The Life of Muhammad on BBC
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Peace,
Is anyone watching this show? It is a three-part series on the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). The way I found out about it is because someone had mentioned it here on the forum about how they disliked Abdur Raheem Green (but I cannot find that thread now for some reason). It's presented by Rageh Omaar who is a great correspondent IMO. There are some issues that I take with the show (such as how Muhammad is the greatest man/messenger, Islam founded by Muhammad, the ascension, etc) but I think that it does a good job at presenting a wide range of perspectives. I remember hearin Arnold Yasin Mol and Dr Shabbir talking about the original mosques being places not on worship, but basically a community center. Was great to hear one of the Muslims mention that and talk about how there needs to be reform in Islam today. Also the idea of Ummah originally not just for Muslims, but for all people.
Here are the first two episodes on Youtube
Ep.1 Seeker
http//www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jXw_xZq6zUEp. 2 Holy Wars
http//www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyXoyxTWIDQPeace
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I have seen the first two parts, decent.
There is a book specifically on the first or early masjids in Islam, cant recall the name however. Basically, they say they used the prophet's courtyard, and it was not just about prayer, but used for communal issues etc.
