Many of us have heard that the first universities were in Europe, growing often out of monastic education. The second part only is accurate. Actually the first universities, or centers of learning, were in Asia. They were in places like Taxila in what is now Pakistan, Nalanda in Eastern India (ruins are in the photo… Read More The First Universities were in Asia, not Europe
The phrase ‘America First‘ sends a chill down my spine. Used by the presumptive Republican nominee for President in the United States, at least on some occasions, it is not where the world is going in the future. Nor, at least before 1945 and arguably 1918, was it the world in the past. It evokes… Read More ‘America First’? Not if India and China Have A Say In It
Wondering what my favorite movie is? Not interested? I’ll tell you anyway. It’s Gladiator, the Oscar-winning blockbuster starring Russell Crowe as a Roman General in 180 A.D. He serves loyally the Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, but runs afoul of the wicked son and becomes a slave and gladiator. I’ve seen it many times, as recently as… Read More An ‘Imperial’ View of History
It is the first few days of Ramadan, the month of fasting that Muslims all over the world are participating in. As an act of love, faith and hope, an estimated one million Christians are praying for their Muslim friends and neighbours during these same 30 days. What is not often considered is that those… Read More Praying Not Only For Muslims But With Them
Some years ago in Delhi, India, I listened to a Muslim friend describing how he had only seen his wife-to-be through a veil before the wedding night. He had also shared only a few words with her. In a minority culture of Northwest China as pictured in the scene above, the bridegroom uses a stick… Read More Do You Have a Flawed View of History?
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