Muslim
Scholar Honored at Washington National Cathedral
By Josh Hayden
Washington, DC: February 20, 2005 became
an unprecedented historic day as the Washington National Cathedral
held an Evensong prayer service in honor of a Muslim scholar
and DC Professor of the Year, Dr. Akbar Ahmed. Nearly seven
hundred people, some who flew from New Jersey, Florida and
California, were gathered to witness not only an enormous
honor, but a symbolic event for the hope of interfaith dialogue
and peace. Washington Bishop John Chane, Washington Hebrew
Congregation Rabbi Bruce Lustig, and Dr. Akbar Ahmed presided
together over the Evensong as prayers and scriptures were
spoken in each Abrahamic faith. The atmosphere in the beautiful
and glorious cathedral was thick with hope for religious peace,
understanding and friendship as Muslim, Christians and Jews
were brought together in what Bishop Chane called “the
emerging sense of unity and community nurtured by hospitality.”
Thanksgiving to the God of Abraham filled service and congregation
as Saint Paul’s Choir sang hymns of praise that resonated
throughout the holy place.
(L
to R front row):Bishop John Chane,Professor Akbar Ahmed
and Senior Rabbi Bruce Lustig |
This
was a bold move for the bridge-building of nations.
They read lessons from the Hebrew scriptures, Qur’an
and New Testment expressing hospitality to God and man, praise,
peace and unity. Bishop Chane, Rabbi Lustig and Dr. Ahmed
presented the sermon as symbols of friendship across faiths.
They each honored Ahmed by speaking of their friendship and
love for he and his family and the extraordinary role he has
played in reconciliation and building relationships through
interfaith dialogue. Rabbi Lustig said that Akbar’s
voice “is a calm, gentle voice filled with wisdom and
with truth.”
The relationship between these two men began shortly after
9/11 when they met at a dinner, shortly thereafter starting
the Abrahamic Summit, and then Lustig introduced Ahmed to
Bishop Chane over dinner at his house. “We are brothers
on a journey,” Chane expressed as he emphasized their
commonalities alongside distinct differences, and continued,
“For me, it is the hope of the world.” The three
men proclaimed their rightful representation of the visionaries
and dreamers of the global community.
Rabbi Bruce Lustig began his sermon by focusing on the individual’s
search for God through faith and out of this a “looking
for others.” This attitude and belief is embodied in
Akbar Ahmed, he said, “to find such an individual is
rare.” Shortly after they met in the wake of 9/11 Ahmed
was deeply concerned with the isolation of Muslims and in
their conversation Lustig soon realized the urgent need of
rising to the challenge of real and honest dialogue. He spoke
of relationships in terms of “I it” and “I
thou” encounters, the former based on our own gratification
and the latter based on the transformation and focus on the
other. Lustig and Ahmed, sharing an “I thou” friendship,
were able to bring leaders in their respective faiths together
and foster real change. Rabbi Lustig spoke of the fear that
surrounds making steps toward bringing Muslims, Jews and Christians
together and noted that freedom from fear has nothing to do
with getting rid of fear and more to do with making choices.
Lustig expressed his thankfulness for his and Ahmed’s
friendship and the “nature of his soul” as well
as his gratitude that when his kids think of Islam, they think
of Akbar.
Bishop
John Chane selected a passage from Saint Paul’s letter
to the Romans, which exhorted living together in community
in peace, engaging in blessing and not retribution and striving
for unity. He recognized the criticism and threats that each
man has encountered in establishing connections between people
of different faiths and the huge risk that it means. Specifically,
one of the great criticisms of him has been a deliberate compromise
of the distinctives of the Christian faith in bridging the
faiths. He argued that people who see them as destructive
forces do not see the legitimacy of a “common language
that can bridge.” By coming to know each other and their
differences more intimately they have developed a respect
for each other, Chane said, and the food and conversation
“has filled my heart with joy and hopefulness.”
The purpose of the occasion, he posited, “is to remind
one another and each of you that with God all things are possible
and that there will come a time when all God’s children
celebrate the peace which passes all understanding.”
Dr
Akbar Ahmed addresses the gather- |
The
final address was given by the honoree, Dr. Akbar Ahmed, who
made a passionate call for “faith and friendship.”
He began by thanking John and Bruce and their wives for their
friendship, especially at such crucial moments in his family’s
lives. Ahmed commended the bishop for his courage in initiating
such an event. He said, “Therefore as I stand before
you in this magnificent house of God I am reminded with great
humility of the journey that my friends and I have embarked
upon.” He highlighted the respect and admiration that
traditional Islam has for Christians and Jews, especially
figures such as Abraham, Moses and Jesus. Pleading this understanding
Dr. Ahmed stated, “Indeed there is a saying of the Prophet
of Islam that there is no one closer to Jesus than he in respect
and affection. Such sayings are not well known either in the
West or unfortunately in the Muslim world. If they were known,
Western leaders would never talk about Muslims as ‘Satan
worshippers’ and Muslim leaders would never talk about
attacking Jews and Christians as a sign of piety.” He
stressed the symbolic nature of the event as a landmark for
interfaith dialogue and challenged Muslim leaders to reciprocate
honoring a Jewish or Christian scholar. “If we are to
re-define the world in which we live we need a new and bold
leadership rooted in this notion of faith and friendship,”
Dr Ahmed affirmed as he spoke about the criticism the three
men have undergone in establishing a common dialogue. He emotionally
finished with these words,
“Yes, let us compete but let us compete in doing good
and pious and compassionate acts. It is with pride in our
friendship and confidence in our common purpose that I will
end by thanking John, Bruce, their wives, my friend Cannon
Michael Wyatt and indeed all those who have participated in
this wonderful Evensong. Thank you for this historical moment
in interfaith dialogue and friendship.”
Notable among the attendees were many Muslim Ambassadors including
Ambassadors of Pakistan and Morocco, former Prime Minister
of Canada Joe Clark, many Imams, the head of CAIR and ISNA,
and the Secretary General of the Pakistan American Congress.
Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom, Jonathan Sacks began the
morning of the event with a special message commending Dr.
Ahmed for his award, “Truly, not just Islam-but all
of us-are blessed by your wisdom and generosity of spirit.
May the occasion be full of joy.” Dr. Paul Wee, Professor
at George Washington University and Council member of the
Parliament of the World’s Religions issued a statement
which said, “Dr. Ahmed has given many of us new eyes,
not only to see the essence of Islam as a religion of peace
and justice, but to be able to separate fact from fiction
in this somewhat confused and chaotic moment in history.”
Deeply influenced by the event and charge of Dr. Ahmed, Imam
Magid, head of the largest Islamic Center in Washington, DC,
issued a statement on behalf of the Muslim community there.
“To have this event being held in honor of Dr. Ahmed
by those of the Abrahamic faiths and in such an historical
and magnificent setting also honors all Muslims in the United
States, it stands as testimony to the fact that Dr. Akbar
has represented Islam well and has become on of its greatest
ambassadors. This honoring tonight represents the fruit of
his work of building friendships between us…Finally,
I commend Dr. Akbar for being one who works hard in accomplishing
what he speaks about, not just giving lip service.”
The Evensong event was followed by a reception that brought
together the diverse crowd gathered to do honor to Dr. Akbar
Ahmed. Bishop John Chane closed the glorious Evensong event
with a statement that spoke for the mood and immensity of
this symbolic event. He said, “Dialogue is a first beginning
of a new journey for this global community.”
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