POSITION OF RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS TOWARDS ISLAM AND THE MUSLIMS A Post-September 11 Review It is with great pleasure, that we announce the release of the book, "Position of Religious Institutions Towards Islam and the Muslims: A Post-September 11 Review". Authored by Amir Butler, and commissioned and published by Sheikh Salman al-'Awdah, the report examines in detail the position of Christian institutions in the United States towards Islam and the Muslims following September 11. The complete book can be viewed at: http://www.islamtoday.net/english/showme_beta.cfm?cat_id=23&sub_cat_id=477 ------------ Executive Summary This report examines the position of Christian institutions in the United States following September 11. It sought to determine the position of American Christianity toward Muslims, Islam, US policy in the Muslim world, and evangelism to Muslims. Attitudes towards Islam The attitude of the Catholic Church and Liberal Protestants, such as the Methodists, to Islam has been comparatively positive. Most all have refrained from blaming Islam as a religion for the events of September 11, and many have called for Islam not to be judged on the basis of the actions of some Muslims. An interesting trend however has been that whilst speaking of Islam in a positive light, Catholics and Liberal Protestants have, at the same time, made very strong calls for the Muslim world to adopt Western-style religious pluralism. This call has incorporated calls for the education system in some countries (meaning perhaps Saudi Arabia) to be revised to remove any negative reference to other faiths. The Conservative Protestants however, which includes the Southern Baptists, have adopted a very antagonistic position towards Islam. This would be expected given their belief that other religions are, by their very nature, demon-led. Generally, their leaders such as Franklin Graham and others have actively attempted to link Islam with September 11. When George Bush began speaking of Islam in positive terms, making overtures towards Muslim leaders, and the like, it attracted the wrath of a large segment of the Conservative Protestant bloc, who in some cases was moved to activism. Attitudes towards Muslims Catholics and Liberal Protestants saw September 11 as an opportunity improve relations between the two faith communities and this has been reflected in their actions - which have a heavy emphasis on dialogue and a "coming together" of the faiths. Conservative Protestants have generally rejected the entire "interfaith" movement. They have even charged some of their leaders with blasphemy for attending the type of interfaith prayer-gatherings that have become almost a ritual amongst the Liberal protestant communities. Conservatives were also angered by the amount of attention given by their Liberal and Catholic counterparts to anti-Muslim hate-crimes and the like. Attitudes towards American Policy in the Muslim World World Catholics seem to have essentially adopted a pacifistic stance towards the "war on terror". However, the North American division of the Church took a more militant approach describing the US military action as a "just war". Palestine remains an important issue for Catholics and they have made intensified calls for the peaceful resolution of the issue following September 11. Similarly, there have been strong calls for Iraq sanctions to be lifted. The Catholics have however stopped a long way from directly criticizing the United States' policies in the Middle East. Liberal Protestants, particularly the World Council of Churches, have been open critics of US policy - even alluding to the US's own role as a state-terrorist or back of state terrorism in Latin America. They have made very strong calls for a resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the National Council of Churches in the United States participated in a march carrying pro-Palestinian placards. It was impossible to find a critical word amongst Conservatives other than criticism that the US is not being "tough enough". There is a growing group of Christian Zionists who have been strong supporters of Israel and dogged opponents of the Palestinian cause. Some of them have even openly called for the US to untie Israel's hands and unleash a more vicious response on the Palestinians. A common thread amongst all denominations was the linking of al-Qaeda to their opponents, in order to perhaps get mainstream legitimacy for their various causes. Sudan was a hot topic, with the US Catholic Bishops lobbying the US to include Sudan in their 'war on terror'. Attitudes towards Evangelism The Catholics view interfaith dialogue as their primary evangelizing tool post-September 11. Statements made by Church leaders within their congregation show clearly that it is viewed as the optimum means of getting access to Muslims post-September 11. Conservative Protestants are the most aggressive evangelists. Their missionary organizations have effectively declared a war for Muslim souls, and are raising considerable amounts of money for evangelical work in the Muslim world. Even Muslims in the United States have been targeted, and they are using what they termed "stealth evangelism", like offering ESL classes, to get access to Muslims. . Whilst there was some hesitation after September 11, the Conservatives have intensified their call with their claim that September 11 shook the faith of Muslims worldwide. It was difficult to determine what position the Liberals had adopted towards evangelism post-September 11. Since they tend not appear as aggressive missionaries, and seem to have given more priority to charity and aid work. As such, it is no surprise to see that they have rapidly begun establishing in Afghanistan, setting up schools, camps and providing food supplies. One of their primary objectives is to educate girls in order to "reintegrate them into society". -- Australian Muslim Public Affairs Committee (AMPAC) PO Box 180 PASCOE VALE SOUTH VIC 3044 Email: info@muslimaffairs.com.au Web: http://www.muslimaffairs.com.au