Voices on the Veil: Is the Veil Oppressive or a Celebration of Identity?

When the Taliban lost control of Kabul last November, the world waited for Afghan women to immediately shed their burqas, or all-encompassing robes. But it didn't quite happen that way.

Most women in Afghanistan today still cover their heads as they have done for centuries. And many women across the Islamic world say the hijab, or traditional headscarf worn with loose clothes, should not be seen as a sign of women's oppression, but a statement of their identity and religion.

It is a known fact that every language has one or more terms that are used in reference to God and sometimes to lesser deities. This is not the case with Allah. Allah is the personal name of the One true God. Nothing else can be called Allah. The term has no plural or gender. This shows its uniqueness when compared with the word "god," which can be made plural, as in "gods," or made feminine, as in "goddess." It is interesting to notice that Allah is the personal name of God in Aramaic, the language of Jesus and a sister language of Arabic.

When Ibrahim (Alaihis salaam) completed the structure of the Ka'bah, Allah (Subhanahu wa ta'ala) commanded him to call the people to Hajj. Ibrahim (Alaihis salaam) pleaded, "O Allah! How shall my voice reach all of those people?" Allah (Subhanahu wa ta'ala) told him that his duty was only to give the call and it was up to Allah to make it reach the people.

Ibrahim (Alaihis salaam) then climbed Mount Arafat and called out in his loudest voice, "O People! Verily Allah has prescribed upon you Hajj, so perform Hajj."

Allah (Subhanahu wa ta'ala) revealed in the Qur'an: "And proclaim the Hajj among mankind. They will come to thee on foot and (mounted) on every camel, lean on account of journeys through deep and distant mountain highways" (Surat Al-Hajj, Ayat 28).

Can We Be "Too" Into It?

We live in a society in which Western values dictate how we should live our lives. These external pressures, coupled with the inclination towards their desires, makes it increasingly difficult for people to practice their religion.

To become attached to Allah (swa) one must become detached from the world. That way even though our work may be on Earth, our hearts should always remain with our Lord.

Then why do we refer to those individuals who may spend all their time in the mosque and are not interested in the "normal" activities that "normal people" find pleasure in as "extremists", "religious fanatics" or "too much into it"?

Shaykh Salim Giza

Islam is a religion of peace and harmony. It is not a religion of hate and destruction. Whilst Islam like any other religion or nation has a right to defend itself and it’s followers from enemy attack, there are clear guidelines for this.

When it comes to dealing with non-Muslims there are two categories of a non-believer, 1) themselves 2)what they believe. It is not permissible to hate a person or human being but rather one can dislike and disagree with what they believe.

How Did Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) Treat Non Muslims?

Manchester University student Hayder Khan, member of 'The Revival' Editorial Team, was invited to a consultation with Prime Minister Tony Blair. Here, he gives his personal account of what went on:

‘You have an opportunity to communicate directly with the Prime Minister’ said the letter from 10 Downing Street. ‘A consultation with young Muslims in the UK’ it said. Wohooo!

1 - It's time for Maghrib prayer, and Eastenders is on at the same time. What do you do?

A - Watch Eastenders of course! It’s a one hour special today.

B - Watch Eastenders and then rush to read Maghrib, with the episodes events still in your mind.

C - Read Maghrib, you don’t watch Eastenders.

2 - How many prayers (Salaah) do you read in a day?

A - I don’t pray - ever!

B - I read my Jummah, read the Eid prayer twice a year and read a prayer here and there.

C - I try to read all five prayers a day.

3 - How did you fast in Ramadan?

A - Didn’t fast, it's too hard.

By Naheem Zaffar

Yep, Ladies and Gentlemen. It’s that time of the year again. Time to name and shame. Who are the people who have done the most damage to Islam and Muslims over the past year? The underlying theme this year for our turkeys has always been terror and terrorism.

We’ve had the Right Honourable Charles Clarke, for his heavy-handed anti-terrorism laws, and Sir Ian Blair for his attempted cover-up following the shooting of Brazilian Jean Charles De Menezes. And who can forget the ‘turkifying’ of fanatics who fan and support heinous acts of terrorism and butchery.

So who has been a great role model for Muslims this year? Who has carried out great work? Who is the individual who has done us proud?

Well first of all we had Amir Khan for his boxing achievements, then we had sisters Yvonne Ridley and Ruqayyah Waris Maqsood for their tireless efforts in dawah, media and education. We had a list of scholars including the likes of Shaykh Hamza Yusuf who have portrayed a very positive image of Islam in the West.

lmran Younis and Sajid lqbal

Are you a gangster wannabe?

Gangsterism means the way of life of a gangster. The word isn’t used much though, especially not by gangsters. Some don’t wish to call their way of life anything whilst others make a song and dance about it by using catchy words like ‘Thug Life’ and M.O.B or call themselves playas, pimps, hustlas, souljahs and the list goes on.