Islam
Pakistan’s cartoon ‘Burka Avenger’ swoops into India to empower girls
By Reuters — April 14, 2015
NEW DELHI (Reuters) A female cartoon superhero who dons a burka to tackle crimes against girls and other social ills is bringing her message of women's empowerment to India.
The war against Christians must end!
By Jeffrey Salkin — April 6, 2015
Jews must speak out against the war against Christians.
The future map of religions reveals a world of change for Christians, Muslims and Jews
By Cathy Lynn Grossman — April 2, 2015
(RNS) Muslims will grow, "nones" will lose market share and Christians will hold steady, according to new projections from the Pew Research Center.
Beef ban * Witch hunts * Too much Guinness : March’s Religious Freedom Recap
By Brian Pellot — April 1, 2015
An Indian state bans the sale and possession of beef. Tanzanians murder “witches” accused of murdering “magical albinos.” And Ireland nearly outlaws straight marriage, on accident. Who needs April Fools’ Day when reality is this strange?
New Islamic art exhibits planned to counter Islam’s militant image
By Reuters — March 27, 2015
A foundation is funding two new galleries at the British Museum at a time when historic sites in Iraq are under attack by militants of the Islamic State.
‘Dig’ TV series starts adding up: Watch the numbers
By Kimberly Winston — March 19, 2015
(RNS) USA Network's action-thriller series is tossing biblical numerology and a difficult biblical text into its plot. What's real and what's fiction?
The Occasional Pilgrim: Sinan Pasha Mosque (Photos)
By Kimberly Winston — February 28, 2015
(RNS) Travel to the Sunan Pasha Mosque in the heart of Kosovo, the newest old country nestled in the heart of the Balkans in this slide show of a sacred place.
Islamic State refugees grow disgruntled: ‘We loved them so much’
By Michael Kaplan — February 26, 2015
SANLIURFA, Turkey (RNS) Little is known about how the Islamic State group is viewed by those living under its thumb. But a steady stream of refugees settling in southern Turkey offers a peek into life in the areas the militants control.
The ‘Splainer: Martyr or terrorist? It depends …
By Kimberly Winston — February 24, 2015
(RNS) One man's martyr can be another man's terrorist. Here's what's behind lionizing the dead.
Onward, Christian Soldiers: The complicated legacy of the Crusades (COMMENTARY)
By A. James Rudin — February 19, 2015
(RNS) The term "Crusades" is not some sort of benign, even quaint, historical reference.
Obama: No religion responsible for terrorism
By David Jackson — February 19, 2015
WASHINGTON (RNS) "No religion is responsible for terrorism — people are responsible for violence and terrorism," Obama told delegates at the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism.
Atheists, humanists take up slain Muslim’s cause
By Kimberly Winston — February 17, 2015
(RNS) Atheists and humanists unite to raise $20,000 to support the pet charity of slain Muslim student Deah Barakat, who authorities say was killed by a North Carolina neighbor with anti-theistic feelings.
Mormon woman volunteers to be whipped to save Saudi blogger
By Jana Riess — February 6, 2015
Mormon Katrina Lantos Swett, chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, has offered to be whipped 100 times to help save a Saudi blogger from an inhumane punishment.
Muslim women in Los Angeles start a mosque of their own
By Mariam Sobh — February 2, 2015
(RNS) “It’s meant to be a space for women to come together and talk about the female perspective,” said Sana Muttalib, the co-founder of the Women's Mosque of America.
Name radical Islamic ideology for what it is, but give reformers a chance (COMMENTARY)
By Dennis R. Hoover — January 30, 2015
(RNS) Here at last is bipartisanship -- on the question of Islam being part of the problem. But the critique is not being paired with serious acknowledgement, much less practical encouragement, of those working to make Islam part of the solution.
