AWR Quarterly Newsletter - October 2022
Dear Friends,
I hope this finds you well. Please find below the collected links for all of our newsletters from July through early October. As usual, this quarter has been a busy period with activities and research across a number of interesting fronts. For me personally, this quarter brought a significant change as I moved from Washington, D.C. to Cairo to succeed Cornelis Hulsman as the editor-in-chief of Dialogue Across Borders. If you would like to read more about my vision for the future, please click the September 22nd newsletter link below.
October 1st represented the 25th anniversary of this publication. For that occasion, Cornelis authored a helpful review on October 5th of our history that highlights many key moments and contributors, as well as the core values that have inspired us over the years. I am pleased to report that we feel the potential for our work remains as promising as ever.
In the coming weeks, you can expect Egypt to be increasingly focused on the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP27) taking place in Sharm el-Sheikh from November 6th - November 18th. Our September 29th newsletter introduced COP27, but our coverage will continue with a particular focus on religious engagement with this significant event. Next week I am planning to attend an international conference focused on sustainable development goals organized by the Dār al-Iftā’ al-Misriyya, the highest Islamic legal authority in the country. Further information on the conference can be found here.
We remain grateful for all our readers and supporters in Egypt and around the world.
With best wishes,
Matthew Anderson
Editor-in-Chief
Dialogue Across Borders
English Newsletter
21) Eid al-Adha wishes
July 07, 2022
The Eid al-Adha [ʿĪd al-Aḍḥā] is one of the most important Muslim feasts.The question of whether God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son is not about historical facts but about the message: trust in God unconditionally and God will provide. In this sense, the message given in the Bible and Qur’an is the same.
(Click here for full text)
22) The International Association of Mission Studies and Egypt
July 17, 2022
The International Association of Mission Studies (IAMS) is convening its 15th international assembly in Sydney, Australia. The IAMS is a highly diverse body. The theme this year was “Mission in a wounded world; Powers, Inequalities and Vulnerabilities.”
(Click here for full text)
23) "Sorprendersi in Egitto", a book of former CAWU intern Veronica Merlo on her experience in Egypt with the Arabic language
July 21, 2022
Three years ago, July 2019, Italian student Veronica Merlo Merlo applied for a journalism internship at the Center for Arab-West Understanding. Veronica launched a crowdfunding campaign with the publishing house Bookabook for her book in Italian, "Sorprendersi in Egitto" (Surprise yourself in Egypt)
(Click here for full text)
24) Support needed to provide our refugee students with the opportunity to participate in the Egyptian Dragon Boat race
July 26, 2022
The Dragon Boat Egypt Academy is organizing in October the first Hong Kong Cup for Dragon Boat races and exercising needs to start now. Mary Lai would like to give our refugee students at the CAWU learning Centre the opportunity to participate.
(Click here for full text)
25) Rituals in different religions; the message prevails over historicity
August 08, 2022
Muslims and Christians at the EMRA are familiar with each other scriptures and Christians quote liberally from the Qur’an and Hadith and Muslims quote from Christian scriptures. This intercultural and intertextual facility shows respect and understanding of each other’s faith traditions.
(Click here for full text)
26) Tragic fire in Imbaba church and government response
August 16, 2022
41 worshipping Copts, including a priest, died in a fire that was followed by a stampede during the Sunday morning mass at the Abu Sefein church in Imbaba, part of the Giza governorate in greater Cairo. Among the victims were 18 children ages 3 to 16.
(Click here for full text)
27) Coptic Solidarity in the USA uses libel against Egyptian Evangelical leader Rev. Andrea Zaki in an apparent effort to stop his advocacy for Egypt in the USA
August 25, 2022
Christian Newswire published August 2 a paid defamatory article of Coptic Solidarity in the USA with the title “Egyptian Evangelical Leader Reverend Zaki Confirmed as 'Agent' of el-Sisi Government in US.”
(Click here for full text)
28) Salman Rushdie; blasphemy and freedom of thought
September 01, 2022
Indian-born British-American novelist Salman Rushdie (75) became world news again after he was stabbed ten times on stage on August 12, 2022, when he wanted to deliver a lecture in New York, USA.
(Click here for full text)
29) Handbook for refugees in Egypt now available for all
September 11, 2022
Our former Nigerian intern Oluwapelumi Comfort Dickson completed the Handbook for refugees in Egypt after almost three years of work. The handbook focuses on African refugees in Egypt but also provides information that can be used by Egyptians in the lower income brackets. We hope this handbook will benefit as many people as possible in Egypt.
(Click here for full text)
30) Historical-critical method of religious texts criticized
September 14, 2022
Dominican priest and scholar Prof. Dr. Emilio Platti OP (1943-2021) published in 2020 his latest book De Koran herontdekt, Averbode: Uitgeverij Averbode|Erasme N.V, 2020, 96 pages. Platti’s book discusses the context in which the Qur’an came into being or as Muslims would formulate this, “was revealed.” Dutch journalist and Arabist Eildert Mulder wrote a book review of Platti’s book, where you can find it on Dialogue Across Borders.
(Click here for full text)
31) A New Editor-in-Chief for Dialogue Across Borders
September 23, 2022
Dr. Matthew Anderson moved from Washington, D.C., to Cairo and have now succeeded Cornelis as editor-in-chief of Dialogue Across Borders. For the last four years, he has been teaching Islamic studies, religious studies, and Arab world studies at American University and Georgetown University, where he completed a doctorate in religious studies in 2018.
(Click here for full text)
32) Momentum for COP27 Grows in Egypt
September 29, 2022
An associate of Dialogue Across Borders, Kseniia Popova, reported from an event on September 5th organized by the American University in Cairo (AUC) featuring Ambassador Wael Aboulmagd [Wāʾil Abū al-Majd], the Egyptian ambassador to Brazil and a special representative for COP 27.
(Click here for full text)
33) Our 25th Jubilee: Dialogue through Database Building
October 05, 2022
In 1994, Cornelis Hulsman left the Netherlands and moved to Egypt with his Egyptian wife Sawsan and our three small children. In 1997, they made the first summary translations of Arabic media which became the actual start of our database. We now have a database of 56,000 articles and reports. We have served over 400 student interns, organized numerous dialogue meetings and activities
(Click here for full text)
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Emerging Perspectives on Intercultural and Interreligious Relations
Dialogue Across Borders is a database of summary translations of Arabic newspaper articles with references to their sources about intercultural and interreligious relations, focusing primarily but not exclusively on Muslim-Christian relations. The database also contains articles with editorial analysis and interviews on the subject.