alfajr aljadid الفجر الجديد

The Arab mind between fugitive renewal and correct liberation The road to renewal of Islamic thought Feb 23, 2015 Tarek Osman Major Saudi Islamic institutions condemned the attack on the headquarters of the French satirical newspaper "Charlie Hebdo". The same week, the country's religious authorities charged young blogger Raif Badawi with insulting Islam. Badawi was due to be subjected to a sentence of 1,000 lashes, to be carried out at the rate of fifty lashes every Friday, but the sentence was postponed after widespread international condemnation. A week later, an Egyptian court sentenced a young man to three years in prison for “contempt of religion.” Has the Islamic world relapsed? In the 1930s, the Egyptian author Ismail Adham wrote a book called Why Am I an Atheist? The response was not with a fatwa that sheds his blood, but with another book entitled “Why am I a believer?” The Muslim poet Ahmed Zaki Abu Shadi. The region's political systems were gradually shift

  Why Did Mordecai Not Bow Down to Haman? Prof.Rachel Adelman The reason for Mordecai’s defiance is not explained in the book of Esther. The midrash, the targum, and the Greek versions of Esther fill in the gaps. Mordecai’s Risky Defiance The Book of Esther is fraught with anxiety as it tells the story of the precarious existence of Jews in the Diaspora. The drama hinges on a perplexing conundrum: Why does Mordecai, who is known as “the Jew,” refuse to bow down to Haman, putting his people in peril? Mordecai’s defiance provides Haman with grounds for the genocidal decree, describing the Jews as having “laws different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king’s laws, so that it is not appropriate for the king to tolerate them” (3:8). This leads to Ahasuerus’ genocidal decree against the Jews, the “Final Solution,” though he does not know the precise cause or even the identity of the people. Surely, as a wise courtier, Mordecai would be wary of the king’s arbitrary

  Fig. 1. Lector-priest with kilt and sash performing the Opening of the Mouth ceremony on the deceased. Tomb of Menna at Thebes (ca. 14th c. BCE). © Ted Grudowski The Egyptian “Magicians” Prof.Scott B. Noegel Is the Bible’s portrayal of the magicians (Ḥarṭummīm) in accord with Egyptian literature and ritual practice? How did the Israelite writers obtain this knowledge? Whether portrayed as failing to interpret dreams (Gen 41:8, 41:24), transforming staffs into serpents (Exod 7:11-13), or as exacerbating the plagues in an effort to prove their abilities (Exod 7:22, 8:3, 8:14, 9:11), the Egyptian magicians always serve as literary foils for God’s plan. Despite their uncanny abilities, they continually demonstrate the superiority of Yahweh. But does the Bible’s portrayal of these magicians fit what we know of them from Egyptian sources? Their roles as literary figures encourage one to ponder whether they represent bonafide Egyptian functionaries and whether their marvelous feats depict

  Studies of the heads of sheep and a cow, Jan van Ravenswaay, 1848.  Christies.com Expiating with Blood Dr.Yitzhaq Feder Is the book of Leviticus primitive? I believe so, though an analysis of the meaning of the word kipper suggests that these sacrificial laws may be more relevant than we often realize. Oh no…here it comes. It’s that time of year again. When God “calls out” to Moses (ויקרא), heralding the beginning of Leviticus, many readers (especially those who are not anthropologically inclined) are ready to tune out the ensuing litany of animal sacrifices, bodily emissions, incest laws and other less-than-inspiring topics that occupy the Torah portions for several weeks. Indeed, Maimonides himself argued that these laws are relics from an early phase of Israelite civilization, confirming our suspicions: these rules are primitive. Actions Speak Louder: The Meaning of Sacrifices and Ritual Perhaps here more than other Torah texts, academic biblical studies are indispensable, offerin