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Top 10 Posts of 2008 on MuslimMatters.org

Published

January 1, 2009

The year 2008 saw much for MuslimMatters.org. A new layout, ginormous climb in fanbase, and a whole lot of fun along the way. All praise is to Allah and we would like to thank you for your support and constructive criticism along the way.

Here are the top 10 posts for 2008 by view count. Check ’em out if you haven’t already!

#10. The Grey Lady of Bagram: Dr. Aafia Siddiqui – Amad

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There have been many other different claims surrounding Dr. Siddiqui: That she was the mysterious Grey Lady of Bagram (Prisoner 650), whose screams of pain were heard and recorded by Moazzem Baig and others; that she was a top al-Qaeda operative (does anyone else find that this label is getting a bit old?); that her life as a “normal Boston mom” was really a cover for a sensational double life that involved the diamond trade in Liberia. My cynical eyes find this more akin to the plot of the next Bourne movie than a bona fide case of terrorism.

#9. A Letter to Obama – Guest Post, Muniba Hassan

Dear Senator Obama: Please allow me to congratulate you on winning the nomination for the Democratic Party in this year’s Presidential Race. As a long time supporter of your campaign and your causes, I and many Americans, were deeply disappointed and taken aback by your comments made this month at the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) convention.

#8.

#7. Response to The Jewel of Madina – AnonyMouse (Zainab)

There is no reason to write and publish a fictional account of our Prophet’s life, especially focusing on (what is to others) more “controversial” issues, except to generate money and tabloid fodder. If she were truly interested in Islam, in the exceptional and beautiful life of Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and his companions, then she would respectfully keep her trap shut and pursue further education regarding this Deen of ours rather than undertake such a ridiculous and ill-fated endeavor. May Allah guide her, ameen.

#6. CIC Vs. Maclean’s: The Most Embarrassing Episode in the Canadian Muslim Community’s History – AnonyMouse (Zainab)

Let us hope that the Muslim community of Canada is able to not only take note of the lessons to be learned from this incident, but that we are able to implement those lessons in the future. If we wish to be a community which can have its concerns listened to and seriously considered by the government and the media, if we wish to be a community which can have a positive and significant affect on the society we live in, then we need to take the measures needed to be that kind of community.

#5. The Role of Atomism in the Groups of Kalam – Yasir Qadhi

A short essay by Yasir Qadhi demonstrating, inter alia, the reason why orthodox scholars of the past (viz., the Ahl al-Hadīth and those who followed them) disapproved of kalām. The question was with regards to atomism and the role that it had on the groups of kalām, in particular the Ash’arites, and is posted here, as is.

#4. A Conversation with a Jinn: The Exorcism Experience – Umm Reem

Umm Reem describes her attempt at exorcism and the conversations that occurred during this experience. Please note that this questions of fiqhi nature may not be addressed, as this was not intended to be a course on the methodology of exorcism. Finally, please do not try this at home!

#3. A Wife is a Wife – Amad

This seemingly innocent picture of a lion and his lioness sparked a lot of hits (and comments) in just a day. Click to see why!

#2. Smart Muslim Chicks Who Inexplicably Scare Off Guys – iMuslim Mehzabeen

For some reason, educated Muslim women are finding it hard to find a suitable match. In fact, some proof of this phenomenon comes from the existence of a Facebook group, from which I derived the title of this post. Here are a few “symptoms” written by group members, which are apparently associated with being a “smart Muslim chick who inexplicably scares off guys.”

#1. Hookah / Sheesha (Shisha) Smoking: Safer than Cigarettes? Haram or Halal? – Amad

As if our youth didn’t have enough distractions and bad habits readily available to pick up, we now have the hookah fad. Step aside cigarette smoking, there’s something cooler in town (for our youth to destroy their bodies with)! Different flavors, different settings, a “Muslim export”… how cool is that? Actually not cool at all. And what’s worse is that some Muslims are actually promoting this lifestyle.

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14 Comments

abu abdAllah, the Houstonian

January 1, 2009 at 3:06 AM

innalhamdolillah. :) this is going to turn into a new year’s thread… so can we edit the title to acknowledge the end of 1429. jazak Allah khayr.

Reply
Algebra

January 1, 2009 at 3:55 AM

# 8
Haythem:
Aslamu-alaikum:
You can always count on gossip and marraige to bring up the numbers………..
just being facetious………….:)
salam

Reply
Faiez

January 1, 2009 at 4:06 AM

What was the reasoning behind these being rated at the top? Was it based on # of comments or quality of topic?

Reply
usman

January 1, 2009 at 7:16 AM

salaam, wats the thing wit the new yr…are we allowed to celebrate it…can we add an islamic touch to it…like reflections or something….how about spirtiual resolutions…

Reply
SaqibSaab

January 1, 2009 at 9:26 AM

What was the reasoning behind these being rated at the top? Was it based on # of comments or quality of topic?

Brathar Faiez, see the post which said:

Here are the top 10 posts for 2008 by view count.

These posts got the most page views.

Btw the picture used for “Top 10” looks like the intro titles for episodes of DragonBall Z. Sorry, I had to point that out.

Reply
iMuslim

January 1, 2009 at 10:03 AM

First the worst, second the best, Amad… ;)

Reply
Abû Mûsâ Al-Ḥabashî

January 1, 2009 at 11:56 AM

Last weekend I was at an Islâmic conference and after it was over I went to a friend’s house with a couple of brothers (after dining at a restaurant). When we got there I found out that one of the brothers (who is a good, practicing brother) was planning to smoke Shisha there (he had started smoking it a week before). When he was challenged about it, he said that as far as he knew, shisha didn’t contain nicotine or anything bad (he gave up smoking cigarettes not too long ago). So I remembered the Shisha entry on this blog and showed it to him. He was convinced by that and gave it up. So, although I don’t agree with everything you say, you are having a positive influence Amad and may Allâh reward you for that.

Reply
sam

January 1, 2009 at 12:53 PM

. CIC Vs. Maclean’s: The Most Embarrassing Episode in the Canadian Muslim Community’s History redirects me to A Letter to Obama. Can you please fix it?

Reply
Al Iskandarani

January 1, 2009 at 1:12 PM

The Atomism post was TOUGH. Superb scholarship and a very good complement to the content briefly covered in LUL.

Surprised YQ’s cheese post didn’t make the list :)

Reply
Amad

January 1, 2009 at 2:37 PM

Abu Musa jazakAllahkhair for the kind comments. Alhamdulilah, the beauty of Islam is that we could disagree on a lot of things and still have each other’s back in the end for the sake of the deen. That post wasn’t a difficult one to put together, the topic was pretty “hot”, and credit to Sr. “Khawla”, one of our regular readers who suggested the topic.

good one iMuslim, #1, your one-liner could mean a lot of things :)

Reply
Bro

January 1, 2009 at 4:46 PM

Can you post the number of views each post got?

Reply
Dawud Israel

January 1, 2009 at 6:26 PM

LOL @ Saqib and Amad’s quip.

And yeah, iMusilm’s post is #1 in my books. Sorry, fellas, take a few pointers from the ladies on this blog. :P

Reply
Gohar

January 2, 2009 at 7:28 AM

It would be nice to one day read a bit more about the history of MM. How the idea come up, and how did the various authors become involved. How did Sh Yasir and all the other scholars get on board, and was it difficult to convince them. you mention that the fanbase has really grown – any figures? – and does that compare to other islamic blogs.

Reply
Reem

January 2, 2009 at 5:34 PM

yay!
baba’s post is #1 and mama’s is #4
congratz… :)

Reply