In the summer of 2010, as the American midterm election season was heating up, one of the most controversial subjects of debate was the planned construction of an Islamic community center in lower Manhattan. Misleadingly dubbed the “Ground Zero Mosque,” it became the focus of an ugly campaign to impugn the motives of those behind the Park 51 project, especially Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. Islamophobic hysteria, playing on the pain of 9/11, was generated by the project’s critics as part of a calculated strategy to scare voters into voting for right-wing candidates in the November elections. This political aim was confirmed when the propaganda campaign was abruptly terminated following Election Day.
Vignettes from Iran
‘A small group of Hindus, Buddhists, and Christians walked into a mosque in Iran ...’ sounds more like the start of a bar-joke than reality. But it happened in early June. We met, among others, with university professors, students, and clerics, even a high ranking Grand Ayatollah, in travels to Isfahan, Qom, Kashan, and Tehran.
The Stunning Resurgence of Progressive Christianity
Marianne Williamson and Me
How the State Department Is Getting Religion
Democracy and Good Governance
Costa Rican President and Religions for Peace Launch Nuclear Disarmament Resource Guide for Religious Leaders and Communities
Track II Diplomacy at Work: Religious Leaders Advance Korean Security
Why Democracy Needs the Interfaith Movement
I Do Gay Marriage
Employment Non-Discrimination Act 2013: The ‘T’ In LGBT Protections
Minnesota Marriage Equality: Top Ten Reasons this Victory Is So Sweet
A Mystic Vision with a Social Conscience
A Faithful Democratic Response to Immigration Reform
The intersection of citizenship and immigration is finally coming to the fore in national conversations. President Obama’s 2013 State of the Union message forcefully addressed immigration. On its heels came the Group of Six’s immigration reform bill. Pieces in The New York Times and The Nation, respectively on immigration and workers’ rights and deportation and detention halts, stand out as worthy markers.
Religious Freedom, Meet Secularism — Your Best Ally
In what could go down as one of its most notable reckonings of the era, the Supreme Court heard arguments next week in two major gay marriage cases. As the advocates and justices prepare to spar over California’s Proposition 8 and the federal Defense of Marriage Act, important constitutional principles had a much-needed day in the sun.
40 Years of Interfaith Activism as Political Lobby
Disagreement seems to be the norm in politics these days. From what to do about the fiscal cliff and the right way to balance budgets to foreign policy decisions and health care, consensus is nowhere to be found. Compromise is a teeth-grinding, inch-by-inch process.
Religion, Politics, Freedom, Faith & Making Movies in America
College-educated American women asked me at the dinner table, “But why would you want to do a film about Muslims?” “You know they’re out to get us.”
Interfaith Misunderstanding in America
There was a U.S. senator’s wild allegation about Islamic extremists infiltrating the American government.
Religion in U.S. Public Education
Religious Liberty, Public Education, and the Future of American Democracy: A Statement of Principles
What’s Right with this Picture?
About 91 percent of the 37,000 residents of the city of Bell in California are Latino, primarily Catholic. Ali Saleh, of Lebanese ancestry, was elected as Bell’s mayor last year, and he is Muslim.