All praise and honor be to the Dayspring of divine wisdom, the Dawning Point of Revelation (Muḥammad)
‘Abdu’l‑Bahá
Dalia Mogahed on Islam in the world today episode of TED https://open.spotify.com/episode/3prBSDsJzreeLvSahLAB5z?si=vMeCVcDaSFqSfA2ojb4n6g
Marzieh Gail, Six Lessons on Islam, (1953). A brief overview of Islam, particularly Shi’a Islam, and its relevance to the Baha’i Faith. https://bahai-library.com/gail_lessons_islam
Heart Touching Quran Recitation – Idriss Hachimi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJwlm9ile7A
Introduction to “The Holy Qur’an”, by Maulana Muhammad Ali: https://www.muslim.org/english-quran/quran-intro.htm.
Muhammad Ali, Maulana, The Religion of Islam: A Comprehensive Discussion of the Sources, Principles and Practices of Islam, 5th edition, Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam, 2012. Written in 1936. https://aaiil.org/Files/Literatures/Books/2/ReligionOfIslamEng.pdf
Halim Rane:
- Covenants in Islam: What they mean for peaceful coexistence – Prof. Halim Rane https://www.youtube.com/live/5BTSZX8Q2aE?si=A5A9kWsKOXQQnSh3
- Higher Objectives (maqāṣid) of Covenants in Islam: A Content Analysis of ‘ahd and mīthāq in the Qurʾān by Halim Rane https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/14/4/514
Richard Bulliet:
- “Islam: The Open Civilization” – Richard Bulliet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWqZw5QO-vA
Caner Dagli:
- The Laws of War and Religious Conversion in the Qur’an – Caner Dagli https://youtu.be/BRG3fHABXdw?si=n6GBsFauRTJXZu_B
Paul H. Freedman, Yale Courses:
- 14. Mohammed and the Arab Conquests https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXF7RkgANNo&list=PL77A337915A76F660&index=14
- 15. Islamic Conquests and Civil War https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuRtuYgekuE&list=PL77A337915A76F660&index=15
Fred M. Donner, Islam’s Origins: Myth and Material Evidence https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koVaxbWBlr4
Chase F. Robinson, Islam: Facts & Fictions https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-7815
Peace
Maulana Muhammad Ali, writing in 1936, addresses the conception that there is a doctrine of “the spread of Islam by force” with the following statement:
…”the spread of Islam by force”, is a thing of which no trace can be found in the Holy Qur’án. On the other hand, the Holy Book lays down the opposite doctrine in clear words. “There is no compulsion in religion”, and the reason is added: “The right way is clearly distinct from error” (2:256). This verse was revealed after the permission for war had been given, and it is therefore certain that the permission to fight has no connection with the preaching of religion. That the Holy Qur’án never taught such a doctrine, nor did the Holy Prophet ever think of it, is a fact which is now being gradually appreciated by the Western mind.
Muhammad Ali, Maulana, The Religion of Islam: A Comprehensive Discussion of the Sources, Principles and Practices of Islam
In “The Religion of Islam” chapter on “Jihad” Maulana Muhammad Ali provides his reasoning in support of the above claim. That chapter may be downloaded as a booklet from: https://www.muslim.org/bookspdf/jihadinislam.pdf
Women
- Myriam Francois-Cerrah The truth about Muhammad and Aisha https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2012/sep/17/muhammad-aisha-truth
- Zahid Aziz (compiler) Age of Aisha (ra) at time of marriage https://www.muslim.org/islam/aisha-age.htm
- Smirna Si Aishah – A study of her age at the time of her marriage with Prophet Muhammad https://archive.org/details/AishahAStudyOfHerAgeAtTheTimeOfHerMarriageWithProphetMuhammad/
On reading the Koran – Lesley Hazleton
Lesley Hazleton sat down one day to read the Koran. And what she found — as a non-Muslim, a self-identified “tourist” in the Islamic holy book — wasn’t what she expected. With serious scholarship and warm humor, Hazleton shares the grace, flexibility and mystery she found, in this myth-debunking talk.
https://ed.ted.com/
Matt Davies “Understanding Islam,” held at Trinity Lutheran Church in Dallas, Oregon, on January 10, 2016. All rights reserved.
- “Understanding Islam” – Part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhGnglI4Ktg
- “Understanding Islam” – Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMzYtz8DUzo
- “Understanding Islam” – Part 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UZHiJY91Vs
Historical Consciousness…The Challenge of Islam – Douglas Martin. (video 16:27 mins) A very interesting talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOaRFjG9sT8&list=PLePDtgwcyKAQJ54SpeVRaETuKv1sBmHzM&index=3
Todd Lawson on Islam and the Baha’i Faith (video 3:09 mins) by Todd Lawson, Professor Emeritus of Islamic Thought at the University of Toronto https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEszLWYqPeI
There is Peace
Some Personal Research:
Aspects of the Islamic religion are sometimes viewed negatively by non-Moslems. Some criticism is unfair. For example when a friend of mine asserted that Islam was “spread by the sword” I found that to not be true, at least not in its early history. I don’t have the expertise of an historian, but my essay “Perspectives on the Expansion of Islam” includes a survey of the views of those who specialise in Islamic history.
Essay:
Perspectives on the Expansion of Islam By Colin Dibdin. Not yet peer-reviewed. A survey of historical accounts relevant to the commonly believed accusation that Islam was “spread by the sword”.
Slide show:
The Attraction of Islam Slide show – Visual presentation of the paper “Perspectives on the Expansion of Islam” by Colin Dibdin (26 slides – open then use the L/R arrows or swipe L/R.) Basis for a talk but semi-self-explanatory by itself.)
Presentation:
The Attraction of Islam – A presentation for an online interfaith meeting on 1 April 2021, by Colin Dibdin, with thanks to Mr Siva Peri for uploading this video.
Qur’an verse 4:157 regarding the crucifixion of Jesus Compilation and comments re: Bahá’í perspectives on the apparent contradiction between the Qur’an (verse 4:157 which appears to deny that Jesus Christ was crucified) and the belief of Christians and Bahá’ís that Jesus Christ was crucified and died on the cross. (Colin Dibdin)
Alhamdulillah
Alhamdulillah is an Arabic phrase meaning “praise be to God”, sometimes translated as “thank God”.
