There was a time when I used to read the Qur'an daily for about 30 minutes. When I did this, I noticed myself changing and was forced to reduce the reading to twice a week. When I read "too often," I became calmer, more at peace, and I cared very little about troublesome events or material …
Continue reading “Violent” verses in the Qur’an don’t bother me anymore.
I hope this post finds everyone well, happy, and looking forward to a new beginning, despite the reality that a new journey around the sun involves no indication that our old problems won't continue. (They most certainly will.) With the acknowledgement that I am a little late, I'd like to begin the new year with a …
I’ve been avoiding this post. I’ve successfully avoided writing it for four years. As most of you know I’m conscious of the context to which I contribute exegesis (or anything), and whether or not hijab is mandatory is a question that is irrelevant in a context where women are harassed for wearing the hijab—and for …
If you've been reading this website for a while, even if you're not Muslim, chances are you've caught the drift from a couple of posts that the Qur'an is absolutely gorgeous. Since I spend a lot of time here discussing the more seemingly formidable verses (see the entire "Misconceptions" tab) I haven't quite explicitly demonstrated …
Continue reading Quranic Verses and Misconceptions: The Limiting of 24:33
Umar, the only corrupted caliph of the first four, publicized stoning as a punishment for adultery, a penal ordinance that does not appear in the Qur’an and was delivered by the Prophet in cases when the adulterer was non-Muslim, such as the case of a Jewish woman in Medina whose people had agreed to an …
Continue reading Removed from Societal Context: Verse 33:53, the Veil, and the role of Umar
Although I've already written about Maryam as our Prophetess, I'd like to expand on her significance by comparing the cosmological role of our Prophet Muhammad to that of our Prophetess Maryam. There are several interesting parallels between Maryam and Muhammad; the first and most obvious is not only that both recieved word from the Archangel …
Continue reading Prophet Maryam and Her Successor, the Prophet Muhammad
And what is the matter with you that you fight not in the cause of God and for the oppressed among men, women, and children who say, "Our Lord, take us out of this city of oppressive people and appoint for us from Yourself a protector and appoint for us from Yourself a helper"? Qur'an …
the fatal feminist 