The 21st Century Islam Has Arrived

Over the years one of MPV’s tag lines was “An Islam for the 21st Century”. 15 years on, more and more scholars of Islam and activists are also moving in this same direction. At a conference in Paris entitled “Islam XXII Conference: Living Islam in the 21st century - "Islam and Identities: Between Worship and Cultures" the questions being discussed and reflected on will include ‘How do we apply a universalist and human rights framing of Islam?’ and ‘How do we live it out rather than just treat it as a theory and as an abstract concept?’. Here’s the description of my presentation:

There is no point in learning about the sharia al-maqasid, the idealistic values of the Qur’an if Muslims don’t put it into practice. Since 2006, I have been applying the progressive interpretations of the Qur’an as documented by the philosophers and theologians of old and new into practical terms, making it accessible to the general public for the purpose of positively affecting peoples’ lives and in practical terms. From human rights frameworks, to spiritual songs, to the way we worship, an egalitarian imam structure, and interfaith marriages especially between a Muslim woman and a non-Muslim men, my presentation will document how I’vecreated the basis for a culture of Islam that is as pure to the spirit of the Qur’an as possible, and only hadiths that support it, toward inculcating a culture rooted in human rights in Muslim societies.
I am happy to have been invited to speak and I invite you all to attend this free forum either in person or virtually. Please check out the details below.

On February 8th, I will be a speaker at the Council on Foreign Relations countering violent extremism virtual round-table "Imams for Women’s Rights: Inoculating Against Extremism", and chaired by Farah Pandith. One indicator of a society succumbing to extremist ideology is the absence of women and girls in public spaces. Across several continents, people are rejecting that status quo, seeking a better and more open society. #ImamsForShe aims to use Islam to promote women’s rights and in turn inoculate against extremism. I will share success stories of preventing extremism by using soft power. This is round-table is for members and by invitation only.

In the last few months, I’ve been busy overseeing the production of a video series promoting the message of the UN Women's Generation Equality Forum’s focus on women’s bodily autonomy and economic independence. For us at MPV, we believe that a woman’s economic independence and participation in society is hinged on her right to bodily autonomy, that is her sexual, reproductive, and health rights. To elevate awareness of this issue, we collaborated with and funded our partner organizations in Malaysia, Pakistan, Tunisia, Kenya, Burundi and our global partner Alliance of Inclusive Muslims (AIM) to produce a total of 10 videos. Please check out the videos and share.

Onward and upward…

Ani Zonneveld

Founder, President