Faith leaders speak out against 'Islamophobia'
Ann Arbor Area Religious Leaders Preach About Tolerance, Respect for Islam, Following Anti-Muslim Rhetoric and Violence
Disturbed by recent threats and violence against Muslims, vandalism of mosques, and plans for “Burn a Qur’an Day” on Sept. 11, several Ann Arbor-area clergy have decided to preach about religious tolerance.
Last week the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice put out the call for area religious leaders to share messages about respect for other faiths and calling for a better understanding of Islam. The call, titled, “Don't Burn a Qur'an; Preach Tolerance, Preach the Qur'an” received immediate support from several local faith leaders.
As the pastor of a church that shares space with a synagogue, Rev. James Rhodenhiser of St. Clare’s Episcopal Church of Ann Arbor is familiar with the themes of tolerance and understanding. He responded early to the rise in Islamophobic rhetoric with a sermon on Aug. 22, and he plans to preach on the topic again on Sept. 12.
Rev. Chris Grapentine of Northside Community Church in Ann Arbor has also already preached on the topic. He noted that Baptists came to this country fleeing religious persecution, and this history should lead Baptists and other Christians to support religious liberty for groups that currently face discrimination.
Among those who will preach tolerance on the weekend of Sept. 11 is the Rev. Susan McGarry of St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church. For her, “’Burn a Qur'an Day’ is not only anti- peace, it is against everything I know about God and God's love for all people.”
Some religious leaders find the call to, “preach tolerance, preach the Qur’an” to be a natural fit for their traditions. Paul Harrison of the Baha’i Faith of Washtenaw County, describes a song he teaches to his congregation’s elementary students:
"Krishna, Zoroaster, Moses and Jesus, Buddha, Muhammad, Bab and Baha'u;llah. Krishna, Zoroaster, Moses and Jesus, Buddha, Muhammad, Bab and Baha'u;llah. These are all the messengers of God, teach us faith, love and unity"
Other faith leaders have supported the call for respect and tolerance but are cautious about teaching about other faiths from the pulpit. Rev. Jeffery Harrold of New Beginnings Community Church explains that, “if I believe that Jesus Christ is, as he said, the way the truth and the life and no one comes to God the Father except by belief in him, I cannot give validity to the Qur’an as a way to God by teaching it from my pulpit.” Nevertheless, he says, “I have and will continue to speak out against hatred as I present the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I will do my part to help create an atmosphere of respect for the right of each of us to practice what we believe in a free society.”
Chuck Warpehoski, Co-Director of the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice, explains, “You don’t have to water-down your faith to teach tolerance. All of our religions — Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Baha’i — have teachings about respect for others. Many of us also have histories of being victims of religious intolerance. We can respect the difference between our faith traditions and still come together to uphold the right of all people to practice their own faith.”
For Warpehoski, the preaching on tolerance serves two purposes. “We don’t need to tell Muslims that Islamophobia is wrong; that’s a message the non-Muslim community needs to hear, and one place they can hear it is in their own worship services.”
Warpehoski does have a message for the Muslim community as well, “When you’re on the receiving end of bigotry, like Muslims are now, you can feel very isolated. I want Muslims in our community to know that they are not alone and that there are many non-Muslims who will speak out and stand up against Islamophobia.”
Comments
robyn
Fri, Sep 10, 2010 : 1:05 a.m.
@ IC: I believe that the Quran also teaches that. If my understanding (which to me comes from my own reading of it - and just like the Bible, I think people who have faith in God read and understand with that faith in heart and mind) - it speaks of looking to those who have come before and brought God's word to the people - and not in a way that condemns or infers that we pass judgement upon them. BUT - like the Bible, the Quran does imply that once you are 'of faith' (for Christians it would be in a relationship with God through Jesus and the Holy Spirit) you are now responsible for keeping that relationship and faith in God and following His word. I think the biggest and most detrimental issues to face both religions is that man has taken the word of God and applied it in a way that gives man power and control over their fellow man. Looking back at Christianity, there have been horrific things done under the guise of religion which really had nothing to do with what is written in the Bible. God is NOT political in the sense that He rules over political kingdoms on Earth. Politicizing religion is corrupting it.
Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice
Tue, Sep 7, 2010 : 2:49 p.m.
I've just heard from Pastor Sue Sprowls at Lord of Light Lutheran that she too will be preaching about tolerance this Sunday. Good point Robyn about the challenging points in the Bible and the Qur'an. From the Christian tradition, I keep coming back to the story of the Good Samaritan. The thing most people don't recognize in that story is that the Samaritans were a rival religious group to the Jews, so Jesus, as a Jew and speaking to Jewish audiences, was teaching interfaith respect when he praised the good Samaritan. I do think that's something that Christians teaching intolerance should reflect on.
robyn
Tue, Sep 7, 2010 : 11 a.m.
That could very well be true. If you remember the stories about the Catholic Church and the horrible things that took place within the church - and how these things had been covered up for so long; the media focus was on the church and the bad things rather than showing the churches and parishoners that condemned the acts. The worst in society is always far more interesting than the norm. And the ratings are always higher too. The media does have a way of picking a few bad apples out of a group and applying the bad acts of those few to all. What would get media attention and spotlight the fact that Muslims and Christians can and do respect the beliefs of one another would be to join together and peacefully protest this "Burn the Quran Day" that has been planned by a so-called Christian church. There are many Christians that are appalled by the actions of this pastor. Rather than burning a holy book - this pastor needs to read one. I've read the Quran - translated, I have also read the Bible. To equate the tenets of Sharia Law to the Quran, in my opinion is wrong. There are many things in both the Quran and the Bible that are the same - one COULD take the Bible and apply those same types of laws if they chose to do so - especially if they applied the laws of the Old Testament. Talk about some harsh laws! The Quran calls Jesus Isa (Arabic for Joshua), while the Quran views him differently - he still plays an important role in Islam. There is far more in common than many people realize. Perhaps it's time to educate people about what we share in common rather than how we view what is different.
Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice
Tue, Sep 7, 2010 : 10:11 a.m.
Ahmed is correct. Most Muslim groups repeatedly and insistently speak out against terrorism. The Muslim group Council on American Islamic Relations, for example, has and active anti-Terrorism campaign (http://www.cair.com/AmericanMuslims/AntiTerrorism.aspx). Muslim leaders often do speak against terrorism, so is it that the media isn't reporting this or that the public isn't listening?
Ahmed Chaudhry
Tue, Sep 7, 2010 : 8:52 a.m.
I don't think the Muslim community is necessarily silent. Two major factors can cause people to think this way though. The first is that Muslims are a minority in the U.S. and have a smaller collective voice in general. The second, and more important, is that the mass media simply won't cover Muslims promoting peace because it is bad for their ratings and viewership. The majority of Muslims that I know regularly and vocally condemn extremist Islam-the few violent "rotten eggs" in the east. However, their voices are rarely heard because CNN and Fox News would rather give a "rotten egg" facetime and air an old Osama bin Laden anti-American rant than give a Muslim condemning that tape 2 minutes of airtime. Peaceful Muslims outnumber extremists by astronomical odds, but are rarely given the spotlight.
robyn
Mon, Sep 6, 2010 : 11:48 p.m.
I do believe that people would not feel as 'skeptical' about Muslims if they were more vocal about condemning the radical factions that use Islam as a platform and a reason to perpetrate some of the horrific things that are done in the name of the religion. As a Christian, the vast majority of Christians condemn the actions of Christian sects that use religion as an excuse/reason to be hateful toward others. A prime example is the Westboro Church - while they do not go out and cause physical harm - they are psychologically harmful. When these people show - Christian come together to protest their actions. It would far more effective and acceptable if Muslims were seen and heard when we read about a Muslim father who has killed his daughter to 'save his honor'. Instead - these stories are all over the news and the Muslim community is silent. What are we supposed to think?