Some stories are just too sweet to pass over. I was at the Islamic Center of New York University for an iftar, preceded by a sermon.
Read moreWe Are Not a Monolith
We, as in Muslims. What if I were to pick up a tourist couple from Times Square and took them for an iftar?
Read moreShould Muslims Celebrate Christmas?
So why is it o.k. for Muslims to celebrate Christmas? For starters, Allah commands us to do so, in the Quran.
Read moreRepairing Our World Together
This year the Jewish festival of Passover will be celebrated from March 27th through April 4th; and on April 13, Muslims will begin the fasting month of Ramadan. This circumstance occurs only once in three decades, attributable to Muslims following the lunar cycle. As our calendars get populated with interfaith Seders and iftars. . . .
Read moreIs New Year Greeting Haram?
“Happy New Year,” said one person to another on one New Year morning, January 1, 2019.
Nothing unusual about that, right? Well, one of them didn’t think so. Actually, he took offense. I am not kidding. “It is not our new year. Our new year starts in Muharram. For one Muslim to greet another Muslim with a Happy New Year greeting on January 1 is haram,” …
Can Eid Be Bittersweet?
Ramadan is over and yesterday we all celebrated Eid ul Fitr. But for many, Eid was bittersweet.
Read moreRemembering The Holocaust
Last evening, a group of people congregated on the 7th floor community room of an apartment building on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. They had assembled to commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day. So why am I writing about it? Gatherings were being held all over New York, all over the world for that matter. I am writing about it because this group was exceptional. A Muslim family had hosted it
Read more'Make A Muslim Friend' Start-Up
“What can we do to help Muslims?”
This is the one question I am asked every time I do a book reading or give a talk on Islam.
I was in a church talking to a group of, oh, maybe 70+ people.
When You Go In Loaded, & Leave Empty Handed. Or Is It The Reverse?
I was engulfed by hugs. This is not what I had come prepared for. I had been invited to come to a Wellness Day celebration at a church, where I had taken a table in the exhibit hall, to display my wares—my book. I had lugged the bag-on-wheels, laden with heavy, hard cover books,
Read moreTwo Is Better Than One
“Do you know what it means to be hungry?” Zamir Hasan asked the crowd gathered at the Brotherhood Synagogue in New York City.
A few hands went up.
“Hunger means that you don’t know where your next meal is coming from.” A young boy answered.
“Right. And do you know how many people in the U.S. don’t know where their next meal is coming from?” Zamir asked.
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