THE NEW ORLEANS PREMIERE – THIS SATURDAY FILM PREMIERE AND EID UL-ADHA CELEBRATION

FREE. CLICK HERE TO RSVP:  http://neworleansinsideislam.eventbrite.com/

Please join us for a special Ed Ul-Adha celebration and film premiere of the new documentary Inside Islam: What a Billion Muslims Really Think, at McAlister auditorium.  Doors open at 6:30 PM.

Inside Islam: What a Billion Muslims Really Think, a new documentary film from Unity Productions Foundation, explores the expertly gathered opinions of Muslims around the globe as revealed in the world’s first major opinion poll, conducted by Gallup, the preeminent polling organization. Focused on the issues of Gender Justice, Terrorism, and Democracy – the film presents remarkable data deftly, challenging the popular notion that Muslims and the West are on a collision course. Like the research, the film highlights a shared relationship that is based on facts – not fear.

Program:

Doors open at 6:30 PM
7:00 Opening and Welcome
7:10 Keynote Speaker, Alex Kronemer is a writer, lecturer and documentary producer focusing on religious diversity, Islam and cross-cultural understanding. He has a Master’s Degree in Theological Studies from Harvard University, where his research concentrated on the philosophy of religion and comparative religion.
7:45 Film (55 min)
8:45 Closing remarks and networking/dialogue opportunity

Location:
McAlister Auditorium
6823 St. Charles Avenue, McAlister Drive,
New Orleans, LA 70118

Event Chair: Syed Basharat Ali, President, Pakistan Community Association Of Greater New Orleans
(504) 343-1499, ali@latour@hotmail.com

Keeping in mind that Ramadan was not just a month of fasting, but also a month that emphasized charity, forbearance and compassion. Ramadan allowed us to refine our internal and external behavior. Here are some practical and easy ways to continue that spiritual growth we felt:

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-20339-San-Jose-Muslim-Examiner~y2009m9d22-Keeping-the-spirit-of-Ramadan-alive-throughout-the-year

I have joined BlogCritics (now part of Technorati) as a writer and my first article has been published here: Islam and Technology

I hope to branch out and do more writing on diverse topics there. Your support is greatly appreciated. Please tweet and/or post this article on your social networks.

Read more about BlogCritics here: http://blogcritics.org/about-blogcritics/

IslamCrunch is offering 2 free tickets to sold out film screening of New Muslim Cool. For a chance to win these tickets, simply post a comment here and describe another important element of Islam in the West (besides hip-hop).

Here’s an example: Technology is an important element of Islam in the West. We have so many Muslim engineers, scientists, computer specialists. Plus we have the benefit of centuries of jurisprudence, Islamic law and spiritual teachings. We can use this extensive knowledge to lead the technology front in order to benefit humanity.

The most appealing answer will be given the tickets. Video comments would be very cool too. Screening will be on Sunday, April 26 at 3pm in San Francisco. More details here: http://fest09.sffs.org/films/film_details.php?id=63

We would like to request that the winner provide a review of the film. Your review may get posted on IslamCrunch!

This contest is sponsored by Kinza Academy – Muslim home education.

At a recent event, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf presented a new paper, titled “Climbing Mount Purgatorio: Reflections from the Seventh Cornice”. The event was The Social Costs of Pornography, a consultation organized by the Witherspoon Institute at Princeton University. This event was held in December 2008. Click here for more details about The Social Costs of Pornography event.

And click here to download Shaykh Hamza’s paper: “Climbing Mount Purgatorio”.

The consultation on The Social Costs of Pornography was organized by the Witherspoon Institute in conjunction with the Institute for the Psychological Sciences in Washington, DC and held at Princeton University, December 11 – 13, 2008. The consultation was hosted by Robert P. George, Senior Fellow of the Witherspoon Institute and McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University. This meeting assembled leading experts in the fields of psychiatry, psychology, neurophysiology, philosophy, sociology, law, and political theory to present a rigorously argued overview of the problem of pornography in our society and to make recommendations. The primary purpose of the meeting was to examine the real nature of pornography in its moral and social consequences.

It is essential to note the scholars who participated in this consultation represent a wide range of political perspectives, but share a common interest in addressing pornography’s devastating social cost. At the two-day-long consultation, ten scholars delivered papers on subject-specific aspects of pornography’s impact, and approximately twelve scholars served as discussants throughout the meeting. This format ensured that the papers will be energetically critiqued in order to promote a fair and in-depth assessment of the issues in question.

After reading one of my tweets, his interest was piqued about IslamCrunch. Soon after, we got on Skype and began a new friendship.

Cameron says about IslamCrunch: “One of the most effective uses of the internet, is the ability to promote a movement with upright intentions.  IslamCrunch is an excellent example of a web-property that targets a deep and narrow niche and applies effective communication tools to build a loyal and vibrant traffic base.  It’s one of the most effective projects utilizing web tools to push a religious point of view online today. Read more here…

Jump into the social sharing circle:

Digg the article here.

Buzz up the article here.

Mixx up the article here.

View Cameron’s Twitter stream here: http://twitter.com/cameronperon

Read more about the event here: http://mqu.be/items/view/59/mikael-pittam-will-be-speaking-at-the-creativity-spiritual-path-event

Direct link: http://spiritualcreative.com/bio-mikael.html

If you are in the Bay Area, please try to attend.

The National, an English newspaper based in Abu Dhabi, has published an opinion piece by Rasha Elass, which quotes Imam Zaid’s recent lecture in New York.

Here are some highlights:

“This is our time. This is our place,” Imam Zaid Shakir told his enthusiastic young Muslim audience in New York. “As a community we’re not invisible, but some of us have chosen to pretend that we are.”

“Yes, there are challenges in this post-9/11 America: the Patriot Act… right-wing elements and their surrogates. But we should embrace the challenges,” he said.

And a quote from Dave Chappelle:

“You’re not playing around, America, because you just put a black man with a brown name in the White House.”

Read the full article here: http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090114/OPINION/778135416/-1/NEWS

Curing Extremism

The DeenLoad series offers single lectures for download. The first series is titled Curing Extremism with Imam Zaid Shakir, Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad and Shaykh Hamza Yusuf.

In this timely download, Imam Zaid, Shaykh Abdal Hakim and Shaykh Hamza diagnose and offer curative solutions to one of the most pressing problems we face as a globalized human society…. religious extremism.

Is Islam intrinsically extreme? Who’s to blame? What is the role that the individual, the community and the society at large can play in combatting and preventing religious extremism?

Find the answers to these essential questions and more in this critical series.

Click the link to purchase the download: http://zikrcast.com/Distance_Learning/deenload.php

We highly recommend the video download. It is high quality video in 640 x 480 mp4 format.

Another special treat: for every person who adds a comment to this post with sincere feedback on why you enjoy or dislike IslamCrunch, will receive a discount code for $1.00 off the sale price. If you leave a video comment, you will receive a $2.00 discount code.

LECTURE OUTLINES

Part 1 by Imam Zaid Shakir

• Particular dynamics of Muslim life in Britain
• What shapes who we are
• Parallels between the ghettos in the US & Britain
• Distorted understanding of “the other”
• The reality of low self esteem amongst the youth
• Fighting with the wrong weapons
• Superficial reactions to social ills
• Changing our perception of western societies
• Taking advantage of the opportunities that Western society offers
• Being a community of balanced
• Forging a new vision of change for our youth
• Doing more to help more

Part 2 by Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad

• The bewilderment of this age
• The guiding Ship of Faith
• Unity amidst diversity
• The response of the believers and the response of the hypocrites to trials
• A multitude of choices and conflicting voices
• Following the scholars or ones whims
• The tranquil stability of the believers
• Projecting inner ugliness onto Islam
• Aiding the enemies of Islam with our wrong actions
• Spreading the message of Rahmah

Part 3 by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf

• Defining terms & limits
• Living in a culture of extremes
• Causing our own suffering
• To whom is our allegiance
• Interacting with the law of the land
• Understanding civil disobedience
• Studying the Prophetic model of social reform
• Advice for Muslims living in the West
• Perceptions of Muslims in the West
• The question of assimilation and integration
• The potential benefits that Muslims bring to society
• A call to wisdom
• The example of the Bee
• The best defense