THE TOTAL DHIMMIFICATION OF CHAUTAUQUA…USING “THE THREE ABRAHAMIC FAITHS” AS A FIG LEAF SEE NOTE PLEASE
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JOAN CAMPBELL AND KAREN ARMSTONG ARE CHEERLEADERS FOR ISLAM….GET YOUR NIQABS OUT FOR NEXT SEASON IN THE WOODED LAKE WITH THE DHIMMIS AT WHAT ONCE WAS A REAL MULTICULTURAL INSTITUTION OF LEARNING AND ARTS….RSK
Chautauqua Community Weighs In On Mosque Debate
By Jason Rodriguez jrodriguez@post-journal.com
POSTED: August 8, 2010
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf is interviewed by Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell in 2008 in the Hall of Philosophy at Chautauqua Institution.
P-J file photo
The Arc de Triomphe, Parthenon, and the great Pyramid at Giza – these are historic landmarks whose imprint alone tells the story of a nation and its people. But behind these monoliths, sometimes it is structures of humble construction which remind citizens how a nation is defined.
Joan Brown Campbell says she supports the construction of the Cordoba House in lower Manhattan because it touches on an American issue. As director of the department of religion at the Chautauqua Institution, she cites her devotion to the church and state she calls home.
“We base our own support at Chautauqua on the freedom of religion,” said Campbell, “and it is part of our Christian responsibility to protect the faith of everyone.”
While her work at Chautauqua exists hundreds of miles away from the controversy swirling around the proposed Islamic center, Campbell’s lifelong commitment to religious tolerance has intersected with the voice of Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, chairman of the Cordoba Initiative.
THREE LEGS OF THE STOOL
Upon her arrival to Chautauqua in 2000, Campbell put new emphasis on interfaith dialogue at the lecture platform. Under the canopy of the historic Hall of Philosophy, she hoped a directed study – for the audience as well as herself – would lend to a complete picture of the fledgling Abrahamic Initiative.
“We knew Christianity,” said Campbell. “we had a Christian presence here. We had a Jewish presence here – probably one-third of Chautauqua is Jewish. We didn’t have a Muslim presence, but we knew if we wanted to talk about the Abraham link we needed to have all three legs of the stool.”
Then 9/11 happened, but she said the department pressed forward with its plans. Campbell said the violent backdrop gave new immediacy to her mission.
“It was all the more reason to understand Islam, but it became more controversial” she said, “because even then there was tension people that felt all Muslims were essentially to be blamed for this, and not the specific part of Islam that brought down the towers.”
Campbell entrusted Karen Armstrong, familiar face at Chautauqua and author of the recent Islam, A Short History, to coordinate an afternoon lecture that invited Muslim scholars throughout the nine-week season. Lectures included “Islam on Justice and Mercy” and “Faith After September 11.”
The testing ground proved successful. This summer, her department hosts a popular daily interfaith lecture series, but it is important to remember only eight years ago, said Campbell, such a concept was groundbreaking.
FEISAL SPEAKS AT CHAUTAUQUA
On July 31 of that year, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf expressed his own thoughts about the unified stool when he delivered “Islam Through Muslim Eyes” in the historic Chautauqua venue.
“Islam is not about Mohammed, Inc. versus Moses, Inc. and Jesus, Inc.,” said Imam Feisal. “Islam is about God, Inc. – with Moses, Jesus and Mohammed and all the prophets as regional managers, who were sent to different regions to speak in the language of the local people and to express the universal truths in their cultural norms.”
Feisal offered an educational lesson for the non-Muslim audience, but those of his own faith as well.
“To regard Islam as being uniquely and exclusively the message of Mohammed is Qurannically false,” he said. “This is something that non-Muslims need to understand, but also many Muslims themselves need to understand.”
The problem is in human psychology, he said, because even though we acknowledge the common word of revealed religion we still “imprison” ourselves in the boundaries of separate faiths.
Campbell has selected Feisal to return nearly every year – this year Feisal’s wife, Daisy Kahn, stepped in to share her expertise of womens’ issues under Islam – and her requirements for Muslim speakers remains the same.
Said Campbell: “We looked for Muslims who bring a peace message, and clearly bring a broad view of Islam”
CORDOBA HOUSE CONTROVERSY
New York City can champion its cultural diversity, and Chautauqua can embrace its liberal creed, but in neither case is intolerance guaranteed to be absent. Campbell said her invitation extended to Imam Feisal and others in 2002 was not welcomed by everyone at the summertime community, and the attacks on the World Trade Center served as a flashpoint in the heated debate.
“There were people who really were so angered by 9/11, that they felt any attention to Islam is to denigrate what happened to us,” said Campbell.
She said the ongoing opposition to Imam Feisal’s Cordoba House certainly brings back memories of the Sept. 11 tragedy, and while these groups are careful not to attack Feisal himself, it is clear they feel personally insulted.
A legal effort led by televangelist Pat Robertson is under way to challenge the current ruling which allows the demolition of 45-47 Park Place, two blocks north of the World Trade Center site.
“We’re not here because of hate or bigotry. Nobody wants to ban Islam,” said Tim Brown, a first responder from Sept. 11, who is represented by Robertson. “This is about insensitivity.”
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has offered his voice in support of the Cordoba House.
“The attack was an act of war – and our first responders defended not only our city but also the country and the constitution,” he said this past week. “We do not honor their lives by denying the very Constitutional rights they died protecting. We honor their lives by defending those rights – and the freedoms that the terrorists attacked.”
Campbell said Chautauqua has given its name to the building of the community center. She added it is disappointing to see groups like the Anti-Defamation League choose to take a position against the construction, because their mission is supposed to be one of tolerance.
According to the Cordoba Initiative website, Imam Feisal leads services at the Masjid Al-Farah Mosque, located on West Broadway – nestled among a cosmopolitan mix of nightclubs and hotels, and only 11 blocks north of the proposed community center. His wife, Daisy Kahn, is executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement, whose headquarters at Colombia University shares a building with the campus Jewish coalition and various other faith-based groups.
CHAUTAUQUA’S MUSLIM HOUSE
Chautauqua may soon have its own house recalling the interfaith legacy of Cordoba.
Affiliated with the Chautauqua Abrahamic initiative, the group Muslim Friends of Chautauqua has begun its process to add to the collection of denominational centers inside the gate.
Campbell reported the group has attained tax-exempt status which is the first step toward recognition.
She said the department of religion guides this process and similar efforts through the initiative, but ultimately the Chautauqua board of trustees has to give final approval of a denominational house. While the majority of the local community supports the idea of a Muslim House on the grounds, there is once again a vocal element of opposition.
“There is among the Jewish groups, and some conservative Christian groups as well, an objection to Islam,” She said “and a very deep concern that Islam is flawed as a religion.”
To mediate an understanding among the distinct religious communities, Campbell said her department offers a “communities in conversation” discussion on Thursday and Friday afternoons, featuring speakers from all three faiths.
A precedent exists for the Muslim House: in 2009 the Everett Jewish Life Center opened its doors as the first non-Christian entity of its type.
“We believe very strongly that there must be an interfaith future at Chautauqua,” said Campbell.
She said despite some pointed commentary, her department is not erasing Chautauqua’s Christian heritage. Going back to the earliest days of the assembly, every morning there is a Christian sermon. Only recently has the department’s afternoon focus on ethics in the modern age shifted to address the realities of an interfaith world, she said.
Campbell added through the years the local community “has given a lot of time and attention to speakers on the issue of religious freedom.”
At Chautauqua, the iconic Amphitheater is central to daily life. It was the site of Franklin Roosevelt’s “I Hate War” proclamation in 1936, and retains the level of crowds it commanded since its construction. Less visible but equally impressive is the mosaic of religious houses, nestled among the brick walks. Their existence – and expansion to represent new religious groups – is truly historic, as it tells the complete story of Chautauqua.
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