Some stories are just too sweet to pass over. I was at the Islamic Center of New York University for an iftar, preceded by a sermon.
Read moreWe Are Not a Monolith
We, as in Muslims. What if I were to pick up a tourist couple from Times Square and took them for an iftar?
Read moreShe Chose to Wear the Hijab
Sahar with her husband Aamir in Central Park
Sahar, how old were you when you started wearing the hijab?
I was 43.
You did not wear the hijab while living in Pakistan. Did your mother wear the hijab?
No, she didn’t.
What Does Islam Mean to You?
When I asked non-Muslim students at UCLA what they know about Islam, some mentioned prayer and making pilgrimage, but two answers were most common: “Islam requires women to wear hijab” or “It had tons of rules and rituals”.
Read moreSupreme Court, Abortion, and Islam
Where do American Muslims stand on this issue? Where do I stand? What do the Islamic scholars say? What if Roe v. Wade is overturned?
Read moreHagia Sophia: In the name of God
Skin-Deep
“I am looking for a suitable match for my son. Do you know of anyone? She should be from a respectable family, pretty, and light-skinned.” That was the criteria in the society of Pakistan,
Do All Muslims Have Good Knees?
Can you guess the context?
I have been asked many questions about Muslims, the Muslim faith, the Muslim whatever, but this had to be the sweetest and most endearing. If you haven’t already guessed, we were in a mosque, in a prayer hall, in the women’s section, settling down for Friday Jumma prayers. My Jewish friend Bernice and I had just sat down on the red prayer rug.
Can Love Be Banned?
They tried and they failed.
In 2017, Pakistan High Court ruled that Valentines Day was un-Islamic and is not to be celebrated in public places or government offices. An individual had petitioned the court with the plea that it was a cultural import from the West and against the teachings of Islam.
Is New Year Greeting Haram?
“Happy New Year,” said one person to another on one New Year morning, January 1, 2019.
Nothing unusual about that, right? Well, one of them didn’t think so. Actually, he took offense. I am not kidding. “It is not our new year. Our new year starts in Muharram. For one Muslim to greet another Muslim with a Happy New Year greeting on January 1 is haram,” …