Tremendous gratitude to the local Pax Christi group for hosting me as speaker during their monthly meeting Nov. 10.

In prepared comments I spoke about the the Hajj, the pilgrimage to the holy city Mecca that I was blessed to make in 2001. This year’s Hajj is due to begin on Monday, so I was expanding on my previous day’s talk during our monthly meeting of the Interfaith Clergy Committee of the Jewish Community Relations Council.

For Pax Christi I also brought along copies of my various translations of the Quran. Members were able to study them as we perused some of the verses, and I addressed some common questions of folks who may have few or no relationships with Muslims or little working knowledge of Islam.

I also shared how the Quran sounds to many of us in our Muslim American community, through a CD featuring the sonorous Arabic recitation by Imam Rasul Madyun, one or our outstanding young imams who we unexpectedly lost to Crohn’s disease. Along with English translation, the verses (Quran 17:23-25) prescribed kindness to parents.

Thanks again to David Pena and Pax Christi for letting me visit with longtime friends, such as Beth Cioffoletti and Tom Burroughs, and make new ones.

As usual I learned a lot — this time about this Catholic peace movement whose sentiments I overwhelmingly share.

More scenes:

— C.B. Hanif

So the best thing to do is find out what Islam really is about. Talk to a Muslim in person. Read an introduction to Islam (try a fun one like mine). Read Loonwatch to read about the holes in the anti-Islamic rhetoric. Or take a look at the University of Georgia’s informational website on Islam for some quick answers and further reading. If you read the anti-Islam fear-mongering websites, all you’ll learn will be tall tales.

Top Ways 9/11 Broke Islamic Law (and other Informed Comment by U. of Mich Prof. Juan Cole):

Bin Laden is not a proper Muslim, and his actions contravened Islamic law. He is a Jim Jones-type cultist with a fringe, violent People’s Temple. Americans need to stop blaming Islam, and to recognize that most Muslims in the world are their friends, and that American Muslims are patriots and contributors to our well-being. Every time Americans tear down Islam, Bin Laden gets a little bit of what he wanted.

Rabbi Bruce Warshal, Florida Jewish Journal: Shame on America, Jews and ADL. Quibble if you will. But a must-read essay:

To begin, the mosque controversy does not involve a mosque. It is planned as a 13-story community center encompassing a swimming pool, 500-seat performing arts center, gym, culinary school, restaurant and, yes, a prayer space for Muslims, which already exists in the current building…I guess that we are now at the point in America where Jews can have our JCC’s and Christians their YMCA’s, but Muslims are not wanted.

Mosque Hysteria, by the editors of America magazine, the national Catholic Weekly:

But what the “no mosque” pundits cannot deny is the sour contribution they have made to respectful, rational dialogue in U.S. civic life. Words have consequences; rhetoric is not disconnected from action. Mr. Enright may be unbalanced, and what little self-restraint he possessed may have been broken by alcohol. But civic leaders promoting intolerance and fear cannot offer even these excuses. The voices raised against Park51, formerly called Cordoba House, which would be run by precisely the kind of moderate Islamic leadership the United States should be encouraging, have stirred up an unpleasant neo-nativist brew across the nation….Political and religious leaders must cease waffling on this issue and unequivocally support both the right of Muslim citizens to build a place of community and worship—open to all—and the appropriateness of building in proximity to a place where cunning and cruelty took the lives of so many.

The Focolare Movement. I know no more “gen-u-wine Christians,” as one brother described them, than these who truly live what that great teacher Christ Jesus (peace be upon him) taught. Note their unprecedented years of loving relationships with Muslims and others, here in the U.S. and in more than 180 other countries. They are among my teachers and my dear sisters and brothers in faith:

The way of dialogue has emerged as the best way to contribute to the fulfilment of the testament of Jesus: “may they all be one”. This is His plan for unity, for brotherhood and sisterhood in the human family, and the purpose for which the Focolare Movement was born.

Muslims and Islam Were Part of Twin Towers’ Life. Right up until its destruction on 9/11, there was a Muslim prayer room on the 17th floor of the WTCs South Tower. This was essential knowledge for fair-minded folks in the face of the culture warriors’ emotional onslaught. Yet astonishingly our news organizations neglected to share this detail in the weeks of shamefully mislabeling the Cordoba Initiative’s proposed Islamic community center (Quick! Hide the women and children!!!) “THE MOSQUE AT GROUND ZERO.” Of the reports I’ve seen, Keith Olbermann’s best reflects my sentiment:

Throughout this stupid, childish, xenophobic debate, there was nobody who mentioned this stunningly relevant fact until (New York Times religion columnist Samuel Freedman) this past Saturday, September 11th…There were two Mosques in Ground Zero the moment it became Ground Zero.

Also, check Jason Linkins’ Anatomy of an Epic Media Failure:

As soon as the media saw themselves a shiny shiny shining thing shining shinily in New York City, they pounced! How perfect! Something for us to talk about during the slow-news summer! I mean, we could talk about the nation’s unemployment crisis, but that would mean we’d have to talk to poor, jobless people, and there’s no currency in having access to a bunch of poors. Right away, they accepted the premise that this was a “Ground Zero mosque,” when it wasn’t. And so, by the power vested in the media, things that weren’t in fact true were accorded the privilege of being “one side of a great debate” and “an interesting point of view.”

More than 10, I know. But I hope you appreciate (and share) some of these.

— C.B. Hanif

Islam, by defintion, rejects terrorism

By C.B. Hanif

The Palm Beach Post

October 15, 2006

As one who grew up rooting for Tarzan and Cheetah to whip up on my Afro-wigged cousins portraying Hollywood’s idea of Africans, I can understand how people buy into social myths of one sort or another. And having been as clueless as most folks regarding religious traditions beyond the ones with which we grew up, I am not surprised to hear certain perceptions some folks have of Muslims.

But it is curious to observe otherwise rational people defining Islam by those who behave opposite of what the faith prescribes. To confuse the lunatic fringe with Islam’s mainstream is where much of the discourse on significant current events gets off track.

So as a Muslim heading down the home stretch of our month of rededication and dawn-to-dusk fasting called Ramadan, it is heartening that despite the barrage of guilt by association of Muslims as terrorists, many people know better.

Newsweek reports (http://www.msnbc.msn.com) that thousands of members of the Roman Catholic peace group Pax Christi USA are fasting for Ramadan. And that especially since 9/11, “non-Muslims have fasted to express political solidarity with Muslims, to increase awareness of global hunger, as a spiritual discipline, or to strengthen interfaith friendship.”

Rather than campaigning for folks to change their religion, that sounds like encouraging more who claim one to live their religion.

It also suggests fewer folks are buying when a Tom, Dick or Hanif claims the cultural practices or politics of his native Egypt, Sudan or Brooklyn represent Islam. And that more people are correctly associating Muslims with the authentic sources of the faith: the Quran and true example of Mohammed the prophet.

Another take on fasting friends came in the letter my close friends in the Focolare lay Catholic community (www.focolare.org) just shared from their Center for Interreligious Dialogue in Rome. It announced that members of the movement, along with fellow Christians and folks of other religions and convictions who would like to do so, will “be united with you in a day of prayer and fasting for peace,” as proposed by other organizations, on Oct. 20, the last Friday of Ramadan.

The letter also conveyed the hopes of Focolare leader Chiara Lubich that, “as our spirituality suggests, every obstacle may become a springboard toward a much deeper brotherhood among us.”

The statement exemplifies how when I’m among members of that worldwide, multiethnic, multi-religious family that lives like the first Christians, I hear the articulation of my own spirituality as a Muslim coming back at me in different language. So much so that I realized days after a recent Focolare meeting in Hialeah that Pope Benedict XVI’s comments on Islam had not even come up.

I’m with the Muslims who join the pope in calling for an end to all religiously motivated violence and persecution in some so-called Muslim societies.

One interesting analysis, however, comes from journalist, peace activist, former member of the Israeli Knesset and self-described atheist Uri Avnery. On “Mohammed’s Sword” (http://world.mediamonitors.net/content/ view/full/35746), he wrote that:

“The story about ‘spreading the faith by the sword’ is an evil legend, one of the myths that grew up in Europe during the great wars against the Muslims — the reconquista of Spain by the Christians, the Crusades and the repulsion of the Turks, who almost conquered Vienna. I suspect that the German pope, too, honestly believes in these fables. That means that the leader of the Catholic world, who is a Christian theologian in his own right, did not make the effort to study the history of other religions.”

But those are points for dialogue among our responsible religious leaders. Down on our level, familiarity is breeding knowledge, respect and love. The talk is of family, cultivating the human spirit, building our communities and maybe a bit of World Cup soccer. Through the fog of old assumptions comes clarity and even agreement on what we believe. Such as that there should be no compulsion in matters of faith, as the Quran prescribes.

When others take such verses out of their historical context, I am reminded that both the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Ku Klux Klan taught from the Bible. And Mohammed of Arabia wasn’t the first prophet contradicted by alleged followers of the principles he taught. Moses stepped away for a talk with God and his followers, despite all the miracles they had seen, began worshipping a golden calf.

Anyone seen all-American icon Muhammad Ali rioting over the pope’s comments? With his annual appearance at our Muslim Convention, which took place last month in Chicago, the increasingly frail former heavyweight champ makes clear that he’s standing with Imam W. Deen Mohammed, the son of his former teacher the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, and sincere people of other faiths who are advancing these sentiments among Muslims and humanity.

This year, our scintillating banquet speaker, the Rev. Dr. Annie O. Oliver of Milwaukee, said well what applies to Muslims and anyone who claims a particular faith or philosophy: “If I was accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict me?”

C.B. Hanif is an editorial writer for The Palm Beach Post.

Copyright (c) 2006 Palm Beach Newspapers, Inc.

On the sign-in table was the Focolare’s Living City magazine edition proclaiming “Building blocks for world peace.” In the room, that’s what was happening. I’m not sure which was more inspiring: the enlightening DVD and discussion, or the wonderful human spirit with which folks connected after.

As we plan what’s next, while encouraging you and yours to do the same where you are (and/or join us next time), here are more scenes as Christian members of the Focolare in South Florida, Muslim members of New Africa of the Palm Beaches, and folks from other spiritual traditions joined for an examination of the late Blessed Lady Chiara Lubich‘s historic 1997 address at Harlem’s Malcolm Shabazz Mosque, at the invitation of the late eminent Imam Warith Deen Mohammed:

Thanks to the gracious United Methodist Church of the Palm Beaches congregation for again hosting this excellent manifestation of model community life that UMCPB, and the other spiritual communities represented, embody and foster.

(And thanks to my sweetie, Aneesha, for all the photo work.)

— 30 —

Join Us As We Again Spotlight

“Model Interfaith Dialogue & Unity”

Featuring an examination of Focolare founder Chiara Lubich’s historic 1997 address to a gathering of 3,000 at Harlem’s Malcolm Shabazz Mosque. The event sparked a continuing upsurge in interfaith collaboration.

Sunday, July 25, 2-4 p.m.

United Methodist Church of the Palm Beaches

900 Brandywine Road, West Palm Beach 33409

Former Palm Beach Post writer/editor C.B. Hanif moderates a video and discussion with Mercedes Mont and Martin Alfaro, Christian members of the Focolare Movement.

The Focolare’s “Spirituality of Unity” has resonated with members of other faiths and spiritual traditions in more than 180 countries. Particularly among our Muslim community here in the U.S., the dialogue has sparked a dynamic and devoted relationship and initiatives of collaboration.

This program follows on the heels of such activities as the Interfaith Clergy Committee’s annual Institute Day program (“Promoting Civil Discourse in a Polarized Nation: People of Faith Respond”); the Delray Beach Interfaith Clergy Association’s Interfaith First Harvest Dinner; the 9^th Annual Family Interfaith Picnic hosted by New Africa of the Palm Beaches; and last month’s “Muslims & Christians in Model Dialogue and Friendship” forum at the same location.

Journey with us as we again seek to learn about each other rather than define or convert each other, learn to be the first to love the other, and develop this exemplary model for Interreligious interaction and cooperation.

“Religions, with all their differences, are being called on to come together as never before.” — Cardinal Francis Arinze, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue

“The Principle of Love, taken from the message of Jesus Christ, is an idea we embrace totally, and anybody can embrace totally.” — Imam W. Deen Mohammed

No admission fee; donations accepted.

Organized by New Africa of the Palm Beaches and the Focolare of South Florida.

DIRECTIONS FROM I-95: Take Exit #71 west onto Palm Beach Lakes Blvd. Turn right at third traffic light and left at three-way stop sign. UMCPB is on left. For more information call 561-309-5476.

It’s like this, Humanity:

We’re not where we want to be.

But we ain’t where we was.

In today’s episode we visit more encouraging evidence.

One definition of interreligious dialogue is cooperation and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions.

Nobody does that better, in my experience, than the members of the Catholic lay movement known as the Focolare.

Consider the relations between Focolare members and their friends of other faith traditions, or even no faith tradition, around the world.

Eyebrows invariably rise when I mention that for decades, Focolare members have participated in constructive dialogue with other traditions, just as our Muslim community has under the leadership of “America’s Imam,” the late W. Deen Mohammed.

Moreover, for years in their cozy facility at the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, the movement has hosted international meetings such as with the Muslim friends of the Focolare.

Last year my wife and I were among the American delegation invited to that meeting. (Here’s the Focolare photo slideshow from our sessions). As always is the case with the Focolare, we were treated like royalty. The only honorable response? To reciprocate even better. It’s all a reminder of how our Creator has ordained we should treat all our fellow human beings.

I’m hardly any great interfaith guru. But when the Golden Rule is expressed, whether in action, language, thought or spirit, I want to gravitate toward it, to share it, to keep the Good spreading. Thus, this InterFaith21 blog.

In addition to acknowledging my parents and countless others, I wouldn’t be here — in this spiritual place to which I have been blessed to grow — without the sacrifices of Imam Mohammed. His unique contributions include introducing our community to the late founder of the Focolare, the Blessed Lady Chiara Lubich, and to her community.

Although they both passed last year, we can see President Barack Obama following their lead. More of us should join in. Rather than arguing and disuniting over the relatively few items on which we (all too often strongly) disagree, let’s change the paradigm to focus first on unifying around the areas where we do agree.

It is in the spirit of learning from each other that I have come to know Focolare members on a local, national and now international level. We have joined countless others who are seeking in sincerity the best of our common human inheritance. “That all may be one,” is how Chiara often expressed the sentiment found in the Bible, Quran and other holy books.

I often have described my dear Focolare friends as followers of Jesus who truly live what that great teacher, on whom we pray peace and blessings, talked and walked.

Recently a friend overheard my description, and identified them even more succinctly: “Gen-u-wine Christians.”