Islam's claim to partake of "Abrahamic faith" falls short of the Christian understanding in all its fullness. Were it otherwise, wouldn't one expect to see robust democratic republics throughout the Islamic world, full of Barney Franks and Nancy Pelosis (with maybe the random Mitch McConnell) instead of the despotisms that squash and mismanage their peoples? Where are they?
Where, for that matter, does Islamic tolerance manifest itself in the glorious name of Diversity? How about letting the Southern Baptists plant a megachurch in Mecca, with the strains of "Amazing Grace" breaking forth across the sands? Think they'd get away with it? Think the Saudis would accord Christianity the same respect and protection they demand for their own faith? Think again.
The Islamic center proposal should stand or fall on its own merits, not on the secularist proposition that one religious faith's as good as another -- to the extent even one of them amounts to a hill of beans. Possibly the real basis of Christian-Islamic communion lies not in politics, but rather in recognition that any who answer the call of faith are disrespected guests in hard-nosed societies dedicated to short-term means over long-term ends.
The mosque flap could prove transitory in that respect: An occasion for thinking about religious truth and asking the genuinely hard questions: What are we all here for? And why?
Bill Murchison
Bill Murchison is the former senior columns writer for
The Dallas Morning News and author of
There's More to Life Than Politics.
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©Creators Syndicate
©Creators Syndicate