In Islamic discourse, how harsh a pejorative is the term "kafir"? Is it necessarily a pejorative at all?
posted by stammer
on Aug 28, 2007 -
8 answers
Do the majority of Muslim women in the world wear the hijab (head covering)? What percent do wear hijab?
posted by airguitar2
on Apr 10, 2007 -
14 answers
How do they tell if you're a Muslim if you want to go on the hajj or umra to Mecca and Medina?
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posted by champthom
on Apr 5, 2007 -
20 answers
The Burquini thread got me to thinking about fetishes among Muslims. There is
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posted by Ynoxas
on Jan 12, 2007 -
35 answers
Is there a Mac program that converts Christian dates to Hijri dates? An editor in my office said he uses a program called "CALH" on his PC - is there a Mac equivalent?
posted by anonymous78
on Oct 10, 2006 -
5 answers
Genuine question: Given that Mohammed was a succesful military leader who led armies to kill many thousands, at what point did he switch approach and promote peace?
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posted by pettins
on Sep 16, 2006 -
10 answers
Why are my Indonesian bottled water and donut labeled "halal" when there don't seem to be any questionably non-halal/haram processes or ingredients involved in the making of either product?
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posted by mdonley
on Aug 11, 2006 -
15 answers
Brigitte Gabriel showed up in my inbox today. My links to the evangelical subculture have provided me with many icky moments but none more so than this. An acquaintance forwarded me (and 20 others) a cut and pasted article about a
speech she made at Duke University almost two years ago outlining Muslim atrocities in Lebanon during the 70s and I'm curious about the woman. Obviously someone like this is a great spokesperson for those who think Islam is bent on world domination and the destruction of all infidels. And apparently she gets quite a few speaking engagements at universities as an "expert" on the Middle East. But who is she?
After a little googling, I see the same "speech" cut and pasted into dozens of conservative blogs. And
her page on Wikipedia dates from just two weeks ago, with a bit of a revert war starting already. What's going on here?
posted by jmcnally
on Aug 2, 2006 -
11 answers
My girlfriend's parents (future inlaws?) forward me a lot of those awful right-wing emails. The latest one is an anti-Islam rant (inside).
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posted by neuron
on Jul 24, 2006 -
73 answers
Is it considered a breach of protocol or courtesy to wear a thobe if you're not an Arab?
posted by arimathea
on Jul 18, 2006 -
9 answers
What is the significance of the number 9 in Islamic culture?
or perhaps, what is the significance of said number with relevance to "Radical Extremism" (dude! Extreme
and Radical!
This is in reference to 9 a.m. on 9-11 and 9 p.m., 11-9 and so on. . .
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posted by punkbitch
on Nov 11, 2005 -
15 answers
When, specifically, and under what circumstances were non-Muslims first barred from Mecca? Is there a scriptural theological basis for this? When was the last time an interloper was caught, and what happened to him (or was it her)? What is the current offical penalty for non-compliance? Foot notes appreciated.
posted by IndigoJones
on Oct 5, 2005 -
17 answers
I once saw an alleged V.S. Naipaul quote to the effect that India owed much of its latter day poverty to Islam's incursions. Any notions where this comment might be found? Also, any other books on the history of Islam's spread into India (old, new, passionate, dispassionate, biased, unbiased- the more points of view the better) would be most welcome. Many thanks for your help in this matter
posted by IndigoJones
on Apr 14, 2005 -
9 answers
The Christmas holiday is fast approaching as we all know. My fiancee is Muslim, and we have always celebrated religious holidays separately. This year, I would like him to be a part of the family celebration. For my family it is more of a family bonding time (and become more of an American Tradition) than a religious event. If I'm correct, the celebration of Christmas is for the birth of Jesus. From what my fiancee has told me of Muslims, they believe in Jesus as a prophet, but have many differences in beliefs from Christians overall about who he was.
So would there be a debate between the two religions over the actual birth of Jesus (how he was conceived, is he the son of God....etc.) that would be conflicting for him to join us for dinner and this particular holiday itself? I want to be well informed when talking to him about it, and try to find a way to celebrate the holiday.
posted by Gooney
on Dec 8, 2004 -
20 answers
When Muslims pray, why do they hold their hands out before their faces like a book?
posted by zadcat
on Nov 23, 2004 -
13 answers
The Koran. I read it long ago. I found it confusing, odd, hard to understand, in dire need of unpacking. I'd like to try reading it again. Can anyone recommend a superlative translation, or perhaps even better, a great paraphrase. Or at the very least one with decent annotations. I'm not averse to a version that does intelligent re-arranging of the sequence, as I recall chapters on cows following stuff on love. There are a number of current translations so pointers to informed reviews of them would be welcomed too.
posted by kk
on Nov 15, 2004 -
11 answers
