ING

Islam 101: Orientation to Islam

Islam views itself as the primordial and fundamental message first conveyed to the first human beings, Adam and Eve: Belief that there is no god but One God and the injunction that one should strive to live a righteous life. Islam views itself as a continuation of and the culmination of the universal message of monotheism which was taught by all the prophets, from Adam to Muhammad. Read more.

ING Recommended Reading List: Intro to Islam

Qur’an Translations
Thomas Cleary (translator), The Qur’an: A New Translation
M.A. Abdel Haleem (translator), The Qur’an (Oxford World’s Classics)
Bruce Lawrence,The Qur’an: A Biography

Biographies of the Prophet Muhammad
Karen Armstrong, Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time
Omid Safi,Memories of Muhammad

Click here for a full list.

Shared Values with Other Faiths

The most prominent values in Islam that are shared with other faiths include the following:

The sanctity of human life

One of the greatest sins is to take an innocent life that God has granted. This verse affirms this principle which was enjoined upon the prior people and prophets: “…We ordained for the Children of Israel that whosoever kills a human being for other than manslaughter or corruption in the earth, it shall be as if he had killed all humankind, and whosoever saves the life of one, it shall be as if he had saved the life of all humankind” (Qur’an: 5:32). Read more.

"Living the Faith" as a Muslim in the San Francisco Bay Area

• Living as a Muslim in the San Francisco Bay Area is much like living as any other person here. At some levels of practice, there may be absolutely no difference in lifestyle. Read more.

Contemporary global issues concerning our respective religions

Separation of church and state

There are no specific Qur’anic guidelines relating to separation of church and state and no specific descriptions of what an “Islamic state” would look like. The Prophet Muhammad (p) did not leave a plan for his succession or for what kind of state would follow him. Read more.

Important Islamic Dates

2012-2013 CALENDAR OF IMPORTANT ISLAMIC DATES

Recognizing these important dates not only brings awareness of the diversity within the student population but also instills pride in Muslim students who celebrate them. Muslim students may be too embarrassed or shy to acknowledge these practices or holidays, which are not yet a part of the dominant American culture. We hope this information will be useful. Read more.

Muslim Life in America

Websites Pertaining to Muslim Life in America

http://usinfo.org/enus/education/overview/muslimlife/homepage.htm

Islam is one of the fastest-growing religions in the United States today. According to one recent survey, there are 1,209 mosques in America, well over half founded in the last 20 years. Between 17 and 30 percent of American Muslims are converts to the faith. Read more.

Muslim Literature in the US

The San Francisco Chronicle

Sunday, February 6, 2005

By Jonathan Curiel
Chronicle Staff Writer

Islamic verses; The influence of Muslim literature in the United States has grown stronger since the Sept. 11 attacks

America's best-selling poet is not Billy Collins, whose folksy, humorous work won him two terms as U.S. poet laureate. It's not Robert Frost, the four-time Pulitzer Prize winner whose reading at John F. Kennedy's 1961 inauguration is still studied by students. ("The land was ours before we were the land's ...") And it's not Edgar Allan Poe, whose "The Raven" has been called "the best-known poem in the Western Hemisphere." Read more.

Muslim Roots of the Blues

The San Francisco Chronicle

Sunday, August 15, 2004

By Jonathan Curiel
Chronicle Staff Writer

Muslim roots of the blues; The music of famous American blues singers reaches back through the South to the culture of West Africa

Sylviane Diouf knows her audience might be skeptical, so to demonstrate the connection between Islam and American blues music, she'll play two recordings: The Muslim call to prayer (the religious recitation that's heard from mosques around the world), and "Levee Camp Holler," an early type of blues song that first sprang up in the Mississippi Delta more than 100 years ago. Read more.

Islamic Law for Iraqi Women

Islamic laws good for women?

AS OTHER STATES SHOW, RELIGIOUS RULE IN IRAQ HAS ROOM FOR RIGHTS

By Ellen Goodman

San Jose Mercury News
February 17, 2005

In every story about the aftermath of the Iraqi elections, there seems to be the same sentence punctuated by the same question mark. What does the victory of a Shiite Muslim alliance mean? Will the new constitution be written according to religious laws? Will the clergy determine the rights or the lack of rights for women? Read more.