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March 23, 2001/Adar 28, 5761, Vol. 53, No.25
Jews, Muslims find common ground
BARRY COHEN
Community Editor
Five months ago, Ahmad Al-Shqeirat, imam of the Islamic Cultural Center of Tempe, visited Temple Beth Sholom in Chandler to offer a prayer for peace and share personal words. On March 20, the Conservative synagogue responded in kind, the first Jewish group officially to visit the cultural center.
Arriving during the call to worship, 11 congregants and Rabbi Bonnie Koppell witnessed the fourth of five Muslim daily prayer services.
Afterward, they viewed a video, "Islam: A Closer Look," detailing the five pillars of Islam: declaration of faith, ritual prayer, contributions to the needy, fasting during the month of Ramadan and pilgrimage to Mecca.
This was followed by a question and answer session, facilitated by Al-Shqeirat, who said it was a good idea to avoid political issues and the history of Muslims and Jews over the last 100 years. The ensuing questions were diverse but skirted politics.
Beth Sholom members asked about how a Muslim becomes an imam, the status of women, the nature of prayer and the sects of Islam, among other issues.
Three members of the Islamic center casually filed in during the Q & A session and joined the discussion. The group found immediate common ground on the issue of prayer in the workplace. Fred Missel described his experience as a Jew at Boeing in Mesa, and Naim Muhammad related his experience as a Muslim at Chase Bank in Tempe.
As the evening drew to a close, Missel said, "Now that we're here and sharing, where do we go from here? I don't want this to be the end of it."
"In the beginning, if we can avoid politics for a while, to know each other," said Al-Shqeirat. He stressed the need to keep an open mind, cooperate and maintain dialogue.
"We should appreciate each other," said Muhammad. When Muslims or Jews hear false statements made about their respective faiths, they should use a newfound mutual understanding to defend each other, he added. "We're all one family."
"I am a very firm believer in baby steps," said Missel. Now is the perfect time to initiate dialogue between Muslims and Jews, he added. "With relationships, you don't wait until good times, but rather when times are stressful, you need to meet."
Koppell described the visit as part of an ongoing process to foster a strong connection. A future possibility would be a meeting between Muslim and Jewish teenagers to facilitate dialogue and create understanding, she added.
Lois Zeidman of Beth Sholom said when she received the notice about visiting the cultural center, she was eager to take advantage of a valuable opportunity.
"I had only seen the building from the outside," she said. "It's nice to see it from the inside."
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