Pretension and Derision→

Bayan Perazzo writes about visiting the holy city of Medina:

Despite the fact that religious tolerance is espoused in both the Quran and the Hadith, Saudi Arabians let their personal sectarian ideologies get in the way. Rather than welcoming pilgrims and worshippers into their cities and holy sites, Saudis turn to the pretension and derision made prominent by religious publications, school materials, and the speeches of famous Saudi clerics.

Unlike the holy city of Mecca, where men and woman circle the Kaaba and pray side by side, the mosques in Medina (like many others elsewhere) are segregated by gender. If there is an area allocated for the women to pray in, it’s typically a small, crowded, sub-standard option when compared to the open expanses of the men’s area. In Medina’s Quba mosque, for example, women push and shove to get inside their tiny allocation and must pray in tightly packed clusters.

‘Re-Examination’→

Caryle Murphy on Saudi youth’s changing attitude towards religion, and how religious figures in the country no longer hold the high authority they once had:

Young Saudis overwhelmingly want the kingdom’s commitment to Islam to remain firm and in their personal lives they remain devout, observant followers of their faith.

But increasingly, they demonstrate less willingness to accept their religious heritage without re-examination, as their parents did. They are more willing to question a fatwa or ignore it; some are daring to openly discuss taboo subjects like atheism. Increasingly too, they favor a religious practice that is more voluntary, less enforced by the state, and more respectful of differences among Muslims.

Bonus: She mentions popular cleric Mohammed al-Arifi aka Tom Cruise of Wahabbism. You can find more of this meme here and here.

‘Semblance of Belief’→

There are atheists in Saudi Arabia. Your Middle East speaks with one of them:

Jabir continues to keep up the semblance of belief in Islam when with his family. Occasionally, this becomes frustrating, especially as every Friday he has to pretend to go pray at a mosque, but in reality sits in his car outside a coffee shop chain, sipping a latte until the sermon is finished. Another atheist, Abdullah, mentions he is fortunate to have his family live in another part of Saudi Arabia, and is therefore free to have a weekly lie in.