Sheikh Mohamed Sayyed Tantawi, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, the highest seat of religious learning in the Sunni world, passed away on March 10, of a heart attack. Sheikh Tantawi breathed his last during a visit to Saudi Arabia to attend the annual King Faisal awards ceremony, reported Egypt's state-run Middle East News Agency (MENA).
The Egyptian TV said Sheikh Tantawi, 81, suffered severe pain while boarding a plane and fell on the stairs. He was rushed to the Amir Sultan hospital in Riyadh where doctors proclaimed him dead of a sudden heart attack.
However, the Doha-based Al-Jazeera TV channel quoted Amr, Sheikh Tantawi's eldest son, as saying that family wanted him to be buried in Saudi Arabia.
In 1996, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak appointed Tantawi, then the Grand Mufti, as Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, the school established in 359 Hijri corresponding to 971 AD. Al-Azhar first admitted women students in 1961, albeit in separate classes. Also in 1961, subjects in engineering and medicine were added to classes on Shari`ah, the Qur'an and the intricacies of Arabic language.
Reference By: http://islamicvoice.com
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
US Group decries textbooks on Islam as inflammatory
A series of children's textbooks on Islam contains misleading and inflammatory rhetoric about the religion, inaccurately portraying its followers as inherently violent and deserving of suspicion, according to a Muslim civil liberties group.
The Pennsylvania chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations began what it calls a public awareness campaign Wednesday against the "World of Islam" books by Mason Crest Publishing.
"This is not about Muslims being offended," Moein Khawaja, the chapter's civil rights director, said at a news conference. "Filled with incorrect information and deception, these books are contrary to the education mission of schools and libraries."
It was not immediately clear where the series is being used, but Khawaja said complaints from council chapters across the country lead him to believe it is on bookshelves in about two dozen states.
Mason Crest partnered with the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute, which describes itself as an independent nonprofit, to produce the 10-book series. The series is designed for ages 10 and older. Institute vice president Alan Luxenberg, who wrote a book called Radical Islam for the series, defended the texts.
"They're taking things out of context to paint a picture that misconstrues the meaning of the books," Luxenberg said Wednesday.
Reference by: http://islamicvoice.com
The Pennsylvania chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations began what it calls a public awareness campaign Wednesday against the "World of Islam" books by Mason Crest Publishing.
"This is not about Muslims being offended," Moein Khawaja, the chapter's civil rights director, said at a news conference. "Filled with incorrect information and deception, these books are contrary to the education mission of schools and libraries."
It was not immediately clear where the series is being used, but Khawaja said complaints from council chapters across the country lead him to believe it is on bookshelves in about two dozen states.
Mason Crest partnered with the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute, which describes itself as an independent nonprofit, to produce the 10-book series. The series is designed for ages 10 and older. Institute vice president Alan Luxenberg, who wrote a book called Radical Islam for the series, defended the texts.
"They're taking things out of context to paint a picture that misconstrues the meaning of the books," Luxenberg said Wednesday.
Reference by: http://islamicvoice.com
Faisal Award Presented - Turkish PM Erdogan leads the honour list this year
Saudi King Abdullah presented awards to this year's winners of the King Faisal International Prize. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was presented the King Faisal International prize for Service to Islam for the year 2010. In his citation, Abdullah Al-Othaimeen, secretary-general of the King Faisal International Prize, said Erdogan was nominated for the prize by the World Assembly of Muslim Youth. Erdogan, he said, has been given this prestigious award for his role in advancing a series of economic, social and cultural reforms in Turkey besides being a leading Muslim exponent, who "builds rapport between civilizations."
The Prize for Islamic Studies was withheld this year as none of the entries qualified for the award. Each winner of the award received Saudi Riyal 750,000 ($200,000) in cash, a certificate outlining the laureate's work and a commemorative 22-carat gold medallion.
In his acceptance speech, Erdogan said that it was “a distinct pleasure for me to receive the King Faisal Award on behalf of my country and my people." He called for the restoration of peace and security in the Middle East, saying that it disturbs his conscience that "the Middle East is known as a geography of blood and cries."
King Abdullah presented the prize for Arabic language and literature to professor Abdulrahman El-Houari Hadj-Saleh of Algeria and professor Ramzi Mounir Baalbaki of Lebanon. "Professor Hadj-Saleh is recognized for his insightful analysis of Al-Khalil's linguistic theory and its relation to contemporary grammatical thought," said Othaimeen, while reading out the citation. He said that professor Baalbaki's publications in Arabic and English have enhanced Arabic grammar education both in Arab and Western universities and familiarized Western scholars with the fundamental manuscript of Si-Bawaihi, an ancient scholar and founder of Arabic grammar.
The prize for medicine was shared by Prof. Reinhold Ganz of Germany, Prof. Jean-Pierre Pelletier of Canada and Prof. Johanne Martel-Pelletier of Canada. They were honoured for their pioneering works on non-arthroplasty management of degenerative joint disease.
In the science category, Prof. Enrico Bombieri of the United States and Terence Chi-Shen Tao of Australia shared the prize for their distinguished contributions in their respective fields. Bombieri work addresses fundamental and difficult problems in mathematics, said Othaimeen, while Tao is known for his "technical brilliance in the use of the necessary mathematical machinery."
The topics for 2011 King Faisal International Prize were also announced on this occasion. In Islamic studies category, the topic is "socioeconomic aspects in the Islamic world through 16th to 19the century", while in Arabic language category the topic is "renovation trends in Arabic poetry up to the end of the 7th Century Hijri".
In the science category, the Faisal award will be given for outstanding achievements in chemistry, while stem cell therapy is the topic under medicine category. The deadline for nomination is May 1, 2010.
As usual, the ceremony held in Prince Sultan hall in the Al-Faisaliah complex was attended by several Saudi ministers, diplomats and dignitaries.
Reference by:http://islamicvoice.com
The Prize for Islamic Studies was withheld this year as none of the entries qualified for the award. Each winner of the award received Saudi Riyal 750,000 ($200,000) in cash, a certificate outlining the laureate's work and a commemorative 22-carat gold medallion.
In his acceptance speech, Erdogan said that it was “a distinct pleasure for me to receive the King Faisal Award on behalf of my country and my people." He called for the restoration of peace and security in the Middle East, saying that it disturbs his conscience that "the Middle East is known as a geography of blood and cries."
King Abdullah presented the prize for Arabic language and literature to professor Abdulrahman El-Houari Hadj-Saleh of Algeria and professor Ramzi Mounir Baalbaki of Lebanon. "Professor Hadj-Saleh is recognized for his insightful analysis of Al-Khalil's linguistic theory and its relation to contemporary grammatical thought," said Othaimeen, while reading out the citation. He said that professor Baalbaki's publications in Arabic and English have enhanced Arabic grammar education both in Arab and Western universities and familiarized Western scholars with the fundamental manuscript of Si-Bawaihi, an ancient scholar and founder of Arabic grammar.
The prize for medicine was shared by Prof. Reinhold Ganz of Germany, Prof. Jean-Pierre Pelletier of Canada and Prof. Johanne Martel-Pelletier of Canada. They were honoured for their pioneering works on non-arthroplasty management of degenerative joint disease.
In the science category, Prof. Enrico Bombieri of the United States and Terence Chi-Shen Tao of Australia shared the prize for their distinguished contributions in their respective fields. Bombieri work addresses fundamental and difficult problems in mathematics, said Othaimeen, while Tao is known for his "technical brilliance in the use of the necessary mathematical machinery."
The topics for 2011 King Faisal International Prize were also announced on this occasion. In Islamic studies category, the topic is "socioeconomic aspects in the Islamic world through 16th to 19the century", while in Arabic language category the topic is "renovation trends in Arabic poetry up to the end of the 7th Century Hijri".
In the science category, the Faisal award will be given for outstanding achievements in chemistry, while stem cell therapy is the topic under medicine category. The deadline for nomination is May 1, 2010.
As usual, the ceremony held in Prince Sultan hall in the Al-Faisaliah complex was attended by several Saudi ministers, diplomats and dignitaries.
Reference by:http://islamicvoice.com
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