An amazing piece of reporting in The National about the Qubeisiat, a secretive women's movement inside Islamic fundamentalism that has gained a foothold in secular Syria and is convincing young women to put on the hijab. Author Rhonda Roumani is an Arab-American who has written for many U.S. publications and is an Alicia Patterson fellow in journalism. Her narrative point of view here is beautifully-rendered and will confuse anyone making generalizations about Arab discourse. Note that the Abu Dhabi newspaper piece speaks openly of Syrian "state security service" monitoring. And the reporting suggests that Islam is full of spiritual/doctrinal movements as much as Judaism is… These women's mystical stuff reminds me of Hasidim…
“Killing the soul is forbidden,” she continues, “but killing the
essence and the goals of the soul is like killing the soul. And that is
what America is doing. I spoke to a woman who came from America. I
asked her, ‘what do people live for in America?’ She said ‘pleasure and
money.’ I asked, ‘what is the purpose of the state?’ She said, ‘money
and power.’ They are imposing secularism and secularism means imposing
globalism by force.”
essence and the goals of the soul is like killing the soul. And that is
what America is doing. I spoke to a woman who came from America. I
asked her, ‘what do people live for in America?’ She said ‘pleasure and
money.’ I asked, ‘what is the purpose of the state?’ She said, ‘money
and power.’ They are imposing secularism and secularism means imposing
globalism by force.”
Interesting, thanks Phil:
Rhonda Roumani: Into the open
The Qubeisiat, female Muslim movement, founded by: Munira al Qubeisi
(former secret female Muslim education network now supported by the Syrian state; started in the early 1980's, spread to other states, also Europe)
Hmmmm?
“People who speak Arabic have perfectly shaped mouths – so we can pronounce the vowels correctly,” she explains. “Foreigners – they have deformed mouths. Their mouths do not form the perfect O. That is why they can’t say our vowels.”
Nawara and I watch as the students and teachers shuffle out to do their evening prayers. Nawara eyes them warily and begins to whisper in my ear, but I can feel the gaze of one of the teachers on us. They are uncomfortable with our presence, and particularly with Nawara; her Alawite surname may have deepened their unease.
This reminds me of the multitude of semi-secret, not open to all societies that form and re-form in the body of Catholic Church. Some become known, like Corpus Christie, some are open to men only, or to women only, and all give you sense of belonging, of certain exclusivity, of somehow being closer to true purpose of your place on this earth, and deepen your spiritual connection with the Divine.
Like owning a BMW, really, for non religious.