Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel

Americans tend to view this entire debate over the proposed Ground Zero Mosque as another example where Muslims are being pitted against non-Muslims. However, the truth suggests the exact opposite. There have been many voices from within the Muslim community that think building the mosque is actually a terrible idea. Obviously, Muslims are not a monolithic community; they speak with many voices that differ from one another. There is no one person or group that can truly speak for “all” Muslims. It behooves the media to portray–the other side of the story . . . In the interest of our blog, I will present a number of opinions that you will seldom ever hear from the mainstream media outlets.

As Jews, we tend to make the issue an extension of our own egoic selves; rather than respecting the diversity that exists within the Muslim community, liberal Jews especially love to portray the entire issue in black and white terms, and in the process they marginalize the Muslim viewpoints that differ from their own. Anyone believing in true interfaith dialogue with Muslims needs to be mindful that no imam can possibly speak on behalf of an entire community–much like no rabbi can claim to speak in the name of “all” Jews.

Neda Bolourchi, whose mother was murdered during the 9/11 attacks, wrote in the Washington Post over the weekend:

I was born in pre-revolutionary Iran. My family led a largely secular existence — I did not attend a religious school, I never wore a headscarf — but for us, as for anyone there, Islam was part of our heritage, our culture, and our entire lives. Though I have nothing but contempt for the fanaticism that propelled the terrorists to carry out their murderous attacks on Sept. 11, I still have great respect for the faith. Yet, I worry that the construction of the Cordoba House Islamic cultural center near the World Trade Center site would not promote tolerance or understanding; I fear it would become a symbol of victory for militant Muslims around the world.

Another Muslim Raheel Raza and Tarek Fatah, writing in the Ottowa Citizen (hat tip to Andy McCarthy):

So what gives Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf of the “Cordoba Initiative” and his cohorts the misplaced idea that they will increase tolerance for Muslims by brazenly displaying their own intolerance in this case? Do they not understand that building a mosque at Ground Zero is equivalent to permitting a Serbian Orthodox church near the killing fields of Srebrenica where 8,000 Muslim men and boys were slaughtered? …

As Muslims we are dismayed that our co-religionists have such little consideration for their fellow citizens and wish to rub salt in their wounds and pretend they are applying a balm to sooth the pain.  

Even Abdul Rahman Al-Rashid, the Muslim head of Al Arabiya TV thinks the ground zero mosque is a bad idea:

“I cannot imagine that Muslims want a mosque on this particular site, because it will be turned into an arena for promoters of hatred, and a symbol of those who committed the crime. At the same time, there are no practicing Muslims in the district who need a place of worship, because it is indeed a commercial district….The last thing Muslims want today is to build just a religious center out of defiance to the others, or a symbolic mosque that people visit as a museum next to a cemetery…. [T]he battle against the 11 September terrorists is a Muslim battle…and this battle still is ablaze in more than 20 Muslim countries. Some Muslims will consider that building a mosque on this site immortalizes and commemorates what was done by the terrorists who committed their crime in the name of Islam. I do not think that the majority of Muslims want to build a symbol or a worship place that tomorrow might become a place about which the terrorists and their Muslim followers boast, and which will become a shrine for Islam haters whose aim is to turn the public opinion against Islam.”

 Mr. Rashid says, “The last thing Muslims want today is to build just a religious center out of defiance to others.” As another fellow blogger deduced, “Unfortunately, the fact that there are no Muslims in the area makes it look like this is precisely the point of this mosque–not only that it is in defiance of others, but building it there amounts to spitting in the face of the victims!”

Precisely!