September 23, 2018 |

Law, Religion, and Disorder in the Arab States

The law in the contemporary Arab states is an amalgamation of statutes, codes, and regulations put in place over the past 100-150 years in the process of forming the modern nation-state project. Often, the “Islam” or “Sharia”, to be more precise, is the primary source cited in the first few articles in almost every constitution…

Islam Islamic Law Islamic Politics Islamic Thought

October 17, 2017 |

Envisioning an Islamic Economic Union!

What are the possibilities of an Islamic Economic Union that can harness the strength and market competitive advantage of a diverse set of countries that are endowed with enormous resources and highly talented populations? The basis for forming such a market is present and the conditions are optimal to achieve it in a period of…

Islamic Law Islamic Politics Islamic Thought Muslim History Politics

January 13, 2017 |

Islam’s Metaphysical Economy: “Trade Based on Contentment”

In a number of verses, the Qur’an uses the term, “trade based or established on contentment of the parties involved in the transaction.”  The term “contentment” appears in various places in the Qur’an and overall imparts a positive outlook. Here, I am interested in the specific framing and association of trade and contentment in the…

Islamic Education Islamic Law Islamic Politics Islamic Thought Muslim History

October 15, 2015 | Daily Sabah

On Muslim toleration

In “A Letter Concerning Toleration” from exile in the Netherlands, John Locke articulated a truly liberal view concerning freedom of conscious that he hoped might help resolve Europe’s raging religious war that had killed millions. Europe’s religious conflicts and Christian sectarian wars raged in the 16th and 17th centuries with tumultuous debates centering on claims…

Islamic Education Islamic Law Islamic Politics Islamic Thought Muslim History Race/Racism

March 29, 2015 | Daily Sabah

Sunni Islamic authority between the text and context

The ongoing chaos in many parts of the Muslim world can, in part, be traced to the collapse of Sunni Islamic authority and the emergence of various groupings claiming to fill the vacuum. While all agree that the collapse is a reality, however, dating the collapse is as difficult as the attempts to fill it….

Islam Islamic Law Islamic Politics Muslim History

March 15, 2015 | Daily Sabah

ISIS beheading Islam through its actions!

The recent videos showing ISIS members destroying Mosul’s museum and with it the loss of Iraq’s and world cultural and historical heritage are woefully sickening. The actions are undertaken supposedly on the basis of Islamic interpretation and an attempt on the one hand to destroy idols and on the other adhering to a strict prohibition…

Islam Islamic Law Muslim History

January 22, 2015 | Daily Sabah

Ahmed Merabet and Charlie Hebdo’s new cover: at whom are we poking fun?

In the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo murders, Ahmed Merabet’s brother Malek correctly declared: “My brother was Muslim and he was killed by two terrorists, by two false Muslims. … Islam is a religion of peace and love. As far as my brother’s death is concerned, it was a waste. He was very proud of…

De-Colonial Islamic Law Islamic Politics Islamophobia

June 9, 2014 | Turkey Agenda

“Islamic Reformation” and the West living in our minds

Wilfrid Scawen Blunt commented in his book, The Future of Islam, that Islam needs to “work out for itself a Reformation,” resembling that which took place in Europe. Blunt points out that in Al-Azhar University (his writing concerning al-Azhar was in 1882, and afterward) the “basis of a social and political reformation has been laid.”…

De-Colonial Islam Islamic Law Muslim History