Photo by Jason Teakle, Brant News
Keynote speaker Abu Noman Tarek, imam and director of religious affairs with the Muslim Association of Hamilton, speaks during an interfaith event at the Brantford Public Library on Monday night.
Jason Teakle
BRANT NEWS
Don Wood says he’s concerned about the impact of terrorism around the globe.
“Why can’t we seem to get along?” said Wood, a member of Sydenham Street United Church. “I wanted to know more about the Islamic faith.”
Wood was one of about 100 people who attended an interfaith gathering called “The Life of Muhammad,” hosted by Sydenham Street United Church and the Brantford Mosque at the Brantford Public Library on Monday night.
The event was part of a week-long celebration of the life of the Prophet Muhammad taking place across Hamilton and Brantford until Nov. 15.
Keynote speaker Abu Noman Tarek, imam and director of religious affairs with the Muslim Association of Hamilton, said terrorism or violence are never acceptable in Islam.
“To anyone who is abusing people in the name of Islam, we will do everything we can against them within our scope,” Tarek said. “Jihad is not holy war. Jihad means struggle, which is something we all do every day.
“There is no room for attacking innocents.”
Tarek said Christians and Muslims believe in the same God.
“There is only one God and he created all of humanity,” Tarek said. “Every single nation and tribe received messengers.
“The Qur’an acknowledges that diversity is given to us by God. This kind of gathering helps us to get to know each other.”
Muslims and Christians were both taught to seek justice for all by their respective prophets, Tarek said.
“All prophets were sent by the same God with the same mission,” Tarek said. “Muhammed, peace be upon him, taught Muslims to treat non-Muslims with kindness and justice. He taught us to stand up for justice for all – even against our enemies. Our prophets may have left, but their messages of love and peace are with us.”
Rev. Barry Pridham of Sydenham Street United Church said it is a positive initiative to engage in dialogue among Muslims, Christians and people of no faith.
“There is only one God in heaven,” Pridham said. “The sooner we learn that and live that out, the more peaceful, loving and inclusive the world will be. Both of our faiths recognize the diversity of God’s people.
“Extremism is an element in all faiths. Our faiths become distorted by vested interests – political or otherwise – or through ignorance. Tonight is an effort to break down the myths of Islam.”
Haneen Hijazi of Brantford said she attended Monday’s event to gain a better understanding of both her Muslim faith and the faith of others.
“I came to learn more about Muhammad,” Hijazi said. “I didn’t know what Christians believed in, so I get to learn what others believe, too.”
I’m not sure if the Brant News will publish my comments and questions on this article but, if it doesn’t. I would have to ask what the Brant News is nervous or afraid of.
Abu Noman Tarek, imam and director of religious affairs with the Muslim Association of Hamilton, spoke during an interfaith event at the Brantford Public Library on Monday night November 5, 2012.
According to the article in the Brant News, Tarek said “To anyone who is abusing people in the name of Islam, we will do everything we can against them within our scope, Jihad is not holy war. Jihad means struggle, which is something we all do every day”.
Tarek said Christians and Muslims believe in the same God and said “There is only one God and he created all of humanity”.
That is interesting. In fact, many people refer to Jews, Christians and Muslims as the people of the book, meaning the old testament of the Bible, who follow the same God as Abraham.
According to history, Moses lived around 1447 BC (before Christ) and received the Ten Commandments from God. Christianity started to develop after Jesus Christ and Muhammad (peace be upon him) lived from 570 AD to 632 AD, wrote the verses in the Qu’ran and basically started the religion of Islam.
Catholics seem to pray to the Virgin Mary and Muslims seem to religiously follow the verses in the Qu’ran but why when God said “Thou shalt have no other gods before me”.
Do Catholics and Muslims believe in God’s word and the 10 Commandments?
Verse 9:30 in the Qu’ran says “And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!”
And, apparently, there are 109 verses in the Qu’ran that call Muslims to war with nonbelievers for the sake of Islamic rule.
Do Muslims in Canada accept those verses and tenets in the Qu’ran?
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Continued from above
If Muslims come to Canada to escape from trouble in Islamic countries, why do many Muslims seem to be demanding Sharia law in Canada? Why do they seem dissatisfied with Canadian laws?
When the Ontario government has bent over backwards to try to remove religion from non Catholic public schools, why do Muslims want and feel they should get prayer rooms in non Catholic public schools to follow their religion?
Tarek said “Jihad is not holy war. Jihad means struggle, which is something we all do every day” and said “Extremism is an element in all faiths”. That is true but it seems western Christian fundamentalists or Christian extremists aren’t heading to Islamic countries to bomb, kill and terrorize innocent people.
When Islamic extremist try to or do bomb, kill and terrorize innocent people in Canada or the U.S.A., in the very countries to which many Muslims came to escape problems, why do Muslims in Canada and the U.S.A. remain so silent?
When the Taliban shot the little 14 year old girl in Pakistan, tens of thousands of Muslims rose up in Pakistan in protest against that brutality. How come Muslims in Canada and the U.S.A. did not and how come they don’t rise up in protest by the tens of thousands against Islamic terrorists and terrorism in Canada and the U.S.A. and other western non Islamic countries?
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The key point is whether or not the muslim population/leadership agitates toward the establishment of sharia. If truthfully the answer is no, that they are happy to live under the civil laws of the land, then great. Otherwise, well, we don’t need “common ground”.
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