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As the DC correctly reported on 2/25, the MSA gave the 50-or-so people at the event the full opportunity to express their widely-varying views freely and openly, during the 1-hour Q&A session. More than 10 people asked their questions or made their statement regarding the “Iron Wall” film. At least three of them were Zionists who expressed absolute distaste for the entire event, as reported in the DC news report. None of them, including Ms. Shamash, was ever denied the opportunity to speak based on their views.
The dramatic conclusion of Ms. Shamash speech had nothing to do with her views but everything to do with her attitude. First of all, she spoke for four minutes, exceeding the reasonable time limit for comments or questions. Moreover, she was the only one who interrupted the guest speaker and wanted to turn the scene into a heated out-of-control argument. Finally, she ignored the plea to hand over the microphone when her opportunity to speak was over.
If Ms. Shamash can't express her view in 4 minutes, she has all the right to organize her own event and take all the time she needs to present her views. But it seems that misrepresenting facts and attempting to distort the image of the MSA are the only things Ms. Marissa can do to whitewash the Israeli illegal and immoral practices in occupied Palestine.
The MSA did a great job to bring to the table people from different walks of life: Jews, Christians, Muslims and others who agree that Israeli settlements in the occupied territories are immoral and illegal and render a two-state peace solution nonviable . Everyone at the event, except Zionists, agreed that the road to peace starts with justice for the Palestinian people. Both of the guest speakers promoted a democratic states in which Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs live together as equal citizens, to replace the current Israeli apartheid.
If Zionists like Ms. Marissa and Ms. Shamash want to challenge these views in an open debate forum, I whole-heartedly invite them to work with the MSA to bring such an event to UConn.
Thanks,
Saleh
Letters to the DC Editor
'Iron Wall' hopeful for unity in face of division
Posted: 2/27/09
On Tuesday, Feb. 24, there was a showing of the film "The Iron Wall," about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in the Student Union Theater, presented by the Muslim Student Association. Although this film was biased in favor of the Palestinian perspective, the pro-Israeli students and teachers in attendance watched patiently and recognized that everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.
After the movie ended, the two guest speakers began a discussion with the room. When Hebrew teacher Sherry Shamash received the microphone and had the opportunity to address the room, she pointed out the biased nature of the film, and attempted to describe the Israeli perspective. After a moment of stating facts and the other side of the conflict, the microphone was physically ripped from her hand, she was essentially reprimanded by the guest speakers, and the entire room burst into applause.
I was appalled and offended by this action. I personally believe very strongly in the freedom of speech at the University of Connecticut, and this was a direct affront to this right. I have absolutely no problem with the showing of this film; while I may not agree with it, and while I feel that it should have been identified as biased, the sponsors of this event had every right to show it. However, it is completely unacceptable to not allow someone else to share their opinion.
In a university environment, there should be a scholarly discourse. Students at the university need to stand up for their right to have their ideas shared. Actions like taking the microphone away because you do not agree with the presented ideas should not be tolerated.
- Marissa Goldberg
6th-semester political science and judaic studies double major
As one of the presenters I want to thank you for your coverage of the film showing of "The Iron Wall." However, there was a mistake in one sentence of the report. I did not say that an "optimal solution to the conflict would be a two-state policy."
The solution to the deep racism in the U.S. was not to set up one state for whites and one for Blacks, but full integration. With two states in Israel/Palestine you still have the problems of the Palestinian refugees who have a right to go to their former homes in Israel, the Palestinians of Israel who are treated as 10th-class citizens, and the Gaza Strip, which is not contiguous to the West Bank.
The best solution, in my view, would be for Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs to live as equal citizens together in one country stretching from the Mediterranean to the Jordan.
- Stanley Heller
Chairman
Middle East Crisis Committee
DC News Coverage
'Iron Wall' documentary sparks debate
By: Parini Shah
Posted: 2/25/09
The Muslim Student Association's showing of "The Iron Wall" at the Student Union Theater Tuesday evening attracted about 30 people and a debate about whether the film was anti-Semitic or not followed.
The documentary about the Palestinian and Israeli conflict and rise of Israeli occupation settlements in the West Bank "exposes this phenomenon and follows the timeline, size, population of the settlements, and its impact on the peace process," according to the film's Web site. "This film also touches on the latest project to make the settlements a permanent fact on the ground - the wall that Israel is building in the West Bank and its impact on the Palestinian's peoples."
The first half of the documentary spoke about the policies of the various Israeli government leaders and their adverse affects on Palestine. It focused on the significant increase of the settlements on Palestinian land, which has displaced millions of people and contributed to the rising numbers of refugees and Palestinians living in ghettos. The second half focused on the building of what the International Court of Justice calls a wall (most American media refers to it as a fence, even though the 25-foot concrete wall is double the length of the fence). It also focused on the occupation of the city of Hebron by Israeli troops.
The film looked at the situation from a Palestinian perspective, so there was a definite bias there, but one that discussion leader Elizabeth Aaronsohn, an associate professor of education at Central Connecticut State University, said was counteracted by the American news media's heavy pro-Israel bias.
As a daughter of a Rabbi, she said that, the first time she viewed the film, she was "totally devastated and could not speak," and could not understand the actions of some of the Israelis. She said it is the obligation [of the Jewish community] to speak up.
After a brief overview of the film and director Mohammed Alatar, the floor was opened to the diverse crowd, which ranged from young American Jews to World War II veterans for discussion.
The atmosphere quickly turned tense when a student accused one of the panelists of being anti-Semitic, which turned into a long discussion of whether or not the film itself was anti-Semitic.
The panel member, Stanley Heller, a school teacher who serves as chairman of the Middle East Crisis Committee, is also the Web master for thestruggle.org. During the debate, a student pulled the site up on his phone and read aloud some of the article titles, including "They Murdered 450 Children and Now they Ceasefire" and "Finkelstein Examines Gaza Massacre."
Terrence Smith, an 8th semester business management major, spoke to ease the tension.
"This is a university; we should spend time talking about issues like these," he said. "It is up to the people of UConn to go out and find unbiased views. We should not be pointing fingers. That is not going to solve anything."
The majority of viewers seemed to agree that, although this film was biased in favor of the Palestinians, a fact acknowledged by even the discussion leaders, it gave a view different from that of the commercial media.
"I came to this because you don't hear about this side of things," said Melissa Touma, a 2nd semester anthropology major. "We don't get the same coverage of the Middle East's views, just America's."
As the discussion continued, various students spoke about their personal experiences.
"You have to go [to Hebron]," said Ameer Saleh, an 8th semester transfer student from the region. "Palestinians' doors are welded shut to prevent them from using the roads outside. They have to use their roofs to get somewhere."
A World War II veteran also voiced his belief that the U.S should not be involved in the conflict. This brought Heller to get everyone in the audience to call their representatives to show support for the House Resolution 66, which is supposed to help pull military aid to occupying countries.
As the discussion wined down, Aaronsohn responded to questions about her views toward Israel.
"Dissent is the essence of America," she said. "You are not anti-Israel or anti-Jew because you oppose the Israeli government. In the civil rights movement, we were not anti-American. When we opposed the war against Iraq, we were not anti-American."
Heller and Aaronsohn also agreed that their optimal solution to the conflict would be a two-state policy, and a withdrawal of U.S. aid from Israel.
Praise be to Allah, we ask him for help and forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil of ourselves and from our bad deeds. Whoever Allah guides no one can misguide and whoever Allah misguides no one can guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and messenger.
O Allah, send Your Mercy to Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as you sent it to the family of Ibraheem. And send your blessings on Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as you sent it on the family of Ibraheem, from among all the worlds, verily You are the Praise-worthy, the Glorified.
"O you who believe, be conscious of Allah and don't let yourselves die except as Muslims"
"O you who believe, be conscious of your Lord who created you from a single soul, and from it He created its mate, and from the two of them He created many men and women. And fear Allah in whose name you demand (your rights from one another), and guard the ties of kinship. Verily Allah is ever watchful over you."
"O you who believe, be conscious of Allah and say words of Truth, so that Allah better your deeds and forgive your sins. Whosoever obeys Allah and His messenger has indeed won a great success"
Ahmad Cleaver's response, along with others, were published in the 9/26/08 issue of the Daily Campus.
It's clearly inaccurate to describe only Israel's raids are retaliatory (and therefore probably justified), leaving Palestinian rocket attacks as if they were voluntary. It is only fair to spend as much effort to understand the motives of the Palestinian people.
Although I disagree with the article obviously, I think we do ourselves a disservice when we go around saying that Islam is the religion of Peace or that "Islam means peace". And it's those kind of statements that make everyone go, "ok well if you say Islam is the religion of peace and that Islam means peace then why did Prophet Muhammad fight, why did the Companions fight, why do the Muslims today fight?" and there's an obvious discrepancy there. So I think if we present Islam as being what it is, submission to Allah and yes acknowledge that fighting has been perscribed for the Muslims and it is disliked by them.
"And did not Allah check one set of people by means of another, the earth would indeed be full of mischief; but Allah is full of Bounty to all the worlds" (2:251)
I mean the same people who accuse the Muslims of being violent are the same who couldn't care less that an entire country be invaded, it's people killed and resources usurped. So why then would you worry about what they say?
Assuredly ye will be tried in your property and in your persons, and ye will hear much wrong from those who were given the Scripture before you, and from the idolaters. But if ye persevere and ward off (evil), then that is of the steadfast heart of things. Al-Imran 3: 186
In any case, I definitely think an official complaint should be written to the Daily Campus, sign petitions if needed and ma sha Allah there were a number of very eloquent responses written so a response article should be written to be published in the Daily Campus. No matter how many comments are posted on dailycampus.com there are much more people who read the actual paper than then website. And it needs to be done as soon as possible.
Wa'Allahu Ta'ala A'lam.
A question that has been raised by some Muslims in response to that attack on Islam was “Where does Quran say that Jihad is rewarded with Paradise?” Excuse me; I believe this is the wrong question.
The real question is: where does Quran tell us that Jihad means aggression or killing the non-believers because they don’t believe?
The most misquoted verse in the quran refering to Jihad is the one the contains the words "... kill the non-believers wherever you find them ..." (Quran 9-5). If you think these words are shocking, you will be astonished to know the context.
Chapter 9 of the Quran starts by saying "Freedom from (all) obligations (is declared) from Allâh and His Messenger (peace be upon him) to those of the Mushrikûn (polytheists, pagans, idolaters, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allâh), with whom you made a treaty."--(Quran 9:1)
"Except those of the Mushrikun with whom you have a treaty, and who have not subsequently failed you in aught, nor have supported anyone against you. So fulfil their treaty to them for the end of their term" -- (Quran 9:4)
Clearly, the chapter is refering to "those" non-believers who had a treaty with the Muslims, but subsequently broke their treaty. In which case, the Muslims are free from all obligations thereafter.
Then comes the verse "Then when the Sacred Months (the 1st, 7th, 11th, and 12th months of the Islâmic calendar during which Arabs considered fighting forbidden) have passed, then kill the Mushrikûn wherever you find them, and capture them and besiege them, and lie in wait for them in each and every ambush. But if they repent and perform As-Salât (Islamic prayer), and give Zakât (Alms), then leave their way free. Verily, Allâh is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful" --(9:5)
It is absolute non-sense to claim that the "Mushrikun" in this verse refer to all non-believers. It definitely excludes those who keep their treaty with the Muslims and never support anyone fighting against them. Even those who broke their treaty are excluded if they choose to repent and perform their duties as Muslims.
If you are not surprised enough, read the next verse. "And if anyone of the Mushrikûn (polytheists, idolaters, pagans, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allâh) seeks your protection, then grant him protection so that he may hear the Word of Allâh (the Qur’ân), and then escort him to where he can be secure, that is because they are men who know not."
Example of Islam’s forgiveness are allover history including present time. You will be amazed to know the story of Ms. Ivon Ridely.
Clearly Quran is not giving Muslims permission to initiate war against peaceful non-believers. The verses above are dealing with those non-believers who already attacked Muslims, fought wars against them, had treaties with them, and finally broke their treaties. Can any of those arrogant 'experts' come up with a better way of dealing with ‘those’ non-believers?
Indeed, Allah is the Most Merciful and the Oft-Forgiving.
When you read a verse that says: "... But those who are killed in the Way of Allâh, He will never let their deeds be lost. He will guide them and set right their state. And admit them to Paradise which He has made known to them" -- Quran(47:4-6), you can easily tell what " the way of Allah," is. The act of sacrificing one’s life and wealth to defend Muslims against those who insistently attack them and break peace treaties definitely qualify as esteemed Jihad. Transgression, however, is prohibited.
Islam, What the World Really Needs to Know
In her article titled “Everything you need to know about Islam,” Anna Blaise reiterated the evil legends that have been invented by Islam-haters and circulated for centuries. In fact, here is what you really need to know about Islam.
The core message of Islam is very simple: There is only one god worthy of worship that is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, the Merciful with those who deserve His mercy, the Subduer of those who deserve His wrath. The Arabic word for God is “Allah”, the God of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Solomon, Jesus and Muhammad. Allah is the sender of the Torah, the Gospels and the Quran.
Muhammad (peace be upon him) is Allah’s last Messenger, a mercy to mankind, a teacher and a model sent with warnings and glad tidings. His message is an assertion and a perfection of the religion of all the prophets of God, Islam. The Messenger of Allah described his message saying: “I was not sent but to complete the best of morality.” Islam literally means submission to the God and following His guidance.
“Invite (all) to the Way of your Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious: for your Lord knows best, who have strayed from His Path, and who receive guidance.” (Quran 16:125)
“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects Evil and believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah hears and knows all things” (Quran 2:256)
History proves that Islam spread through the persuasive power of the Truth. For example, Islam was brought to Indonesia, today's largest Muslim country with over 180 million Muslims, by Muslim merchants. According to a country study of Egypt conducted by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress, “the Arab conquerors treated the Egyptian Copts [the people of Egypt, who were mainly Christian] well. During the battle for Egypt, the Copts had either remained neutral or had actively supported the Arabs [against the Byzantine Empire]. After the surrender, the Coptic patriarch was reinstated, exiled bishops were called home, and churches that had been forcibly turned over to the Byzantines were returned to the Copts. Amr [the Muslim commander] allowed Copts who held office to retain their positions and appointed Copts to other offices.”
All references to fighting and killing in the Quran appear in the context of defense. Allah unequivocally states “And fight in the Way of Allah those who fight you, but transgress not the limits. Truly, Allah likes not the transgressors,” Quran (2:190). Nowhere in the Quran does Allah say that Muslims should fight non-believers to forcefully convert them. It's no wonder than that all prophetic battles were responses to non-believers’ aggression and never a war to convert them.
It is so easy to take a few words or actions out of context to reach wrong conclusions. It is true that the Messenger of Allah sanctioned the killing of 700 Jews. Islam-haters avoid mentioning the context, however. These 700 Jews were the males of Bani Quraizah, the Jewish tribe that betrayed their Muslim allies during the Battle of the Trench. Islam-haters refer to this incidence as an example of Islam’s violence although the Jewish law itself prescribed such treatment for the conquest of a city as a matter of course, even when betrayal is not in question (Deutoronomy 20:12).
It is not Muslims that the world should be wary of, but rather those hate propagators who use fear and ignorance to control others. Only through understanding and discourse can we fight the forces of evil and find true peace.
I can't believe that the Daily Campus employs such incompetent and ignorant people like Ms. Blaise. I did some research into the documentary and the "scholars" which Ms. Blaise finds so convincing, and I found that each one of them is labelled to be a right-wing nutcase whom the academic world looks down upon. The documentary which she deems "worth-watching" was shut down by a majority of critics as being a poor film about a very ridiculous point-of-view. The documentary is grounded in false premises about our beautiful religion. I have personally demanded an apology by the daily campus and the writer of the article, I have also emailed Philip Austin and the Dean of Students ot intervene and call for an apology by the Newspaper for their complete lack of oversight which led to such an offensive article.
This is what I have to say to Miss Blaise...
What are your sources other than some unreliable documentary made by _______ (who knows?!?!?)
Read the Bible and the Torah and let me know what God says about defending religion as well...
Don't you have more productive things to write about other than spreading hate?
This is what I posted on Daily Campus:
Dearest Miss Blaise,
I believe that everyone who has posted has already expressed my thoughts and feelings about your article.
I just have one request for you...
Please educate me on how hate speech differs from violence. I'm a little puzzled at how you can write an entire article about how Islam is "violent" yet you can go ahead and spread hate and conflict through your ignorance...
MSA reserved Room 321 for babysitting. If you have kids you will be automatically directed to that room to leave your kids.
Qur’an Recitation.....(Br. Saleh Ibrahim)
You can also bring kids, but you have to register for them too. After having Iftar, when the lecture starts, kids will have to be moved to
SU Room 304that MSA has reserved next to the Ballroom. MSA is not responsible for the kids. Therefore, parents have to arrange for someone to take care of their kids if they are not there.For more details about prohibition of immitating non-Islamic practices, please refer to http://www.islam-qa.com/index.php?ref=21694&ln=eng and for the symbolism of candle lighting in Christianity please refer to http://www.stots.edu/article.php?id=62.
JAK
Saleh
Jazaka Allah Khair brother for your feedback. It has been taken into account. Please find the clarification email here: http://www.theicuc.org/msa/public/node/271
Saleh
This is what the Israeli government want you to believe.
Jeff, don't pretend that the on-going persecution of Palestinians just started after they kidnapped an Israeli soldier. It's Israeli greed to confuscate more Palestinian land that feuls the whole conflict in the middle east. A glance at the history of the conflict show clearly what I'm saying.
As you maybe aware, between 1947-1949, 70% of the native Palestinians (Christians and Muslims) were removed from the areas that became "the State of Israel" on 78% of historic Palestine. 530 Palestinian towns and villages were completely depopulated (see http://PalestineRemembered.com). However, the process of ethnic cleansing continued in the past few decades. Just in the past six years, thousands of Palestinian homes were demolished and over 35,000 were removed from their homes and lands. There are also many methods
that Israel thins out Palestinians. See the articles by Amira Hass on "The slippery slope of expulsion": http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/758676.html and on "Accidental emigrants" http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/755373.html The latest issue of the journal "Forced migration Review" highlights Palestinian Diplacement (articles posted at http://www.fmreview.org/palestine.htm ).
So try not to forget that Israel was established mostly on Palestinian lands when analyzing the conflict.
Saleh
Just to clarify, despite what this article says, what's happening now in Gaza really is in order to hopefully get the kidnapped soldier back to his family and stop the almost-daily rocket attacks on schools and other families living in Sederot and nearby.
Salaam Alaikum wa rahmatullah
Jazak Allah Khair Saleh for the new forum on the Website. Is that to become a replacement for this list? Anyway, I wanted to quickly go over some ideas with regards to preparing for future Alumni.
1) Come up with some method of donation online. I don't think I could ever donate to the ICUC on a consistent basis simply because I don't think about the ICUC in enough of a consistent manner, an out of sight out of mind kind of thing. If there could be some method of making a one time donation to the ICUC I think that would be great. Even better would be if it could just be made to automatically deduct a certain amount from my account every month. Or do both. That way I can donate consistently without ever having to remember.
2) Moving forward we should try to get permanent emails as much as we can. Obviously it would be extremely difficult to get the permanent email for everyone who joins the MSA mailing list but at least make it a point to get it from the active members and make it a requirement for those who join either the MSA or ICUC committees. That way 6 months after they graduate you can still contact them and they know what's going on.
3) An Alumni Dinner? It can be used as a fund raising event for the ICUC and obviously a way for everyone to meet and greet old peers.
Maybe even a chance for undergraduates to network with professionals.
Also like I first mentioned, this list shouldnt stay stagnant to the people I first emailed. Feel free to add people who arnt on here. I just added three people:
1) everyone's favorite Hafidh, who studies medicine, in the carribean, and a published author, Naheed Ali.
2) Fawwad Noumani- aka "School of Business Cafe" Fawwad, aka now works at Accenture walhamdullilah
3) Sohaib Shaikh- Mr. Electrical Engineering and long time MSA committee member.
ws
ammar
Important Update
Because of bad weather, the picnic has been replaced with a usual dinner at 6:00pm at the Islamic Center.
MSA
I hope that this email reaches everyone in the best health and the highest of Iman. I wished to write a quick email with regards to a matter that I had been thinking about over the past couple of days, that thought simply being the ICUC. I think I was reminiscing on some of the many, many hours that I had spent in that fine establishment way back in my college days, only to realize that I had virtually little knowledge, if any, about the progress of the Islamic Center since graduation. So everyone on this email list is someone who was a member of the MSA at some point, and has since graduated and moved on to a professional career, walhamdullilah. This list doesnt have to be limited to these names as I'm sure the people I've forgotten are much more than the few I remembered.
So the questions that I wanted to ask are: though we are no longer physically on campus, what can we alumni do to help the cause and establishment of a proper Islamic Center on the campus of a public university? How does the college graduate stay active in da'wah without the platform of an MSA? What can we do to keep UConn Alumni better informed?
wa alaikum alsalaam wa rahmatullah
ammar
First of all I would like to thank Ammar for sending this email to the group, and for starting something very beneficial for us and our youth. I think the biggest problem for the students at campus is that they are confused about their aims, their goals, their careers and the opportunities avilable. Most of the time when we used to have Islamic events and ask for their involvement, they were too busy studying for their classes. Because they wanted to get good grades so they can get good jobs. When they are worried about their grades and jobs and careers, it is not too effective to teach them their responsibilities as a Muslim at campus, at work or with their families.
I think what we should try to do is, to have some sessions where Alumni and students can network with each other. Alumni can guide them about pros and cons about the profession, guide them what would it take to get into the career or job they want, and finally help them to bring into the companies they work for. Kind of being a mentor for rest of their time at UConn and later if possible.
Through this mentorship, we can try to take part of their worries away from them and encourage them to participate more in MSA and ICUC events. And we can discuss further what those events can be. I would like to go to the root of the problem rather then suggesting something that won't be permanent. How does that sound? Just a thought.
If we decide to go this route, first step is to share with each other, what are the UConn Alumni in this mailing list are up to. Maybe we can help each other get stronger, so we can help others.
Please let me know what you all think and do participate in the wellbeing and the future of our youth by participating in this chain of emails Ammar has started. Looking forward to hear from all of you.
Wasslaamoalikum wa rahmatullah
I hope you're all well. I would like to be a mentor. I know it would have helped at UConn. I'm very impressed with the MSA from what I hear from the emails (I still get them).
I just finished my first year of law school yesterday at the City University of NY School of Law and I'm actively involved with the Muslim Law Students Association (MLSA) and will be on the e-board next year. I need to take pointers from UConn MSA. We have the same problems with students that do not want to put time into events but we do have to spend a LOT more time studying in law school than at UConn! We have managed to put together a couple of successful events, though, with the help of a very small group.l
After I graduated from UConn in Dec 03, (well not right after - it took awhile to find a job!) I worked full time at The Hartford Insurance. I'm interning at Yale Law School Clinics this summer in Immigration, Detainee/Refugee Rights and Coummunity Lawyering/Outreach to Urban Poor.
So please include me in the mentorship.
~hILA
I have not much to say in this e-mail. However, I would like to thank our
zoal "Ammar" for putting up this list and uniting us again. I would also
like to wish all the best to my UConn colleagues.
Salam for now,
-Shaker
Hi Ammar,
though we are no longer physically on campus, what can we alumni do to help the cause and establishment of a proper Islamic Center on the campus of a public university? attend their events or donate/support their cause or establisment.
How does the college graduate stay active in da'wah without the platform of an MSA? What can we do to keep UConn Alumni better informed? uconn msa def was a good platform for me to reconnect with muslims and islam religion, it was def very informative (the seminars & few lec i attended). we can be better informed if we can get info on guest speakers..but lectures shouldn't be limited to just storrs campus.
Thanks Ammar & hope that helps.
Zohra Salehi
Salamo alikom Brothers, Sisters, Sons and Daughters,
I really appreciate this interaction with the ICUC/MSA. Here are few suggestions that we should
start right away:
1. The ICUC web site should include a page that includes a short bio for our MSA Allumni
(name, e-mail address, field of study, year of graduation, position and any other contact information).
2. The ICUC web site should include a page of those affiliates (non-UConn graduates) with their short
bio as well.
3. The ICUC web should publish on a monthly activity list. This list should include the MSA news as well.
4. The ICUC web should describe a list of projects to be done, estimated cost and a donation form.
5. Compose a comprehensive e-mail list to include all of us. The monthly newsletter should be
broadcasted to all of us.
Any other ideas are very welcome.
JAK
May ALLAH Help us all
Reda Ammar
Asslamoalikum wa Rahmatullah,
I think it is a great idea to add the UConn MSA alumni information on the MSA site. We can also have a Forum on the page where we can post our questions, comments, concerns and ideas regarding our efforts. There is no way of tracking these emails right now but if we have a forum or yahoo-group, we can go back and read the emails sent previously. Lets try to put into action what we have started through these emails, slowly but surely!
May Allah accept all of our efforts and make it easy for us to do things only for His sake, Ameen!
Wasslaam
Slamo alikom
There are many other things to do when we have our information accessible to each others.
For example if some one from MSA is graduating and is looking for a job.
We can help him or her if one of us knows about any opening or opportunity.
We definitely need to get started. The good news is giving several computer scientists in MSA.
I would like to ask Saleh to work on the details.
JAK
Reda
Ramadan Awareness Dinner Press Coverage for Past Years
i highly appreciate the valuable research and speech given by Professor Smith about the I/i and I'd like to contribute to this topic for the sake of knowledge and the true faith.
There are no capital (I) and small (i) in (Islam word).
Let us make it clear. I = i and i = I in this area, submission to Allah is Islam and islam is submission to allah. This is so apparent when the quaranic verses talks about the life and stories of Ibrahim PBUH. Allah Swbhanh Wa'talla said to him in the holy Quran "aslim", "aslim" has two meanings: 1- to submit to his lord or/and 2- to be muslim
Because the first priority in the methodologies of the translation of the meanings of the holy Quran is by the holy Quran itself, I am quating one verse from the holy quran to bring clarity to this topic.
Allah SW describes the faith of Ibrahim PBUH that he never be a Jewish nor christian, but " Hanifan Musliman". As it is very clear in this ayah that Hanafan musliman is not Jewish nor christian, so what do you think it is?
That means to submit to ALLAH is to be Muslim.
Quoting words and ayat from the holy quaran is always strong evident, but at the same time is so critical sometime. However, the research concerning the quaranic words and meanings always in encourage able by the holy book itself.
The transilation of the word (islam) in the holy QUARAN never to be limited to the meaning of submission_ without given instructions of that submission_ as Prof. Smith mentioned yesterday. The word ISLAM/islam/Islam/or iSLAM has many meanings in the holy Quaran, submission to people/gods is one of them. In fact the word taslim is the exact transilation to submission as someone of the attendees indicated yesterday. You should update this peice of information to what you posted in the MSA site for the sake of truth.
I beilve that protecting the authetic meaning of Islam and its relation to the shariah of MOHAMMAD (instructions for that submissions) is very important. Islam mentioned 150 times in the holy QUARAN, 76 times of them refer to islam/muslim/to be muslim including the holy ayah that Prof. Smith cited in her speech (see below for Quaranic research from my readings to the holy Book).
Defending the real meaning of islam in the holy QUARAN will protect you from submitting your faith to unknown god/gods
The following is my research about the capital (I) and small (i) in the translation of the meanings of the holy quaran which you referred to it in your speech.
The word Islam/islam with its arabic root (S-L-M) were mentioned in the holy Quaran 150 times in 5 different meanings:
- 2 times for sulam which means stairway to heaven (i.e., 52:38)
- 5 times for taslim which means submission (i.e., 4:65)
- 15 times for sulaiman (solomon) (i.e., 27:30)
- 53 times for salam which means peace (i.e., 59:23) &
- 75 for islam which means to believe in that which is sent down to Muhammad (i.e., 3:84-85-86, 61: 6-7).
There are a lot of research in the area of the holy words of the holy Quaran and their meanings needed for better understanding of the stairways to the heaven
Salam/ hi!
THE LOCATION HAS BEEN CHANGED TO THE WOMEN'S CENTER
7:00 to 8:00 pm, Thursday, April 13th
See you all there!