Islamic Center's Vision of Interfaith Relations

ICCF is proud to be a leading institution of interfaith dialogue in Central CA and its staff serves on the board of various interfaith groups.  Sunnis and Shiites worship together at the Islamic Center and reach out to the diverse community in Fresno and beyond.

Our interfaith activities aim to bring Muslims and non-Muslims together as ICCF demystifies Islam and shares its peaceful teaching with the community. In addition, we strive to build bridges with diverse faith and ethnic communities, break down barriers, and eliminate stereotypes. To this end, we reject all forms of extremists, bigotry, prejudice and violence.

Love for Jesus brings Christians, Muslims together

By Ibrahim Hooper

"Behold! The angels said: 'O Mary! God giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him. His name will be Jesus Christ, the son of Mary, held in honor in this world and the Hereafter and in (the company of) those nearest to God.'" Before searching for this quote in the New Testament, you might first ask your Muslim co-worker, friend or neighbor for a copy of the Qur'an, Islam's revealed text. The quote is from verse 45 of chapter 3 of the Qur'an.

It is well known, particularly in this holiday season, that Christians follow the teachings of Jesus. What is less well understood is that Muslims also love and revere Jesus as one of God's greatest messengers to mankind.

Other verses in the Qur'an, regarded by Muslims as the direct word of God, state that Jesus was strengthened with the "Holy Spirit" (Qur'an 2:87) and is a "sign for the whole world" (Qur'an 21:91). His virgin birth was confirmed when Mary is quoted as asking: "How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me?" (Qur'an 3:47)

The Qur'an shows Jesus speaking from the cradle and, with God's permission, curing lepers and the blind (Qur'an 5:110). God also states in the Qur'an: "We gave (Jesus) the Gospel (Injeel) and put compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers" (Qur'an 57:27).

As forces of hate in this country and worldwide try to pull Muslims and Christians apart, we are in desperate need of a unifying force that can bridge the widening gap of interfaith misunderstanding and mistrust. That force could be the message of love, peace and forgiveness taught by Jesus and accepted by followers of both faiths.

Christians and Muslims would do well to consider another verse in the Qur'an reaffirming God's eternal message of spiritual unity: "Say ye: 'We believe in God and the revelation given to us and to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to (all) Prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and it is unto Him that we surrender ourselves.'" (Qur'an 2:136)

The Prophet Muhammad sought to erase any distinctions between the message he taught and that taught by Jesus, who he called God's "spirit and word".

Prophet Muhammad said: "Both in this world and in the Hereafter, I am the nearest of all people to Jesus, the son of Mary. The prophets are paternal brothers; their mothers are different, but their religion is one."

When Muslims mention the Prophet Muhammad, they always add the phrase "peace be upon him". Christians may be surprised to learn that the same phrase always follows a Muslim's mention of Jesus, and that we believe Jesus will return to earth in the last days before the final judgment. Disrespect toward Jesus, as we have seen all too often in our society, is very offensive to Muslims.

Unfortunately, violent events and hate-filled rhetoric around the world provide ample opportunity for promoting religious hostility. And yes, Muslims and Christians do have some differing perspectives on Jesus' life and teachings. But his spiritual legacy offers an alternative opportunity for people of faith to recognise their shared religious heritage.

America's Muslim community stands ready to honour that legacy by building bridges of interfaith understanding and challenging those who would divide our nation along religious or ethnic lines.

We have more in common than we think.

* Ibrahim Hooper (ihooper@cair.com) is national communications director for the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil liberties group. This article is distributed by the Common Ground News Service (CGNews)

Christian Militia Threats to Muslim Groups

FBI reportedly raids militia after threats of violence against Islamic organizations

A Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization called on federal law enforcement authorities to release more information about possible threats of violence against American Muslims by a militia group raided in March 2010 in several states.

The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said at least seven members of a Christian militia group have been arrested in FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force raids and investigations in Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana. According to media reports, the "Hutaree" militia was targeted after its members made threats of violence against Islamic organizations.

SEE: Seven Arrested in FBI Raids Linked to Christian Militia Group (Detroit News)

http://tinyurl.com/detnewsmilitia

FBI Arrests 7 with Ties to Christian Militia (CBS)

http://cbs5.com/national/hutaree.militia.group.2.1595616.html

"Given the recent sharp spike CAIR offices nationwide have observed in anti-Islam rhetoric, it would not be surprising that an extremist group would seek to turn that bigoted rhetoric into violent actions," said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad. "At this stage, we are seeking more information about possible threats to American Muslim organizations and are urging the offices of CAIR and other Islamic institutions nationwide to take appropriate security precautions."

He added that just last week, CAIR called on Republican leaders to repudiate racist taunts by tea party opponents of health care reform targeting a Muslim congressman and another African-American lawmaker on Capitol Hill.

SEE: Muslim Congressman Called 'N**ger' by Tea Party Protesters

http://tinyurl.com/carsonnword

Awad also noted that CAIR recently expressed concern about the reported rise in the number of anti-government and anti-immigrant extremist groups during the past year.

SEE: CAIR Concerned About Reported Rise in Militias, 'Patriot' Groups

http://tinyurl.com/riseinmilitias

An Appreciation of Islam: Q&A with Rabbi Reuven Firestone

By Brad A. Greenberg
The Jewish Journal

Jewish Journal: What is the No. 1 thing that Jews don’t understand about Islam?

Reuven Firestone: I don’t think they understand that Islam is a complex religion, comparable to Judaism, and that it can’t be reduced to simplistic slogans and notions.

JJ: How do you think the real Islam differs from the generally perceived?

RF: All the fears about Islam, the worst-case scenarios, exist. But they exist in very small numbers, and they are magnified because of our fear and anxiety. And we live in a world where, at least in the last few years, we have been trained and programmed to think the worst.

JJ: You prefaced your talk by saying that you are a committed Jew and that you don’t have an ax to grind, but that you also have ‘a tremendous respect for Islam.’

RF: Some Jews think that if anyone says something positive about Islam in public, that they are not loyal to Judaism. They see it as a zero-sum game — black and white. I usually in speaking to Jewish audiences make some kind of a statement like that. Sometimes I say, ‘Look, I’m a Zionist.’ And I say that to my Muslim friends and colleagues, as well, and sometimes it pisses them off. In many cases they don’t understand how one could be a Zionist and still be appreciative of Islam and Palestinian culture.

JJ: There are passages in the Quran and Hadith that say good things and others that say awful things about Jews. What do Muslims thinks of Jews?

RF: If you were to ask somebody what do Jews think about Christians, what kind of response would you get? Some people would say, ‘I hate Christians.’ Some would say, ‘I have nothing for or against them.’ And some would say, ‘I love Christians.’ The same is true for what Muslims think about Jews. There is no such thing as a Muslim perspective on Jews and Judaism. Having said that, there tends to be a negative perspective on Jews today, and that is associated with the conflict in the Middle East. The Quran itself says positive things about Jews and Judaism, negative things about Jews and neutral things about Jews. The people who are sort of Islamophobic only look at the negative — and there is plenty of negative in the Quran and the traditional literature. And then there are people on the left who only look at the good references to Jews in the Quran and the Hadith. The truth is, as with most matters in life, a lot more complicated. When people reduce it to simplistic answers, it makes me crazy.

JJ: You mentioned in your talk that there was ‘nothing inherently more violent or systemically damaging about Islam than Judaism and Christianity.’

RF: It’s what the interpretative layers make of it. And that is influenced by history and politics and economics and materialism. These are the things that affect the way people relate to their religious tradition.

JJ: Why do you think dialogue is important, particularly religious dialogue?

RF: When you are working on a project together, you talk to one another and you get to know one another. Even if it is kind of at a superficial level, you develop a sense of trust and camaraderie and humanism and that is what dialogue is all about. We don’t usually use the term ‘dialogue.’ We use the term ‘engagement.’ It is more than just talking.

JJ: How difficult has dialogue and Muslim-Jewish relations been in the last two months, since Israel’s war in Gaza?

RF: That has put a damper on it. When the emotions rise because of violence, that always make things difficult. It doesn’t affect me and my colleagues, because we are generally beyond that. I don’t engage in the political issues between Israel and Palestinians, but that has a religious component, as well. So I deal with it, but not as a national issue.

JJ: Do you think Jews and Muslims will be able to live peacefully together in Israel?

RF: I think so. It will take a lot of education, a lot of providing on both sides that they are not trying to destroy the other.

http://www.jewishjournal.com/community/article/an_appreciation_
of_islam_qa_with_rabbi_reuven_firestone_20090311/

Muslim in America: "a voyage of discovery"

Let's Talk
By Ron Orozco / The Fresno Bee

Islamic cultural center opens its doors to create more dialogue with other members of the community:

Hunter Arakawa says he got more than he imagined from his first visit to the Islamic Cultural Center of Fresno.

Arakawa attended an event May 11, at which members of the Japanese American Citizens League and others spoke on civil and religious liberties. Arakawa went mainly to support his speaker friends, but, he says, he also gained insight into Islam.

"We got to witness an Islamic [prayer] service, which you normally only get a chance to see on television," says Arakawa, a member of Fresno Betsuin Buddhist Temple.

Seyed Ali Ghazvini, imam of the Islamic center, says he was emotionally moved by speakers relating stories about their family's detainment and relocation to internment camps during World War II.

"I learned a lot," Ghazvini says. "They went through many difficulties -- and they are lessons for us."

Community leaders say the cultural center is earning a reputation for providing events designed to create better understanding between Muslims and other religious or ethnic groups.

The events feature guest speakers or panel members addressing a topic, followed by discussion. The center does not allow political debate.

Among the guests is the Rev. Jim Franklin, pastor of Cornerstone Church in downtown Fresno, who spoke last June on "Bridging the Gap in Muslim-Christian Relations." Cornerstone Church is one of Fresno's largest evangelical congregations.

And Bishop John T. Steinbock of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fresno made a goodwill gesture toward Muslims by joining them at a Ramadan break-the-fast dinner in October at the center. The get-together followed remarks made by Pope Benedict XVI, when he quoted a 14th-century Byzantine emperor linking Islam and violence. The remarks caused uneasiness between Muslims and Catholics.

The center's next interfaith event will be the first Interfaith Baccalaureate Ceremony, which will be held next Saturday for the area's graduating high school seniors.

At the event, clergy members of various faith traditions will offer blessings upon the students.

Al Evans, liturgist at College Community Congregational Church in Fresno, says the Islamic center is making an impact on people of various religious beliefs. The center opened in 2003.

"It's a gathering place for Muslims, a place of prayer under the leadership of the imam and a house of worship, but, at the same time, it's become a major center in Fresno for interfaith events, dialogues and lectures," says Evans, who worked with center officials to recently launch a six-week series, "Muslim-Christian Dialogue."

Of the center, Evans says, "Usually, on Friday, they get a big turnout of Muslims -- and a lot of others come, too."

The interfaith events are working toward changing the reputation of Islamic centers and mosques in the United States, Ghazvini says. Historically, the centers and mosques have been closed to non-Muslims.

"That was not their first agenda," says Ghazvini, adding that many Muslim officials wanted Islamic centers and mosques to address only their members' spiritual and physical needs.

But, after the Sept. 11 attacks, some Muslim officials began to rethink their closed-door policies to non-Muslims.

Ghazvini says, "After 9/11, we thought, 'We have two options: We can create walls around us and separate ourselves from others or we can build bridges of understanding of others.'

"Obviously, we chose the last one," Ghazvini says of the cultural center. "The more you fight ignorance and understand each other, there is harmony, peace and cooperation."

Quite a bit of thought and planning go into the events. Ghazvini and Kamal Abu-Shamsieh, director of the Islamic cultural center, meet daily to discuss ideas. They also meet weekly with the center's executive committee and monthly with the center's 17-member board.

Nationwide, Islamic centers and mosques nationwide have come a long way opening their doors to others, Abu-Shamsieh says, but they still have a way to go.

"There were pockets in different parts of the country where Islamic centers have been active, but it was at the level of leadership," Abu-Shamsieh says.

"Today, it's different. When you see the Muslim/Japanese and Muslim/Christian talks, it's on the level of families," Abu-Shamsieh says. "Before 9/11, that was not the priority of families."

According to the Pew Research Center, which monitors the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the United States and the world, the first major nationwide survey of Muslims reveals a majority believes their lives have become more difficult since the Sept. 11 attacks.

And a majority believes the government singles out Muslims for monitoring.

Lynn Arakaki, a member of Fresno Betsuin Buddhist Temple, also attended the cultural center event, when Japanese American Citizens League speakers addressed civil and religious liberties. She says the event helped to create understanding toward Muslims facing hardships as a result of terrorism worldwide.

"Because of the history of relocation and incarceration of Japanese, the Japanese American Citizens League is sensitive of anything that might infringe on the rights of people," Arakawa says.

The Islamic cultural center also is working with the Fresno chapter of the Interfaith Youth Alliance for Valley high-school students. Nearly 20 students meet regularly at the center to gain a stronger understanding of one another's faiths and traditions.

The Interfaith Youth Alliance will present the Interfaith Baccalaureate Ceremony, when students representing Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism and Unitarian Universalism will be honored and blessed.

Katherine Calderwood, 18, a senior at Clovis East High, is active in the youth alliance and said it is crucial that youths understand each other.

"It is so incredibly important," she said, "because it brings everyone together under an atmosphere of incorporation in each other's lives."