Germany, like many locales, is currently undergoing processes of societal boundary drawing giving renewed salience to religious difference. The aftermath of President Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as the Israeli capital brought fierce debates about the (real or imputed) anti-Semitism of Muslim immigrants and their descendants. The result was a further instance of the discursive…
Bright moments in the Dark Ages If “1001 Inventions” does nothing else, it teaches that “Dark Ages” is a misguided moniker. The period between the seventh century and the Renaissance was, in fact, a time of explosive creativity in the expansive Muslim world, which stretched from Spain to China. The breakthroughs in science, math, astrology…
According to some Muslims and Jewish people of faith, the common name of the H1N1 virus, “Swine Flu,” is offensive in its reference to pigs, because the animal is considered unclean to Muslims and Jews. Some Israeli health officials have urged changing the name to “Mexican flu.” In the United States, the Center for Disease…
The Federal Agency for Technical Regulation and Metrology has registered a “halal system” which identifies the compliance of products and medicines according the Islamic law and custom. Halal certification will allow the recognition of Russian products marked as “halal” by countries that are members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. The regulation system was…
Mohamed Nour Dachan, the president of Italy’s largest Muslim organization, the UCOII, sent condolences over the death of a comatose woman at the center of a controversial euthanasia debate in Italy. Eluana Englaro died after being in a vegetative state since being injured in a car crash in late 1992 – doctors in a nursing…
