Archive for the ‘Elias Karmi’ Tag
‘Raw capitalism is dead’–and Muslims have a solution
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: capitalism, debt, Elias Karmi, financial crisis, halal investing, interest, interest free, islamic finance, islamic investing, islamic law, no interest, Shariah, usury
Comments (5) By Elias Karmi, Engage Minnesota
It was just a few weeks ago that U.S. treasury secretary Henry Paulson declared raw capitalism’s death. And if I might add: Thank God someone realizes the futility of our current financial system. Two problems here: 1) it may be too late, and 2) even if we recover, the true solution may never be practiced.
It is challenging for someone who grew up surrounded by our current financial system to be able to feel what is fundamentally wrong with it. To illustrate, let me ask a question: Why is it that you can never own a house or open a business without borrowing money? And if you think that is the way things should be, it is not! Nor was it ever before in human history.
Borrowing money is not how humanity built its great historical monuments. The Pyramids and the Sistine Chapel were not paid for over years and years to come with interest. Yet in today’s world, if you avoid borrowing, you can barely add a wall to your house without going nearly bankrupt. Everyone, from individuals to large corporations and even governments are under some obligation to pay a debt that is often more than their net worth. How did we get here?
Counting the days to the End Times
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: apocalypse, Elias Karmi, end times, evangelical, hagee, Islam, Israel, jesus, judgement day, Muslims, prophecies, prophecy, second coming, Uncategorized
Comments (2) A Quick guide to the Islamic attitude toward prophecies
By Elias Karmi, Engage Minnesota
For some religions/denominations, notably Evangelical Christians, the subject of the End Times constitutes a formidable chunk of faith. Many of Pastor John Hagee’s books, from the fictional “Left Behind” series to “Jerusalem Countdown: A Warning to the World,” attempt to predict the future according to interpretations of the Bible and have enjoyed tremendous popularity among Evangelical Christians. “Left Behind” was even made into a movie.
Christians in the Muslim world
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Christians in the Muslim world, Elias Karmi
Comments (3) By Elias Karmi
In recent years, much has been said in the media about Islam and countries with Muslim majorities. At first, many reports were made with conspicuous bias due to the public outrage at the events of 9/11. Slowly, more reports are being made with an extra effort at being objective.
Still, certain aspects of the Muslim world are either being misrepresented or simply left to the audience to guess. Read more »
Polite Disagreement and the Age of Polarizing Media (Part I)
By Elias Karmi, Engage Minnesota
Tuning in to radio talk shows and TV political discussions is climbing up my list of stress-causing activities. Here is why: It is one thing to disagree with the other side of the spectrum, but it is quite another to devote an entire show, or sometimes a station, for non-stop vilification, mockery, and public charging against the opposing party.
In a quest for higher ratings, the media are playfully harping the strings of cultural differences within the United States. You have Air America Radio, for example, which never fails at scaring people about a looming conservative agenda that seeks to deprive everyone of their civil liberties — obviously pushing the correct buttons for people with liberal tendencies. On the other side, you also have Bill O’Reilly, already declaring war and naming himself a “culture warrior.” If there is ever a conclusion to this “war” of his, I wonder who could be the loser except America itself.
The other day I was attending a lecture at Dar al Farooq mosque in Dinkytown. The imam (preacher) was discussing how to deal with people of different creeds and ideologies. The conclusion was that we should stand up for what we believe and educate people about it, but it is neither required nor acceptable to condemn another sect by labeling them “disbelievers” or “evil” so long as they carry the same basic tenets. I thought: “This is a principle that America needs to be reminded of.” The right/left dialogue has been reduced to baseless accusations and speculations of ill intention.
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Myth-busting
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: abraham, arab, Elias Karmi, freedom, hate, isaac, ishmael, Islam, israeli, jewish, middle east, muslim, third world
Leave a Comment Some myths in Middle East politics and religion need to be deconstructed.
By Elias Karmi
Myth: The “Ancient Feud”
Unfortunately, a few academics have fallen for this one. The myth is that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is rooted in an ancient feud between Ismael, the perceived ancestor of the Arabs, and Isaac, the ancestor of the Children of Israel, both of whom are the sons of Abraham from different mothers.
From the point of view of Muslims, this is particularly absurd. Muslims highly revere both Ismael and Isaac – peace be upon them – as holy prophets whose brotherhood transcends sharing one father. Prophets are the highest humans in good manners and their presumed falling into feuds would be quite substandard.
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Ready for real change?
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: corruption, democratic, Elias Karmi, foreign policy, Iraq, lobby, middle east, republican, third world
Leave a Comment By Elias Karmi
According to a survey published recently by the Washington Post and ABC, 60 percent of all Americans strongly want the country to change direction. This comes naturally due to public perception of the evident challenges we are going through as being unnecessary, avoidable, or poorly executed – most notably the war in Iraq.
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Gaza: Another tragedy in the making?
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Elias Karmi, Fatah, foreign policy, Gaza, Hamas, Israel, Palestinian, Palestinian Authority, U.N., U.S.
Leave a Comment By Elias Karmi
Usually it brings a certain pleasure to be able to accurately predict what will happen next. When the prescience relates to the open-air prison known as the Gaza Strip, however, that pleasure is lacking.
Why we fast
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Elias Karmi, fasting, humility, muslim, Ramadan
Comments (4) By Elias Karmi
The month of Ramadan is when Muslims worldwide are required to fast, meaning to refrain completely from eating and drinking from dawn to sunset. It is also a month when Muslims perform more worship than they would during the rest of the year: praying more at night, reading more Qur’an, giving more in charity, etc.
A question that I hear frequently from my Minnesotan colleagues is: “Why do you do that?” – meaning, why do we fast. To Muslims, God’s order to fast is more than enough reason to do it, regardless of its health benefits that have been revealed over the years. But the question carries an interesting subtlety. The way the question is verbalized and the body language used suggest my colleagues are really asking: “Why do you have to make yourself suffer so much?” or “Why do you have to put yourself through this for a whole month?”
Looking deeper into the question, it is not the act of fasting itself that fascinates Americans; the principle of fasting is well established in several religions. Rather, it is the humility it takes for someone to submit, to the degree that fasting for a month per year becomes normal. To someone looking from the outside, it would appear as if Muslims are subjecting themselves to something they should refuse.
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