
100 works of contemporary literature by muslim writers - wowsig
http://shelfjoy.com/shelfjoy/100-contemporary-books-written-by-muslims-that-are-powerful-weapons-of-mass-enlightenment
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exodust
I'm glad you didn't repeat the page title "powerful weapons of mass
enlightenment", which is clumsy arrogance more than wit.

With respect to wowsig, and purely as a discussion point, I can't be
interested in a list of books by Muslim writers, or Christian writers, or
{insert belief system} writers. I'm interested in stories about humanity, but
specifically from a religious lifestyle point of view? I don't know how that
qualifies as enlightening.

You just know it's going to be tales of struggling to balance the expectations
and demands of a strict religion with community relations and challenges
regarding women's rights, values, rituals and education in a modern world.
With an upbeat positive conclusion about unity, acceptance and awareness.
Rinse and repeat.

Do I sound cynical? Well, I didn't say "God is dead" or anything. Although I
think Nietzsche was onto something.

I'd like to see more pressure and questioning and challenging of religious
ideas and practices in a modern world, more than questioning each other. I'm
willing to bet a large proportion of people currently accused of being "anti-
Muslim" simply don't respect Islam or any religion that has such a foothold in
everyday life including education, family, business and politics. It might not
be about "fear and ignorance", but reluctance to embrace Islam as the new
member of the neighborhood.

In my opinion, the very nature of obedient religious devotion, is the
overlooked source of division in multicultural society. Yet, division is
blamed solely on those who vote against the next religious school or place of
worship.

The very custom of wearing particular clothing to distinguish oneself as
belonging to a particular religion, emphasizes the separation of "religious"
from "non-religious" people walking the streets and in the workplace. In this
case Muslim vs Non-Muslim. Personally I don't want to be a "Non-Muslim" I
don't want to be a "Non-anything". When did that even happen? When members of
the community are clearly marking themselves as members of a certain faith,
I'm automatically divided before even opening my mouth. And that is something
that makes me feel uncomfortable because we are _starting_ with division, and
attempting to unify and get along from there. No surprise it's not working too
well.

