Solution to Israel-Palestine problem (for kids)

How can we dance during this Nakba (Catastrophe), this Holocaust? - What else can we do?

There can be only one final solution. - Oh, no, what is it? - We'll have a dance off...with bombs

a kids book about Israel & Palestine

Those thickheaded kids, why won't they understand? Here's a primer about the problem with a real solution EVERYONE will love (except those involved in the conflict).

Everyone's second favorite Christian scholar (if Bart Ehrman is Number 1) is a Harvard former Christian and current Muslim with a scholarly knowledge of Judaism and the major Abrahamic faiths (which are more numerous than the three we always hear about*) has just come out with A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine.

What do kids care? This "Arab" boy wants to die

on account of what Bibi is doing to Palestine.

Our men can't dance. Let's show them how!

Dr. Reza Aslan, Ph.D. (rezaaslan.com) is a professional scholar of religion. His new book (released March 19, 2024) has 4.2 out of 5 stars with 40 ratings. Did the kids judge it? Probably not, but it's a #1 Best Seller in Children's Middle Eastern History.

• AUDIO: Book for Kids (& You) to Think About Palestine & Israel (Letters & Politics)
• Int'l Court of Justice ruling ORDERS Israel to cease Rafah offensive. | But Israel don't care about NO court (KPFA)

I'm a Harvard trained scholar of religion

Kids, what is the Israeli-Palestinian "conflict"? (It's hard to find a fair word. It's not a war or conflict or anything with two groups on any kind of equal footing, so let's just call it a bloody mess as European invaders, following the history of the other great European nations that just go in and take someone's land and then hold up a Bible and say God is their real estate agent who gave it to them and somehow manage to say that with a straight face and get us all to argue about an "ancient" debate that has only been going on for 75 years).

What about a "two state solution," Dr. Aslan? Hell to the double no.

Was the God Jesus a Jew or a Christian?

Why is it happening? Is peace possible? When kids ask questions like these, are grownups prepared to answer?

This book was created to provide context for this conflict, open the door to conversation, and lay a path for understanding, peace, and compassion for our shared future. Core themes in this book:

Fortunately, American Christians are completely unbiased and looking for a fair solution for all.

• Acceptance,
• Courage,
• Empathy,
• History.

شرش | Shoresh | שר”ש

Meet A Kids Co., a new kind of media company with a collection of beautifully designed books that kickstart challenging, empowering, and important conversations for kids and their grownups.

• Jewish Voice for Peace (jvp.org)
• NOT IN OUR NAME! (ifnotnowmovement.org)
• Jewish soldiers confess: breakingthesilence.org.il
• Orthodox Religious Jews for Palestine (nkusa.org)
• شرش | Shoresh | שר”ש (@shoresh_us) • Anti-Zionist Jews
• Amnesty International
• American Civil Liberties Union (aclu.org)
• American Veterans for Peace
• Code Pink: Women for Peace
• A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine (akidsco.com)
• *Yazidis, Samaritans, Philistines, Sufis, Sumerians, Bahais, Catholics, Bedouins, Ethiopians, Wahhabis, Turks, Coptics (Egyptians), Mesopotamians, Zoroastrians, and all the surviving groups who live or lived in and around ancient Palestine, Israel, and Judeah.
• Mitch Jeserich (KPFA.org, LA 10:00 am, Letters & Politics, 5/30/24) with guest Dr. Reza Aslan (amazon.com); TRT World (video short); ForaTV; Shauna Schwartz, Ashley Wells, Sheldon S., Pfc. Sandoval, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

The Jesus of Fantasy vs. History (Reza Aslan)

Reza Aslan, The Aspen Institute, July 14, 2015; Pat Macpherson, CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

The Jesus of History versus the Christ of Faith

Daring to question a sacred cow, 2012

(The Aspen Institute) Sifting through centuries of mythmaking, Dr. Reza Aslan, Ph.D., sheds new light on one of history’s most influential and enigmatic figures by examining Jesus within the context of the times in which he is said to have lived: the age of zealotry.

Balancing the Jesus of the Gospels against historical sources, Dr. Aslan describes

• a man of peace who exhorted his followers to arm themselves;
• an exorcist and faith healer who urged his disciples to keep his identity secret;
• the seditious “King of the Jews,” whose promise of liberation from Rome went unfulfilled in his lifetime.

Dr. Aslan explores why the early Christian Church preferred to promulgate an image of Jesus as a peaceful spiritual teacher rather than a politically conscious [Black] revolutionary and grapples with the riddle of how Jesus understood himself.

Speaker: Scholar of Christianity Dr. Reza Aslan

Forbidden Bible scriptures revealed!

The History Channel, 4/30/22; Sheldon S., Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

We're the most popular pair ever -- because we're highly modified to be so.

Bible Secrets Revealed: The Forbidden Scriptures Lost to Time (S1, E3) | full episode

God had a wife named Asherah, queen of heaven

(HISTORY) The Bible sells more than 100 million copies every year? The books, gospels, and letters (epistles) found in the Christian Bible are writings considered divinely inspired by the Jewish tribal God.

But are there chapters of the Bible that are missing? Have stories been censored? Find out in Season 1, Episode 3, The Forbidden Scriptures.

"Some people thought the teachings of Jesus could have been influenced by Buddhism," declares Princeton University's Dr. Elaine Pagels, Ph.D. Jesus likely traveled to India during "the lost years."

Another book tells the story of Jesus' romantic relationship with Mary Magdalene, whom he loved and kissed and who became his successor, Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Dr. Bart Ehrman helps explain.

A Middle Eastern religion for Europeans by Europeans

The Book of Enoch seems to be "the most forbidden," according to one scholar. It is part of the apocrypha, the missing books of the Bible. But the Ethiopian Church seems to have the most books included in their version, far more than the 73 of the Catholic Bible. The "Watchers" or Giants [the Titans/Asuras of Buddhism?] in the Book of Enoch mated with human women they were meant to protect. These are the fallen angels whose offspring are called the Nephilim.

The "Testimony of Truth" tells another version of the Adam and Eve story, defending wisdom, women, and the pursuit of knowledge, which the official church called a heresy to be suppressed. Where do we come from? In Genesis, there's one version. But a forbidden scroll/book explains.

• #BibleSecretsRevealed

For more from "Bible Secrets Revealed" and other great The HISTORY Channel shows, subscribe. Check out exclusive The HISTORY Channel content: Newsletter. Website: history.com, Facebook, Twitter.

The HISTORY Channel® is the leading destination for award-winning original series and specials that connect viewers with history in an informative, immersive, and entertaining manner across all platforms. The network's all-original programming slate features a roster of hit series, premium documentaries, and scripted event programming.

The Buddha and Jesus (comic)

Editors, Wisdom Quarterly; SS (video); Dan Piraro (bizarro.com); Professor Reza Aslan

"Tell me about it. I've been a blond white dude for, like, 2,000 years." (bizarro.com)

(BBC/Security Science) "Jesus Was A Buddhist Monk (BBC documentary), the "lost" years in India.

What the hell?! Rome rules!

(TheTraveler edited by WQ) It's true, Jesus was a Buddhist monk. Read his teachings in "A Course in Miracles." They are very similar to Buddhist teachings. Christians have been misled by the Roman Empire's church (Catholicism or Universalism), which used Christianity as a form of imperial government-control, when in truth Jesus wanted to liberate humankind from suffering. Jesus was a spiritual scientist much like the Buddha. MIND is the creator of all things, as the Buddha teaches (Dhammapada, Verse 1). This is the "Father in heaven" to whom Jesus refers, not some mythical emperor man with a white beard on a cloud.

• Comparison of Buddhism and Christianity when the peaceful death of Gautama Buddha at an old age is contrasted with the harsh image of the crucifixion of Jesus as a willing sacrifice for the atonement...
• Depictions of Gautama Buddha in film Gautama, the Buddha, has been the subject of several films. The first known film about the life of Buddha was Buddhadev (English title Lord Buddha) which...
• Maya (the mother of the Buddha) ...story of Jesus. Z. P. Thundy has surveyed the similarities and differences between the birth stories of Buddha by Maya and Jesus by Mary and notes that...
• Miracles of Gautama Buddha Gautama Buddha was alleged to possess superhuman powers and abilities; however, due to an understanding of the workings of the skeptical mind, he reportedly...
• Jesus in comparative mythology perspectives on the Buddha and Jesus, when the peaceful passing into nirvana of Gautama Buddha at the old age of 80 is contrasted with the harsh image of the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth as an allegedly willing...

Jesus of Nazareth
Reza Aslan (amazon.com)

Rebel Jesus, not Roman myth

Two thousand years ago, an itinerant Jewish preacher and miracle worker walked across the Galilee, gathering followers to establish what he called the “Kingdom of God.”

The revolutionary movement he launched was so threatening to the established [imperial Roman] order that he was captured, tortured, and executed as a state criminal trying to overthrow the government.

Within decades after his shameful death, his followers would call him "God."

Sifting through centuries of mythmaking, Prof. Reza Aslan sheds new light on one of history’s most influential and enigmatic characters by examining Jesus through the lens of the tumultuous era in which he lived: first-century Palestine, an age awash in apocalyptic fervor.

Scores of Jewish prophets, preachers, and would-be Messiahs [Maitreyas] wandered through the land, bearing messages from God. This was the age of zealotry -- a fervent nationalism that made resistance to the Roman occupation a sacred duty incumbent on all Jews. More

Pope Francis' Palm Sunday Mass in 1 minute

Vatican News English; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven, Seth Auberon (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

(Vatican News English, April 5, 2020) Pope Francis' Palm Sunday Mass in 1 minute: Pope Francis celebrates Mass on Palm Sunday and prays the Angelus in an empty St. Peter's Basilica, focusing his homily on love and service. Watch the Holy Roman Empire's entire pomp and circumstance mass hypnotic induction ceremony as it holds sway over 1/3rd of the planet with its corporate patriarchy.

Sid, it sucks being famous. - I know, Jess.

As we explore the Abrahamic faiths, let's start with Jesus Christ Superstar (Yesu of Nazareth, St. Issa) instead of the Mo's. Today is "Palm Sunday" and the Vatican Propaganda Office, located in the Holy See [built to worship Mithra (Maitri = Maitreya = Messiah) before converting to the composite figure of Jesus Christ (Y'shua, Joshua, Iesous, Issa, Isa) is milking the cow liquid out of it.

Getting with the times, the Vatican PR Department has condensed a 1:42:06 minute ritual to an empty house in a locked down palace down to a manageable (i.e., wordless) one-minute.

Zealot (Reza Aslan)

It's suitable for Instagram, FB, TikTok, even Twitter. The tiny country called the "Holy See" in the center of sickly Rome is the current city-state-cum-capital of the Church's worldwide Holy Roman Empire. It claims to have 7 coronavirus cases in a total population of about 1,000 mostly gay and bisexual bishops, carnal cardinals, pervey priests, Swiss guards, functionaries, and bankers.

The CEO, Papa Francisco (Pope Francis I), is trying to hold it down as Rome burns with disease along with the rest of the world suffering the new "plague" or "crown of death." But we're all friends in the afterlife, so for Holy Week we ask, Who was Jesus of Nazareth? And where was he for those 18 "lost years"? The years excised from the official imperial version of the Bible, fabricated by the Neo-Flavian dynasty also called the Constantinian dynasty and its power-hungry Roman Emperor Constantine at the Council of Nicaea?

BBC: "Jesus was a Buddhist monk"

• Need more evidence than the BBC? See Holger Kersten
• See also Swami Abhedananda who corroborated research by
• Nicolas Notovitch at Hemis Buddhist Monastery in India

Reza Aslan: Tell Them, I Am/Fox News (video)

Dr. Reza Aslan, Fox News via YY; Tell Them, I Am; Ashley Wells, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly

Reza Aslan on Ep. 5 of "Tell Them, I Am" celebrating Ramadam in the U.S. (SCPR.org)

.

The most embarrassing interview Fox News has ever done?

While this formerly-Christian now Muslim author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth explains clearly, "I am an expert with a Ph.D. in the history of religions including the New Testament," the Fox News Religion Correspondent Lauren Green still seems to hear "I am Al-Qaeda."

Fox News: where bigotry and Islamophobia are expected. This excruciatingly shameless and abusive interview takes it to a new level. But Christian biblical scholar Dr. Aslan does a solid job pushing back and refuting the interviewer's propaganda (Remi Kanazi).

Prof. Reza Aslan, Ph.D., on The Young Turks with Host Cenk Uygur

(TYT Interviews, Aug. 5, 2013) Reza Aslan became notorious after an interview with Fox News' Lauren Green in what is now thought to be one of the worst, most biased interviews on TV ever. Aslan tried but was ultimately unable to talk about what his book actually says.

A great book on Christianity: Zealot

In an interview segment that has to be seen to be believed, Lauren Green, host of Fox News' faith-oriented program "Spirited Debate," demanded to know how Iranian-American author Reza Aslan -- who is a well-known Muslim -- could have written his book, Zealot, from an unbiased perspective. 

The interview prompted BuzzFeed political writer Andrew Kaczynski to ask, "Is this the most embarrassing interview Fox News has ever done?" Appearing to mistake Christianity and Islam for rival baseball teams rather than intertwined and connected Abrahamic faiths, Hostess Green questioned Dr. Aslan's motives for writing a book about "the founder of Christianity."

"Well, to be clear," Prof. Aslan replied, "I am a scholar of religions with four degrees, including one in the New Testament, and fluency in biblical Greek, who has been studying the origins of Christianity for two decades, who also just happens to be a Muslim."

Reza Aslan on KPCC's "Tell Them, I Am"

He went on to patiently explain to Green that his book is written from the perspective of a historian, NOT that of an advocate for Islam.

But even as he tried to establish to her that his book is not a hit piece against some kind of rival religious figure, Green didn't appear to be listening, but rather scanning her iPad for more antagonistic questions to fire at the historian.

"There's another chat coming," she said, "and I wanted to get this on before we end this interview. Taylor King said, 'So your book is written with clear bias, and you're trying to say it's academic? That's like having a Democrat write a book about why Reagan wasn't a good Republican. It just doesn't work.' What do you say to that?"

"Well, it would be like a Democrat with a Ph.D. in Reagan who has been studying his life and history for two decades, writing a book about Reagan," Dr. Aslan replied.

"But then why would a Democrat want to promote Democracy by writing about a Republican?" Green asks. Dr. Aslan, showing great forbearance, replies that as a scholar who writes about religions, he writes about Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and other faiths.

On Twitter, conservatives are demanding to know why Prof. Aslan didn't write about Mohamed, the Islamic prophet. "C'mon, man, if you wrote a book critical of Mohamed or presenting him differently you could get killed," tweeted one.

Do we have an anti-intellectual streak?

"I already wrote that book," Prof. Aslan replies. "It's called No god but God. And I'm still here." The flap began when FoxNews.com published an opinion piece incorrectly asserting that Dr. Aslan's book is critical of Jesus Christ, but never divulges that Dr. Aslan is of the Islamic faith. In fact, Zealot says on its second page that Dr. Aslan is Muslim.

This was written by David Ferguson, published in his text entitled "Fox News baffled that Muslim author could write book about Jesus" (rawstory.com/rs/2013/07/28...).

• Andrew Kacynski shares this video on Buzzfeed: buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczyns... 
• If one is open to the Islamic view on how to deal with the "prophets," one may read that the depiction of Jesus on his book cover might be unacceptable or aniconic (salon.com/2013/08/03/the_1...)

Everything we know about Jesus is wrong

Reza Aslan, Abby Martin (Breaking the Set/RT); Pat Macpherson, Crystal Q., Wisdom Quarterly

Why Everything You Think You Know about Jesus is Wrong: Interview with Author Reza Aslan

Abby Martin interviews Reza Aslan (April 2014), historian and author of the best-selling book Zealot: the Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, discussing how he arrived at the conclusion that Jesus of Nazareth was a revolutionary political leader rather than the peaceful prophet characterized by mainstream culture.

• Breaking the Set @ fb.me/JournalistAbbyMartin 
• Abby Martin @ twitter.com/AbbyMartin

The Jesus of History vs. the Christ of Faith

The Aspen Institute, 7/14/15; Ashley Wells, Crystal Quintero (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

The Jesus of History versus the Christ of Faith

Zealot: Life & Times of Jesus

Sifting through centuries of myth-making, Professor of Christianity Reza Aslan sheds new light on one of history’s most influential and enigmatic figures by examining Rabbi Jesus of Nazareth, the figurehead and supposed founder of Christianity (Jesuism) within the context of the times in which he lived: the Age of Zealotry. Balancing the Jesus of the Gospels against historical sources, Prof. Aslan describes a man of peace who exhorted his followers to arm themselves with deadly weapons, an exorcist and faith healer who urged his disciples to keep his identity secret, and the seditious “King of the Jews,” whose promise of political liberation from Rome went unfulfilled in his lifetime. Prof. Aslan explores why the early Christian Church preferred to promulgate an image of Jesus as a peaceful spiritual teacher rather than a politically conscious revolutionary and grapples with the riddle of how Rabbi Jesus understood or thought of himself.

WARNING: Do not listen! Filthy anti-Jesus music!

(Crass) Eve Libertine spoken word, "Reality Asylum"

Happy Ramadan! (Islam's holiest month)

Kamakshi Ayyar (time.com); Crystal Quintero, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Early math-savvy Muslims, under Islam, built India's magnificent Taj Mahal.

Ramadan Kareem (“Have a generous Ramadan”) and Nakba (“Catastrophe”) in Palestine!

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We put our hope in peace, God-willing.

This week marks the start of Ramadan [Islam's "Lent," "Muslim Vassa"] for more than a billion Muslims around the world.

The month-long observance -- which starts on either May 15 or May 16 this year -- will see Muslims fasting from sunrise-to-sunset, reciting verses from the Quran, and attending prayer sessions.

For many of those observing Ramadan, it is a time to become closer to God [Allah]. It is also a time of joy and for spending time with one’s family and for giving to charity and those in need.

 

Here’s what’s good to know about Ramadan, which is known as the "holiest month in Islam."

When is Ramadan?

Muslim males in prayer caps kneeling in a mosque doing obligatory prayers free of female contamination due to their ritual impurity (Bilgin S. Sasmaz/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images).

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Favorite Muslim Reza Aslan

Ramadan begins during the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, when the new crescent moon is first sighted.

The exact start date of Ramadan will only be confirmed when the moon is spotted, and this year it is expected to be seen between Tuesday, May 15 and Wednesday, May 16, allowing for a day here and there depending on atmospheric conditions.

 

While many countries wait until they can see the moon before announcing the start of Ramadan, in some, like...
 

Killing animals for Allah All-Merciful?

The end of Ramadan is also marked with the sighting of the crescent moon, marking Eid-al-Fitr, which should be around the second or third week of June this year.
 

Muslims perform the first "Tarawih" prayer on the eve of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan at the Chicago Mosque in Illinois, United States on May 26, 2017.

What is Ramadan and how is it observed? 

Great butterfly-bee Muslim Muhammed Ali

Ramadan is observed by Muslims to commemorate when God revealed the first chapters of the Quran, Islam’s sacred text [the Qu'ran or Koran dictated by God and written down, word-for-word, by] the Prophet Muhammad [PBUH].

Muslims believe that during this period, the gates of heaven are open and the gates of hell are closed.
 

Breaking fast at iftar, UAE (Francois Nel)

Muslims mark the holy month by [daytime] fasting (sawm) -- considered to be one of the five pillars of Islam -- during sunlight hours.

The pre-dawn meal is called the suhoor, while the fast is broken at dusk with the iftar, starting with a few sips of clean water and some sweet dates.

No sex, please

Our favorite faux-Muslim, Mia Khalifa. ;)

Abstinence during Ramadan isn’t just restricted to food and water though. It extends to refraining from sexual activity, smoking, and even to jealousy, anger, and other negative thoughts.

Muslims believe that following these practices during Ramadan will lead to self-purification, self-control, and bring them closer to Allah. More

Enough already! Stop fighting, dear clerics.

Reza Aslan on "God: A Human History" (live)

VromansBookstore.com/Random House; Dhr. Seven, CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Our favorite Muslim, scholar Reza Aslan

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth and host of Believer Reza Aslan explores humanity's quest to make sense of the divine and sounds a call to embrace a deeper, more expansive understanding of "GOD."

In Zealot, Christian Bible scholar Reza Aslan replaced the staid, well-worn portrayal of [the historical] Jesus of Nazareth [who differs from the fantasy Jesus Christ] with a startling new image of the man in all his contradictions. In his new book, Aslan takes on a subject even more immense: God, writ large.

• Monday, Nov. 27, 2017, 7:00 pm
• All Saints Church, 132 N. Euclid Ave.
• Pasadena, California 91101 (626) 449-5320

In layered prose and with thoughtful, accessible scholarship, Aslan narrates the history of religion as one long and remarkably cohesive attempt to understand the divine by giving it human traits and emotions.

According to Aslan this innate desire to humanize God is hardwired in our brains, making it a central feature of nearly every religious tradition.

There is no God! - Cressida

As Aslan writes: "Whether we are aware of it or not, and regardless of whether we're believers or not, what the vast majority of us think about when we think about God is a divine version of ourselves." But this projection has consequences.

We bestow upon [our] God not just all that is good in human nature -- our compassion, our thirst for justice -- but all that is bad in it: our greed, our bigotry, our penchant for violence.

Don't listen to her. There's a God

All of these qualities inform our religions, cultures, and governments. More than just a history of our understanding of God, this book is an attempt to get to the root of this humanizing impulse in order to develop a more universal spirituality.

Whether you believe in one God (no god but God), many gods [the correct view], or no god at all [also ultimately correct but conventionally inaccurate], God: A Human History will challenge the way you think about the divine and its role in our everyday lives.

 

"Breathtaking in its scope and controversial in its claims, God: A Human History shows how humans from time immemorial have made God in their own image, and argues that they should now stop. Writing with all the verve and brilliance we have come to expect from his pen, Reza Aslan has once more produced a book that will prompt reflection and shatter assumptions."

-Bart D. Ehrman, author of How Jesus Became God

 

Lies My Teacher Told Me

Tickets include one signed copy of God: A Human History. All books will be signed by Reza Aslan prior to the event; therefore, signed copies will be handed out at check-in. He will personalize after the event for those wanting a name in their book.

• Pope making an impact? Bangladeshi Ministry of Foreign Affairs signs accord with counterpart in Burma to return Muslim Rohingya refugees to Rakhine State
• Democracy coming to Buddhist/Hindu Nepal 
• BOOK REVIEW: God: A Human History (best seller)