Yousafzai first attracted the group's ire for her insistence on the right of girls to be educated. At the age of 11, she gained international recognition for her BBC blog, in which she documented Taliban atrocities as they burned girls' schools to the ground.

Following Yousafzai's shooting earlier this month, the Taliban released a statement claiming, 'We did not attack her for raising her voice for education. We targeted her for opposing mujahideen (holy warriors) and their war.'

And so, the Taliban continues to paint Islam as an inherently violent religion.

Muslims are required to model their lives on that of the prophet Mohammed. Consequently, it is easy to assume the roots of radical Islam can be traced back to the prophet himself, hence the numerous Western depictions of Mohammed as an intolerant, murderous tyrant. Such depictions have no basis in history.

Mohammed was trying not just to introduce a new faith, but to transform Arabian society. He blamed much of Arabia's ills on the concept of jahaliyyah. Referred to as the 'Time of Ignorance' by Muslims to denote pre-Islamic times, jahaliyyah, according to historian Karen Armstrong, is better translated as 'irascibility', an 'acute sensitivity to honour and prestige; arrogance, excess, and ... a chronic tendency to violence and retaliation'.

In establishing an inclusive Muslim community (ummah), Mohammed sought to overcome the tribal ethos that had led to customs such as lethal retaliation for perceived transgressions, honour crimes and blood feuds, and whose patriarchal nature bred violence against women including wife beating, forced marriages and female infanticide, all of which Mohammed condemned.

Indeed women had such low standing it is not surprising that, after hearing Mohammed declare women's rights to inherit property and determine who and when they marry, women were among his earliest converts. For this, Mohammed was ridiculed for mixing with the 'weak'. Continue reading

Image: The Guardian

A government statement said Harry was the most popular boy's name, but it was outranked by totalling the five most common different spellings of the Muslim prophet.

Harry, the name of Prince William's younger brother and J. K. Rowling's boy wizard, was given to 7523 baby boys in 2011.

But a total of 7907 boys were called Mohammed, Muhammad, Mohammad, Muhammed or Mohamed.

According to CNN, variations of this name could become even more popular in 2012, given the adulation around the Somali-born long-distance runner Mo[hammed] Farah, who won two gold medals for Britain at the Olympics.

The popularity of the name comes as the United Kingdom's Muslim population is expected to double in the next 20 years.

The country, which was about 2% Muslim in 1990, grew to 4.6% Muslim in 2010, with nearly 2.9 million followers of the faith, according to analysis by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

By 2030, the United Kingdom will be just over 8% Muslim, with more than 5.5 million adherents, the Washington-based think tank projected in a 2011 report.

A total of 37,564 babies in Britain have been given a variation of the name Mohammed in the past five years.

Source:

CNN Belief Blog

Image: Muslim Thai Post

Part of the tension causing the present conflict is the fact that Assad and his supporters belong to the minority Shia Alawite sect, about 10 per cent of the population, which lords it over the majority Sunni Muslims who make up 75 per cent of Syria's citizens.

Assad represents a very secularised stream of politicians now being challenged and overthrown in many Arab countries. His motivation is not religious, and is largely to do with a ruthless maintenance of political power which is at odds with the ideals of his religion.

Among Muslims worldwide, roughly 85 per cent are Sunni, and the remaining 15 per cent are Shia. Most Shia live in Iran and Iraq. The divide between these two 'denominations' of Islam is poorly understood by non-Muslims.

The scholar featured in this interview is a Shia Muslim who belongs to the Ismaili branch of Shi'ism. Dr Reza Shah-Kazemi typifies the blend of intellectual and spiritual approaches to faith that is a mark of progressive Shia Islam. He speaks about his vision for tolerance and dialogue with other faiths based on Quranic texts.

The divide between Sunni and Shia dates back to the early years following the death in 632 CE of the Prophet Mohammed. The dispute was over who could lead the Muslim community and had little to do with basic beliefs and practices. Sunni and Shia Muslims believe the same basic tenets, and worship and pray in the same way.

From the beginning the Sunni majority held sway, arguing that any close companion of the Prophet could be Caliph (leader). The Shia minority argued that only those of the Prophet's blood lineage could lead, and, like him, they would have special powers of inspiration and interpretation of the faith. Continue reading

Sources

• Peter Kirkwood in Eureka Street
• YouTube
• Image: It Happenz

Philip Jensen asks if we can build a bridge on the basis of believing in only one God? Muslim preachers want to build the bridge there, claiming that we worship the same God, though they with clearer understanding since their prophet's message is not distorted and is God's final revelation to humanity. But do we worship the same God? Or do we worship a different God, even though we agree there is only one and he is the creator of all things. Is Yahweh Allah?

Read Jensen's Blog

Phillip Jensen, is the author of a number of books and a sought after speaker in Australia and internationally. He is currently the Dean of Sydney at St Andrew's Cathedral and Director of MTD, which provides the ongoing training for Ministers in the Sydney Diocese.

Image: Anglicans Ablaze