NYU’s Daily Student Newspaper
WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS Vol. 41, No. 64
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2013
nyunews.com
Reza Aslan discusses ‘Zealot,’ theology By NEELA QADIR and KAVISH HARJAI
JAKE GIANARIS FOR WSN
Reza Aslan, the author of “Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth” lectures about religion.
ASLAN continued on PG. 1
‘Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ proves super without superheroes
INSIDE THIS ISSUE PICNIC BRINGS ON MIDWEST MENU:
Picnic brings Middle America’s versatile, savory cuisine to Greenwich Village residents with all dishes made with sustainable ingredients at its new Seventh Street location. PICNIC on PG. 4
The New York Times bestselling author Reza Aslan visited NYU on Sept. 23 to give a public lecture to students about the spread of Islam in the Middle East. Author of “Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth” met with Professor Zvi Ben-Dor Beite’s Cultures and Context: Islam and Judaism, Intertwined Histories class. According to the professor of the class and chair of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Zvi Ben-Dor Benite, Aslan was picked to speak in the class before “Zealot” was published. Benite chose him as a class speaker because of Aslan’s book “No God but God.” “I was supposed to suggest speakers and wanted someone that could speak about early Islam and the biography of the Prophet in an interesting, in-
novative and accessible way,” Benite said. The class lecture, which explained the history surrounding the environment of the Arabian Peninsula during Muhammad’s time and the spread of Islam, was 20 minutes and was an open conversation that allowed students to ask questions about Muhammad and prophecy. He also expanded on the idea of religion and the circumstances surrounding it. “We think that religion is a personal thing between your relationship with God, your spirituality which is a very new idea,” Aslan said. “Religion for most of the hundred thousands of years is something that has nothing to do with the individual, it has to do with the collective. It is your root that follows a particular god, your tribe or nation.” Aslan’s evening lecture at the
By OLIVIA ELLIS
CHUCK KUAN FOR WSN
COUNTERTERRORISM INEFFECTIVE IN KENYA
The tragic Kenyan Mall terrorist attacks this past weekend proved that U.S. aid to the Kenyan government has been unable to fight extremists.
From its first scene, the pilot episode of “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” doesn’t let the audience forget its affiliation with the wildly successful “The Avengers” film. The first faces glimpsed are those of that movie’s superheroes — recycled snippets from
the film show Iron Man and Thor zipping around Manhattan in pursuit of Loki’s alien army. Yet despite this opening, creators Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen stay true to the show’s premise of focusing on the agents behind the heroes. For those unfamiliar with the Marvel Universe, the show’s
HOUSE on PG. 7
UNDER THE ARCH: LEADERSHIP
This week on WSN’s new blog, we examine the leaders of our university and the city. We take a look at some who lead behindthe-scenes, nameless and unrecognized. Visit wsnunderthearch. com to read this week’s stories.
VIA ABC.GO.COM GRAPHIC BY MERYLL PREPOSI
Chloe Bennet and Clark Gregg deliver in the ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ pilot.
structure is laid out well enough for the average viewer to follow. The opening action kicks off the show and sets the tone for a dynamic and exciting season, setting it apart from many primetime contenders that rely on tried-and-true formulaic stories. Characters like Agent Fitz (Iain De Caestecker) and Agent Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) provide witty charm offset by Agent Ward’s (Brett Dalton) brooding beauty, and generate an appealing sense of humor and conflict within the group. Rather than stand-alone episodes, the series focuses on a more serialized plot, as the agents unravel the origins of the mysterious gamma radiation and alien hardware they discover. “S.H.I.E.L.D.” also, at times, borrows from the show’s blockbuster cousins — fans of “Iron Man 3” will recognize the man-as-tickingtime-bomb conundrum that the
S.H.I.E.L.D. continued on PG. 5