September 13, 2012
By Caleb Hutcherson Often when I am talking to my Muslim friends, it seems like the Christian doctrine of the Trinity is one of the first obstacles to any dialogue between us. And truthfully, the understanding of God’s nature has been a source of contention and conflict since the beginning […]
September 6, 2012
By Arthur Brown The throwing of stones at Israeli soldiers and military vehicles by Palestinian youth is something we’ve all become used to seeing on our TV screens and in our newspapers. This somewhat symbolic expression of resistance by these children/young people, began in the Jabaliya refugee camp [Northern Gaza] […]
August 30, 2012
By Rupen Das A couple of months ago, during an extended conversation with a Muslim friend in Saida about a rights-based approach to addressing poverty, he said, “Islam does not believe in human rights”. After a long pause, during which my mind conjured up all the worst prejudices about Islam […]
August 23, 2012
by Nadia Khouri When I first arrived in Lebanon, I was so impressed to see the high level of civic engagement and the extent to which there was “free space” for non-state actors to be engaged in advocacy, social services, inter-faith work etc. It stood in stark contrast to what […]
August 16, 2012
by Martin Accad The phenomenon that has been labeled the ‘Arab Spring’ is known today through its diverse incarnations in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, and Syria. It looks different in each country and is in each place at a different stage. But in each of these places the phenomenon […]
August 9, 2012
by Arthur Brown As a youth worker I’ve lost count of the times parents have complained that they don’t understand their children. “It’s like they’re speaking a different language” they lament. As I look at the various titles of books about Islam that have been published over the last decade, […]
August 2, 2012
by Rupen Das As the reports have trickled out of Syria of the horrific torture, abuse and indiscriminate killing by all sides in the conflict, it has been easy to sit in the safety of the sidelines in Lebanon and damn those who perpetuate evil. The luxury of distance and […]
July 23, 2012
by Martin Accad IMES has just run its 9th annual conference: Middle East Conference 2012. For 5 days we heard from Profs. Colin Chapman, Glen Stassen, Sami Awad, and others, beginning with the historical, political and theological backgrounds to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and eventually focusing on the tragic daily realities […]