Re “Voice of the King Fahad Mosque Offers Serene View of Islam”
[img]2929|right|Mohammed Khan||no_popup[/img]It may not happen often in these revved-up times of terror, but it is perfectly logical to feel empathy for an easygoing Muslim professional in Culver City.
What can Mohammed Khan say that will equally mollify the loudest critics of radical Islam and his Muslim colleagues who turn up their palms and ask, What can we do?
As the director of interfaith and public relations, Mr. Khan not only has visibility but a platform.
“Obviously what is happening is very tragic with these renegade groups,” he said. “The majority of those being killed, 99 percent, are Muslims.
“It’s a challenge, a big challenge, for the Muslim community and for society at-large.”
Question: Mr. Khan, is there anything you can do publicly, or is it better to focus otherwise?
He paused and exhaled.
“Publicly, the best idea may be to hold forums to dispel the myths and the hatred these people have created about Islam. Unfortunately, hatred is what they thrive on.”
Mr. Khan has drawn an unenviable assignment for tomorrow, addressing an interfaith student audience at U.C. Irvine.
“They want to know what the Koran says about violence,” he said.
“First, I will tell them that people who commit murder in the name of religion, any religion, do not belong to any religion.
“In the Koran as well as the Torah – usually I quote both – they say if you save one life, it is as if you have saved the whole human race. And if you take one life, it is as if you have destroyed the whole human race.
“Then you have these extremists. They try to rationalize and justify what they do only because their audience is emotionally connected to the Koran.
“This,” said Mr. Khan, “is manipulation.
“If their audience were emotionally connected to Communist texts, they would be Communists.
“Historically, it has been very clear. Minorities have lived under Muslim leadership for centuries. The oldest churches, oldest synagogues were in Muslim countries for centuries. Research will show that these minority institutions have been preserved.”
