The Muslim 500, 2011 edition…is Out!

After months of research, the 2011 edition of the Muslim 500 is finally out.

This publication is part of an annual series that provides a window into the movers and shakers of the Muslim world. It gives valuable insight into the different ways that Muslims impact the world, and also shows the diversity of how people are living as Muslims today.

http://themuslim500.com/

Islamic Center Park51 Cannot Be Evicted, But Must Pay Back Rent

A Manhattan Judge has blocked Con Edison from evicting Park51, the proposed Islamic Center in Lower Manhattan. The center however will need to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in back rent, as well as begin paying an increased rent of $25,875 per month, up from the $2,750 currently paid.

Until both sides settle on an exact figure to how much is owed in back rent, the center will be protected from eviction.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/29/islamic-center-park51-can_n_1119259.html?ref=islam

Prophet Muhammad's invitation to Christians to pray in mosques

Forty-eight individuals present – half of them Catholic, the other half Muslim – at the meeting in Jordan viewed as the continuance of the first gathering, held in Rome in November 2008. A Forum born on the threshold of the route undertaken a year earlier, by a letter on the theme of dialogue with the Christian world, entitled A Common Word and signed by 138 Islamic personalities. On the Catholic side, the delegation in Jordan was led by Cardinal Jean-Luis Tauran, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. The delegation also included representatives from some churches of the Middle East and North Africa (among them, the Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal, the Chaldean Bishop of Aleppo, Antoine Audo, the Bishop of Constantine in Algeria, Paul Desfarges, the Apostolic Vicar of Saudi Arabia, Paul Hinder) and a large group of Islamic scholars and Christian philosophers. For the Muslim side, too, the delegation – led by Prince Ghazi, the host – was of an international nature: other well known figures included the Grand Mufti of Egypt, Ali Guma'a, the Grand Mufti of Bosnia Mustafa Ceric, the Saudi sheikh Abdulla bin Bayyah, the Libyan intellectual Aref Ali al-Nayed and Professor Abdulaziz bin Uthaman Altwaijri, Director General of Isesco in Morocco.

http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/world-news/detail/articolo/dialogo-interreligioso-interreligious-dialogue-dialogo-interreligioso-10329/

King’s interfaith initiative warrants global support: Indonesian leader

A visiting Indonesian Muslim leader has emphasized the significance of the interfaith dialogue initiative launched by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and said all countries should support the noble initiative to promote mutual understanding and world peace.

“We Muslims should be well-prepared for such dialogue forums by mastering the language to articulate our religious views efficiently. We should also have some basic knowledge of other religions,” said Mohammad Siddik, an academic and a member of the Indonesian Ulema Council.

http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article541231.ece