Reporting on Muslims while Jewish
Differing reactions to the author of a book on American Islam show the religion is anything but monolithic.
By Paul M. Barrett, PAUL M. BARRETT is the author of “American Islam: The Struggle for the Soul of a Religion.”
February 5, 2007

…

Not all of his followers [Imam Al-Hajj Talib Abdur-Rashid] emulate his ecumenical inclination. On several occasions before or after prayer services at the mosque, my religion sparked a discussion about what “really happened” on Sept. 11, 2001. I was challenged about how “those 4,000 Jewish workers knew not to show up that morning at the World Trade Center,” a surprisingly enduring fantasy in some Muslim circles. Those who buttonholed me believe (and I doubt that I changed their minds) that Israel engineered the attack and warned all the Jews to stay home. After all, who benefited the most from American anger toward Arabs and Muslims?

At other stops on my journey, the message was decidedly different. Imad Hamad, a Michigan civil rights organizer of Palestinian descent, admitted that when he married his first wife, a Jewish American woman some years back, her family had taken it better than his. (She and he divorced amicably.) Hamad has been praised by the FBI for serving as an honest broker between U.S. law enforcement and Muslims.

Khaled Abou El Fadl, a professor of Islamic law at UCLA, recounted how, in late 2001, his calls for Muslims to take responsibility for reining in extremist rhetoric led to violent threats by fellow Muslims. His voice heavy with emotion, the Egyptian American scholar told me that the only person who volunteered to shelter his family during that dark period was an Orthodox rabbi with whom Abou El Fadl had lectured. “You can make this your home,” said Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein, who pointed out that the last place menacing Muslims would look for Abou El Fadl would be the living room of a Jewish clergyman.

Elsewhere, I was surprised to find myself looking into what was more a mirror than a window on an alien culture. Zafar Nomani, a retired biochemist in West Virginia, introduced himself to me with a combative series of lectures on America’s many sins in the world. I sensed that a certain tension dissipated when I told him that his family’s obsession with higher education and seeing the next generation outdo the last reminded me of the concerns of my Jewish grandparents. Gradually, Nomani began admitting how much he admired American freedoms of speech and religion, the nation’s (relatively) orderly elections and public services, which usually work.

During my several visits to their home in Morgantown, Nomani and his wife, Sajida, never failed to fill my stomach with spicy ground beef kebabs, chicken tikka masala, heaps of naan and Indian sweets. “Have more, have more,” Sajida insisted. My Jewish grandmothers would have smiled and nodded.

AP has a good “gotcha” about this Imam who led the prayer at the DNC meeting.

But the quoted part above can show another side to American Muslims. Hopefully the side that prevails. Moderate Islam vs Radical Islam.

EFG on February 5, 2007 at 9:49 AM