Matt Luciano / Contributing Writer
Issue date: 1/31/08 Section: Opinion
Continue reading ‘Americans should demand solidarity for Palestine’
Archive for January, 2008
Brdo Prikranju, Slovenia/ The Hague – Muharram 19, 1429/ January 27, 2008 –— The European Union and the United States voiced concern over a Dutch lawmaker’s plan to produce a film insulting the Holy Quran, saying that the short film could reignite tensions with Muslims after the Danish cartoons affair. European justice ministers, who met here yesterday have expressed concern about the plan to make a potentially inflammatory film, ministers and officials said. They said that Dutch justice officials had raised the issue at informal talks in Slovenia, and had called for EU support. “It would, of course, have important repercussions for other countries of the European Union as well,” Luxembourg Justice Minister Luc Frieden told AFP, on the sidelines of the talks. “It is our moral duty to call upon everybody, to make people aware, so that they do not abuse their fundamental rights” of freedom of expression, he said. “We must also protect those who may be hurt or harmed by irresponsible statements.”
Meanwhile, The US Department of Homeland Security and the FBI Wednesday circulated a report on the expected release of a 10-minute anti-Islam film by Dutch far-right Party for Freedom Founder and Chairman Geert Wilders, which is expected to spark global protests and raises the possibility of violence in Europe. The DHS/FBI report was published in anticipation of a Friday release of the film; however, Wilders himself told a Dutch newspaper that he needs at least two more weeks to finish the film. So far, no one has seen even as single pre-release frame of the film. The DHS/FBI report follows weeks of speculation on the reactions to the film that continues to gain momentum in overseas media and online outlets. The report states clearly in its headline and key findings section that “the film is unlikely to incite violence in the United States but may provoke protests overseas.” Wilders, a self-professed anti-Islam politician is rumored to argue in the film that the Quran encourages violence against non-Muslims, the report states.
Geert Wilders has been in the spotlight since he announced in the Netherlands in November that he plans to make a short film to show that Islam’s holy book is “a fascist book” that “incites people to murder”. Dutch observers fear that Wilders will burn or tear up the Quran in it. “The Dutch minister expressed a certain preoccupation about that and asked for the support of his colleagues,” an EU official said. It remains unclear if and when the mobile movie will be shown. Wilders told Saturday’s edition of Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf that it would be several weeks yet, after earlier giving a date of the end of January.
“The EU has to be attentive,” the EU official said. “We are trying to avoid the situation we had with the cartoons.” A series of 12 cartoons insulting Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) published in Denmark’s biggest daily newspaper two years ago led to deadly riots in several Muslim countries.
The EU official said that the bloc’s Counter Terrorism Coordinator Gilles de Kerchove noted during the discussions that “we have to think about how to deal with that.” German Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries said the EU ministers “agreed we would remain in contact” with their Dutch counterpart Ernst Hirsch Ballin over the issue. De Telegraaf said it had viewed some rushes from the film. “The opening shot shows to the left the cover of the Quran, and to the right the words ‘Warning: this book contains shocking pictures’,” it said. “The film does not only talk about the Quran, it plays out within its framework,” he said. “The edges of the book will be permanently visible (in the film) and within this frame, we show images of what is described in the words of the Quran.”
Wilders has been under heavy police protection since the 2004 murder of Dutch director and columnist Theo van Gogh. Van Gogh was killed by a radical Muslim after he directed a film criticizing the position of women in Islam. Numerous Islamic associations have already urged Muslims in the country to stay calm and not allow themselves to be provoked. Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende has said the Netherlands is ready to act quickly if the film causes unrest, and stressed that “provocations” have no place in the Dutch tradition of tolerance.
IINA
Continue reading ‘EU, US voice concern over Dutch film insulting Quran’
By Iman Badawi Staff Writer — IslamOnline.net
Continue reading ‘Under Siege in Gaza – Mass Torture and Systematic Repression’
ANKARA – Turkish Daily News
Friday, January 18, 2008
Islam undoubtedly requires women to cover their heads, Turkey’s head of religious affairs said yesterday in a statement that coincides with the current discussions on lifting the headscarf ban in universities.
Continue reading ‘Islam tells women to cover heads, says head of religious affairs office’
Washington – Muharram 08, 1429/
He also referred to the fact that Islam has gained distinguished status in today’s world, and its foes have attempted to hatch plots against it. “Despite huge anti-Islam propaganda campaign waged by western media, we are witnessing increasing growth of Islam in the
Head of Washington Islamic Teachings Center noted that Islam is a living religion, which opposes any kind of aggression and injustice; hence, global arrogance and hegemonic powers are against it and its teachings. “Islam is the only international religion which challenges dominant thoughts in the West and is appealing to people, who thirst for spirituality and justice,” he noted.
HA/IINA
Continue reading ‘Holy Quran among top religious books in US’
The Director of AMANA, American Muslim Association of
Giving the Puerto Rico Governor: Mr. Anibal Acevedo-Vila a copy of the Qur’an , at the Governor’s House.Source: http://www.primerahora.com/XStatic/primerahora/images/espanol/20080110_notnotras_1407984.jpg
Muslims now make up the third largest religious grouping in Ireland, latest statistics have revealed.
The figures show a 70% increase in the Muslim population between 2002-2006.
Last year’s Census revealed that in the previous decade 420,000 of the population were born outside the country.
Immigration and returning Irish emigrants meant the population rose to 4,172,013 – the highest since 1861.
Jerusalem – Muharram 04, 1429/ January 13, 2008 – A UNESCO-sponsored conference is scheduled to begin here today for evaluation of an Israeli plan to build a bridge leading to Al-Magharebah gate near Al Aqsa Mosque. Jordanian experts are taking part in the meeting, according to Jordanian Minister of Information Affairs and Communication Nasser Judeh. “Jordan’s participation in the meeting has the aim of reasserting the country’s attitude that considers Al-Magharebah gate an integral part of Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, an area which is under the exclusive responsibility of the Jordanian Religious Endowments Department,” Judeh said.
Israel captured East Jerusalem from Jordan in the 1967 six-day war along with the rest of the West Bank. However, under the peace treaty, which Jordan concluded with Israel in 1994, the Jewish state acknowledged the Hashemite Kingdom’s right to look after the Islamic and Christian holy shrines in East Jerusalem. Jordan has repeatedly considered Israeli excavations near Al-Aqsa Mosque as violations of the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Action Front (IAF), Jordan’s biggest political party, yesterday urged the government to unequivocally reject US President George W Bush’s remarks asserting Israel as a Jewish state. “We are awaiting a clear Jordanian official attitude that rejects Israel as a Jewish state and sticks to the Palestinian people’s right to an independent and a fully sovereign state as well as to the right of refugees” to return to their homes, the IAF official spokesman Rhayyel Gharaibeh said in a statement.
During his visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories earlier this week, Bush advocated Israel as homeland for the Jewish people, a remark virtually excluding the return of Palestinian refugees to their homes they were forced to quit upon Israel’s foundation in 1948. The UN General Assembly’s resolution 194 provided for the return of Palestinians to their homes or compensating those who choose not to return. “Bush’s hostile statement represents one of the stages of the liquidation of the Palestinian question, the offshoots of which will affect the rights of the Palestinian and Jordanian peoples as well as neighboring Arab countries,” Gharaibeh said adding “the recognition of the Jewish nature of Israel heralds a new aggression as well as a new chapter of the conspiracy against Arab rights.”
IINA Jan. 13, 2008
Continue reading ‘UNESCO-sponsored conference on Aqsa Mosque to begin today’
IslamOnline.net & Newspapers
CAIRO — Robert Bennett, the Conservative mayor of Mirfield, West Yorkshire, has drawn rebuke from Muslim community leaders over a series of disparaging remarks about the sizable minority, The Observer reported on Sunday, January 13.
IANS Wednesday 16th January, 2008
| The United Nations’ Alliance of Civilisations project Wednesday announced 12 ‘innovative’ measures to break down prejudice and to increase understanding between the West, the Muslim world and other regions to counter extremism and terrorism.
Former Portuguese president Jorge Sampaio, the UN high representative for the alliance, said he had contacted entrepreneurs including Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and Virgin founder Richard Branson to obtain financial contributions. Continue reading ‘UN Alliance of Civilisations announces 12 measures’ |
Mohammed Seddiki is one of the Muslim workers who had his security clearance revoked on suspicions of being a terrorist.
More than 70 Muslim workers have been stripped of their security clearances at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle airport for alleged links to terrorist organizations. Now the unions representing the workers are threatening to strike.
When French nationalist politician Phillipe de Villiers decried the “Islamization of France” in his book “The Mosques of Roissy” this spring, he was called xenophobic, extremist, paranoid — and a best-selling author. Indeed, despite some heavy criticism of his views, the French were snatching up his book in droves, and the government started heeding his warnings.
Islam Online Newspaper
CAIRO — The bishop of the British city of Oxford, Rt Rev John Pritchard, has supported a Muslim proposal to sound Adhan (the Muslim call of prayer) in parts of the historical city, reported the Telegraph on Saturday, January 12.
Protests were organized Friday by the London-based Amnesty International around the world to mark the Guantanamo detainees’ day. (Reuters)
Riazat Butt, religious affairs correspondent
Tuesday January 8, 2008
The Guardian
The Board of Deputies of British Jews is planning to recruit a Muslim adviser as part of a scheme to link schools dominated by a single faith. The adviser will help develop religious and culturally sensitive programmes that will appeal to Jewish and Muslim schools taking part in its Shared Futures project, which fosters respect between pupils from the two faith communities. The Board of Deputies is the first religious organisation in the
Ill-advised quipBy OUT-LAW.COM ? More by this authorPublished
Abu Dhabi – Dhul Qaada 17, 1428/
Following is the full text of the letter: As members of the worldwide Christian community, we were deeply encouraged and challenged by the recent historic open letter signed by 138 leading Muslim scholars, clerics, and intellectuals from around the world. A Common Word Between Us and You identifies some core common ground between Christianity and Islam which lies at the heart of our respective faiths as well as at the heart of the most ancient Abrahamic faith, Judaism. Jesus Christ’s call to love God and neighbor was rooted in the divine revelation to the people of
Muslims and Christians have not always shaken hands in friendship; their relations have sometimes been tense, even characterized by outright hostility. Since Jesus Christ says, ‘First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye’ (Matthew 7:5), we want to begin by acknowledging that in the past (e.g. in the Crusades) and in the present (e.g. in excesses of the ‘war on terror’) many Christians have been guilty of sinning against our Muslim neighbors. Before we ‘shake your hand’ in responding to your letter, we ask forgiveness of the All-Merciful One and of the Muslim community around the world.
Religious Peace-World Peace ‘Muslims and Christians together make up well over half of the world’s population. Without peace and justice between these two religious communities, there can be no meaningful peace in the world.’ We share the sentiment of the Muslim signatories expressed in these opening lines of their open letter. Peaceful relations between Muslims and Christians stand as one of the central challenges of this century, and perhaps of the whole present epoch. Though tensions, conflicts, and even wars in which Christians and Muslims stand against each other are not primarily religious in character, they possess an undeniable religious dimension. If we can achieve religious peace between these two religious communities, peace in the world will clearly be easier to attain. It is therefore no exaggeration to say, as you have in ‘A Common Word Between Us and You’, that ‘the future of the world depends on peace between Muslims and Christians.’ Common Ground what is so extraordinary about A Common Word Between Us and You is not that its signatories recognize the critical character of the present moment in relations between Muslims and Christians. It is rather a deep insight and courage with which they have identified the common ground between the Muslim and Christian religious communities.
What is common between us lies neither in something marginal nor in something merely important to each. It lies, rather, in something absolutely central to both: love of God and love of neighbor. Surprisingly for many Christians, your letter considers the dual command of love to be the foundational principle not just of the Christian faith, but of Islam as well. That so much common ground exists-common ground in some of the fundamentals of faith-gives hope that undeniable differences and even the very real external pressures that bear down upon us can not overshadow the common ground upon which we stand together. That this common ground consists in love of God and of neighbor gives hope that deep cooperation between us can be a hallmark of the relations between our two communities.
Love of God we applaud that A Common Word Between Us and You stresses so insistently the unique devotion to one God, indeed the love of God, as the primary duty of every believer. God alone rightly commands our ultimate allegiance. When anyone or anything besides God commands our ultimate allegiance-a ruler, a nation, economic progress, or anything else-we end up serving idols and inevitably get mired in deep and deadly conflicts. We find it equally heartening that the God whom we should love above all things is described as being Love. In the Muslim tradition, God, ‘the Lord of the worlds,’ is ‘the Infinitely Good and All-Merciful.’ And the New Testament states clearly that ‘God is love’ (1 John 4:8).
Since God’s goodness is infinite and not bound by anything, God ‘makes his sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous,’ according to the words of Jesus Christ recorded in the Gospel (Matthew 5:45). For Christians, humanity’s love of God and God’s love of humanity are intimately linked. As we read in the New Testament: ‘We love because he [God] first loved us’ (1 John 4:19). Our love of God springs from and is nourished by God’s love for us. It cannot be otherwise, since the Creator who has power over all things is infinitely good. Love of Neighbor We find deep affinities with our own Christian faith when A Common Word Between Us and You insists that love is the pinnacle of our duties toward our neighbors. ‘None of you has faith until you love for your neighbor what you love for yourself,’ the Prophet Muhammad said.
In the New Testament we similarly read, ‘whoever does not love (the neighbor) does not know God’ (1 John 4:8) and ‘whoever does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen’ (1 John 4:20). God is love, and our highest calling as human beings is to imitate the One whom we worship. We applaud when you state that ‘justice and freedom of religion are a crucial part’ of the love of neighbor. When justice is lacking, neither love of God nor love of the neighbor can be present. When freedom to worship God according to one’s conscience is curtailed, God is dishonored, the neighbor oppressed, and neither God nor neighbor is loved. Since Muslims seek to love their Christian neighbors, they are not against them, the document encouragingly states.
Instead, Muslims are with them. As Christians we resonate deeply with this sentiment. Our faith teaches that we must be with our neighbors-indeed, that we must act in their favor-even when our neighbors turn out to be our enemies. ‘But I say unto you,’ says Jesus Christ, ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good’ (Matthew 5:44-45). Our love, Jesus Christ says, must imitate the love of the infinitely good Creator; our love must be as unconditional as is God’s-extending to brothers, sisters, neighbors, and even enemies. At the end of his life, Jesus Christ himself prayed for his enemies: ‘Forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing’ (Luke 23:34).
The Prophet Muhammad did similarly when he was violently rejected and stoned by the people of Taif. He is known to have said, ‘The most virtuous behavior is to engage those who sever relations, to give to those who withhold from you, and to forgive those who wrong you.’ (It is perhaps significant that after the Prophet Muhammad was driven out of Taif, it was the Christian slave ‘Addas who went out to Muhammad, brought him food, kissed him, and embraced him.) The task before us ‘Let this common ground’ -the dual common ground of love of God and of neighbor-’be the basis of all future interfaith dialogue between us,’ your courageous letter urges. Indeed, in the generosity with which the letter is written you embody what you call for. We most heartily agree. Abandoning all ‘hatred and strife,’ we must engage in interfaith dialogue as those who seek each other’s good, for the one God unceasingly seeks our good.
Indeed, together with you we believe that we need to move beyond ‘a polite ecumenical dialogue between selected religious leaders’ and work diligently together to reshape relations between our communities and our nations so that they genuinely reflect our common love for God and for one another. Given the deep fissures in the relations between Christians and Muslims today, the task before us is daunting. And the stakes are great. The future of the world depends on our ability as Christians and Muslims to live together in peace. If we fail to make every effort to make peace and come together in harmony you correctly remind us that ‘our eternal souls’ are at stake as well. We are persuaded that our next step should be for our leaders at every level to meet together and begin the earnest work of determining how God would have us fulfill the requirement that we love God and one another. It is with humility and hope that we receive your generous letter, and we commit ourselves to labor together in heart, soul, mind and strength for the objectives you so appropriately propose.
The following Christian religious leaders are the signatories of the statement: *Harold W. Attridge, Dean and Lillian Claus Professor of New Testament, Yale Divinity School *Joseph Cumming, Director of the Reconciliation Program, Yale Center for Faith and Culture, Yale Divinity School *Emilie M. Townes, Andrew Mellon Professor of African American Religion and Theology, Yale Divinity School, and President-elect of the American Academy of Religion *Miroslav Volf, Founder and Director of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture, Henry B. Wright Professor of Theology, Yale Divinity School Martin Accad, Academic Dean, Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (Lebanon) Scott C. Alexander, Director, Catholic-Muslim Studies, Catholic Theological Union Roger Allen, Chair, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, University of Pennsylvania Leith Anderson, President, National Association of Evangelicals Ray Bakke, Convening Chair, Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding Camillo Ballin, Bishop, Vicar Apostolic of Kuwait (Roman Catholic) Barry Beisner, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Northern California Federico Bertuzzi, President, PM Internacional, Latin America James A. Beverley, Tyndale Seminary, Canada Jonathan Bonk, Executive Director, Overseas Ministries Study Center Gerhard B?wering, Yale University Joseph Britton, Dean, Berkeley Divinity School at Yale John M. Buchanan, Editor/Publisher, The Christian Century Joe Goodwin Burnett, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska Samuel G. Candler, Dean, Cathedral of St. Philip, Atlanta Juan Carlos C?rdenas, Instituto Iberoamericano de Estudios Transculturales, Spain Joseph Castleberry, President, Northwest University Colin Chapman, Author David Yonggi Cho, Founder and Senior Pastor, Yoido Full Gospel Church, Seoul, Korea Richard Cizik, Vice President, National Association of Evangelicals Corneliu Constantineanu, Dean, Evangelical Theological Seminary, Croatia Robert E. Cooley, President Emeritus, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Harvey Cox, Harvard Divinity School John D’Alton, President, Melbourne Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies, Australia Andr? Delbecq, University of Santa Clara Keith DeRose, Yale University Andr?s Alonso Duncan,
Diana L. Eck, Harvard University Bertil Ekstrom, Executive Director, Mission Commission, World Evangelical Alliance Mark U. Edwards, Jr., Senior Advisor to the Dean, Harvard Divinity School John Esposito, Director Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University David Ford, Regius Professor of Divinity, Cambridge University Timothy George, Dean, Beeson Divinity School, Samford University Roberto S. Goizueta, Boston College Bruce Gordon, University of St. Andrews William A. Graham, Dean, Harvard Divinity School Lynn Green, International Chairman, YWAM Frank Griffel, Yale University Edwin F. Gulick, Jr., Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Kentucky David P. Gushee, President, Evangelicals for Human Rights Kim B. Gustafson, President, Common Ground Elie Haddad, Provost, Arab Baptist Theological Seminary, Lebanon L. Ann Hallisey, Hallisey Consulting and Counseling Paul D. Hanson, Harvard Divinity School Heidi Hadsell, President, Hartford Seminary David Heim, Executive Editor, The Christian Century Norman A. Hjelm, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, retired Carl R. Holladay, Candler School of Theology, Emory University Joseph Hough, President, Union Theological Seminary, NY Bill Hybels, Founder and Senior Pastor, Willow Creek Community Church Nabeel T. Jabbour, Consultant, Professor, Colorado Shannon Sherwood Johnston, Bishop Coadjutor, Episcopal Diocese of Virginia David Colin Jones, Bishop Suffragan, Episcopal Diocese of Virginia Stanton L. Jones, Provost, Wheaton College, IL Tony Jones, National Coordinator, Emergent Village Riad A. Kassis, Theologian, Author, Consultant Paul Knitter, Union Theological Seminary, NY Manfred W. Kohl, Vice President of Overseas Council International, USA James A. Kowalski, Dean, Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, NY Sharon Kugler, University Chaplain, Yale University Peter Kuzmic, President, Evangelical Theological Faculty Osijek, Croatia Peter J. Lee, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Virginia Linda LeSourd Lader, President, Renaissance Institute Tim Lewis, President, William Carey Int’l University John B.Lindner, Yale Divinity School Duane Litfin, President, Wheaton College Greg Livingstone, Founder, Frontiers Albert C. Lobe, Interim Executive Director, Mennonite Central Committee Rick Love, International Director, Frontiers Douglas Magnuson, Bethel University Peter Maiden, International Coordinator, OM Danut Manastireanu, World Vision International, Iasi, Romania Harold Masback, III, Senior Minister, The Congregational Church of New Canaan, New Canaan, CT Donald M. McCoid, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America C. Douglas McConnell, Dean, School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller Theological Seminary Don McCurry, President, Ministries to Muslims Brian D. McLaren, Author, Speaker, Activist Kathleen E. McVey, Princeton Theological Seminary Judith Mendelsohn Rood, Biola University Steve Moore, President and
KA/HA/IINA Nov. 27, 2007
Continue reading ‘King Abdullah orders expansion of Haram Mosque’
Following is the full text of the letter: As members of the worldwide Christian community, we were deeply encouraged and challenged by the recent historic open letter signed by 138 leading Muslim scholars, clerics, and intellectuals from around the world. A Common Word Between Us and You identifies some core common ground between Christianity and Islam which lies at the heart of our respective faiths as well as at the heart of the most ancient Abrahamic faith, Judaism. Jesus Christ’s call to love God and neighbor was rooted in the divine revelation to the people of Muslims and Christians have not always shaken hands in friendship; their relations have sometimes been tense, even characterized by outright hostility. Since Jesus Christ says, ‘First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye’ (Matthew 7:5), we want to begin by acknowledging that in the past (e.g. in the Crusades) and in the present (e.g. in excesses of the ‘war on terror’) many Christians have been guilty of sinning against our Muslim neighbors. Before we ‘shake your hand’ in responding to your letter, we ask forgiveness of the All-Merciful One and of the Muslim community around the world. Religious Peace-World Peace ‘Muslims and Christians together make up well over half of the world’s population. Without peace and justice between these two religious communities, there can be no meaningful peace in the world.’ We share the sentiment of the Muslim signatories expressed in these opening lines of their open letter. Peaceful relations between Muslims and Christians stand as one of the central challenges of this century, and perhaps of the whole present epoch. Though tensions, conflicts, and even wars in which Christians and Muslims stand against each other are not primarily religious in character, they possess an undeniable religious dimension. If we can achieve religious peace between these two religious communities, peace in the world will clearly be easier to attain. It is therefore no exaggeration to say, as you have in ‘A Common Word Between Us and You’, that ‘the future of the world depends on peace between Muslims and Christians.’ Common Ground what is so extraordinary about A Common Word Between Us and You is not that its signatories recognize the critical character of the present moment in relations between Muslims and Christians. It is rather a deep insight and courage with which they have identified the common ground between the Muslim and Christian religious communities. What is common between us lies neither in something marginal nor in something merely important to each. It lies, rather, in something absolutely central to both: love of God and love of neighbor. Surprisingly for many Christians, your letter considers the dual command of love to be the foundational principle not just of the Christian faith, but of Islam as well. That so much common ground exists-common ground in some of the fundamentals of faith-gives hope that undeniable differences and even the very real external pressures that bear down upon us can not overshadow the common ground upon which we stand together. That this common ground consists in love of God and of neighbor gives hope that deep cooperation between us can be a hallmark of the relations between our two communities. Love of God we applaud that A Common Word Between Us and You stresses so insistently the unique devotion to one God, indeed the love of God, as the primary duty of every believer. God alone rightly commands our ultimate allegiance. When anyone or anything besides God commands our ultimate allegiance-a ruler, a nation, economic progress, or anything else-we end up serving idols and inevitably get mired in deep and deadly conflicts. We find it equally heartening that the God whom we should love above all things is described as being Love. In the Muslim tradition, God, ‘the Lord of the worlds,’ is ‘the Infinitely Good and All-Merciful.’ And the New Testament states clearly that ‘God is love’ (1 John 4:8). Since God’s goodness is infinite and not bound by anything, God ‘makes his sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous,’ according to the words of Jesus Christ recorded in the Gospel (Matthew 5:45). For Christians, humanity’s love of God and God’s love of humanity are intimately linked. As we read in the New Testament: ‘We love because he [God] first loved us’ (1 John 4:19). Our love of God springs from and is nourished by God’s love for us. It cannot be otherwise, since the Creator who has power over all things is infinitely good. Love of Neighbor We find deep affinities with our own Christian faith when A Common Word Between Us and You insists that love is the pinnacle of our duties toward our neighbors. ‘None of you has faith until you love for your neighbor what you love for yourself,’ the Prophet Muhammad said. In the New Testament we similarly read, ‘whoever does not love (the neighbor) does not know God’ (1 John 4:8) and ‘whoever does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen’ (1 John 4:20). God is love, and our highest calling as human beings is to imitate the One whom we worship. We applaud when you state that ‘justice and freedom of religion are a crucial part’ of the love of neighbor. When justice is lacking, neither love of God nor love of the neighbor can be present. When freedom to worship God according to one’s conscience is curtailed, God is dishonored, the neighbor oppressed, and neither God nor neighbor is loved. Since Muslims seek to love their Christian neighbors, they are not against them, the document encouragingly states. Instead, Muslims are with them. As Christians we resonate deeply with this sentiment. Our faith teaches that we must be with our neighbors-indeed, that we must act in their favor-even when our neighbors turn out to be our enemies. ‘But I say unto you,’ says Jesus Christ, ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good’ (Matthew 5:44-45). Our love, Jesus Christ says, must imitate the love of the infinitely good Creator; our love must be as unconditional as is God’s-extending to brothers, sisters, neighbors, and even enemies. At the end of his life, Jesus Christ himself prayed for his enemies: ‘Forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing’ (Luke 23:34). The Prophet Muhammad did similarly when he was violently rejected and stoned by the people of Taif. He is known to have said, ‘The most virtuous behavior is to engage those who sever relations, to give to those who withhold from you, and to forgive those who wrong you.’ (It is perhaps significant that after the Prophet Muhammad was driven out of Taif, it was the Christian slave ‘Addas who went out to Muhammad, brought him food, kissed him, and embraced him.) The task before us ‘Let this common ground’ -the dual common ground of love of God and of neighbor-’be the basis of all future interfaith dialogue between us,’ your courageous letter urges. Indeed, in the generosity with which the letter is written you embody what you call for. We most heartily agree. Abandoning all ‘hatred and strife,’ we must engage in interfaith dialogue as those who seek each other’s good, for the one God unceasingly seeks our good. Indeed, together with you we believe that we need to move beyond ‘a polite ecumenical dialogue between selected religious leaders’ and work diligently together to reshape relations between our communities and our nations so that they genuinely reflect our common love for God and for one another. Given the deep fissures in the relations between Christians and Muslims today, the task before us is daunting. And the stakes are great. The future of the world depends on our ability as Christians and Muslims to live together in peace. If we fail to make every effort to make peace and come together in harmony you correctly remind us that ‘our eternal souls’ are at stake as well. We are persuaded that our next step should be for our leaders at every level to meet together and begin the earnest work of determining how God would have us fulfill the requirement that we love God and one another. It is with humility and hope that we receive your generous letter, and we commit ourselves to labor together in heart, soul, mind and strength for the objectives you so appropriately propose. The following Christian religious leaders are the signatories of the statement: *Harold W. Attridge, Dean and Lillian Claus Professor of New Testament, Yale Divinity School *Joseph Cumming, Director of the Reconciliation Program, Yale Center for Faith and Culture, Yale Divinity School *Emilie M. Townes, Andrew Mellon Professor of African American Religion and Theology, Yale Divinity School, and President-elect of the American Academy of Religion *Miroslav Volf, Founder and Director of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture, Henry B. Wright Professor of Theology, Yale Divinity School Martin Accad, Academic Dean, Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (Lebanon) Scott C. Alexander, Director, Catholic-Muslim Studies, Catholic Theological Union Roger Allen, Chair, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, University of Pennsylvania Leith Anderson, President, National Association of Evangelicals Ray Bakke, Convening Chair, Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding Camillo Ballin, Bishop, Vicar Apostolic of Kuwait (Roman Catholic) Barry Beisner, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Northern California Federico Bertuzzi, President, PM Internacional, Latin America James A. Beverley, Tyndale Seminary, Canada Jonathan Bonk, Executive Director, Overseas Ministries Study Center Gerhard B?wering, Yale University Joseph Britton, Dean, Berkeley Divinity School at Yale John M. Buchanan, Editor/Publisher, The Christian Century Joe Goodwin Burnett, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska Samuel G. Candler, Dean, Cathedral of St. Philip, Atlanta Juan Carlos C?rdenas, Instituto Iberoamericano de Estudios Transculturales, Spain Joseph Castleberry, President, Northwest University Colin Chapman, Author David Yonggi Cho, Founder and Senior Pastor, Yoido Full Gospel Church, Seoul, Korea Richard Cizik, Vice President, National Association of Evangelicals Corneliu Constantineanu, Dean, Evangelical Theological Seminary, Croatia Robert E. Cooley, President Emeritus, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Harvey Cox, Harvard Divinity School John D’Alton, President, Melbourne Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies, Australia Andr? Delbecq, University of Santa Clara Keith DeRose, Yale University Andr?s Alonso Duncan, Diana L. Eck, Harvard University Bertil Ekstrom, Executive Director, Mission Commission, World Evangelical Alliance Mark U. Edwards, Jr., Senior Advisor to the Dean, Harvard Divinity School John Esposito, Director Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University David Ford, Regius Professor of Divinity, Cambridge University Timothy George, Dean, Beeson Divinity School, Samford University Roberto S. Goizueta, Boston College Bruce Gordon, University of St. Andrews William A. Graham, Dean, Harvard Divinity School Lynn Green, International Chairman, YWAM Frank Griffel, Yale University Edwin F. Gulick, Jr., Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Kentucky David P. Gushee, President, Evangelicals for Human Rights Kim B. Gustafson, President, Common Ground Elie Haddad, Provost, Arab Baptist Theological Seminary, Lebanon L. Ann Hallisey, Hallisey Consulting and Counseling Paul D. Hanson, Harvard Divinity School Heidi Hadsell, President, Hartford Seminary David Heim, Executive Editor, The Christian Century Norman A. Hjelm, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, retired Carl R. Holladay, Candler School of Theology, Emory University Joseph Hough, President, Union Theological Seminary, NY Bill Hybels, Founder and Senior Pastor, Willow Creek Community Church Nabeel T. Jabbour, Consultant, Professor, Colorado Shannon Sherwood Johnston, Bishop Coadjutor, Episcopal Diocese of Virginia David Colin Jones, Bishop Suffragan, Episcopal Diocese of Virginia Stanton L. Jones, Provost, Wheaton College, IL Tony Jones, National Coordinator, Emergent Village Riad A. Kassis, Theologian, Author, Consultant Paul Knitter, Union Theological Seminary, NY Manfred W. Kohl, Vice President of Overseas Council International, USA James A. Kowalski, Dean, Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, NY Sharon Kugler, University Chaplain, Yale University Peter Kuzmic, President, Evangelical Theological Faculty Osijek, Croatia Peter J. Lee, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Virginia Linda LeSourd Lader, President, Renaissance Institute Tim Lewis, President, William Carey Int’l University John B.Lindner, Yale Divinity School Duane Litfin, President, Wheaton College Greg Livingstone, Founder, Frontiers Albert C. Lobe, Interim Executive Director, Mennonite Central Committee Rick Love, International Director, Frontiers Douglas Magnuson, Bethel University Peter Maiden, International Coordinator, OM Danut Manastireanu, World Vision International, Iasi, Romania Harold Masback, III, Senior Minister, The Congregational Church of New Canaan, New Canaan, CT Donald M. McCoid, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America C. Douglas McConnell, Dean, School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller Theological Seminary Don McCurry, President, Ministries to Muslims Brian D. McLaren, Author, Speaker, Activist Kathleen E. McVey, Princeton Theological Seminary Judith Mendelsohn Rood, Biola University Steve Moore, President and KA/HA/IINA |
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CAIRO — A Church of England bishop has unleashed a scathing attack on Britain’s Muslims, warning that “intimidating” and “hostile” Muslims created “no-go” areas for other faiths, drawing accusations of scaremongering from Muslim leaders.
