Munaeem's Blog

 The image that unsettled Europe In the Netherlands, an abandoned church has been converted into a gym. Stained glass windows remain. Stone arches still rise toward the ceiling. But below them sit treadmills, exercise bikes, and people in athletic wear chasing heart-rate goals instead of salvation. The image has spread widely online, often framed as a moral warning. For some, it is proof of Europe’s spiritual collapse. For others, it is a sensible reuse of empty space. Both reactions miss the deeper story. This is not about a gym. It is about what Europe no longer believes strongly enough to defend. Empty pews came first Across Europe, church attendance has been declining for decades. In countries like the Netherlands, regular Christian worship now sits in the single digits. Similar trends are visible in Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. This collapse did not begin with immigration. It predates large-scale Muslim settlement by generations. After World War II, the European we...

 A recent online debate asked a seemingly simple question: should “Islamic products,” particularly halal food, be restricted or banned in the United States. The responses were immediate and blunt. Some called for bans. Others mocked halal practices. A few suggested that restricting such products would make Muslims “reconsider being here.” What began as a discussion about values quickly turned into a debate about belonging. This pattern is not new in Amer ican history. When cultural anxiety rises, everyday practices like food, clothing, or language often become symbols of deeper fears about identity and control. What halal food actually is Halal food refers to dietary standards followed by many Muslims, similar in function to kosher rules in Judaism. It governs how animals are slaughtered and which foods are permissible. Importantly, halal certification is not a legal mandate. It is a private, voluntary consumer standard, overseen by independent certifying bodies and regulated for s...

 When Mike Huckabee, the sitting U.S. ambassador to Israel, frames American support for Israel as a matter of biblical covenant rather than political choice, it is tempting to read the statement as personal faith. That would be a mistake. This was not a devotional reflection. It was a political signal, delivered in religious language. And it raises uncomfortable questions about how the United States now explains its power abroad. From Policy to Promise Huckabee’s argument is straightforward. He claims that Christianity rests on the foundation of Judaism, that God’s covenant with the Jewish people is eternal, and that questioning this covenant undermines faith itself. From this perspective, support for Israel is not merely strategic or moral. It is obligatory. Within evangelical theology, this logic is familiar. But when it comes from a diplomat of a secular republic, the meaning changes. Foreign policy is supposed to be debated, evaluated, and adjusted. By contrast, covenants are p...

 Scroll through the comments under Alice Weidel’s latest declaration on migration and one thing becomes clear very quickly. This is not a policy debate. It is a release of pressure. “About time.” “Germany gets it.” “Trump was right.” “Wake up time.” These are not arguments about asylum law or labour quotas. They are expressions of exhaustion. People are not carefully weighing deportation figures or border regimes. They are saying something simpler, and more dangerous: the system no longer works, and no one in charge seems willing to admit it. Weidel, co-leader of the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), promises decisive action within 100 days. Close the borders. End migrant subsidies. Carry out the largest deportations in German history. The language is blunt, final, almost surgical. It is also deliberately vague. No legal pathways. No constitutional constraints. No discussion of Germany’s federal structure or European obligations. And yet it resonates. Not because millions of Germa...

 It’s strange what the internet does to perception. Scroll long enough and you’d swear something big is happening in America. Jesus everywhere. Crosses. Declarations. Warnings. Claims of revival. Posts insisting that millions of atheists are coming back to Christ. That culture is about to “feel it.” That this is the moment people finally wake up. It feels like a religious comeback. But feelings aren’t facts. And this one deserves a closer look. Because here’s the uncomfortable truth: America isn’t becoming more religious. It’s becoming louder about religion at the exact moment faith is losing ground. Those two things aren’t the same. The Numbers Don’t Whisper Revival Let’s start with the boring part. The data. For decades now, large surveys in the United States have shown a steady decline in Christian identification. Not a sudden collapse, but a long, slow slide. The share of Americans calling themselves Christian has dropped significantly since the 1990s. Meanwhile, the group labe...

The loudest thing about modern politics is not disagreement. It is avoidance. A recent Facebook thread reacting to comments by Ilhan Omar accusing Donald Trump of abusing federal power should have sparked a basic democratic discussion. Did the president act within the law? Where are the limits of executive authority? What safeguards exist to prevent political retaliation? Instead, the comment section did something else entirely. It dissolved. Not into facts or counterarguments, but into motive-hunting, identity policing, and conspiracy shortcuts. The claim itself was barely touched. The question was treated as illegitimate the moment it was asked. That reaction tells us more than any individual comment ever could. When Arguments Are Replaced by Intent Almost no one engaged the substance of the allegation. Instead, commenters rushed to explain why Omar must be saying it. She was “paid.” She was “grandstanding.” She was “covering for something.” She was “out of touch with reality.” This ...