ABU DHABI, 27 October 2004 — Dozens of Islamic scholars have gathered in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to defend their religion against accusations of fostering terrorism and to denounce groups of co-religionist fanatics distorting the image of Islam.
The six-day conference, hosted by the emirate of Abu Dhabi under the theme of “prophetic guidance in missionary work”, attracted an audience exceeding 500 people, with women accounting for more than a third.
The head of the organizing committee spoke of the “deviant group”, a term used to refer to Islamist militants, saying “it distorted the image of Islam ... (as it) persisted in destroying and killing.
“It became a must that Islamic scholars should come forward to make clear that Islam has nothing to do with that (killing),” UAE Assistant Undersecretary of Islamic Affairs Hamdan Al-Mazruwei told the opening session Monday night.
In the presence of two Christian clerics, the Sheikh of Al-Azhar Mohammed Sayed Tantawi said “we are required, as Muslims, to shake hands with whomever extends a hand to us in peace ... regardless of whether this person is a Muslim or not.”
“There is no coercion in religion,” Tantawi said, citing the Qur’an. “Forcing people into belief does not bring (new) honest Muslims, but rather hypocritical liars,” he said.
Islamic scholars preaching moderation have been thrown on the defensive by Western accusations that Islam fosters extremism and terrorism. Such charges have intensified since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.
But some Muslim countries are fighting their own war on domestic terrorism, embodied in groups of Islamist militants who regard local regimes as un-Islamic.
“This is a group of people that deviated in their behavior. They belong (nominally) to the (Prophet) Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) base but they do not follow his steps,” said the minister of Islamic endowments in Sudan, Issam Beshir.
“Many individual fatwas (religious edicts) were issued, only to give the enemies of Islam pretexts to distort its pure image,” said Beshir, whose country figures on the US list of state sponsors of terrorism.
“Anyone reading a couple of verses of the Qur’an installs himself as an imam (religious leader) issuing fatwas ... The (Muslim) nation is paying the price of these fatwas,” he said.
Noting that Muslims are divided on different issues, Beshir pointed out that “before having dialogue with the others, we (Muslims) should start an inner dialogue.”
“We should accept pluralism in doctrines and opinions,” he added.
Beshir said Muslim countries recognize the need for reforms. “We believe in reform ... but this is based on our belief in the need for reform and not a result of succumbing to internal or external pressure,” he said.
Along similar lines, the Jordanian minister of Islamic endowments, Ahmed Heleil, said that “when we (Muslims) talk about the middle way of Islam ... and respecting human dignity regardless of color or race, we start off from a mighty basis, and not out of fear.”
This is because “we are the best nation. ... We will always proclaim that we are a nation prided by Allah through Islam.”
The conference, which continues until Saturday, will feature meetings between invited scholars and preachers in different emirates of the UAE.
