For Mohammad Sabir Khedri, compiling the pages of this enormous and intricately detaied holy book was a 5 year labor of love. A master calligrapher has lovingly unveiled the world’s largest Quran in Kabul, Afghanistan, according to a Reuters report released last week. The giant holy book measures 7.5 by 5.10 feet, weighs over 1,000 pounds, […]
A Jewish “spin” on gambling? Who cares? It’s fun! I confess: every Hanukkah, I have to look up the rules for the dreidel game again. It’s not complicated, but I only play it a few times a year, and usually with rowdy small children To keep the tradition alive and make memories for my family, […]
Faith-based TRUST-WIN women’s initiative promotes peace between peoples of the Middle East. Muslim, Christians, Druze, and Jews gathered in the Galilee town of Dalyat Al-Carmel on December 1st, a year after the Carmel Forest fire. The worst fire in Israel’s history, it took 44 lives and destroyed over 5 million trees, as well as hundreds […]
The Festival of Lights gives spiritual and historical messages. This year, add a green message to the lights. Hannukah falls on December 20th this year. Among the laws of lighting the menorah – one of the Hannukah traditions that Jews follow for eight days – is one that requires placing it where the lights can […]
Sheikh Ali Gomaa is the Grand Mufti of Egypt issuing environmental fatwas. Sheikh Ali Gomaa is the Grand Mufti of Egypt since September 2003 and one of the highest ranking and respected religious authorities throughout the Sunni world. He holds the second highest religious position in Egypt, after that of Sheikh al-Azhar. As the Grand […]
Religious leaders will gather in Assisi, Italy (home of St. Francis of Assisi) to launch the Green Pilgrimage Network next week. Religious pilgrimage is an important component of many world religions. Here in the Middle East, the annual Hajj to Mecca draws millions of Muslims from all over the world who want to fulfill one […]
Mosaic artist Ruslan Sergeyev and the “My Wave” recycled ceramic art creation on Netanya promenade. Festival includes a mosaic of lost socks. Photo by Igor Sarni Israel’s eight-day Sukkot festival, now ongoing, often includes a number of motifs and local themes which give emphasis to projects that help preserve the environment. This year is no […]
Miriam suggests dishes to suit meals before and after the Big Fast of Yom Kippur. This coming Friday night a Jewish Shabbat and Yom Kippur holiday occur together. While I look forward to a day of prayer and meditation, a day offline and a day of cleaner air, I confess I don’t relish the thought of […]
Spencer Tunick briefing naked participants prior to a photo shoot. Can the Naked Sea stunt be done to save the Jordan River as well? The momentous event staged at the Dead Sea by American photographic art producer Spencer Tunick at the Lowest Point on earth is now over ; and those who participated in this […]
major world religions including Islam, encourage a snip of a sensitive nature to improve one's quality of life. So how can having less mean having more?
With the nearing of the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Makkah, Middle Eastern leaders and the 'Ecomuslim' aim to launch an official green guide to Hajj at the House of Lords, London.
Prayer notes folded small to fit into the Western Walls’s crevices. In my early days as an observant Jew, I left a note in the cracks of the Western Wall. I searched my mind for the words to convey my prayers onto paper and wasn’t at all sure God would know or care. I’ve learned […]
Does circumcision offer health benefits? A medical historian I spoke with says yes, it does. She’s now working in Africa with Zulus. It was a tradition long ago practiced. Now Zulu tribes in Africa are returning to the Jewish custom of male circumcision to reduce the spread of AIDS. In California where calls to ban […]
Palestinians hope rural tourism in Taybeh will lure tourists away from the beaten path Lamb blood is splattered all over the doorway of what was once a church as if someone had just dropped a leaky garbage bag filled with guts from the heavens. “The local people continue to follow Old Testament practices. They sacrifice […]
Muslim, Jewish, and Christian leaders are meeting today in Jerusalem to discuss climate change and launch the new Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development. Leaders of the Muslim, Jewish, and Christian faiths will be convening this morning in Jerusalem to speak out about climate change at an Interfaith Climate Change Forum. Current environmental conditions in the […]