Park 51 Mosque: Faith, Reason and Beyond

The proposed construction of an Islamic Community Center near lower Manhattan has triggered a new wave of controversy surrounding the sentiments of the 9/11 terrorist attack and Islam.  The entire American public, irrespective of religion, color, race, creed, age or sex, who stood together,  hand in hand, and upheld the pride and honor of America on 9/11/2001, are now voicing different perspectives depending on their own religious, political, ethical or moral values.

A few fundamental clarifications:

1) The Islamic Community Center is going to be built exactly at Ground Zero. NO! The proposed construction site by the Cordoba Initiative is a couple of blocks away from the WTC site. There was a Burlington Coat Factory, which was damaged on 9/11, that would be used to build the community center. Associated Press even circulated a notice cautioning against the usage of terms “Ground Zero Mosque” or “Mosque at Ground Zero.” “Cordoba House” is a more accurate reference, which includes a mosque and a community center, in addition to other amenities like an auditorium, swimming pool, playspace for kids and classrooms.

2) The Center provides facilities that only cater to Muslims. NO! Imam Fesial Abdul Rauf, the spiritual leader behind the Cordoba Initiative, says there would  be separate prayer rooms for Jews, Christians and other faiths.

3) A mosque in Manhattan is unheard of! NO! Since 1970, Masjid Manhattan has been peacefully conducting its daily prayers and services about 5 blocks away from ground Zero.  Muslims pray almost 80 feet away from another attack site in Pentagon City chapel. The proposed mosque is a large scale replacement for the Al-Farah mosque, which stands about a dozen blocks away from Ground Zero.

Proponents of the Park 51 Project argue that the community center is nothing but a committed extrapolation of conscious efforts by the Muslim community to holistically integrate their Muslim identity with the American identity. The community center would also serve as a means and a tool to dispel ignorance about Islam, remove uneducated stereotyping of Muslims, promote interfaith dialogue and spread the message of peace and tolerance. Cordoba, in fact, refers to a place in Spain, where once Jews, Christians and Muslims all peacefully coexisted. The proponents want to utilize the opportunity to remind the general public that Ground Zero should not be exploited to promote messages of Islamophobia, prejudice and hatred.

Opponents of the Park 51 Project argue that it is an insensitive move by the Cordoba Initiative and the people supporting them to build a mosque near Ground Zero. Politicians like Senator Harry Reid, Governor Patterson, Sarah Palin and Sharron Angle have expressed their disapproval of not the mosque itself but of its chosen location. Almost every poll conducted by various agencies, such as CNN, The New York Times, and Fox News, reports that a majority of Americans (in excess of 50%) oppose the construction of a mosque near Ground Zero. Far right politicians like Newt Gingrich called the project a symbol of “Muslim Triumphalism” over American values. The very notion of Ground Zero being the place to host a community center to promote peace, is being viewed as insulting and sacrilegious by the families of 9/11 victims. Opponents have also come down severely on Imam Rauf. The Imam reportedly said during the CBS 60 Minutes show that he “considered the U.S. as an accessory for the 9/11 attacks.” WSJ reports that the same Imam issued a letter in 1979 stating that the Iranian revolution was inspired by individual freedom and rights, which Americans hardly believe. Opponents are not completely convinced by Imam Rauf as a peacemaker and interfaith dialogue promoter.

What started out as a local zoning dispute has snowballed into a national debate. What was meant to be a unifying force of faiths has created new rifts and divisions amongst the American people. Whether this existing divide in ideological and political perspectives will be used to cultivate mutual understanding and dialogue between Islam and the West is left to be seen. Muslims all over the world, and in particular American Muslims, who are determined to dispel phobic notions about Islam, are once again at the crossroads of faith and reason. The American public is intelligent enough to draw a line between religion and politics by not expressing their views through the prism of being strictly Islamic, or strictly American. As we silently mourn the demise of nearly 3,000 Americans on that fateful day, let us look beyond faith and reason, and pray for global peace.