Today's religion and world affairs news from the United States and around the globe: Islamic education, Pope Francis, and modern attitudes toward Jewish Americans.
BERKLEY CENTER IN THE NEWS
Will Pilot's Fiery Death Prove a Turning Point?
by Drew Christiansen and Ra’fat Aldajani
National Catholic Reporter op-ed
http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/will-pilots-fiery-death-prove-turning-point
The video of the Islamic State’s fiery execution of Muath al-Kasasbeh last week was the nadir in the terrorist group’s death-cult self-promotion. Revulsion at the act, however, may well signal the decline of the terrorist group. It has proved a tipping point that finally galvanized Arab governments, cross-border tribes and a reluctant public into determined action to combat and defeat the group.
AROUND THE WORLD
In Indonesia, Madrassas of Moderation
by Pallavi Aiyar
New York Times op-ed
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/11/opinion/in-indonesia-madrassas-of-moderation.html?smid=tw-share
Students unfamiliar with the intricacies of their own faith can be swayed by arguments that seem to call for jihad when taken out of context. Students who have been schooled in the Quran and the Hadith at Islamic boarding schools are better able to spot scriptural distortions. They also tend to be more connected to their communities, and their stable sense of identity, religious and otherwise, shields them against radicalism. Islamic schools are allies, not suspects, in Indonesia’s fight against Islamism.
The Act of Rigorous Forgiving
by David Brooks
New York Times op-ed
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/10/opinion/david-brooks-the-act-of-rigorous-forgiving.html?ref=opinion&_r=0
Forgiveness is often spoken of in sentimental terms—as gushy absolution for everything, regardless of right or wrong. But many writers—ranging from Hannah Arendt and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to modern figures like Jeffrie Murphy and L. Gregory Jones—have tried to think hard about rigorous forgiveness, which balances accountability with compassion.
Pope Francis as Unifier
by Ross Douthat
New York Times op-ed
http://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/09/pope-francis-as-unifier/
I think both Blessed Oscar Romero and the possibility of stronger episcopal accountability around sex abuse offer two examples (among many, including on issues of greater immediate controversy) of how that kind of unifying legacy might be forged. As for whether it will be, the next year will tell us a great deal.
Germany’s Xenophobic Anti-Islam Movement Shocked the World, Then Defeated Itself
by Rick Noack
Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2015/02/10/germanys-xenophobic-anti-islam-movement-shocked-the-world-then-it-defeated-itself/
Why did Pegida lose so many supporters so quickly? The Pegida march Jan. 12, which marked the peak of support for the movement, already foreshadowed its decline.
American Sniper and the Muslim ‘Savage’
by Todd Green
Huffington Post op-ed
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/todd-green-phd/american-sniper-and-the-muslim_b_6634768.html?utm_hp_ref=religion
Is American Sniper a brilliant, subtle study of the trauma of war and the toll that incessant violence takes on those who participate in it? Or is American Sniper a shallow, flag-waving, war propaganda movie? These questions frame much of the debate over Clint Eastwood's recent film. Whatever side you take in this debate, one thing is indisputable: The film is attracting audiences in droves. It is also starting to attract some critical conversations over its troubling portrayal of Muslims, even though these conversations so far have not entered the mainstream.
DOMESTIC
Part Asian-American, All Jewish?
by Rachel Gross
NPR
http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2015/02/10/384069013/part-asian-american-all-jewish
Not everyone was as thrilled about my heritage as I was. Some even implied that the union that produced me was nothing less than a threat to the Jewish people—that I was what was wrong with Judaism today.
First Take: Handwriting on the Wall for Gay Marriage
by Richard Wolf
USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/02/09/supreme-court-gay-marriage-alabama/23116519/
The Supreme Court will decide whether to allow same-sex marriage nationwide later this year, and there is little doubt which way it is leaning. But things were different last year, when the Supreme Court temporarily blocked gay marriages in two states while the legal issue played out. Why the change?
Will Pilot's Fiery Death Prove a Turning Point?
by Drew Christiansen and Ra’fat Aldajani
National Catholic Reporter op-ed
http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/will-pilots-fiery-death-prove-turning-point
The video of the Islamic State’s fiery execution of Muath al-Kasasbeh last week was the nadir in the terrorist group’s death-cult self-promotion. Revulsion at the act, however, may well signal the decline of the terrorist group. It has proved a tipping point that finally galvanized Arab governments, cross-border tribes and a reluctant public into determined action to combat and defeat the group.
AROUND THE WORLD
In Indonesia, Madrassas of Moderation
by Pallavi Aiyar
New York Times op-ed
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/11/opinion/in-indonesia-madrassas-of-moderation.html?smid=tw-share
Students unfamiliar with the intricacies of their own faith can be swayed by arguments that seem to call for jihad when taken out of context. Students who have been schooled in the Quran and the Hadith at Islamic boarding schools are better able to spot scriptural distortions. They also tend to be more connected to their communities, and their stable sense of identity, religious and otherwise, shields them against radicalism. Islamic schools are allies, not suspects, in Indonesia’s fight against Islamism.
The Act of Rigorous Forgiving
by David Brooks
New York Times op-ed
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/10/opinion/david-brooks-the-act-of-rigorous-forgiving.html?ref=opinion&_r=0
Forgiveness is often spoken of in sentimental terms—as gushy absolution for everything, regardless of right or wrong. But many writers—ranging from Hannah Arendt and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to modern figures like Jeffrie Murphy and L. Gregory Jones—have tried to think hard about rigorous forgiveness, which balances accountability with compassion.
Pope Francis as Unifier
by Ross Douthat
New York Times op-ed
http://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/09/pope-francis-as-unifier/
I think both Blessed Oscar Romero and the possibility of stronger episcopal accountability around sex abuse offer two examples (among many, including on issues of greater immediate controversy) of how that kind of unifying legacy might be forged. As for whether it will be, the next year will tell us a great deal.
Germany’s Xenophobic Anti-Islam Movement Shocked the World, Then Defeated Itself
by Rick Noack
Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2015/02/10/germanys-xenophobic-anti-islam-movement-shocked-the-world-then-it-defeated-itself/
Why did Pegida lose so many supporters so quickly? The Pegida march Jan. 12, which marked the peak of support for the movement, already foreshadowed its decline.
American Sniper and the Muslim ‘Savage’
by Todd Green
Huffington Post op-ed
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/todd-green-phd/american-sniper-and-the-muslim_b_6634768.html?utm_hp_ref=religion
Is American Sniper a brilliant, subtle study of the trauma of war and the toll that incessant violence takes on those who participate in it? Or is American Sniper a shallow, flag-waving, war propaganda movie? These questions frame much of the debate over Clint Eastwood's recent film. Whatever side you take in this debate, one thing is indisputable: The film is attracting audiences in droves. It is also starting to attract some critical conversations over its troubling portrayal of Muslims, even though these conversations so far have not entered the mainstream.
DOMESTIC
Part Asian-American, All Jewish?
by Rachel Gross
NPR
http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2015/02/10/384069013/part-asian-american-all-jewish
Not everyone was as thrilled about my heritage as I was. Some even implied that the union that produced me was nothing less than a threat to the Jewish people—that I was what was wrong with Judaism today.
First Take: Handwriting on the Wall for Gay Marriage
by Richard Wolf
USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/02/09/supreme-court-gay-marriage-alabama/23116519/
The Supreme Court will decide whether to allow same-sex marriage nationwide later this year, and there is little doubt which way it is leaning. But things were different last year, when the Supreme Court temporarily blocked gay marriages in two states while the legal issue played out. Why the change?
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