The gift of interfaith difference
At the Muslim community center, I felt the tension of our divergence. But I also sensed gratitude.
(Century illustration)
A group from my church recently visited a local Muslim organization, founded to provide community and support for young Muslims in our city following a hate crime almost a decade ago in which a White man murdered three young Muslims here. On a rainy Wednesday, we drove to the Lighthouse Project office. We gathered in the prayer room to listen and learn. We wanted to know these neighbors better, to drink tea with them, and to hear their stories.
We also wanted to learn about Islam. A young man who volunteers for the Lighthouse Project offered us an introduction to his faith. He flipped through slides, telling us about the five pillars and his feat of memorizing the Qur’an as a child. We asked questions and heard stories about the hajj. The next slide outlined the characteristics of God, including the words from Surah 17:111, “He has not begotten a son and has no partner in His Kingdom.”
The polemic popped off the screen. I wondered if the words—written 300 years after the Nicene Creed declared Jesus “begotten not made” and “true God from true God”—were meant to help early Islam distinguish itself from the Christianity of the region. Seeing the words in black and white, I felt the tension of our divergence. But I also sensed gratitude.
