Egypt's Al-Azhar university replaces head in apostasy row

Reuters/Yahoo, Egypt's Al-Azhar university replaces head in apostasy row "Al-Azhar said its Grand Imam, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, had named Mohamed Hussein al-Mahrsawy, dean of the Arabic language faculty, as the university's acting president following the resignation of Ahmed Hosny and pending the appointment of a permanent successor."

al-Azhar monitoring Daesh

Express, Islamic University BEATING heinous Islamic State's 'cancerous' propaganda, 11 Feb 2016 "Al-Azhar in Cairo, one of Islam’s oldest and most influential universities is combatting the vile jihadi’s slick propaganda machine by sifting through dozens of ISIS publications across eight different languages."

al-Azhar

onislam.net, Police Clashes With Al-Azhar Students, 20 Oct 2013 "Images of anti-riot police forces firing teargas at students protesting against the army’s move to depose former President Mohamed Morsi were posted on the internet on Sunday, October 20, reflecting a new development in Egypt daily protests over the past three months."

Sheikh Ali Gomaa profile

The National, Grand Mufti of Egypt known as independent religious thinker, 20 Apr 2012 "Sheikh Ali Gomaa, Egypt's Grand Mufti, has established a reputation in the Islamic world as an independent thinker who uses a deep knowledge of religious texts to take liberal and sometimes unexpected stances."

Ahmed Al-Tayeb

bikyamasr.com, Egypt: Sheikh of Al-Azhar outlines 12 steps to achieve the demands of the revolution "The Grand Imam of Egypt’s Al-Azhar Sunni authority, Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, delivered a speech marking the anniversary of Egypt’s January 25 Revoltuion, calling upon people to preserve unity and integrity as they observe the day."

"Al-Azhar Message on Satellite, Internet"

onislam.net, Al-Azhar Message on Satellite, Internet, 16 Dec 2011 "Bound by tradition and overshadowed by the state, al-Azhar missed the boat when new communications options opened up and Islamists seized them to challenge its mainstream view of Islam. ""We have not adequately coped with the changing modern means of communication and information technology,” Ibrahim Negm, senior adviser to Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa, Egypt's second-highest religious authority after Tayeb, said."

Review on Al-Azhar Manuscripts Online

Irtiqa, Al-Azhar Manuscripts Online, 21 Nov 2011 review concerning a much heralded project, which has so far not fulfilled expectations

'Al-Azhar Blossoms in Arab Revolutions'

OnIslam.net, Al-Azhar Blossoms in Arab Revolutions, 4 Sep 2011 "Submitted to strongman leaders, Al-Azhar's role waned just as firebrand preachers with less religious learning began spreading their religious views on the Internet and satellite TV."

Al-Azhar scholar criticizes Saudi edict banning protests

almasryalyoum.com, Al-Azhar scholar criticizes Saudi edict banning protests "Sheikh Gamal Qotb, former head of the Al-Azhar fatwa committee, said peaceful protests help promote virtue and prevent evil ...

" ... Qotb described the Saudi edict as a "big mistake," saying protesters warn officials of their mistakes before those mistakes grow larger. He said Muslim governments should allocate channels for citizens to express their opinions and give feedback to officials."

Quran Printing Center

abna.ir, Al-Azhar to Establish Quran Printing Center, 1 Nov 2010: "According to university spokesman Muhammad Rifa’a Al-Tahtawi, the decision was made following reports that some Quran copies printed in Egypt contain printing problems and errors."

Dalia Ziada

alarabiya.net, Egypt blogger wins Euro-Mid online media prize, 16 Oct 2010 "Ziada published on her blog many of her controversial articles, including one in which she criticized al-Azhar, the chief center of the Sunni Islamic learning, for failing to curb the spread of the face veil known as the Burqa and which many religious scholars describe as un-Islamic."

Facebook: Dalia Ziada has plenty of related links (pic comes from there)

Also see her article which featured in the award: Dalia Ziada, A space for unveiling the minds of young Muslim women, 8 Nov 2009 "The information technology revolution has done much more than merely making the world a small village. For us, young women activists living in Egypt and the Middle East, the information technology revolution gave us the space we needed to practice our lives the way we want, apart from the restrictions imposed on us by our patriarchal societies."

Al-Azhar

Sarah A. Topol, CSM, Cairo's revered Al Azhar University now overshadowed by TV imams, 9 Apr 2010 "Al Azhar today is suffering from a perceived lack of credibility in the face of pressure from the Egyptian government and a loss of popularity amid the rising influence of TV preachers and Internet imams. That has created a crisis of legitimacy for an institution whose influence once stretched from Morocco to Indonesia."

Al Azhar English Training Centre

New Generation is a social networking site organised by Al Azhar English Training Centre (AAETC) in Cairo, a joint project between the British Council, the UK Foreign Office and Al Azhar University. It's a place where students can participate in English language discussion groups, blogs, forums and photos. Students are interested in discussing religion with other students in the UK (and elsewhere). It looks like a good initiative (and a lot of fun for the students). If you are interested, contact the blog directly - and not myself...

Sheik Mohammed Sayed Tantawi

aljazeera.netبأزمة قلبية أثناء زيارة للرياض:
وفاة شيخ الأزهر سيد طنطاوي 24/3/1431

AP, Egypt's top Muslim cleric dies of heart attack, 10 Mar 2010 "Top Egyptian cleric Sheik Mohammed Sayed Tantawi, whose moderate views angered conservative Muslims, died of a heart attack Wednesday during a visit to Saudi Arabia, the state-owned news agency reported. He was 81."

Al Jazeera, Al-Azhar head dies in Saudi Arabia, 10 Mar 2010

Useful commentary/obituary: The Arabist, Sheikh Tantawi, 1928-2010 "Tantawi leaves a mixed legacy behind him: overall, the immediate verdict may be that he was too liberal for conservatives, too conservative for liberals, too compliant with the regime for those who want al-Azhar to be independent, and too independent for those in the regime who needed Azharite support to enact policy changes on issues as varied as Palestine, banking and TV game shows. The overall image is of a man besieged on all sides, but adept at fighting bureaucratic battles in the bloated, clerical civil service that al-Azhar has become."

Expect plenty more coverage in the next 24 hours.

Facebook 'fatwa' update

MEMRI, Egyptian Clerics Debate Permissibility of Using Facebook and Other Websites; Columnist Diana Mukkaled Responds: 'Social Networking Sites and Blogs Have Helped to Break Down Barriers and Produce Innovations', 1 Mar 2010 "In early February 2010, the Qatari daily Al-Raya reported that the Al-Azhar Fatwa Committee had issued a ruling against Facebook, stating that anyone entering this site was committing an offense against the shari'a. According to the daily, the fatwa was based on a report by Egypt's National Center for Social and Criminological Studies, which claimed that Facebook is a major cause for divorce in the Muslim world. The study contended that one out of every five cases of divorce is caused by one of the spouses having an online affair via Facebook. According to a report on the Al-Arabiya website, the fatwa was issued by a former head of the Al-Azhar Fatwa Committee, Sheikh 'Abd Al-Hamid Al-Atrash, who said that entering Facebook is forbidden in light of the immorality rampant among the youth, and because this site is used to destroy families and homes, and anybody who enters it is a sinner." see full report for references and detail on this previously blogged story

Facebook 'fatwa' update

Joseph Mayton, bikyamasr.com, Al-Azhar says no fatwa against Facebook, 9 Feb 2010 "One avid Facebook user said that even if al-Azhar was to issue a fatwa, “it is unlikely any of us would think about following it because it doesn’t make sense. Blaming Facebook is an excuse for the lack of opportunities and poor lives we live in Egypt.”"

'Facebook fatwa' update

Amro Hassan, Babylon & Beyond blog, LA Times, Al Azhar denies Facebook fatwa, 7 Feb 2010 "Facebook may lead to sexual liaisons and illicit affairs, but Al Azhar's Islamic Research Academy has refuted reports that its fatwa committee issued a ruling against the social network.

""The committee hasn’t issued any decrees regarding Facebook," said Sheikh Saied Amer, head of the academy's fatwa, or religious-edict, committee. "We haven’t even had any inquiries about the religious legitimacy of using it or not.""

Also see Gulf News, Facebook fatwa raises eyebrows in Egypt, 8 Feb 2010 ""Such fatwas give a very bad impression about Islam and Muslims," said Hussain Abdul Azeem, a commerce school post-graduate. "I use the Facebook to communicate with my friends worldwide and learn about the latest news. Do I really commit a sin as the one who issued the fatwa claimed?" he told Gulf News."

Phone fatwa

Metro, Egyptian mobile users warned about ringtones, 21 Jan 2010 "Egypt’s supreme religious law authority has hit out at mobile users who adapt verses from the Koran as ringtones.

"Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa issued a fatwa, or a religious edict, saying they were violating the sanctity of the word of God."

Mohammed Tantawi

AP, Veil's spread fans Egypt's fear of hard-line Islam, 6 Dec 09 "The debate has grown more heated since Mohammad Tantawi, the top cleric at prestigious Al-Azhar University, banned the niqab in classrooms and dorms on the grounds that it "has nothing to do with Islam," and that it was unnecessary since the college is gender-segregated. Meanwhile, the Health Ministry and religious authorities forbade nurses and preachers to wear the niqab."

Al-Azhar 'The Response'

Euro-Islam, "The Response”

This is a very useful pointer to fixyourdeen.com, available in Arabic, English and Urdu as pdf files. Dr. Richard Gauvain (one of the translators) notes: "This book is the result of a lengthy collaboration between scholars of Egypt’s prestigious Al-Azhar University and Islamic Hotline or El-Hatef El-Islami organization. Put simply, far too simply, its aim is to contest the growing number of intolerant and/or simply mistaken legal opinions that often go unchallenged in Muslim communities today. Deeply rooted in the legal tradition of ikhtilaf writings, yet utilizing modern means of communication, The Response applies the wisdom of the classical jurists to the complex realities of the contemporary Muslim world."

I haven't read the document yet ...