The French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM) met with Pope Francis on November 3. The meeting was organized by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity, which brings together 200 leaders from different religions. The delegation was accompanied by Michel Dubost, the Bishop…
One year after the November 2015 Paris attacks Le Monde published a collection of thoughts and commentaries from France’s Muslims. Glimpses into their lives reveal anxiety, sadness, hope and defiance, among other sentiments. “I felt like half of a citizen,” said Tahar Mouci, who owns a bar in the 20th arrondissement. “The Monday following the attacks…
Four mosques in France have been closed after many people who attended them reportedly joined extremist movements. The places of worship, French officials said Wednesday, promoted violence and ideologies that ran contrary to French values. The closures were made via a national state of emergency that was initiated following terrorist attacks, including one in November of last year in…
A student of a French high school was threatened with expulsion after he refused to comply with the headmaster’s demand to shave his beard, which the headmaster considered a “sign of radicalization.” “You cut it or you leave,” the headmaster reportedly told the student. The head teacher also reportedly claimed that the student’s beard is…
A cell of radicalized French women guided by Islamic State commanders in Syria was behind a failed terrorist attack near Paris’s Notre Dame Cathedral last weekend and planned another violent attack this week before they were intercepted by police, the Paris prosecutor has said. The women, aged 19, 23 and 39, were arrested in Boussy-Saint-Antoine, a small town…
