Christianity, Islam, and Ground Zero

Continued from previous blog entry…

Thus, there are now three significant groups of stakeholders reacting to the decision to build an Islamic Center & Mosque near Ground Zero: the Islamic community, the Christian community, and the Secular/Humanistic community (which declares no faith as an equal and viable option to any faith, preferring freedom from all faith).

Now here’s the irony.  Christians who argue against the Islamic Center being built near Ground Zero are in danger of committing the very thing they feared that the Secular Humanists were doing against them.  Remember the fears Christians have about the influence of Secular Humanism upon our society, that Christians would wake up one day and find that they are “unable to freely preach, teach, and promote the tenants and beliefs of the Christian faith without being censored or accused of being hate-mongers and bigots, and criminally prosecuted for delivering ‘hate speech’”?  Replace the word “Islam” for “Christian” and the outcome is the same, only now it is Christians who are wanting to censor faith—i.e., the Muslim faith.  This is a dangerous direction to take.  For if we Christians think we could and should successfully censor the Muslim faith, down the road what’s to keep another group from censoring the Christian faith?  That old saying, “What goes around comes around,” can turn around and bite us.

On the other hand, Secular Humanists supporting the building of the Islamic Center in the name of America’s Freedom of Religion are being inconsistent and somewhat hypocritical; for Secular Humanists have always stood strongly against any and all displays of Christian symbolism and content—anything that carries the Christian meaning, message, and movement—in the public arena, especially when it touches upon public grounds and/or social policies and programs.  But here they are, okay with the Muslim community’s decision to build an Islamic Center near Ground Zero—the intent of which is to carry forth the Islamic meaning, message, and movement—a decision for its location greatly influenced by its proximity to Ground Zero.  Given the nature of Ground Zero’s public, civic, symbolic, and even sacred status in the American psyche, they know that they stand to gain much visibility and influence under its shadow.  Indeed, it is a smart public-relations move on their part, in the long run.

But what can be said about the Muslim community (that is not politically incorrect)?  From one vantage point, there seems to be a great irony that so many Muslims emigrated to America from homelands where there is little or no religious freedom at all, where the very idea of conversion and proselytizing is not only socially unacceptable but actually illegal and, in some of the stricter countries, a crime punishable by death (Saudi Arabia being one of them).  In this light, many Christians are left with a real uncomfortable feeling about the fact that many Muslims come to this country demanding the free exercise of their faith, while in Islamic countries like Yemen, e.g., the government not only does not allow the building of new non-Muslim places of worship but forbids any proselytizing by non-Muslims (while Muslims could proselytize all they want).   Or, e.g., in Egypt all non-Muslim religious practices that conflict with Islamic law are prohibited because Islam is the official state religion.  In Algeria the law prohibits the public assembly for purposes of practicing a faith other than Islam, and anyone convicted of urging a Muslim to change his faith can receive 2 to 5 years imprisonment plus stiff fines.  While in Syria sharing the Christian faith carries a penalty of up to life in prison.  We could go on mentioning countries like Jordan, Sudan, Pakistan, etc.  This history, and its very present reality in many Muslim countries today, is what fuels the fire for many Christians here in American that have great angst at the thought of an Islamic Center being built near Ground Zero.

But this IS America, land of the free.  We are free to speak out, free to hold public assembly, and free to worship as we please, and where we please.  Everyone, even those with whom we disagree and have opposing views regarding the person and nature of God, has the same freedoms.  Because of this, it is essential that we all play on a level playing field, so-to-speak.  Furthermore, it is essential that all stakeholders play fairly, that is, e.g., that we are all open and transparent, even handed, mutually respectful, and promote the fair exchange of give and take, building neighborly communities of faith on a common ground of shared independence and interdependence.  We are to respect our mutual freedoms, remembering that sometimes just because we have the right to do something does not mean that it is the right thing to do.

Furthermore, Muslims in this country must not be allowed to demand special privileges, leading to more rights and freedoms than Jews or Christians have, regarding the application and expression of their faith, just because they have stricter laws, rules, rites, or ritualistic forms and practices.  This is something that many Christians worry about concerning Islamic religious norms and practices.  Indeed, we have religious freedom in this country, but this does not mean that all religious practices are defacto acceptable and legal (the historic outlawing of Mormon polygamy would be one example or the banning of the use of hallucinogenic drugs in some Native American ceremonies would be another).  In short, even freedom of religion has boundaries and limitations in this country.  Nevertheless, as much as we may not like to admit this, Christians cannot claim to have more rights and privileges than their American Muslim or Judaic or even Hindu faith counterparts.  That’s the way America works.