Mention: Austin Statesman
Hussein “I think Gov. Paterson is firmly in the percentage of the American population that admits it knows nothing about Islam,” Hussein Rashid, a professor of religion at Hofstra University on Long Island, told CBS.
Hussein
Event: IMANA-Hofstra Ethics Symposium “End of Life Issues: Ethical and Religious Perspectives”
I will be moderating a panel at this conference:
IMANA-Hofstra Ethics Symposium “End of Life Issues: Ethical and Religious Perspectives”
Friday, September 17
Advance Directives and Living Wills for Muslims
4:00 – 5:00 p.m. Session 4
Moderator: Hussein Rashid, Ph.D.
Article with Rabbi Nancy Fuchs Kreimer on 9/11
September 11, 2010: A Time for Turning
September 11. The date, the words are still so evocative. Hate, anger, fear, sorrow, loss. Nine years after the event, emotions can still be as intense as they were in 2001. For some Americans, September 11 is the anniversary of their loved one’s death. Along with the annual memorials, this year the day will also include public demonstrations both in support of and in opposition to Park51, misnamed the “Ground Zero Mosque.”
Both of us will be marking that day as part of our holy season. For Jews, the 11th is Shabbat Shuva, literally the Sabbath of turning, or repentance, wedged between Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur. For Muslims, it is Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of fasting during the month of Ramadan, the month when Muslims are spiritually reborn. Each year, we see this time, each in our own way, as one of deep inner work whose result, God willing, is the making of new commitments.
This year, it feels important that our religious soul-searching include addressing what is going on in the public square, the larger issues that the controversy about Park51 highlights. Our country’s pluralistic ideals often are at odds with the messier reality on the ground. The volume and intensity of the debate around this particular proposal has felt overwhelming at times, the escalation of hate speech frightening. At the same time, there has been a reaching out across boundaries and a growing recognition by many fair-minded Americans that we all have a lot of work to do to help our society live up to its best self.
Bloggingheads.tv : American Muslim
The New York Time is running an excerpt of the conversation.
Andrew Sullivan’s The Daily Dish is also running it.
Speaking Event: Museum of Fine Arts Houston: Everyday Art: The Islamic Impact on American Art, 9/26/10
Download flyer here
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Quoted: Politics Daily – Good Muslim, Bad Muslim? Gov. Paterson Inserts Foot — Again
Good Muslim, Bad Muslim? Gov. Paterson Inserts Foot — Again.
New York Gov. David Paterson has sought to be a peacemaker in the viral dispute over building an Islamic center near ground zero, suggesting the mosque be moved a few blocks farther away and even offering state land for a new site.
But the hapless Paterson can never seem to escape his penchant for self-inflicted wounds — a habit on display in this week’s report that he may be investigated for perjury in connection with a probe over World Series tickets, and a habit that was reinforced with news of his unfortunate efforts to characterize different types of Muslims.
Quoted: WNYC – Why Muslim Americans Have Been Reluctant to Show Support for Park51
Why Muslim Americans Have Been Reluctant to Show Support for Park51 – WNYC.
According to Hussein Rashid, a professor at Hofstra University and contributor to Religion Dispatches, thinks Muslims have rallied around the constitutional rights of those planning Park 51. But he thinks the Cordoba Initiative has failed to convert that passion into a support for the project itself.
“I still don’t think they’ve done it,” he said. “I think we’re hearing different things — and not wildly different things, but just enough inconsistencies that it keeps raising questions, from the Twitter feed to the FAQ on their website and their TV appearances.”
Interview: CBS2 NY on Gov. Paterson’s remarks on Islam
But Hussein Rashid, a professor of religion at Hofstra, was stunned by the governor’s remarks.“I think Gov. Paterson is firmly in the percentage of the American population that admits it knows nothing about Islam. His simple statements about Suffis being good Muslims as opposed to whom, people who aren’t Suffis?” Rashin [sic] said.