Imam condemns prosecution of Christians in the Muslim countries and leads congregation to observe 2 minutes silence for the victims Garissa al-Shabab attack.

Muslims pray collectively every Friday in the Mosque as every Friday is considered a holy day to Muslims. This Friday was also Good Friday,a day which is considered sacred and holy to Christians.

Shaykh Umar Al-Qadri, Imam of the Al-Mustafa Islamic Centre, dedicated the first part of the Friday sermon to mention the similarities between Islam and Christianity and dedicated the second part of the Friday sermon to condemn the prosecution of Christians.

Shaykh Al-Qadri said in the first part of his sermon that most scholars speak only about the differences between these religions. This is not the method of the Quran. The Quran when mentioning Christianity not only highlights the differences but also the similarities between these 2 faiths. In order to build trust and bridge the gap between these two largest religious communities in the World it is important to emphasize on that what is common between these two faiths.
The believe in one Creator, in the Virgin Mary, the Prophet Jesus, Life after Death are among some of the similarities between Islam and Christianity. Loving the Creator, loving ones neighbor , and charity are also important parts of the 2 faiths.

In the second part of the speech Shaykh Al-Qadri condemned the prosecution and killing of Christians particularly the recent massacre of 147 Christians by militant group Al-Shabaab in Kenia.

Shaykh Al-Qadri said that those who prosecute Christians are ignorant about the teachings of Islam. In 628 AD, a delegation from St. Catherine’s Monastery came to Prophet Muhammad and requested his protection. He granted them protection and provided them with a letter which is called the “Charter of Privileges.” It consisted of several clauses covering all aspects of human rights including such topics as the protection of Christians, freedom of worship and movement, freedom to appoint their own judges and to own and maintain their property, exemption from military service, and the right to protection in war.

(Please see the text of the Charter of Privileges below)

Shaykh Al-Qadri said that this charter had been honored faithfully applied by Muslims throughout the centuries in all lands they ruled but the rise of radical interpretation of Islam has lead to prosecution of Christians. Shaykh Umar Al-Qadri said also that in Saudi Arabia the radical interpretation of Islam is applied and this is why Christians are not allowed to build churches. Christians and people of all faith should have the right to practise their religion freely. The rise of radical Islam can only be stopped by spreading the true teachings of Islam and eliminating the ignorance that is common among Muslims.

Shaykh Al-Qadri also said it is important that interfaith meetings take place between followers of these 2 faiths. Such meetings take place on leadership level but the message does not reach the worshippers. Most Imams that participate in interfaith meetings do not inform their congregation of such interfaith meetings. To participate in interfaith meetings is important to create dialogue and understanding but this message must reach the grass root levels so it will have positive effect.

The Friday prayers were concluded with the observance of 2 minutes silence for the victims of Garissa al-Shabaab attack.

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Text of the “Charter of Privileges”

This is a message from Muhammad ibn Abdullah, as a covenant to those who adopt Christianity, near and far, we are with them.
Verily I, the servants, the helpers, and my followers defend them, because Christians are my citizens; and by Allah! I hold out against anything that displeases them.
No compulsion is to be on them.
Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries.
No one is to destroy a house of their religion, to damage it, or to carry anything from it to the Muslims’ houses.
Should anyone take any of these, he would spoil God’s covenant and disobey His Prophet. Verily, they are my allies and have my secure charter against all that they hate.
No one is to force them to travel or to oblige them to fight.
The Muslims are to fight for them.
If a female Christian is married to a Muslim, it is not to take place without her approval. She is not to be prevented from visiting her church to pray.
Their churches are to be respected. They are neither to be prevented from repairing them nor the sacredness of their covenants.
No one of the nation (Muslims) is to disobey the covenant till the Last Day (end of the world).

MEDIA LINKS :

IRSH INDEPENDENT ARTICLE : Irish Imam Condemns persecution of Christian in Muslim Countries

IRISH TIMES: Dublin Imam condemns killing and persecution of Christians

IMAMS ONLINE : Irish Imam condemns persecution of Christians in Muslim countries

BLOG of DR. CRAIG CONSIDINE : Irish Imam Promotes Dialogue and Goodwill Between Christians and Muslims

SHAFAQNA : Irish Imam calls for interfaith cooperation and solidarity

An unprecedented meeting of senior figures from the major faiths in Ireland has taken place at the Terenure Synagogue Hall in Dublin, as religious representatives gathered for a meal together. The event was organised by the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland.

Among the 30 guests were  were Shaykh Dr. Umar Al-Qadri from the Blanchardstown Mosque,  Dr Nooh Al-Kaddo and Shaheen Ahmed of the Clonskeagh mosque, Sheikh Yahya Al-Hussein of the South Circular Rd mosque, Dr Ali Al-Saleh of the Milltown mosque, Dr Ihab Ahmad of the Cork City mosque, Rabbi Zalman Lent, leader of Ireland’s Hebrew congregation, and Leonard Abrahamson, president of the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland.

Also were present papal nuncio Archbishop Charles Brown, the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin, the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin Michael Jackson, retired Church of Ireland primate Alan Harper, Rev Dr Alan Martin and Dr Sam Hutchinson of the Presbyterian Church, and Dr Andrew Doughtery of theMethodist Church

‘Deepen understanding’

Greeting all, “but most especially representatives of the Muslim faith in Ireland”, Jewish Representative Council chair Maurice Cohen said: “This evening we hope that the space we make at our table will be symbolic of our genuine desire to deepen the understanding between Jews and our Muslim and Christian friends .”

Mr Cohen said that while the group tended to bump into each other at civic ceremonies, “we do not really know one another well enough to stand together in times of crisis”.

“In sitting down this evening we cannot ignore the fact that recent years have seen significant physical turmoil in all faiths . . . particularly in the Middle East and Africa. Much of this turmoil is done in the name of religion, with God’s name being hijacked for the purpose.”

Mr Cohen said that for people in Ireland “to be of any help, I feel we need to focus . . . on creating a unity of purpose in the minds of people. This means that room needs to be made by people and not just for people”.

“We must see what happened in the not-so-distant 1920s and 1930s in Europe.

“We must be aware that what happened then is bubbling to the surface in many other countries. We have seen the rise of anti-Semitism throughout Europe. In its wake, we have a rise in Islamophobia.”

Mr Cohen said that what is required is “a paradigmatic shift of thinking in Ireland”.

On 12th of March 2015 a  Seminar on “Freedom of Speech and Religious Freedom, Human Rights and Interreligious Perspectives” organised in Trinity College Dublin in which the Chief Imam of Al-Mustafa IECC, Shaykh Dr. Muhammad Umar Al-Qadri, delivered a paper on “Freedom of Speech and Responsible Speech: Islamic Perspectives”.

This Seminar was organised by the Irish School of Ecumenics and Centre for Post-Conflict Justice (Trinity College Dublin), Carlow College (Co. Carlow), The Priory Institute (Tallaght) and Dublin City Interfaith Forum.

Other speakers that delivered a paper in the seminar were Prof. Rosemary Byrne (Department of Law, TCD) ,Prof. Ronit Lentin   (Department of Sociology, TCD), Prof. Roja Fazaeli (Department of Near and Middle Eastern Studies, TCD) ,Swami Purnananda   (Spiritual Director of Nivedita Vedanta Society and the Eire Vedanta Society) and Ms. Sinéad Lynch   (Chairperson of the Dublin City Interfaith Forum).

This was an important seminar particularly because of recent events which have sparked a debate on freedom of speech and in particular with regards to Islam.

Please on the following link for the paper the Shaykh delivered in the Seminar:

Freedom of Speech and Religious Freedom, Human Rights and Interreligious Perspectives by Dr. Umar Al-Qadri