Thoughts on Common Ties - September 16, 2010

Shabbat Shalom and Gamru Chatimah Tovah – May you be sealed for a good year!
I will be touching upon a broader issue that relates to the proposed Islamic Cultural/Community Center that would be located two blocks from the actual site of Ground Zero in Manhattan. I wanted to provide you with some of the resources and websites that I sometimes consult for issues related to religious freedom and interreligious dialogue and cooperation.
My experiences in my previous community included regular contact with members of the local Islamic Center. The American-born Imam had done masonry work on the Temple building in the late 1970s. The members of the Center were born in the United States or had immigrated to the United States in recent years. One president of the center was in the Internal Medicine practice that served our family for 18 years.
What I discovered was that ongoing contact with members of the interfaith community engendered ties that began with getting to know one another and develop a level of trust. We did not agree on everything, nor did we discuss all political issues. I heard statements, at times, that made me uncomfortable from members of the Islamic Center, but I also had a number of opportunities to discuss Middle East peace talks in the years following the Gulf War and the Oslo Accords. It was the contact and cooperation in which we engaged in good times that made it possible to calmly discuss politically-charged issues.
Finally, what is most important for members of any religious group was to see where their faith take them in terms of personal behavior and values. Based on my experiences throughout my rabbinate, Muslims, Mormons, Catholics, members of various Protestant denominations, Unitarian Universalists, Neo-Pagans, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs and Jews all find common ground when it came to giving thanks for the religious freedom in our country and teaching the principles of commitment, cooperation, kindness, charity and justice to each other and to our children.
Below are links that relate to the Islamic Community Center issue, but, even more important than reading these materials is to take every opportunity we have to develop relationships with members of various faith groups (as well as those who may not belong to a particular group) so that we can create deeper understanding of each other and greater trust, which can only strengthen our community.
L’shalom,
Rabbi Larry

Union for Reform Judaism Social Action web page with a variety of articles on the issue.
http://urj.org/socialaction/issues/muslimdialogue/

Jews On First, which advocates for freedom for all religious groups, created its own report and evaluation of this controversy. The group takes a liberal approach to religious freedom that is avowedly in opposition to groups like the American Center for Law and Justice.
http://www.jewsonfirst.org/10a/CulCenterPr.aspx

The Anti-Defamation League is part of a new coalition to assure religious freedom for Muslims seeking to building houses of worship, the Interfaith Coalition on Mosques.
http://www.adl.org/main_interfaith/ICOM_Statement_of_Purpose.htm