Stories about Religion from July, 2008
Arabeyes: Moroccan woman refused French citizenship for burqa
Last week a French resident was refused citizenship on the grounds that she was “insufficiently assimilated.” The woman, referred to in the Press as “Faiza M.,” is a Moroccan citizen but has lived in France since 2000 with her husband, a French citizen, and three children, all born in France. The incident has set a precedent and has stirred up the feelings of bloggers around the world, reports Jillian York.
Madagascar: Family planning, baby-weighing and gospel choir.
Jayne Taylor Gaubatz, a Peace Corps volunteer blogger in the southern city of Fianaratsoa, describes the impact of a well-done family planning poster, the importance of baby weighing in tandem and attending a Malagasy gospel choir [en].
Iran: Several Iranian Churches on UNESCO's list
Kourosh Ziabari writes that several Armenian churches in Iran have been registered on UNSCO's World Heritage list.
Serbia: Cult of Milosevic
Sarah Franco of Cafe Turco and Jelena Markovic of Invisible Sights co-author a satirical text on “the cult” of Slobodan Milosevic.
Morocco to send imams to Europe
Daily Maghreb reports that Morocco will send 176 preachers to Europe to “answer the religious needs of the Moroccan community abroad, to protect them from any speeches of an extremist or irregular nature and shelter them from fanaticism and extremism.”
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Anniversaries of Massacres
Every year, bloggers and journalists remind their readers of the tragic events that took place in Bratunac in 1992 and in Srebrenica in 1995. The truth is painful, but nobody should be silent about war crimes. Here is a roundup of several opinions and experiences related to the massacres in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 90's.
France: Morrocan Woman Denied Citizenship
Blogger Sabria Jawhar writing for Arabisto comments on the recent French ruling denying citizenship to a Moroccan woman for wearing a “burqa”.
Bahrain: Anti-sectarianism initiative losing momentum?
Redbelt reports on a meeting hosted by a Bahraini newspaper with the aim of promoting a commitment to fight sectarianism and discrimination online – but with a low turnout by bloggers, he worries that no one really cares.
Morocco: Bring on the Gnaoua!
Every year in June, thousands upon thousands of tourists from around the world and Moroccans from all over the country flock to Essaouira, a small coastal city about 200 kilometers from bustling Marrakesh, for the annual Festival of Gnaoua and world music. The town, made famous by the Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix (Castles in the Sand is rumored to have been written about Mogador), is a year-round hot spot for Moroccan musicians of all kinds, but truly livens up during the festival. This year, many bloggers were in attendance.
Turkey is Typing…Terrorists and Other Threats to the Nation
The past two weeks have been tough for the Republic of Turkey as they have been dealing with enemies from within. On July 9th, a terrorist attack on the US Consulate in Istanbul has the authorities stumped as to who is responsible and why. And on Monday the 14th, Istanbul’s chief prosecutor filed a long-awaited indictment on the controversial Ergenekon case against 86 defendants charged with forming a terror group with the aim of a government coup.
Saudi Arabia: Keep out of my space!
Nzingha is used to people keeping a physical distance from each other in Saudi Arabia – but she says that in Bahrain those boundaries of personal space are not respected.
Saudi Arabia: No Need for Doctors
Saudi Jeans comments on an article by a senior Saudi cleric arguing for less health and more religious studies programmes at universities.
Kuwait: Prayer Comment
Kuwaiti Frankom posts two pictures of people praying under the title ‘No Comment.’
Venezuela: The Tradition of the Dancing Devils of Yare
The Dancing Devils of Yare is a traditional expression of culture and religion that takes place 9 weeks after Holy Thursday in the state of Miranda in Venezuela. The ritual dance is performed by dancers in colorful costumes and is a sense of pride for the entire country, as explained by local bloggers.
Saudi Arabia: Pious Wife Beating
From Cairo, Tom Gara posts a video [Ar] featuring a Saudi clergyman preaching on how to discipline wives. He adds: “This clip of a Saudi cleric explaining how to properly beat your wife is pure poetry – you couldn't make more perfect anti-Saudi propaganda if you tried.”
Africa: Summer Reflections (Thoughts from Mothers)
With this article, Paula Odhiambo salutes all mothers in Africa and reflects on children's compassion and giving, talking about sex with children and announces the birth of a blogger's baby girl.
Memorizing Quran and Hadist competition
The Indonesian government in association with the Saudi government will hold an Asean Musabaqah Hifdzil Quran wal Hadist/MHQH (Memorizing Quran and Hadist competition) this month.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Srebrenica Anniversary
Yesterday, on July 11, Bosnia and Herzegovina commemorated the 13th anniversary of the Srebrenica massacre, which the International Court of Justice in The Hague referred to as genocide against the Muslim population of the area last year. Elia Varela Serra reports on the online remembrance in the blogosphere and on Facebook.
Pakistan: Women and Jihad
CHUP! on women gathering at the Red Mosque in Pakistan.
China: Olympic Bible Cover
Rob from Black and White Cat blogs about the publishing of New Testament's “Special Edition for the Beijing 2008 Olympic game”.
Iran: World Heritage Sites
Blogian comments on the inclusion of three Armenian monasteries in Iran on UNESCO's World Heritage list. The blogger says that while he is happy about the move, he is also unhappy because of inaction by UNESCO when Armenian sites in the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan were destroyed.
