Greetings of peace to those of you who are new to this page (and peace to those who have been here for a while). Every now and then it is important for me to make this kind of post, as there seems to be some questions around who I am, what I stand for, and…… Continue reading Muhammad, Humanity, and Christian Religiosity
Syed Hamad Ali of Gulf News carried out an interview on my new book, Islam, Race, and Pluralism in the Pakistani Diaspora. In addition to diving into the book, Ali’s article sheds light on Pakphobia, a term I introduce in the book, Islamophobia, Muslim Diasporas, American/Irish identities, white nationalism and racial profiling. You can read…… Continue reading Gulf News Interview: “The Making of a More Cohesive Society”
My social media accounts have received more nasty comments than usual. I am not sure what has sparked this development, as I have been relatively quiet due to teaching obligations. I want to take a second to reflect on some things that have been on my mind. These nasty comments directed towards me certainly…… Continue reading This Christian Is Unfazed By Islamophobes
Here is a slightly different perspective of what I will #NeverForget about 9/11. Before I do that, I want to say that I grieve the loss of all souls that passed away on that day, and every other day where humanity crumbles because of outrageous acts of mass murder. My heart goes out to the…… Continue reading What I Will Never Forget About 9/11
It’s time for an uplifting story. In 2008 I was part of a group that was doing fieldwork in Muslim communities around Los Angeles. One evening we were at the home of a Pakistani Muslim man. His name, I believe, is Malik. There were a lot of people at this event. At one point in the…… Continue reading How Peanuts Helped Shape My Views of Muslim Americans
In about an hour or so I’ll be rolling out of my apartment building. I’ll walk for 45 minutes until I reach my office on campus. It will be a lovely walk. Crisp, calm, beautiful. I’ll pass by strangers and give the casual smile and hello. Just another working white dude in Houston… I find it…… Continue reading Walking While “White” Versus “Muslim” After San Bernadino
Published on Huffington Post Religion (06/16/15) It was the late 1990s and the American economy was booming. Money and consumerism were the “new religion.” Christians around me seemed to be Christians in name only. Besides having a secular education, I attended Catholic Christian Doctrine once per week from the ages of six to fourteen. I…… Continue reading From Catholicism to Atheism to Islam and Back to Catholicism
Published on Huffington Post Religion (05/08/15) Never in my wildest imagination did I ever think I would become a scholar focusing on Islam and Christian-Muslim relations. Growing up, my passion was playing basketball and following the Boston Celtics. I never had any Muslim friends. In fact, I did not even know a single follower of…… Continue reading The Price I Pay For Respecting Islam
I have been thinking a lot about thankfulness during this Lenten season. Oftentimes in life we forget to be thankful for obvious things such as our own beating hearts, our loved ones and family members, the food we put into our system, and the roof over our heads. When I walk around Dublin I often…… Continue reading This Is What I Am Thankful For
Peace and blessings to the millions of believers in Christ who are choosing to give or sacrifice something they love for the 40 days of Lent. Lent is the 40-day period of preparation for Easter Sunday, the Christian holiday to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is believed that Lent is 40 days long…… Continue reading Christians Prepare for 40 Days of Sacrifice in Preparation for Easter Sunday
This is a documentary about my dad, Christopher Michael Considine, who was born on April Fool’s Day in 1948. He grew up in the country of New Hampshire and Vermont. My dad served as Captain during the Vietnam War, a conflict which some of the greatest figures of his generation avoided. Years after serving in…… Continue reading A documentary for my dad on Father’s Day
For those who know me and the kind of work that I do, you will know by now of my mentor and intellectual guide Professor Akbar Ahmed. Here is a nice biography of Professor Ahmed, who the renowned American historian Professor Stanley Wolpert called “the greatest scholar of Islam in America and the world… nobody…… Continue reading My mentor mentioned for “peace intelligence”
MAKE WAY FOR THE LITTLE MAN!!!! My nephew, Colton Christopher Close. He is a champ already as you can see. He takes after his uncle for being a big baby boy! I was nearly 11 lbs, the Little Colt Man was a whopping 10 lbs! We are truly blessed!
I only get a chance to come back home to Boston a few times a year. When I returned last December I came home to the news of the terrible tragedy known as the Newtown Massacre in Connecticut, where 20 little children and 6 adults died at the hands of a crazed gunmen. Unfortunately my…… Continue reading Many emotions since arriving back in Boston
I lived in the Liberties, a working class part of Dublin, for over two years and used to see the man pictured above on a daily basis. I remember how he would walk up and down the isles of John’s Lane Church on Thomas Street while grunting something under his breath. In the middle of mass,…… Continue reading Remembering the man I used to see on Thomas Street
I’m back to instructing tutorials for the course “Introduction to Sociology” at the freshers level. I’ve instructed these tutorials in 2010 and 2011, so it’s fairly familiar material. The blog I had created for the students seemed to be a big hit, so I think I’ll continue with it. Maybe I’ll use Twitter a bit…… Continue reading Back in Dublin for term two
The response to my latest article was one of general disgust and outrage. One commentator on the website of Fox Nation, which also published the article, said that he “would beat this Craig guy until the police locked me up for a long time.” Another commentator on Fox Nation said that I must have “found…… Continue reading Wild response to latest article on Muhammad and Washington
There’s this drive within me. I think it’s in my soul. It’s always been with me. I didn’t create it, though I certainly create from it. It was given to me, but I don’t know when or by whom. This drive is a mystery, though I’m certain that it pushes me forward and never backward.…… Continue reading Personal: The drive
Ah, the life of a writer. You design your piece this way and that. You manage to find a framework which you think can work. You plow through the keyboard and think what you have is great, only to have someone else read it and realize that it’s actually crap. So you work through your…… Continue reading Personal: The struggle of writing
The ancient sages at Delphi always stated to their visitors: ‘know thyself’. No doubt these are wise words, but should we take it further, we could also ‘love thyself’ explicitly so that we can love others. If you don’t love yourself, you won’t have that deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish…… Continue reading Personal: A note on compassion
As many of you may have read in a recent post, Journey into America and the One Film 9/11 interfaith initiative were both warmly received at the U.S. Embassy in London. People of all walks of life approached me after the screening/discussion and shared with me their thoughts as well as how inspired they were…… Continue reading Personal: Back in Dublin though only for a shortwhile
I’m about to head out the door to Portman Square for a breakfast meeting with Ambassador Ahmed. Before I do so I want to share with you a few highlights of the trip so far. I’ll post something with more details in the near future. The Journey into America screening at the U.S. Embassy went very…… Continue reading Personal: Quick update from London
Here’s a quick glimpse into a pretty exciting trip over the next several days: On Wednesday morning, I have to teach a tutorial on naturally occurring data. The tutorial will be packed because I’ve asked the students from the Thursday and Friday tutorials to attend the Wednesday session. The reason? I’m heading on a 14:10…… Continue reading Personal: A quick and fairly significant trip to London
It has been challenging for me – a young Catholic working in interfaith dialogue – to watch the escalation of conflict between Muslim communities the world over and the United States. Observing this escalation as an American citizen has been equally difficult because religious tolerance is at the heart of my definition of American identity.…… Continue reading Personal: My challenge as a Catholic American
I was walking past Christ’s Church in Dublin as I do nearly every day. As I was rounding the pub The Bull and the Castle, an energetic young woman came scurrying up to me and asked if she could take my picture for the Mens UK fashion blog Boots, Jeans and Leathers. This is actually…… Continue reading Fashion blog on men’s street style
I’m heading to Logan Airport in a bit to fly back to Dublin. It’s hard to believe that I’m starting the third year of my Ph.D. Time flies when you’re busy and having fun. The summer of 2012 was a great one. I spent it relaxing and chilling mostly with my family. I can’t…… Continue reading Personal: Wrapping up the summer of 2012
Dear Craig, Greetings. Thank you for taking the time to come and visit me. Thank you for your kind note. I really enjoyed meeting you. I have a sixth sense about people. Or perhaps a visceral feeling. Even enough I met you for a few minutes, I knew you would be an interesting person. And…… Continue reading Personal: A letter I received today
I was reading too much with Nag Champa incents in Na Saoirsí, December 2011. The small room is fish-bowled and there is just enough light in. The wallpapers are bright orange with fluffy brush painting.
To my followers, Bored with the previous layout, I felt it was time for a change. If you wonder where some of my pages have gone, they are now in About me. I suppose there is nothing wrong with change as long as the change is for the better. Peace, Craig
IGNORANCE ‘The unexamined life is not worth living’ – Socrates PRETENTIOUSNESS ‘The intelligent people are the ones so intelligent that they don’t even need or want to look “intelligent” anymore’ – Criss Jami GREED ‘Don’t gain the world and lose your soul, for wisdom is better than silver or gold’. CERTITUDE ‘Only the madman is…… Continue reading Personal: Avoid!
We can gain a sense of young Benjamin Franklin’s thoughts on religion in A Witch Trial at Mount Holly, which raised the concern of his Puritan parents that he held ‘erroneous’ religious opinions. Franklin was not himself an emphatically religious man; while he believed in God, he did not subscribe to one particular creed. What we do…… Continue reading Benjamin Franklin’s Case for Pluralism
I wrote this speech (with a few typos) before launching Journey into America, which was screened at the Washington D.C. Convention Center. I ended up not even reading it. I was under the impression that we (researchers) were going to be asked to say a few words in front of the audience. This was never…… Continue reading The short speech I never read
Last night I watched the movie Alive. Have you seen it? It’s about a Rugby team that’s stranded for something like 70 days in the Andes mountains after a plane crash. As you can imagine, the team faces unfathomable hardship and even has to resort to cannibalism. It’s also, unbelievably, a true story. Something came…… Continue reading Alive
I booked a flight back home to Boston in March 2012. My sister, the only person who knew of the booking, and I devised a clever plan to surprise my parents. I put together this short clip to ‘Lovely Allen’ by Holy Fuck. Watch the video and tell me whether you think Holy Fuck is…… Continue reading (Video) Surprising the hell out of my parents!
A few pictures from a great homemade lasagna dinner. Check the video as well.
By Chad Howse from www.chadhowsefitness.com 1. They didn’t use excuses. 2. It wasn’t just about them. 3. Early morning and late nights. 4. The greatest commodity. 5. Principles. 6. Wavering, yet unbreakable faith. 7. A reason. 8. They persevered when others didn’t. 9. Great people relentlessly studied their craft. 10. Risk. Read WHY at addicted2success.com
Have you ever met or had a conversation with someone and thought to yourself: ‘this person is a genius’? This happened to me during the holy Islamic month of Ramadan in 2011 at the Islamic Center of Boston in Wayland (ICB), Massachusetts. One evening, while the largely South Asian community broke the fast, I found…… Continue reading The day I met a genius: a somber reflection
‘Family is most important in life’. – my dad One of the rarities of our Western world today = two people sticking with the bond they made on their wedding day. I’m, however, so lucky and SO honoured to be the son of a couple that has stuck together through thick and thin, through the…… Continue reading Happy 37th anniversary to my parents!
At least this’s true as it concerns the two terms of teaching, which just finished as of yesterday here at Trinity College Dublin. It’s safe to say that it has been a successful academic year for me. I have accomplished things I never imagined I would carry out. I have grown not only as a student…… Continue reading Year 2 of Ph.D. complete!
Once upon a time, I was a pretty lethal striker on the soccer pitch. When I was about 9 or 10, I had something like 6 goals in one game. It’s a true story. You can ask my dad. He wouldn’t lie. I ‘retired’ from the game when I was about 13, right before I…… Continue reading Playing soccer back in the day
Today I’m being nominated by several of my superiors in the Department of Sociology for the 2011/2012 TCD Alumni Excellence in Teaching Award in the School of Social Science and Philosophy at Trinity College Dublin. This is obviously a tremendous honour for me. I’m very passionate about teaching and take my job seriously. This is…… Continue reading Personal: Nominated for Excellence in Teaching Award
I woke up this morning in Dublin to a knock on my front door. I opened my window, peaked my head down to the street, and saw a man wearing a Fed Ex uniform. There was a package. After the Fed Ex man butchered my name (it’s Con-sa-dine and not Con-se-deen), my hands got on…… Continue reading Happiness in paperback
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