the Holy Land, it is strange that there is so little criticism of Hamas, under which a tiny minority of Christians . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/21/06 at 03:04 PM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 20, 2006
Noel, noel, born is the king ... of Poland?
Tammy Bruce is disappointed that a measure to name Jesus the King of Poland won't pass. I would say, "But what about the Polish Jews?", but I guess there aren't enough of those left to cause a problem, are there? . . . more »Asher Abrams | 12/20/06 at 08:08 PM | Categories: - Comparative Religion
A Holiday Anecdote
An Anecdote from Ben, occasional contributor to Kesher Talk: Around this time of year the office gets inundated with packages of goodies from various suppliers, vendors, and other well wishers. Alchohol used to be the main tradition, but in recent . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/20/06 at 06:20 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 19, 2006
Is This Carter's Source For His Recent Book?
Melanie Phillips has a new column about British perception of the severely deteriorating situation of Bethlehem's Christian, which we discussed below. In the course of her column, Phillips mentions a book that appears to have misinformed top members of the . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/19/06 at 02:30 AM | 13 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
December 18, 2006
A Word to Our Episcopalian Landsmen
Today's New York Times article about those fractious Episcopalians had a striking lead: For about 30 years, the Episcopal Church has been one big unhappy family. Under one roof there were female bishops and male bishops who would not ordain . . . more »Van | 12/18/06 at 08:10 PM | 7 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
The Daily Mail Reports on the state of Bethlehem
And amazingly for a British paper, gives an accurate account of the current desperate situation in Bethlehem for its small remaining Christian population. "As Christians, we have no future here," [one Christian inhabitant] says... "I would rather have a beautiful . . . more »Alcibiades | 12/18/06 at 01:04 AM | 8 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
November 02, 2006
Why Do Christians Have All the Fun?
For all the progress Jews have made in integrating into American life, we still lag in two critical categories: 1. Rabbis in movies. 2. Religious-themed sex toys. Think of all the movies, for generations, that have featured Catholic priests and . . . more »Van | 11/02/06 at 07:21 AM | 3 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
October 29, 2006
Where are all the modernist Muslims?
Here's a brand new blog I think you should know about: Smart and Final Isis. They are "two conservative, Republican women who met in a chat room filled with fans of a big-time conservative icon." Specifically, . . . more »Asher Abrams | 10/29/06 at 01:25 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
October 22, 2006
Bush: Just a Scary Fundamentalist
Or so asserts Gerhard Schrodiger, whom the Germans, thank the scary Lord! replaced with Angela Merkel last spring. The former Chancellor, an agnostic, seems to consider President Bush to be a Christian fundamentalist, and as such less likely to make . . . more »Alcibiades | 10/22/06 at 11:41 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
October 17, 2006
My Burka Anecdote
Since Jack Straw finally spoke his mind on fully veiled Muslim women a few weeks back, he has now emerged as the most popular politician in the Labour party. And many other politicians in Britain are racing to follow suit. . . . more »Alcibiades | 10/17/06 at 06:46 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
October 16, 2006
Smile!
Captioning this photo is too much fun . . . . . . more »Asher Abrams | 10/16/06 at 01:32 PM | 3 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
October 11, 2006
Latest cultural insensitivity - the horror!
According to LGF, some random Islamist saw a photo of the new NYC Apple store and began to seethe. I made exactly the same visual association last April, and I idly wondered if Apple was going to be served with . . . more »Judith | 10/11/06 at 01:31 PM | 1 Comments | 2 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
October 09, 2006
Rape and Repression as a Tactic in the Sectarian War in Iraq
A very disturbing look at the situation of women in Iraq who live around sectarian militia activity in the UK Guardian (a fact which may - or may not - effect the objectivity of the reporting.) Strong anecdotal evidence gathered . . . more »Alcibiades | 10/09/06 at 12:35 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
September 19, 2006
Faith and Reason
In a previous post, I cited Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook on the issue of religious belief and scientific knowledge. Now here's Cobb with a great post explaining that ""To act against reason is to act against the nature of God." . . . more »Asher Abrams | 09/19/06 at 11:32 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
We Are All Catholics Now . . .
. . . That was the headline I wanted to use when Pope Benedict XVI first stepped into the Islamist hornets' nest. Jews, cartoonists, Americans, Catholics -- we are all in the same rocking boat, assaulted by the same waves. . . . more »Van | 09/19/06 at 11:30 AM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
September 17, 2006
There's a reason it's called "Islamofascism"
The Jewish Week catches Russ Feingold in full presidential candidate pandering mode:[Feingold] called on President Bush to stop using the term “Islamic fascism,” saying it harmed the war on terrorism. “We must avoid using misleading and offensive terms that link . . . more »Judith | 09/17/06 at 10:38 AM | 9 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
Abraham's Test: A Problem in Jewish Theology
Here's a theological problem that occurred to me after reading part of the Pope's recent speech. The context is the issue of where religion fits between faith and reason. Here is part of that speech. [Emperor Manuel II Paleologus] goes . . . more »Alcibiades | 09/17/06 at 12:03 AM | 4 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
September 15, 2006
Professor Juan Cole explains it all to you
Juan Cole is a good guide to evaluating the Pope's remarks about Islam. Because the truth is reliably the opposite of whatever Juan Cole says it is. . . . more »Judith | 09/15/06 at 06:48 PM | 3 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
Neurotheology
Proving God, through neurology. There's been some advance in the field of neurotheology, which is the attempt to understand how the brain mediates the human mystical experience of God. The expectation among neurotheologists was that there would be a God . . . more »Alcibiades | 09/15/06 at 12:25 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
September 05, 2006
Doomsday for Dummies
When you see a YouTube video you like, it's worth scrolling through the related list, because you might find an entertaining evisceration of moral equivalence, prompted by Hitchen's famous bird-flipping of Bill Maher's audience: . . . more »Judith | 09/05/06 at 09:52 AM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
September 02, 2006
Templo de la Fe: Vaya Con HaShem
So I'm watching the telenovela "Tierra de Pasiones" (Land of Passions) on Telemundo or Univision (I can never tell them apart) last night and I flip channels to find an ad in Spanish showing . . . a muzuzah. Something . . . more »Van | 09/02/06 at 10:25 AM | 8 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
August 14, 2006
Why are Jews liberal? A response to Dennis Prager. (Part 1 of 2)
In an earlier post on my blog I promised a full response to a column by Dennis Prager, "Why are Jews liberal?". Here it is. Dennis Prager's column makes six assertions about Jews and liberalism, which I'll take in order. . . . more »Asher Abrams | 08/14/06 at 01:58 AM | 3 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
July 28, 2006
To Be, or Not To Be, Chosen
In the Corner Jonah put up an intriguing quote about chosenness from Leo Strauss, that relates both to history and the current troubles, reconstituting the spiritual notion in historico-political terms. Finite, relative problems can be solved; infinite, absolute problems cannot . . . more »Alcibiades | 07/28/06 at 10:29 AM | 4 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
July 23, 2006
Propaganda wars in the Middle East blogosphere
Yes, the blogosphere is enabling some nitty-gritty verbal wrestling in the Middle East. Richard Landes (who is in Israel for the year; maybe he will post about his experiences) argues about history with a Jordanian named Omar. Talk about "competing . . . more »Judith | 07/23/06 at 11:06 AM | 1 Comments | 2 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
July 20, 2006
The Looming Sunni-Shi'ite War?
[UPDATE: transcript now added below] Just heard a worrisome report on Hardball - Chris Mathews was interviewing former CIA Agent Bob Baer who, despite the shambles of a movie George Clooney turned his book into, still has insightful comments and . . . more »Alcibiades | 07/20/06 at 08:24 PM | 6 Comments | 3 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
June 28, 2006
An Army of Mohammeds
[ UPDATE from Judith: Isreallycool is also liveblogging the latest Israeli-Arab war. ] In response to the IDF incursion into Gaza named "Summer Rain", an army of computer hackers in Morocco have joined efforts to bring down 750 websites with . . . more »Alcibiades | 06/28/06 at 10:27 AM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
June 24, 2006
Follow the Leader
The Episcopalian Church follows the Presbyterians on renouncing anti-Israel rhetoric. The US Episcopal Church has taken a significant pro-Israel turn at its triennial General Convention, joining the Presbyterians in abandoning pro-Palestinian rhetoric and adopting a resolution repudiating anti-Jewish interpretations of . . . more »Alcibiades | 06/24/06 at 10:24 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
June 19, 2006
Different kinds of "fundamentalists"
Jeremiah pointed me to this excellent article, which starts off by listing famous Jews of Britain, and segues into carefully distinguishing between the attitudes of Jewish and Muslim (at least in its current agresssive version) minority communities toward the host . . . more »Judith | 06/19/06 at 12:31 AM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
June 13, 2006
Motoon threats get results
The purpose of the Muslim fury over a few Danish political cartoons - a carefully orchestrated global campaign - was to create a climate of fear in which everyone censors themselves, not knowing when the wrong remark, or writing, or . . . more »Judith | 06/13/06 at 05:45 PM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
May 09, 2006
Ayaan Hirsi Ali at Harvard
Two reports from Hirsi Ali's talk at the Harvard JFK School of Government this afternoon: Ms Kelly and Michael S. The format and content of her presentation are similar to what she did at the PEN Festival. Apparently most . . . more »Judith | 05/09/06 at 09:08 PM | 0 Comments | 2 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
May 05, 2006
Hirsi Ali gets around
Via Callimachus, here's an interview with Ayaan Hirsi Ali on NPR. (Is it my imagination or does Alex Chadwick sound a bit scared, a bit tremulous through the whole thing? Maybe he's just scared of saying the wrong thing. He's . . . more »Judith | 05/05/06 at 12:30 PM | 2 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
Muslim women rescue the Enlightenment
I still haven't found my notes from Ayaan Hirsi Ali's talk at the PEN Festival, but Mary has posted her recollections and this is right-on: Speaking for myself, we weren't just clapping because we agreed with her or because we . . . more »Judith | 05/05/06 at 08:03 AM | 0 Comments | 1 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
April 28, 2006
Another cartoon panel
Sorry for the short notice, I just found out about this. Idols and Insults: Writing, Religion, and Freedom of Expression Juan Luis Cebrián, Upamanyu Chatterjee, Hans Magnus Enzensberger, Nilüfer Göle, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Tariq Ramadan; moderated by Ian Buruma Writers . . . more »Judith | 04/28/06 at 10:44 PM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
April 18, 2006
"The Bible Experience:" Casting the Chumash Edition
Inspired By Media Group and Zondervan Publishing this fall are releasing the first part of their epic 70-hour recording of the Bible featuring 70 black celebrities reading the parts of 368 characters. The New Testament hits stores in September with . . . more »Van | 04/18/06 at 11:52 AM | 2 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
April 03, 2006
Motoon updates
Andrew Bostom reports on the NYU Motoon panel discussion, of which he was a participant. I got a detailed report last week from Pamela, but Andrew adds some information new to me: Sans cartoons, and amidst intensive (full metal . . . more »Judith | 04/03/06 at 07:50 PM | 1 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
April 02, 2006
Repentence, 26 Years Later
March 24 marked the 26th anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero in San Salvador. Now, one man involved in the murder is speaking out and asking for forgiveness. Alvaro Saravia, an aide to death squad leader and politician . . . more »Van | 04/02/06 at 07:41 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 31, 2006
Do we have enough Jews?
From Seraphic comment threads: At the U.S. War College, a general is a guest lecturer and tells the class of officers that the session will focus on potential problems and the resulting strategies. One of the officers in the class . . . more »Judith | 03/31/06 at 02:16 PM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
Fear of a Jihadi Planet, cont.
Previous depressing posts on this topic here and here. Here is the new issue of Free Inquiry - the one Borders has declined to carry. Unfortunately, Barnes & Noble may be caving too: Barnes & Noble, the magazine's second-largest retailer, . . . more »Judith | 03/31/06 at 07:06 AM | 0 Comments | 0 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 30, 2006
More Fear of a Jihadi Planet
And you thought the Motoon kerfluffle was a) over, and b) a kerfluffle. But no. Dominos continue to fall. . . . more »Judith | 03/30/06 at 12:38 AM | 4 Comments | 1 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion
March 29, 2006
Big Apple dhimmitude
Another university has succumbed to Fear of a Jihadist Planet, right here in contentious multicultural New Yawk City. This time, it's NYU that has censored the viewing of the Dreaded Cartoons of Blasphemy (TM). But they aren't preventing the cartoons . . . more »Judith | 03/29/06 at 12:34 AM | 1 Comments | 2 TrackBacks | Categories: - Comparative Religion