The show is to air at 9 p.m. on TLC (Cox channel 40). 

Here’s what TLC has to say about the show:

“What is it like to be Muslim in America? TLC answers that question with All-American Muslim, a powerful series that goes inside the rarely seen world of American Muslims to uncover a unique community struggling to balance faith and nationality in a post 9/11 world.

All-American Muslim follows the daily lives of five American Muslim families in Dearborn, Michigan, one of the most established and largest concentrations of American Muslims in the country. Each episode offers an intimate look at customs and celebrations, as well as misconceptions, conflicts, and differences these families face outside and within their own community.”

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I think it sounds like an interesting show. A few months ago, The Oklahoman’s Life section featured a short story that included information about it.

I thought I’d remind readers about the premiere.

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor   

Of note is the ”Guest Voices” commentary by Randy Roberts Potts, the grandson of renowned televangelist and Oklahoma native, the late Oral Roberts. Randy Roberts Potts, described at the end of the commentary as Oral Roberts’ gay grandson, talks about the way Christians see homosexuality: “Jesus’ message for homosexuals: It gets better.” 

The blog also features ”Guest Voices” commentary by Nihad Awad, the national executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Awad’s subject is State Question 755 approved by voters Tuesday. It prohibits Oklahoma courts from considering international law or Sharia law when making decisions: “What banning Sharia law means for Oklahoma Muslims.”

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

Interested in what they have to say? Here’s a sampling:

Aseem Shukla, co-founder of the Hindu American Foundation:  ”An important dialog about propriety and religious freedom has morphed into one of the most disturbing, polarized and often profane shouting matches over faith in recent memory. But, disturbingly, the person who can most easily defuse a storm that threatens America’s vaunted values of tolerance and pluralism, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, is completely and continuously absent from the scene. Absence may make the heart grow fonder; but absence can also make malice grow stronger.”

Jordan Sekulow, human rights attorney and director of international operations at the American Center for Law and Justice: “It is Imam Rauf, and not the bipartisan majority of Americans from all walks of life who oppose the Ground Zero Mosque, who must apologize for fueling anti-American Islamic terrorism. As more information about Rauf becomes available, it is clear that he has spread the same kind of propaganda that al Qaeda uses to recruit new terrorists and is out of touch with reality when he joked about suicide bombers in front of a foreign audience.”

Danielle Bean, Catholic author and editorial director of Faith and Family magazine and Faith and Family Live: ”Having a “right” to do something does not necessarily make it the “right” thing to do. Imam Rauf may not be the problem, but he has an opportunity to be part of the solution to this ugly and divisive controversy.

We need look no further than Pope John Paul II for an example of the peace-making power of sometimes backing down. As Archbishop Timothy Dolan reminded us last week, in 1993 there was a similar conflict between Jewish leaders and Polish Carmelite nuns who lived in a convent on the grounds of Auschwitz. Technically, the sisters had a “right” to reside there. But because the late pontiff respected the sensitivities of a wounded people and the raw emotion attached to a location so closely connected to tragic injustice, he wisely ordered the sisters to move.”

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To get to the “On Faith” blog to read the full text of the postings, go online to:  Ground Zero mosque leader   

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

I don’t know if that is because he recently waded into the debate regarding a proposal to build an Islamic cultural center and mosque at Ground Zero, or not, but these findings are interesting.

Who said religion was a boring beat?

They lied.

Incidentally, The Associated Press just reported that White House spokesman Bill Burton, when informed of the poll results, said Obama is a Christian who prays every day.

Here’s a link to the survey findings:

Barack Obama a Muslim?

(AP Photo: President Barack Obama)

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor   

By now, you might have heard about a proposal to build a mosque and community center called Cordoba House near Ground Zero in New York City.

Some people are expressing their concern about having a mosque in that particular area.

On Faith, the Washington Post’s blog about religion and spiritual matters, has posted in-depth comments about the issue from its panelists of different faiths.

It makes for some pretty interesting reading … and we are going to be hearing more on this issue, I’m sure. Read for yourself by visiting  On Faith: Mosque near Ground Zero.

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor 

Rima Fakih was crowned Miss USA several days ago and her religious affiliation made news almost at once.

Here’s what some are saying about the Lebanese-American Fakih, reportedly the first Arab American to win the Miss USA crown:

CNN’s Belief blog: Miss USA: Muslim trailblazer or Hezbollah spy?

New York Times’ The Lede: In Miss USA Contest, a Novel Twist

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

“The Good Wife,” starring Julianna Margulies (pictured) and Chris Noth, featured an episode about a newspaper being sued for negligence because it ran a cartoon image of the Prophet Mohammad. One of the newspapers editors was killed when someone threw a bomb in the newspaper building. A radical Islamic terrorist group claimed responsibility for the fatal bombing.

Now, the new episode aired on Tuesday, but I didn’t get to see it until Thursday because of my busy schedule. I sat there slack-jawed because I couldn’t believe that my effort to escape into a TV show had been tharted. It just goes to show that religion permeates every part of our society these days.

I was especially intrigued about the ethical questions that surrounded the whole issue of the cartoon. Should a newspaper or any media  entity be held liable if it prints a cartoon of a religious figure and the cartoon incites violence?

Then, another question arose: Is it ethical for a newspaper or media outlet to print or air something solely for the shock value (and the resulting spike in circulation), even knowing that it might stir violence or put someone in serious jeapardy? Is there a sensitivity to religion and religious figures that should come in to play when these questions are being debated?

Some news folks would argue that those kinds of questions come up everyday and that there are many stories that wield that potential power and influence.

What is different in the case of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammad is the threat of violence from radical Islamic extremists.

A prime example of this is what happened in mid-April when the Comedy Central TV show “South Park” aired an episode featuring the Prophet Mohammad.

The animated show showed the religious figure hidden in a bear suit, so his actual image wasn’t depicted per se. The show did, however, portray Jesus and Buddha in such a way that  many Christians and Buddhists were probably offended by.

Should the Prophet Mohammad have received similar treatment? Should the Islamic religious figure have been treated with kid gloves as Comedy Central obviously chose to do? In a world where fear of terrorists is very real (with good reason), were the Comedy Central leaders doing the right thing by pushing their censorship button?

All these provocative questions came to mind as I watched  ”The Good Wife,” trying to relax a bit.

What do you think? 

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

P.S. If you are interested, here’s more on the “South Park” episode: South Park censorship. And here’s some more: Forbes.com. Also: Christian Science Monitor.

Here is the test of President Barack Obama’s Ramadan message, sent from the White House Office of Media Affairs Office:

 On behalf of the American people – including Muslim communities in all fifty states – I want to extend best wishes to Muslims in America and around the world. Ramadan Kareem.

Ramadan is the month in which Muslims believe the Koran was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, beginning with a simple word – iqra. It is therefore a time when Muslims reflect upon the wisdom and guidance that comes with faith, and the responsibility that human beings have to one another, and to God.

Like many people of different faiths who have known Ramadan through our communities and families, I know this to be a festive time – a time when families gather, friends host iftars, and meals are shared.  But I also know that Ramadan is a time of intense devotion and reflection – a time when Muslims fast during the day and perform tarawih prayers at night, reciting and listening to the entire Koran over the course of the month.

These rituals remind us of the principles that we hold in common, and Islam’s role in advancing justice, progress, tolerance, and the dignity of all human beings.

For instance, fasting is a concept shared by many faiths – including my own Christian faith – as a way to bring people closer to God, and to those among us who cannot take their next meal for granted. And the support that Muslims provide to others recalls our responsibility to advance opportunity and prosperity for people everywhere. For all of us must remember that the world we want to build – and the changes that we want to make – must begin in our own hearts, and our own communities.

This summer, people across America have served in their communities – educating children, caring for the sick, and extending a hand to those who have fallen on hard times. Faith-based organizations, including many Islamic organizations, have been at the forefront in participating in this summer of service. And in these challenging times, this is a spirit of responsibility that we must sustain in the months and years to come.

Beyond America’s borders, we are also committed to keeping our responsibility to build a world that is more peaceful and secure.  That is why we are responsibly ending the war in Iraq. That is why we are isolating violent extremists while empowering the people in places like Afghanistan and Pakistan. That is why we are unyielding in our support for a two-state solution that recognizes the rights of Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security. And that is why America will always stand for the universal rights of all people to speak their mind, practice their religion, contribute fully to society and have confidence in the rule of law.

All of these efforts are a part of America’s commitment to engage Muslims and Muslim-majority nations on the basis of mutual interest and mutual respect. And at this time of renewal, I want to reiterate my commitment to a new beginning between America and Muslims around the world.

As I said in Cairo, this new beginning must be borne out in a sustained effort to listen to each other, to learn from each other, to respect one another, and to seek common ground. I believe an important part of this is listening, and in the last two months, American embassies around the world have reached out not just to governments, but directly to people in Muslim-majority countries.  From around the world, we have received an outpouring of feedback about how America can be a partner on behalf of peoples’ aspirations.

We have listened. We have heard you. And like you, we are focused on pursuing concrete actions that will make a difference over time – both in terms of the political and security issues that I have discussed, and in the areas that you have told us will make the most difference in peoples’ lives.

These consultations are helping us implement the partnerships that I called for in Cairo – to expand education exchange programs; to foster entrepreneurship and create jobs; and to increase collaboration on science and technology, while supporting literacy and vocational learning. We are also moving forward in partnering with the OIC and OIC member states to eradicate polio, while working closely with the international community to confront common health challenges like H1N1 – which I know is of particular to concern to many Muslims preparing for the upcoming hajj.

All of these efforts are aimed at advancing our common aspirations – to live in peace and security; to get an education and to work with dignity; to love our families, our communities, and our God. It will take time and patient effort. We cannot change things over night, but we can honestly resolve to do what must be done, while setting off in a new direction – toward the destination that we seek for ourselves, and for our children. That is the journey that we must travel together.

I look forward to continuing this critically important dialogue and turning it into action. And today, I want to join with the 1.5 billion Muslims around the world – and your families and friends – in welcoming the beginning of Ramadan, and wishing you a blessed month. May God’s peace be upon you.

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Posted by

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

Stephen Mansfield, author of the book “The Faith of Barack Obama,” predicted as much.

Here are some examples from Obama’s inauguration speech:

1. “We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

There are several allusions to Scripture in this passage of Obama’s text. One that stands out is a specific reference to  1 Corinthians 13:11: When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 

Also: Obama’s text indicates a belief that there is a “God-given promise” of equality and freedom for everyone. 

2. “For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and nonbelievers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every End of this Earth; …” 

Obama acknowledges that America is a country that includes both people of faith and those who do not ascribe to faith beliefs.

3. “This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.”

A reference to a sense of God-given purpose for America.

4. “America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardships, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that wehen we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

“Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.”

Obama concluded with clear references to God’s grace and blessings.

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

Eid is the celebration of the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting. The three-day Eid holiday began Wednesday with prayers and celebratory gatherings at local mosques.

Saad Mohammed with the Islamic Society of Greater Oklahoma City,  said he expected Muslims from the metro area to join together for a fun-filled day at the theme park. He said some Muslims from Lawton and other areas of the state also planned to join in the faith celebration.

“The kids will definitely have fun,” he said.

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor