December 6, 2017

The Characterization of Sufism as a Separate Sect Within Islam Is Inaccurate and Problematic

Omid Safi explores the harmful good Sufi/bad Muslim construct in the way we talk about Islam — and calls for a greater understanding of the true breadth of the spectrum of Islamic thought.

Essay

November 8, 2017

The Mystical Experience of Driving

Written by Omid Safi

We never would have guessed it, but Omid is a total gearhead. What a jaunt in a convertible dream car taught him about seeking out the luminous moments in the mundane — that while we can’t all speed around in expensive convertibles, we can find the joy of driving the family car with all the windows rolled down.

Essay

November 1, 2017

You Know You’re An Immigrant When…

Written by Omid Safi

To feast on Mom's home cooking is its own blessing — but sometimes, traveling with it is a different story. On the particular frustration of traveling while brown and Muslim, and on food as a vehicle for love, not judgment.

Essay

August 2, 2017

Solitude Is About More Than Just Being Alone

Written by Omid Safi

The value of solitude isn't simply in retreating from a chaotic world. It's a discipline that's different for all of us — and one that we can practice wherever we are.

Essay

July 19, 2017

Orüç Güvenç’s Music Is the Closest I’ve Come to the Sound of Heaven

Written by Omid Safi

Learning of the great ethnomusicologist's death, our columnist offers an "ocean of remembrance" in return for the Turkish Sufi master who embodied the poetry of Islam in both his music and his being.

Essay

July 5, 2017

The Power of Being Seen for Who We Are

Written by Omid Safi

How can we nurture our identity and faith if we don't feel recognized for who we are? A reflection on yearning for a community that truly sees us.

Essay

June 28, 2017

I Am Not Your Other

Written by Omid Safi

Omid Safi on the experience of being institutionally invisible — and how our structures and spirits might change to acknowledge each other's entire being.

Essay

June 23, 2017

As a Catholic Christian the Qur’an Teaches Me To Acknowledge Creation

Written by Jordan Denari Duffner

For the closing days of Ramadan, a young Catholic scholar shows us that we can look to many sources outside one's own religious canon to find meaning and pay attention to the world before us.

Essay

June 21, 2017

The Spirituality of the Ordinary Is Luminous

Written by Omid Safi

The extraordinary is revered and celebrated, but where does that leave the ordinary? On rediscovering the meaning of awe, and finding it in the quiet majesty of the daily grind.

Essay

June 16, 2017

We Need To Stop Asking Muslims To Atone for the Crimes of Violent Extremists

Written by Mohammed Fairouz

In the wake of the attacks in Manchester, an artist’s impassioned appeal to the West to cast off the scourge of collective responsibility for terrorism — and embrace the world's 1.8 billion Muslims as partners not adversaries in the battle against extreme violence.

Essay

June 14, 2017

Our Traditions Are Gems Covered in Centuries of Junk

Written by Omid Safi

There are gems at the heart of all our faith traditions. Omid Safi on the challenge ahead to polish away the impurities of hatred and greed that keep the light from shining.

Essay

June 7, 2017

Our Bodies Are Means by Which We Live Out Our Faith

Written by Omid Safi

After a medical condition changed the way he observes Ramadan, Omid reflects on what he misses about the embodied experience of the fast — and the inner, spiritual fast he takes on now to live out the holy season.

Essay

May 31, 2017

The Sacred Path Is the One We’re On

Written by Omid Safi

After a meditative walk through a Shinto shrine in Kyoto, Japan, a reflection on recognizing the paths we're on as a spiritual destination.

Essay

May 24, 2017

Ten Things I’m Pondering as the President Visits the Middle East

Written by Omid Safi

Challenging the notion of the “Muslim world,” what dedication to peace looks like, and the weight words — and actions — carry.

Essay

May 18, 2017

Tending Our Inner Life To Make the World Whole

Written by Omid Safi

We often speak about how best to heal the world around us, but it's also essential to nurture ourselves. A reflection on self-care as a crucial part of healing one another.

Essay

March 23, 2017

What Flying Can Teach Us About Rising Above the Turbulence

Written by Omid Safi

When turbulence strikes, we must rise above to find a place of calm.

Essay

March 14, 2017

The Sweet Confinement of Your Aloneness

Written by Shireen Qudosi

There's a profound solitude in asking the challenging, radical question. A Muslim reformer finds a deep and consoling truth in the face of this reality in the voice of a poet.

Essay

March 9, 2017

Our Solidarity Must Be Built From the Ground Up

Written by Omid Safi

Solidarity on social media can be a source of hope, but there's more required of us to affect meaningful change.

Islam

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The Characterization of Sufism as a Separate Sect Within Islam Is Inaccurate and Problematic

The Mystical Experience of Driving

You Know You’re An Immigrant When…

Solitude Is About More Than Just Being Alone

Orüç Güvenç’s Music Is the Closest I’ve Come to the Sound of Heaven

The Power of Being Seen for Who We Are

I Am Not Your Other

As a Catholic Christian the Qur’an Teaches Me To Acknowledge Creation

The Spirituality of the Ordinary Is Luminous

We Need To Stop Asking Muslims To Atone for the Crimes of Violent Extremists

Our Traditions Are Gems Covered in Centuries of Junk

Our Bodies Are Means by Which We Live Out Our Faith

The Sacred Path Is the One We’re On

Ten Things I’m Pondering as the President Visits the Middle East

Tending Our Inner Life To Make the World Whole

What Flying Can Teach Us About Rising Above the Turbulence

The Sweet Confinement of Your Aloneness

Our Solidarity Must Be Built From the Ground Up

View

Islam

View

The Characterization of Sufism as a Separate Sect Within Islam Is Inaccurate and Problematic

The Mystical Experience of Driving

You Know You’re An Immigrant When…

Solitude Is About More Than Just Being Alone

Orüç Güvenç’s Music Is the Closest I’ve Come to the Sound of Heaven

The Power of Being Seen for Who We Are

I Am Not Your Other

As a Catholic Christian the Qur’an Teaches Me To Acknowledge Creation

The Spirituality of the Ordinary Is Luminous

We Need To Stop Asking Muslims To Atone for the Crimes of Violent Extremists

Our Traditions Are Gems Covered in Centuries of Junk

Our Bodies Are Means by Which We Live Out Our Faith

The Sacred Path Is the One We’re On

Ten Things I’m Pondering as the President Visits the Middle East

Tending Our Inner Life To Make the World Whole

What Flying Can Teach Us About Rising Above the Turbulence

The Sweet Confinement of Your Aloneness

Our Solidarity Must Be Built From the Ground Up

The Pause

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