August seems an odd time for a story about an infant Messiah born in Bethlehem. But the recent occurrence of Tisha be'Av--literally, "the Ninth of the month Av" in the Jewish calendar, which fell on August 1 this year--brought the story to mind. It's a good story, although in some respects a bit … [Read more...]
UFOs in Israel – Aliens, the “Other,” and Dr. Tehiya Eshet
Tell me quick--what UFO event happened at Ahihud? At Shikmona? Kadima? Yatzitz? You don't know? I didn't either, and truth be told I still don't. I'd probably have trouble even finding these places on a map of Israel. They belong to a world that's long fascinated me but into which I've had … [Read more...]
From Judaism to Islam – Margaret Marcus, Maryam Jameelah (Part 3)
(Continued from last week's post.) Here's what Deborah Baker writes in the afterword to her book The Convert, on Maryam Jameelah who was once Margaret Marcus--the Jewish girl from New York who converted to Islam, moved to Pakistan, and became an eloquent spokesperson for traditional Islam's case … [Read more...]
From Judaism to Islam – Margaret Marcus, Maryam Jameelah (Part 2)
(Continued from last week's post.) "Now that I have settled myself here, I would like to explain how I came to be a part of the Mawlana Mawdudi's family. It seems I have spent my entire life trying to get to this moment, to explain myself in terms that make sense to you. I'm not sure I ever … [Read more...]
From Judaism to Islam – Margaret Marcus, Maryam Jameelah (Part 1)
Deborah Baker. The Convert: A Tale of Exile and Extremism. Minneapolis: Graywolf Press, 2011. How many years has it been since I first heard of Maryam Jameelah, the former Margaret (“Peggy”) Marcus? At least 15 or 20, I think. Sometime in the 90s, I was in a library paging through an issue of … [Read more...]
