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Islamic Identity in the US: Reza Aslan

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Iranian Revolution? Aslan Says Don't Hold Your Breath

02 min 37 sec

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"If you are looking for a new revolution in Iran, you can stop holding your breath now because it's not going to happen," says religious scholar and author Reza Aslan. However, Aslan does predict dramatic political change on the horizon.

His advice to the United States? Stop isolating Iran.
Reza Aslan: The Cross and Flag Have Become Synonymous

03 min 28 sec

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Religious scholar and author Reza Aslan argues many Americans who claim to be Christian are actually declaring their nationality, not spirituality.

"The cross and the flag have bled into a single icon," says Aslan.
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01 hr 05 min 37 sec

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ahmadrahman12345

Posted: 12.22.10, 07:02 AM

Reza Aslan dnot represent us Muslims who emigrated to the USA to escape from Islam. He does not know the real Islam. What he is expressing is what he wants Islam to be rather than what it really is.

aBurmeseMuslim

Posted: 06.20.10, 05:38 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by rkm He's wrong. Language and culture is what divides us, not religion. Religion divides groups of countries or continents. No christian has to go to church on a regular basis in order to satisfy Aslan's definition. By saying "christian", he is combining Catholic, Baptist, Mormon, Anglican, etc. all into one convenient group, christian. It took centuries for these sects to evolve and now he has genericized christianity. I don't agree and I'm not even a bible thumper... If Reza Aslan is combining Catholic, Baptist, Mormon, Anglican, etc. all into one convenient group, christian, so are the Chsiratisn doing to the Muslims. But Reza Aslan was talking from the perspective of the point he wanted to make, not of ignorance.

browser111

Posted: 06.16.10, 06:43 PM

Aslan is very much like Karen Armstrong. They both have a background in fiction and they apply those skills astutely to promoting Islam. Sure 95% of women in Iran are literate, perhaps, but there is a big difference between being able to read and being well read. Islam promotes a submitted slave mentality. One is to become a "slave of Allah". Islam means literally submission. Aslan suggests knowing Muslims. One example I can think of is a 30 year old woman I met from Morocco. She's been to University there studying French grammar so she also would have been through their equivalent to our high school system. She seemed quite intelligent but I was shocked by her lack of developed logic and critical reasoning skills. She sent me links to these silly opinions by imans. One of them tried to excuse slavey in Islam (which was bigger than America approved by the Quran and which some imans are now trying to bring back). Another claimed that there were over 20% more women than men so polygamy benefited women else some would never get married. I looked up the stats on population. Across the world the difference is more like 1% more for women than men and it's also 1% for Morroco. She couldn't understand that the iman was illogical. She'd been inculcated to accept islamic authority. This brain-dead submission is why we see no invention in the Islamic world, and little curiosity -- they say that there are more books translated into Spanish every year than have been translated into Arabic in the last 1000 years.

browser111

Posted: 06.16.10, 04:24 PM

Aslan is a skilled polemist. He shows everything is sweetness and light with Islam. We have nothing to be concerned about. Before you make your mind up about Islam take in various opinions, for example: http://www.ninjavideo.net/video/22042

calamity

Posted: 06.16.10, 08:55 AM

Religion is part of culture.

Lary9

Posted: 06.10.10, 03:09 AM

I started to study Islam about 4 years ago because someone attempted to interest me in converting. He was thinking because I'm a firmly committed atheist and a cultural Christian that surely Islam's irresistible truth would overcome my skepticism regarding organized religion. He was wrong. But I knew little about Islam and took this invitational opportunity to rectify that ignorance. And I'm still at it...because it's a fascinating subject and it's very,very topical. As to this bit with Reza Aslan, my bias is thus: I've found that no one really speaks for Islam. Since the disappearance of the Caliphate in the 16th century, Islam hasn't really had any central authority. I have repeatedly heard that this is perfectly acceptable since the unexpurgated Quran is truly their only authority. Good program. Aslan is a popular scholar and he is a "flavor of the month" type for representing Islam to American non-Muslims. Zhudi Jasser,MD is a better resource. My impression is that Reza Aslan is a media savy, pretty-boy lightweight but he often says absurd things. He sounds rather professorial to me. One thing I would bet on is that each one of these well-groomed, well-spoken, public orators on the "Islam For Dummies" Circuit is on the hit lists of 250 million jihadis on the other side of Gates of Vienna.

l.e.whitman

Posted: 06.04.10, 06:58 PM

I did enjoyed this lecture, though I have to say, I disagree with a great deal of it. I still find religion disgusting, including moderate religion (sometimes even more so), such as I understand Mr. Reza Aslan is speaking about. He is a very good speaker and I'd liked this lecture. He is right though, about the views on religion. It is a very complicated thing, as are most things in human history and culture, and generalizations about it are often wrong. And, though I strongly disagree, I am glad to see an intellegent person arguing, even if he isn't on my side of the debate.

AlexZanzibar

Posted: 10.18.09, 08:01 PM

Great stuff. I think Reza's ability to speak about such difficult issues with such ease is uncomfortable for many people. But to get people to think and arrive a deeper level to what is really driving their belief, one has to make them uncomfortable with ease. I think you can see that happening with some of the people who have commented below. At the end of the day he is a thinker who is making us all think and that is amazing in this day and age. I just discovered a new online forum that Reza and his partner have launched called www.boomgen.tv on a huffpost article. These guys are doing amazing work.

jongadel

Posted: 09.26.09, 06:44 PM

i just discovered your site from TIME's article and i registered as a new member none of the movies played please fix, asap you look like you have a good site

TheDude

Posted: 09.24.09, 02:16 AM

Loved it and I have to admit my bias: I especially liked the credit given to the mid west with a desire to seek understanding. The coastal areas already know, LOL! Too true Reza, Too true!

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