Zaytuna College is the first Muslim college in the US; the college is currently seeking accreditation from accrediting bodies in the United States, as well as recognition from major educational institutions in the Muslim world, such as Egypt’s al-Azhar University. Its very existence in America repudiates notions of Islam as an exclusively Eastern ideology, and…
Official figures, as well as those of the Islamic Religious Community in Austria (IGGiÖ), place the number of Muslims in Austria at 330 000. This number is disputed by those who are not members of the IGGiÖ, such as the liberal Turkish Alevis. The Alevis do not consider themselves to be represented by the current…
(*the above sentence literally translates as “For the churchization of Islam”) A conference held by the Faculty of Theology, the Lehrhaus Foundation and the Dialogue Institute in Zürich recently addressed the question of the public relevance of religion, especially in light of the recent ban on minarets which suggested that the public manifestation of religion…
A newly-founded Islamic Central Council of Switzerland says it aims to be the main grassroots Muslim organization in the country. The group currently has about 500 members and hopes to win a total of 10,000 participants by the end of 2011, according to spokesman Qaasim Illi. The group represents the orthodox Sunni Muslims and has…
Switzerland’s recent vote to ban the construction of new minarets has shocked and angered Muslims around the world. But the controversial move also reflects a growing sense of unease among other Europeans who have trouble coming to terms with Islam’s increased visibility. This article examines the state of Islam in the public sphere of many…
