I, Muslimah

Muslims are constantly talking about the ummah, which means “community,” specifically the community of all believers. We’re proud of being a part of this community, but in actual practice we do little to foster a feeling of fellowship among its members. Sure, we all pray “together” five times a day and fast at the same time during the month of Ramadan. And there are mosques where we can gather for prayer and other events. But [...]

While I can understand using Arabic terms and phrases if you speak Arabic, I don’t think Muslims who do this around American converts realize how alienating this can be. Not only do we not know what is being said, which makes us feel like outsiders, but we feel strange using the words ourselves, especially at first. I’m always torn between wanting to express myself in my own language and feeling like I should use the [...]

The Islamic Center at New York University (ICNYU) has a program called Conver(t)sations, which is designed to facilitate communication between born Muslims and converts. The Imam of ICNYU is Khalid Latif and in this video he is moderating a panel of converts who have come together to share their stories. Born Muslims love to hear conversion stories, but are not so interested in hearing how the convert is doing after he or she becomes a [...]

I have always believed that God exists, even from childhood. But Islam has made it possible for me to feel my connection to Him more strongly. Sometimes, however, I don’t feel the same connection to other Muslims …

This video is based on the Gallup poll of Muslims around the world as to what they really think about a variety of issues, like extremism, women and democracy. Inside Islam: What a Billion Muslims Really Think from Unity Productions Foundation on Vimeo. Gallup also published a book, Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think, in order to report its findings. It includes commentary by John L. Esposito, Ph.D. and Dalia Mogahed, [...]

One of the things I love about Islam is its community (or “ummah“).  It was the ummah that brought me to Islam. Three years ago, I didn’t know any Muslims. I had all kinds of preconceptions about them based on what I’d read or seen in the media. While I didn’t subscribe to the idea that they were all terrorists, or that they all hated Americans, I did see them as “others”— strange and foreign [...]