Kemal Argon
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Kemal Argon is a specialist on Islam in the modern world. He has an MA in Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations from Hartford Seminary and a PhD in Arab and Islamic Studies from the University of Exeter, Great Britain. His interests also include contemporary Islamisms, interfaith relations and interreligious dialogue.

Blog Entries by Kemal Argon

What Really Happened When Muhammad Met Jesus?

0 Comments | Posted April 13, 2012 | 12:33 PM

Christians are directly concerned with and interested in the prophetic biography of Jesus Christ. Muslims are directly interested in the prophetic biography of the Prophet Muhammad and following his example. Muslims believe that both of these Prophets, Muhammad and Jesus, actually met each other.

Different narrations exist of the Night...

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Who's Really Behind Tahir ul-Qadri's 500-Page Fatwa Against Terrorism and Suicide Bombings?

0 Comments | Posted February 14, 2012 | 1:18 PM

This review of the fatwa is being written because I've heard all kinds of speculation concerning Dr. Muhammad Tahir ul- Qadri's religious decree (fatwa) on terrorism and suicide bombings that was issued and released in 2010. But there's a lot that the speculators have neglected to mention.

It is...

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What Really Motivates The Islamists?

55 Comments | Posted February 1, 2012 | 11:16 AM

In talking about motivations of Islamists, it is probably most accurate to say that there is no one motivation for all Islamists and motivations in the real world can be expected to be mixed and varied. It is easy to talk about geopolitical trends and suggest that Islamism is impacted...

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Confronting Neo-Nazi and Skinhead Fanaticism in Northern Europe?

4 Comments | Posted January 23, 2012 | 6:41 AM

After Mr. Anders Brevik's murderous rampage last year against innocent civilians in Norway, many are concerned about different types of extremism, especially about any more of these so called "lone-wolf" extremists. Others may also be wondering if there is anything that can be done to confront these and other concerns...

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Rising Above Fundamentalism: How Do We Become Saints?

36 Comments | Posted January 13, 2012 | 1:24 PM

If you are wondering why I picked this topic to write about, it's because I keep finding out about religious organizations and their fundamentalist congregants who have a misdirected focus, either on some kind of nationalism or with a semi-concealed racism. They have lost their focus on spirituality in favor...

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Anyone for Proactive Nonviolence Against Terror?

16 Comments | Posted December 27, 2011 | 10:43 AM

Proactive nonviolence is a concept often already well-known and accepted in many American religious circles. Before saying anything about some prospects for proactive nonviolence in North America, it would be silly not to recognize that much fine and important work is already being done by American men and women of...

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Fighting Terror: What Can Ordinary Citizens Do?

7 Comments | Posted December 13, 2011 | 3:09 PM

Sept. 11, 2001 was a day that I remember vividly, sitting in a day-long graduate class on Christian-Muslim relations and interreligious dialogue at Hartford Seminary. I distinctly remember initially thinking that, all this academic material on Christian-Muslim relations and interreligious dialog that we were covering seemed to be an arcane...

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