Terror and Terrorists

Confronting September 11: Confronting Intolerance and Reforming the Schools

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:12:35 -0600

Tensions between secular culture and a religious practice often focus on education. How should governments balance the right to religious freedom and the best interests of the state, its citizens, and the larger world? Since the September 11th attacks Pakistani President Musharraf has tried to reform the Islamic religious schools in his country, some of which were responsible for educating leaders of the Taliban and thousands of young people who became recruits for Al Qaeda and other extremist groups.

Confronting September 11: In the Name of Religion

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:00:27 -0600

The Taliban, a name that translates into English as religious students, gained control of almost all of Afghanistan in 1996. As the Taliban consolidated their power they forged their militant brand of Islam into national law.

Confronting September 11: Multiple Identities

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 09:53:11 -0600

Economist and humanitarian, Amartya Sen writes about his multiple identities. He believes "the main hope of harmony lies not in any imagined uniformity, but in the plurality of our identities.

Confronting September 11: Not in My Name

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:05:10 -0600

September 11th was not the first time violence has been clothed in religious rhetoric, but as University of Virginia Islamic Studies professor Abdulaziz Sachedina writes in an essay, "Where Was God on September 11th?" the combination of religion, terror and politics was very painful.

Confronting September 11: Portrait of the Accused

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:01:54 -0600

Since September 11th reporters have searched for explanations for the attacks on the United States and the murder of almost 3,000 innocent men, women, and children from over 80 nations. Buddhists, Christians, Jews, and Muslims were among those who died that day.

Confronting September 11: Prayers for Peace

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:03:37 -0600

In the wake of the September attacks, many religious leaders tried to use their position to help heal the world and to advocate for peace and social justice. This reading highlights a few of those responses.

Confronting September 11: Religion and Violence

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 09:58:43 -0600

In the introduction to these readings, Professor Marc Gopin writes about the complexity of identity and religion and its ability to shape human behavior. He writes, "It turns out that since the beginning of time great spiritual minds and courageous people of vision in all cultures, in all corners of the globe, have evolved a rich tapestry of oral and written literature, stories, rituals, and symbols, which express the most exalted ethical values.

Confronting September 11: Religious Identity and National Loyalty

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 09:56:57 -0600

The tension between religious identity and national loyalty has become the focus of much of the world's attention since the attacks on September 11th. In the first three readings we explored how individuals construct their identity in relation to their cultural identities.

Confronting September 11: The Balance of Freedom and Safety

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:07:01 -0600

In democracies that strive to be pluralistic, there are often questions about the role of religion in public life. Those questions are often compounded in times of stress. What role do religious beliefs, or other markers of identity, have in profiling potential criminals? Since September the United States government has taken measures, both inside and outside of the nation's borders, to prevent further terrorist attacks on American interests.

Confronting September 11: The Human Connection

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:14:07 -0600

Since the events of September 11th many people in the United States have begun to re-examine their relationship to the rest of the world. People and places that once seemed far away have become intimately connected to the lives of ordinary Americans.