In the post-9/11 scenario, it is important to have interfaith discussions across the globe
AS a young Muslim studying the law I have just returned, inspired and enthusiastic, from Palm Beach, USA. Attending the first ever Jewish, Christian and Muslim Conference I was witness to the birth of an important idea that aspires to solve the problems of our world.
I was privileged to be part of history and I wish to share my experiences with the readers. I spent a remarkable weekend in Palm Beach, home to only a few thousand residents who are one of the most influential concentrations of people in the country. The few residents of Palm Beach own about 12 per cent of American wealth. They have achieved success and fame and lead a highly affluent life. The events of the weekend showed the world that these economic leaders are also capable of taking the lead in trying to solve the problems that the world is facing. The Abrahamic dialogue that occurred at the conference created the most important initiative that could be built between America and the Muslim world.
Two years ago during the visit of my father, Professor Akbar S. Ahmed, who holds the Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies at American University, to Palm Beach, some friends met at the home of Dr Lachlan Reed. This diverse group included Nasser Kazeminy, a Muslim, John Goodman, Jewish, and Michael Ainslie, a Christian. They responded to my father’s appeal to launch an Abrahamic initiative by forming an Abrahamic group called the Centre for Workable Solutions.
The population of Palm Beach is divided between Jewish and Christian communities who had formed a Jewish and Christian Fellowship. Together the fellowship and the newly-formed centre, for the first time decided to have an Abrahamic world-level conference. This was revolutionary because the Jewish-Christian dialogue had just begun, but there was no sign of a Muslim presence in the dialogue.
The weekend began for me when I accompanied my father and family to the Royal Poinciana Chapel, one of the oldest and most prestigious places of worship in the area. The church was full to capacity with about 400 people in attendance as the historic event had been advertized in advance. The Reverend Dr Robert Norris spoke from the pulpit and in a very passionate and moving sermon, then welcomed my father and his family, asking us to stand up in the church, and the people welcomed us most warmly. Dr Norris quoted from the Holy Quran, and then asked my father to speak. This was the first time anything like this had happened in this church. My father quoted the great Sufi poets Rumi and Hafeez to show how much the Muslims loved and revered Jesus. The people in the church were undoubtedly amazed to hear the following extracts from Rumi’s famous Jesus Poems.
Where Jesus lives, the great-hearted gather.
We are a door that’s never unlocked.
If you are suffering any kind of pain,
Stay near the door. Open it ...
Christ is the population of the world,
And every object as well.
At the end of the service, Dr Norris presented his stole/investment, which was a beautiful tapestry of children from all over the world, taking it from his own shoulders and putting it around my father as a gesture of friendship and respect. We later discovered this was Dr Norris’s favourite stole. This was widely appreciated by the congregation. This gesture of Abrahamic love had never before happened in the church, nor had a Muslim ever been invited to speak from the pulpit.
The next event was the big dinner at night organized by the Fellowship and the Centre. Over 400 guests attended the dinner and my father was invited to give the keynote address, the first Muslim ever to do this. My father explained why it was necessary to understand Islam: It has a population of 1.3 billion, of which seven million live in the Untied States, and there are troops stationed in Afghanistan and Iraq. He strongly argued for the dialogue of civilizations as against the clash of civilizations. He picked up the themes of Abrahamic unity while pointing out the problems on the ground and the ways to move forward. At the end of his talk he was given a standing ovation.
The second half of the conference began the next day in earnest with some very distinguished speakers coming from all over the world. The keynote speaker at lunch was Jehan Sadat, the wife of the former president of Egypt, Anwar Sadat. Zeenat Ahmed, my mother, introduced Jehan Sadat. Earlier, my father and Nafees, my sister, were on a panel talking about family values in Islam. Nafees was a big hit with the audience, which was made up of 200 or so 8th graders from schools in Palm Beach. Most of them had never seen a Muslim student before.
There was a great deal of coverage on television and in the middle of the conference and I was proud to see the pictures of both my father and mother on the front pages of the local papers. I felt that we had as a family made a small contribution to the Abrahamic dialogue at a time when there is so much misunderstanding in the world today between the faiths.
I was privileged to be able to talk to some of the most distinguished people in the land: Naseer Kazeminy and Lachlan Reed, for example, our hosts, who not only shared their wisdom but their dream of bridging the gap between America and the Muslim world. I also had long talks with Michael Ainslie and his charming wife Suzanne Ainslie, Bob Monks and Lord Slynn, the former Law Lord of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom, who “introduced” my father at the official dinner along with Lachlan Reed.
While each of these distinguished people made a strong impression on me, I was particularly inspired by the ideals of Nasser Kazeminy, as he has always encouraged the younger generation and I too am passionate abut the importance of this. Nasser is an extraordinary, intelligent and compassionate man and he told me about his extraordinary life. To start with, he is probably the only Muslim living in Palm Beach and he has one of the most impressive houses there. He is the best ambassador for the Muslims in Palm Beach as he comes from a very rich Muslim culture of which he is always proud and it allows him to feel confident in his identity as a top American public figure.
Dale Coudert, a charming lady who heads the Coudert Institute, gave a Peace Award to my father in the form of a beautiful statue. She invited us to her home along with Edwina Sandy, the granddaughter of Winston Churchill.
If Islam was introduced through dialogue and discussion as part of the Abrahamic tradition in Palm Beach and such a mood of harmony prevailed, then why could this not happen in other parts of the world?
I returned to DC and my father went to give his class at American University. Early next day, we left for St Vincent’s College, a famous Catholic college in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, where he was the keynote speaker, the first Muslim ever, which created a lot of media interest ... But that is another story.
In the post-9/11 scenario, it is important to have interfaith discussions across the globe
