Recent threats and acts of hatred against American Muslims, Asian Muslims, and non-Muslim Asian Americans across the United States is wrong. The horrible acts of war committed against the United States on September 11 are a fertile ground for wrong headed Americans to demonstrate their ignorance toward people of various ethnic and religious backgrounds.
The Center of Peace and Hope in Christ for Afghanistan condemns this hatred. The United States Constitution allows all Americans to freely worship in the religion of their own choosing. Also, Americans who choose not to worship or adhere to any religion are free to do so.
It is clear that all genuine seekers of truth would not engage in ethnic hatred, bigotry, or acts of violence. Recent statements of Muslim leaders in America that not all Muslims should be blamed for the September 11 are correct. A small percentage ofpeople who called themselves Muslims are responsible for their own actions. When one who calls himself a Christian commits a crime, not all Christians are responsible for the crime. So too, all Muslims are not responsible for what happened in New York and Washington.
While the government of the United States takes action against these acts of war, people of faith have a great opportunity to assert tolerance toward one another. Now is the time for Christians to demonstrate the love of Christ to our Muslim friends. Christians should pray for God’s greatest blessing on Muslims living as a minority in America.
And now is the time for moderate Muslims to demonstrate their acceptance of Christians and the ideals of tolerance and freedom in our republic. It is exactly this point which is the great need of the hour for Muslim leaders in America to address.
Moderate Muslim leaders need to clearly make the case that as Americans they support the freedom of all people to choose their own religion. Do these moderates tolerate the idea of individual Muslims deciding for themselves what religion to follow?
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of former Muslims in the United States who live under the threat of death because of their own personal decision to no longer follow the Islamic religion. Freedom of religion is a cornerstone of the American republic. Former Muslims do not always experience this aspect of freedom because of the hatred and intolerance of others.
Moderate American Muslims need to clearly denounce those misguided people who, in the name of Islam, call for the death of those who leave the Muslim religion. To do otherwise is to promote intolerance toward our fellow Americans who choose to no longer adhere to the Muslim religion. And to do otherwise will demonstrate that even the most moderate form of Islam is incompatible with the United States Constitution.
Now is the time for “moderate” Muslim leaders in America to clearly define the limits of their tolerance.
When this was written John was the director of the Center of Peace and Hope in Christ for Afghanistan in Vienna, VA. The center became the focal point for the establishment of a congregation of Afghan Christians in 1999 which is now under the leadership of Afghan Christians. The Center of Peace and Hope in Christ for Afghanistan currently sponsors the Afghan Bibles web site, www.afghanbibles.com.
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