Jewel of Medina, tantangan lain dari kaum kuffar?

Random House, mungkin sudah bernasib baik dengan mengambil keputusan untuk tidak menerbitkan buku ini.  Namun, bagaimana pun selamanya akan ada orang-orang yang nekat, rela menjadi budak dunia dan mendaftarkan dirinya menjadi penghuni neraka, na’udzubillah.

Kita lihat saja nanti, akankah kehadiran buku ini di bulan Syawwal menjadi awal derita dan penyesalan berkepanjangan bagi mereka yang bersuka cita atasnya.

Then, a university professor, asked for an endorsement, called Random House with warnings of a terrorist attack by angry Muslims if my book were published. “A national security issue,” University of Texas associate professor Denise Spellberg reportedly said. “More dangerous than the Satanic Verses or the Danish cartoons.”

- http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/postglobal/islamsadvance/2008/08/censoring_islam.html

Starting in 2002, Spokane, Wash., journalist Sherry Jones toiled weekends on a racy historical novel about Aisha, the young wife of the prophet Muhammad. Ms. Jones learned Arabic, studied scholarly works about Aisha’s life, and came to admire her protagonist as a woman of courage. When Random House bought her novel last year in a $100,000, two-book deal, she was ecstatic. This past spring, she began plans for an eight-city book tour after the Aug. 12 publication date of “The Jewel of Medina” — a tale of lust, love and intrigue in the prophet’s harem.

- http://online.wsj.com/public/article_print/SB121797979078815073.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Beaufort Books Secures Deal to

Publish Once Feared Historical Novel The Jewel of Medina

(New York, NY) September 8, 2008 — Beaufort Books is pleased to announce that it has signed a two book deal with author Sherry Jones for the North American publication rights for The Jewel of Medina, to be released in October, with the sequel to follow next year. The public controversy over The Jewel of Medina, a historical fiction novel of the love story between the Prophet Mohammed and his favorite wife A’isha, began in July when its previous publisher, Random House, made its decision to terminate the book.

Says author Sherry Jones, “I had hoped to find an independent publisher with gumption and verve that would treat me as a partner in the publishing process, and that wouldn’t be spooked by controversy, recognizing it as a stimulus for discussion of my books’ themes of women’s empowerment, peace, and hope.” Jones adds, “With its track record of support for free speech and expression, Beaufort Books offers the perfect home for The Jewel of Medina and its sequel.”

Natasha Kern, Sherry Jones’s agent, comments, “In selecting Beaufort, we chose an editor and publisher who are passionate about bringing this novel to readers and shared our vision for this book. All those who are interested can soon read the book and discover what a wonderful and inspiring woman A’isha was, and enjoy how beautifully told her story is. We are excited to have found an experienced publisher committed to partnering with its writers to achieve all that is possible for each book.”

Beaufort President Eric Kampmann says, “We are building a great team to bring The Jewel of Medina to the audience it deserves to have. Everyone at Beaufort is proud to be associated with this ground breaking novel.”

Sherry Jones will be the featured speaker on the freedom of speech panel at the Norwegian Foundation for Investigative Journalism’s 5^th Global Investigative Journalism Conference being held in Lillehammer, Norway from September 10 to 14.

The Jewel of Medina will be available from Beaufort Books October 2008.

link:
- http://www.jewelofmedinabook.com/
- http://www.jewelofmedinabook.com/Jewel%20release%20web%20version.htm

Mari Berislam, dimulai dari Diri Sendiri (1)

Ada sebuah buku bagus, yang ditulis oleh Syaikh Husain bin ‘Audah al-’Awayisyah yang dalam bahasa Indonesianya diberi judul Menerapkan Sya’riat Islam Dalam Diri, Keluarga, dan Orang-orang yang Ada di Bawah Tanggung Jawab Anda Menurut al-Qur’an dan as-Sunnah. Diterbitkan oleh Pustaka Imam Asy-Syafi’i. Judul asli buku ini adalah Kaifa Tahkumu Nafsaka wa Akhlaka wa man Talii Ummuurahum bi Hukmillah.

Buku ini tipis saja xvii + 117 halaman dengan ukuran 12,5 x 17,5 cm jadi bisa dibawa ketika bepergian.

Buku ini penjelasannya singkat. Namun, sebenarnya maknanya cukup mendalam. Mungkin untuk sebagian orang perlu penjelasan lebih lanjut pada beberapa poin, tentang “mengapa”-nya. Kunci untuk memahaminya, tak lain harus membaca lebih banyak buku lagi, atau paling tidak sebagai dasar, hadirilah majelis ilmu yang membahas tentang tauhid. InsyaAllah, bagi yang belum paham akan diberikan pemahan oleh Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.

Saya suka buku ini. Semoga Allah membalas usaha Syaikh dengan kebaikan yang banyak. Dan semoga Allah memudahkan diri ini untuk berislam dengan sepenuhnya, amin.

Saya mulai dari kata pengantar penerbit edisi Indonesia.

Adalah suatu kewajiban bagi setiap muslim untuk menegakkan hukum Allah. Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala dalam An-Nisaa’:59 berfirman, “Hai orang-orang yang beriman, taatilah Allah dan taatilah Rasul(-Nya) dan ulil amri di antara kamu…”

Kewajiban untuk taat berlaku bagi semua. Rasulullah Shalallahu alaihi wassalam bersabda, ” masing-masing kalian adalah pemimpin, dan masing-masing kalian akan dimintai pertanggung-jawaban terhadap apa yang dipimpinnya.”

Jenis ketaatan yang dimaksud adalah semua ketaatan, dan Allah hanya menyuruh orang-orang mukmin agar mentaati hukum-Nya yang mampu mereka laksanakan. Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala berfirman, “Maka bertakwalah kamu kepada Allah menurut kesanggupanmu..” (At-Taghabun:16). Dan Allah juga berfirman, “Allah tidak membebani seseorang melainkan sesuai dengan kesanggupannya..” (Al-Baqarah:286).

Berdasarkan dalil di atas, menegakkan syari’at Islam tidak harus menunggu tegaknya Daulah Islamiyyah atau Khilafah Islamiyyah selama kita belum mampu mewujudkannya. Hukum Islam harus tetap diamalkan baik ada Khilafah ataupun tidak. Ketidakmampuan kita melaksanakannya secara keseluruhan tidak berarti kita boleh meninggalkannya secara keseluruhan. Kaidah ushul fiqih mengatakan: ‘Sesuatu yang tidak dapat dikerjakan secara keseluruhan tidak boleh ditinggalkan seluruhnya.’

Bersambung, insyaAllah.

Writing A Good Report

Tamanna is given an assignment by her tutor.

The brief says: Why do people go on holiday and where do they go?

Your work should be presented in a formal report format and contain statistics you have collected to support your information.

She has a good look at the brief and works out the two main tasks. 

• Research for the topic.
• To write the report in the correct format.

She goes on the web for some up-to-date information. She types “most popular holiday destinations” into a search engine and finds some sites which get her started.

She prints off some information to read, noting why each place is popular. She jots down some key points to use later when writing up her report.

The Report

Here is some information on France. The key words are highlighted in bold.

France is one of the most beautiful European countries and is very popular with British tourists. It is a land of rich diversity. Paris offers Disneyland, shopping, history and museums. Farther south there is skiing and excellent countryside and coastline. It is also famous for its food and wine.

Tamanna has highlighted some key words about some more holiday destinations:

• Australia – breathtaking scenery, natural beauty
• Caribbean – atmosphere, heritage, friendly people, good hotels, sunshine, blue sea, beaches
• Italy – style and sophistication, architecture, history, food, countryside, skiing

She carries on reading and begins to find other reasons for people going on holiday.

• Cheap flights
• Channel Tunnel
• Eurostar
• Buying second homes
• Peace and quiet
• Short break
• To get married

Tamanna needs some more information, so she designs a questionnaire.

According to Tamanna’s research, Spain and France are the most popular holiday destinations for British holidaymakers.

She decides to check this out further by using a questionnaire, asking a cross-section of 50 people where they go on holiday and why.

Here’s the questionnaire:

Tamanna has got all the information she needs and is getting ready to write up her findings. Here are some tips to help her on her way.

Why do we write reports?

• To transmit ideas or information, facts or findings
• To research a problem and draw conclusions about it
• To make recommendations about ways of doing things, making improvements or changes
• To record information for other people to refer to
• Tips before you start.

Think about the audience that will read the report, and write clearly in a way they will understand

• Are they experts? If so, it is important to use the key vocabulary and technical terms
• Are they new to the topic? If so, don’t blind them with science
• Write a plan detailing the information headings you need to include
• As you collect your information, note where it came from
• Do not write in the first person

It’s time for Tamanna to work out the structure of the report.

She starts by putting a plan together, which includes headings and what information goes in each section.

1. Title Page

Contains:

• A clear layout
• A brief title which describes the report clearly
• The author’s name
• The Date
• The course title or company name

For Example:

Why do people go on holiday and where do they go?

Lucy Simmons

November 2002

West College o Further Education

2. Contents Page

Contains

• A heading
• Parts of the report and page numbers in colums
• May use sub headings

For Example

Contents — Page

1. Terms of reference — 3

2. Findings — 4

• The most popular destinations —  4
• Why they are popular — 5
• The effect of cheap flights — 6
• Short Breaks — 6
• Winter Sport Holidays — 6

3. Introduction or Terms of Reference

Contains:

• who requested the report and why
• The purpose of the report
• Who compiled the information and how – e.g. methodes of research
• Links to other work or reports
• Acknowledgement of help given
• Any limitations

4. Main body of the report or Findings

Contains:

• Numbered sections or headings
• Clear paragraphs of factual information – each with one key point – that discussed or explained
• Costs
• Analysis of data
• Graphs, charts, giagrams, mapas, pictures and flow diagrams at the appropriate point in the text to the Appendices

For Example:

2.4 Short Breaks

Short breaks are becomming increasingly popular as more holidaymakers take a short break abroad in additon to their summer holiday. The most popular destinations are the European cities of Paris, Amsterdam, Bruges and Rome. unfortunately, Prague has lost popularity since the floods of August 2002. (See Appendix 3)

2.5 Winter Sport Holidays

 

5. Conclusions

Contains:

• The summing up of the main findings of the report

Tip: The conclusion should not contain any new material and should not be too long. Remember, there must be enough evidence to justify your conclusions.

 

6. Recommendations

Contains:

• Why should be done as result of the findings
• Why it should be done and who by

Tip: There may not be any recommendations in a report which has been compiled to give information only.

 

7. Appendices

Contains:

• Tables of information, questionnaires, examples, large diagrams, samples of letters or leaflets which have been reffered to in the Findings section.

8. Bibliography of References

Contains:

• The author, title, publisher and date of any books, articles or reports you have used information from the alphabetical order
• Page numbers of any references used
• Underlined titles of books or journals
• Web site addresses

For Example:

Bibliography:

Best, R. Holidays Today

Bristol Book Company, Bristol, 2002.

Smith, L. Top Ten Holidays Resorts.

Holiday Review, October 2002, p.9-11

Source: BBC Learning