Showing posts with label Muhammad. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Muhammad. Show all posts
Sunday, August 07, 2016
Painting Muhammad with Bob Ross | Louder With Crowder
Friday, May 20, 2016
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Muhammad Really Is the Single Most Popular Boys’ Name in England and Wales
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
THE TELEGRAPH: Telegraph.co.uk today reports that Mohammed has become the most common name for baby boys born in London and in three other English regions.
In the capital, the Islamic name - including its varient spellings - was twice as popular as the second-placed name, Daniel, in 2008.
For those who follow these things, this won’t come as a huge surprise. We know that the UK’s Muslim population is growing, both through immigration and through its higher birthrate. We know that there are particular concentrations in London, the West Midlands and the North of England. We know that Muslim families tend to choose one particular name for their baby boys - Mohammed - a way that other communities do not.
And last week it was reported that the name was now the third most popular in England as a whole. In fact, Mohammed probably rose to the number one slot in the capital some time ago. For several years, I have been trying to pin this down as a fact. But until now, it has proved impossible because for the past decade or so, the Office for National Statistics has not disclosed regional breakdowns of popular baby names, only national totals. My requests for the regional figures were met with the response that this would be impossible to provide, even under the Freedom of Information Act. >>> Ben Leapman | Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
YAHOO! NEWS: Jack and Olivia have been revealed as the most popular names for babies born last year - with Mohammed leaping into second place for boys.
Jack retained its top spot for the 14th year in England and Wales, while Olivia rose two places from 2007, the Office for National Statistics said.
Mohammed comes in at number two when its various spellings, such as Muhammad and Mohammad, are included.
Without the variations Mohammed has shot up 18 places over the last year to 16th.
There were no new entries in the top 10 most popular names for baby boys - and only three in the top 100 - while Evie made its debut in the list of top 10 girls' names.
The top 10 baby names for boys were, in order of popularity: Jack, Oliver, Thomas, Harry, Joshua, Alfie, Charlie, Daniel, James and William.
And the top 10 baby names for girls were: Olivia, Ruby, Emily, Grace, Jessica, Chloe, Sophie, Lily, Amelia and Evie.
Jack, which first claimed number one in 1995, was the most popular boy's name in all-but-one month last year. >>> © Sky News | Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Monday, August 31, 2009
THE SUNDAY TIMES: THE bestselling author Sebastian Faulks has courted controversy by saying the Koran has “no ethical dimension”.
In an interview with today’s Sunday Times Magazine, he added that the Islamic holy scripture was “a depressing book”, was “very one-dimensional” and unlike the Christian New Testament had “no new plan for life”.
Faulks was speaking in advance of the publication of his novel, A Week in December.
Best known for historical works such as Birdsong and Charlotte Gray, his new novel addresses contemporary London. Its characters include a health fund manager, a literary critic and a Glasgow-born Islamic terrorist recruit. Researching the latter, he read a translation of the Koran which he found “very disappointing from a literary point of view”.
He also criticised the “barrenness” of the Koran’s message and the teachings of the prophet Muhammad, especially when compared with the Bible.
“Jesus, unlike Muhammad, had interesting things to say,” Faulks said.
“He proposed a revolutionary way of looking at the world: love your neighbour; love your enemy; the meek shall inherit the earth. Muhammad had nothing to say to the world other than, ‘If you don’t believe in God you will burn for ever’.”
Criticism of the Koran is regarded as blasphemous by Muslims. [Source: The Sunday Times] | Cathy Galvin | Sunday, August 23, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
THE TELEGRAPH: Mohammed, or other variations of the name of Islam's founding prophet, has become the most popular name choice for baby boys in the four biggest cities of the Netherlands.
Information collected by the country's social security agency has found that traditional Dutch names have been displaced in the urban centres of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht as the country's Muslim population grows.
In The Hague variations of the name Mohammed have taken first, second and fifth place in the Dutch capital's league table of most popular names for boys, replacing traditional favourites such as Jan, Luuk, Gijs or Daan.
At a national level the name Mohammed is now the 16th most popular name for boys.
The figures, obtained by the Dutch Elsevier magazine, from the Dutch Social Insurance Bank, or Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB), are different from the official statistics which have in the past counted various spellings of Mohammed, Muhamed, or Muhammad as different names.
Previous government name counts, separating the different versions, have avoided controversy by keeping the name of Islam's founder outside the Dutch top 20 of favourite names for baby boys.
Geert Wilders, leader of the far-Right, anti-Islam Freedom Party, which is currently leading the Dutch opinion polls, has demanded a government investigation following the Daily Telegraph's Aug 8 report that over a fifth of the European Union's population has been forecast to be Muslim by 2050. >>> Bruno Waterfield | Thursday, August 13, 2009
Friday, May 09, 2008
LOS ANGELES TIMES: IN THE post-Sept. 11 world, images and impressions of Islam in the Western media have often been synonymous with extremism. To temper this, the UCLA Film and Television Archive is offering "Visualizing the Sacred: Islam on Film," an attempt to present a more inclusive look at the religion. "Obviously Islam and images of Islam in the media are a big issue these days," notes programmer Paul Malcolm. "It's just been overwhelmed by the focus on terrorism and radicalism. . . . These films show the other side of Islam and the Muslim experience."
The program, which runs this weekend through June 7 at the Hammer Museum in Westwood, was originally conceived as a showcase for films created after 2001. But Malcolm says he soon realized "that the 9/11 marker was maybe too limiting in terms of getting the kinds of films that I thought would be great for audiences to see."
One of those films is "The Message," Moustapha Akkad's 1976 epic on the birth of Islam that kicks off the series at 7:30 p.m. Friday. "We have the term 'biblical epic,' but this is a Koranic epic," explains Malcolm. Films such as "The Message" and the animated "Muhammad: The Last Prophet" (2 p.m. May 24), he adds, "are very similar to the Hollywood biblical epics of the '50s and '60s; they're part of that genre and they draw on that genre."
Both movies also tackle the challenge of portraying the prophet Muhammad when the religion forbids representations (the subject of May 17's panel discussion). "What's fascinating is that they found cinematic ways to respect religious tradition and custom while telling engaging and entertaining stories," says Malcolm. "They use . . . other
ways of really expressing the powerful spiritual presence of Muhammad without actually depicting him on screen." ’Visualizing the Sacred: Islam on Film’ at UCLA >>> By Allyssa Lee | May 8, 2008
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Paperback – USA)
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Hardcover – USA)
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Saturday, December 08, 2007
THE TELEGRAPH: Until recently, people who wrote letters protesting about insults to decency, the Royal Family, God, and so on, often used to end with the words: "Is nothing sacred?" I notice that they have mostly given up doing so. This must be because, in British public space today, the answer to their question is so clearly: "No - nothing at all."
This week, the High Court upheld a district judge's decision to refuse an attempt to prosecute the BBC for blasphemy in broadcasting Jerry Springer - The Opera. In the show, an adult Jesus was depicted as wearing a nappy.
The judges were Mr Justice Collins, who is the son of the famous nuclear disarmer, Canon Collins, and Lord Justice Hughes, who lists "bellringing" as one of his recreations in Who's Who. It seems unlikely that either is ignorant of, or unsympathetic to, the claims of Christianity. But both took the view that, in modern society, an attack on Christianity (which, by the way, they thought Jerry Springer - The Opera was not) did not necessarily endanger society. They said that "the identity of Church and state and the near universality of Christian conviction in this country" no longer existed. Hell will freeze before a BBC Mohammed film >>> By Charles Moore
Mark Alexander
Thursday, November 08, 2007
SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Several drawings of the Prophet Muhammad in the European press have already scandalized the Muslim world. Now, a Swedish cartoonist is converting his controversial work into a musical.
Almost two years ago, 12 unflattering caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad appeared in the Danish paper Jyllands-Posten. After a bit of PR work by some radical imams in Denmark, the Muslim world erupted in protest.
Never one to leave well enough alone, Swedish artist Lars Vilks decided to keep the scandal going, and last summer, he drew a cartoon depicting the prophet's head on the body of a dog, which was published in the tiny Swedish paper Nerikes Allehanda. The caper earned him numerous death threats and a $100,000 bounty on his head, courtesy of al-Qaida -- who promised a $50,000 bonus if the murder was accomplished by slitting his throat.
Undeterred, Vilks has now come up with a dubious new idea: Why not turn the entire scandal into a musical? He has already started work on the project -- with the working title "Dogs" -- and envisions a stage production in the mold of "Jesus Christ Superstar" or "Cats."
"Muhammad is also a superstar in the modern sense of the term," Vilks told the Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter. Controversial Cartoon Inspires Musical (More)
Mark Alexander
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Among the greatest means of obtaining ease in times of hardship is invocating blessings and peace upon the Prophet of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace), which the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) himself clarified for us how in a tradition narrated by Ubai bin Ka’ab (may Allah be pleased with him), who said; ‘I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, I supplicate often, so how much of my supplication should I devote to you?’ He replied, ‘as you desire’. I said, ‘a quarter of it?’ He said ‘as you desire, but if you were to increase upon this, it would be better for you.’ I said, ‘half of it?’ He said, ‘as you desire, but if you were to increase upon this, it would be better for you.’ I said, ‘two-thirds of it?’ He said again, ‘as you desire, but if you were to increase upon this, it would be better for you.’ Finally I said, ‘and if I dedicate my supplication in its entirety to you?’ He said, ‘then your needs will be satisfied, and your sins forgiven.’[1]
It is clear that he whom Allah satisfies his worldly needs has been truly blessed with Allah’s kindness and mercy. He also has been given security from all that he fears, and has attained the utmost protection from all harm and evils; indeed he is carried aboard the ship of salvation. This means he is secure from all things which create worries and needs, secure from poverty, debt, subjugation, weakness, disease, fear, and all other calamities and disasters; he has guaranteed that his worldly affairs will be upright and good. . And should he obtain, alongside this, forgiveness from the sins and salvation from the perils of the Day of Resurrection, so that he may enter Paradise in peace, he has most certainly guaranteed that his affairs in the Hereafter will be good and upright, too.
What more could the worshipper require besides this? And all of this is obtained through invoking blessings and peace upon the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and give him peace); with it lies the key to guaranteeing goodness in the affairs of this life, and in the Hereafter.
We will now give mention to some of the benefits of invocating blessings and peace upon our Master Muhammad (may Allah bless him and give him peace), by way of drawing from the works of the scholars of Islam, namely Sheikh ibn al-Qayyim, and Sheikh ibn Hajar al-Haytami. Deifying Muhammad (more)
Mark Alexander
Thursday, June 07, 2007
THE TELEGRAPH: Rising immigration and older mothers have fuelled a 26-year high in the number of children women are having in England and Wales.
Figures released by the Office of National Statistics show the average number of children has risen for a fifth straight year to 1.87, the highest rate since 1980.
The last decade has seen a 77 per cent increase in births by mothers born outside of the UK, with the figure climbing to almost 150,000, or over a fifth of all babies, last year.
As Britain's demographics change, Mohammed is expected soon to replace Jack as the most popular boy's name. It has already pushed Thomas into third place. Rising immigration fuels 26-year fertility high (more)
Mark Alexander
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