By Brent Hamoud The global elevation of human rights and individual liberties may be a historical trend but religious persecution remains an immense challenge in our times. Millions are suffering threats to their lives and wellbeing simply because they desire to embrace a particular religious identity and exercise faith convictions. […]
by Chaden Hani In 1918, Lebanon was liberated after four centuries of Ottoman hegemony following the empire’s collapse at the end of the First World War. The Lebanese nationalists felt that it was time for them to materialize their grand dream of establishing Greater Lebanon. The Administrative Council of Mount […]
By Martin Accad Two sheikhs, three priests, and an evangelical theologian walk out of a mosque in the warm breeze of a late afternoon in June. Cars slow down and stare at the unlikely crew, as they move slowly beneath the elegant spire of the Aisha Bint Abi Bakr mosque […]
Apply Today! The purpose of the Middle East Consultation is to equip participants to respond in prophetic and Christ-like ways to the many challenges facing Christians and Muslims in and beyond the Middle East.
Join us October 2018 for the MENA Islam Module of IMES’ Master of Religion in MENA Studies program! Co-taught by IMES Director Martin Accad and Daniel W. Brown, Director of the Institute for the Study of Religion in the Middle East and author of A New Introduction to Islam, MENA […]
(Photo: Murr Tower, used by militia fighters from various factions during the Lebanese Civil War) by Thia M. Sagherian-Dickey “Why are you asking us Christians about Shias? We don’t have a problem with them. The tensions are between Sunnis and Shias. You should be asking them such questions.” I was […]
By Mike Kuhn While traveling recently through North America, it struck me frequently that normal Christian folk are increasingly face-to-face with people of other faiths, especially Muslims but also with Hindus, Buddhists and others. I watched Somali women line up for childcare outside a center in Seattle, WA. Syrians were […]
By Martin Accad In post 9/11 anti-Muslim discourse, taqiyya has been redefined as a religious obligation for Muslims to lie to non-Muslims not simply for survival, but in order to serve the expansionist agenda of their religious community. According to the taqiyya-focused strand of the anti-Muslim moral panic, Muslims stand condemned for their […]