Stories about Religion from April, 2006
Pulse of the Saudi Blogosphere
Football and ice hockey, hijab and fatwas, bloggers meetups, and much much more from the Saudi blogosphere this week. Let's go… Starting with Swalfy, who did not seem so surprised that Riyadh Gitex, which supposed to be the biggest IT exhibition in Saudi Arabia does not has a website. He...
Iran: Joking with Nulcear
Bazardispatch says Iranians intend to survive any storm by laughing through it. Blogger reports that one of Ahmadineghad's mottos is “Nuclear Energy is our absolute right!” well the newest SMS in Tehran is: “Having two wives is our absolute right too! But who becomes a second wife?” teasing Islamic code...
Indonesian Playboy
Two colleagues are in a reflexology place enjoying their massage. A stranger joins in and starts small talk with them. The fun starts when the Indonesian Playboy magazine issue comes up.
Iran: Women, Football & Ayathollahs
Bidari (Persian) considers Ahmadinejad's decision to let women watching football in stadiums a real mistake. Blogger says people who back President don't have this kind of requests. In addition now several Grand Ayatollahs are against Ahmadinejad's decision.
Brazil: Islam
Comings Communiqué, a weblog by a Christian missionary, is dismayed by the rise of Islam in Brazil.
DRC: Cardinal Asks Congolese to Protect DRC From Foreigners
Archbishop of Kinshasa, Cardinal Etsou, asked Congolese to protect their country from foreigners, reports (FR)Renouveau Congolais. “You have left this beautiful country to foreigners who are carving it out” said the Cardinal to local political actors.
Islamic Banking in Indonesia
Sarapanekonomy explains islamic banking in Indonesian context. Islamic banks operate under shariah law, which does not allow interest taking on investments.
African women this week.
Congratulations to Kenyan women bloggers who have won Kenya Unlimited Kaybee awards 2006. Mshairi for best poetry blog; Gussaurus for best new blog and most interactive blog; Mama's Junkyard for best design; Au Lait for blogger one would most like to meet; and Kenyan Pundit for best political blog. Nigerian...
China: Hu's heckler has done this before
Roland Soong of ESWN digs up a website indicating that Wang Wenyi, the FLG practitioner who heckled Hu Jintao at the White House on Thursday, has a heckling history: a 2001 photo shows her confronting then-President Jiang Zemin in Malta. Roland also translates results of a Hong Kong Oriental Daily...
Kenya: Anglican Church in Africa
Kenyan blog, The Shipwright Returns writes that the center of the Anglican Church is now in the global south…“If the new Christendom had a world capital based on the location of its believers, it would be somewhere south of the Sahara.”
Landing at the Iraqi Blogodrome
As a postscript to the 1970 Gil Scot Heron poem ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised‘, There will be no highlights on the eleven o'clock news… The Revolution Will Not Be Televised The revolution will be no re-run brothers; The revolution will be live. The revolution will be blogged. And...
Tajikistan: Mosques & Computers
James of neweurasia writes about a foreign donor-funded computer training program to be run by a mosque in Tajikistan and says that if this is not an explicit strategy to bolster moderate Islam, perhaps it should be.
Manal – The bold and the beautiful Moroccan blogger
Do you remember Jyllandsposten? The newspaper that published cartoons of the prophet (PBUH)? Representatives of the paper refused to meet with the BBC, CNN or the Danish TV, but agreed to meet Manal!! Yes, Manal is a student-doctor who blogs and wants to make a difference. Her blog Manal Carpe...
China: Blogger suggests agenda
The Sun Bin blogger raises two issues he expects to see addressed during Chinese president Hu Jintao's visit to the United States this week: plans for Iran and Tibetan independence: “Dalai [Lama] is showing to Hu that he can command all the Tibetan separatists (I guess I can use this...
Armenia: Easter
Zarchka writes about Easter celebrations in Armenia.
Hungary, Poland, Slovenia: Easter Traditions
As the Warsaw Crow Flies, Further Ramblings of a N.Irish Magyar and The Glory of Carniola describe Easter traditions in Poland, Hungary and Slovenia.
Egypt: Church Attacks
Jar Elkamar wrote an eye witness account of one of the last Friday church attacks in Egypt. Elijah translated it here. Also of interest is this opinion by a Christian Egyptian who said that the attacks do not represent Islam and warning about using it as an excuse to crush...
Ayaan Hirsi Ali: Interview
Ayaan Hirsi Ali blog posts an interview with Hirsi Ali on a report advising the Dutch government to take a softer line on Islam.
Don't go near the sea on Good Friday, and other Caribbean Easter traditions
The Easter Weekend in the Caribbean arrives at the height of the dry season, with gorgeous weather and Christian traditions conspiring to make it a time both solemn and fun-filled. A popular Easter weekend activity is kite-flying, and a number of bloggers did just that on Good Friday. Barbados Free...
Czech Republic: Matzah in Prague
David of Prague Blog describes what an ordeal it is to try finding matzah for Passover in Prague.
Pakistan: Hasan Abdal
Shirazi has a post on Hasan Abdal near Islamabad where “The legend has it that in 1521 AD, while passing through then deserted area on a very hot day, Guru Nanak's companion Bhai Mardana got very thirsty. The Guru suggested that he go to the Saint Baba Wali Qandhari who...
