AMMAN- Muslim scholars, Christian leaders, intellectuals and delegates from various think-tanks came together in a seminar organized by Islamouna Net and the FI Media Group and unanimously agreed that the republishing of the cartoons demeaning Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) by certain Danish newspapers transgressed all norms of respecting religious values and symbols. 

 They concluded that the publication of the cartoons had nothing to do with freedom of expression but in fact actually demonstrated an unjust attack on freedoms. The stubbornly pursuit of reproducing these cartoons would lead to increasing anger and could even lead to global discord and even conflict between nations.

In the seminar entitled “Execpt the Messenger of Mercy”, the participants called for one united front -- a firm and immediate Arab-Islamic response that finally puts an end to this continued offence against Islam that is perpetrated in a number of western countries. There was also a request that the Eastern Churches should also step forward to condemn these evil acts and declare that such attacks are regarded as an abomination by all religions.

The participants also concluded that the publication of the cartoons by a total of 17 Danish newspapers indicated that it was not just one or two offending culprits but in fact was a matter of wide public concern.

The meeting examined all the evidence very carefully and determined that the publication of the cartoons was a carefully orchestrated conspiracy by the Zionists and their supporters amongst the Christians (known as Christian Zionists), in order to create disharmony and precipitate conflict between the followers of Islam and Christianity.

Further, it was also noted that anti-Muslim bigotry was evident in the highest echelons of the political establishment in the United States with many in the top structure of the Republican Party harbouring strongly militant views that aim to ignite hostility and hatred between Muslims and Christians.

“The current attack on Islam and Muslims is similar to what happened during the early days of the emergence of Islam when the infidels were attacking and insulting our Prophet (pbuh). We are here today not to show our muscles or attack others but to explain the dangers of this situation and to come out with a clear vision since we are in this good country to promote the values of tolerance and moderation as meantioned  in the Amman Message with the intention of enhancing dialogue with other civilizations and not in clashing with them.

The fact that the insulting of the Prophet (pbuh) is being repeated deliberately leads us to think seriously of a proper mechanism to respond to this attack by arming ourselves with the true concepts of Islam, by reasonable dialogue and by harmonious coexistence with the other.” 

Dr. Al Shaikh

The CEO of the Fact International Media Group, Dr. Zakriah Al Sheikh, said:

 “We in our media organization have conducted a comprehensive research study to examine the root cause of this vicious anti-Islamic campaign in the west and to determine who is really escalating this clash between civilizations and religions especially between the followers of Islam and Christianity. This conflict clearly surfaced in certain countries such as among the Coptic in Egypt, the militant groups in Algiers and also the issue of coexistence in Jordan which was recently raised by some US research centers.

The chairman of the Shariah Commission for Islamouna Net, Dr  Ahmed Awaiysheh, said:

In our research we discovered that the first one who intentionally published  a picture demeaning the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) was one of the forefathers of the current US President, George W. Bush. That was in his book titled “Life of Mohammad,” published in 1831 in which he called for “destroying the empire of Islam to establish the Empire of God represented in a Jewish state exclusive for Jews in Palestine”.  The book made dangerous accusations against the Prophet (pbuh) and set the tone for a new ideology geared to stir conflict between religions. It is the same ideology of the current President Bush who during his recent visit to Israel voiced support for the Jewish state. 

  Awaiysheh

This conspiracy against Islam is still ongoing. In October 2004, the arch-Zionist Daniel Pipes met in Philadelphia, USA, with the Danish Jyllands-Posten newspaper’s cultural  editor, Flemming Rose. In September 2005, the paper published the caricatures in Denmark. Clearly, it must be concluded that these two individuals conspired to create discord between Christians and Muslims.  

So we are meeting here today to discuss the most effective mechanism to counter this continued attack on Islam. We could do this through boycotting Danish products or expelling the Danish ambassador or by any other means but except resorting to violence.”

Father Haddad

Father Nabeel Haddad, Director of the Jordanian Centre for Religious Coexistence Studies said:

‘The fact that I am a Christian does not mean that I totally agree with the Muslim scholars present at this seminar. I am not here to apologize on behalf of any one. We respect Islam and hold this religion in high esteem and I am here to testify and speak the truth; what offends and demeans Islam is also an insult to me personally as an Arab Christian. I am proud of the Arab-Islamic civilization.

In our discussion we should not defend Islam because Islam needs no one to defend it. It is a great religion. Instead we should discuss ways to come up with a united strategy between Christians and Muslims because what offends you also offends us as Christians.

We as Christians in Jordan have also played a role in confronting these violations. We have issued a document on Islamic-Christian coexistence in which we emphasized freedom of faith and worship and respect for religious symbols. We also worked in coordination with Christian organizations in Europe to frame a strategy of countering these offences. We also affirmed that while freedom of speech is guaranteed, it nonetheless has limits and should not mean that we have the right to infringe on the freedom of other religions.

The center intends to launch a large scale campaign to respond to these insulting attacks. The document and the campaign will be widely publicized in the West.

The justification given by the Danish newspapers that publishing demeaning caricatures is part of freedom of expression, has in fact nothing to do with this freedom. It is indeed a flagrant violation of this very freedom of expression. 

Hijjawi

Sheikh Said Hijjawi, the former Mufti of Jordan said:

“ Before deciding on a remedy we have to diagnose the disease. When a group of Muslim scholars went to Denmark in 2006 when the insulting cartoons were published for the first time, they discovered that the disease was not just in the head of Denmark; rather it was in the entire European body and that there are hidden hands which have historically role plotted against Islam and Muslims. It seemed that these hands were behind most of world’s problems. This is what we learned from the visit to Denmark.

A well-organized approach should be made at the highest Arab official level, including the Organization of the Islamic Conference, to act swiftly with maximum pressure that impacts on all to respect the symbols of the Islam. This is similar to the approach adopted by the Jews when they use the label of anti-Semitism as a weapon and pressure the rest of the world to respect their religion. The Islamic states must come up with a united stand.  Both the government and the people must work vigorously to adopt a clear and well defined strategy to present the true image of Islam.” 

Al Issa       

Dr. Mohammad Kheir Al-Issa, the Mufti of the Public Security Department said:

“ Freedom ends when it offend other faiths. What has happened in Denmark is a flagrant violation of the freedom of religion and worship.

There must be an formal approach to open dialogue with the party (the Christian) to specify the limits of this freedom. This should be supported by a decree from the church in Rome to condemn these violations. Dialogue with the those who are not Muslim should not be at the grassroots level but at the level of  governments and official organizations on both sides”. 

Gharaibeh

Dr. Irhayel al-Gharaibeh, the Deputy Secretary General of the Islamic Action Front thanked FI media group for organizing this seminar. He said:

“The media have an essential roles to clarify the facts. Similarly, Christian organizations in the Arab and Muslim countries have their role to expound the truth about the Islam and to explain this to Christian communities around the globe.

Peoples can play a more effective role by utilizing boycotts as a civilized and legitimate weapon which can be developed to become a comprehensive strategy that influences governments which abuse other religions.

We should always be constantly aware of our concerns and rights which are being violated by the western people. Our reaction should not be from one issue that arises to another. The attacks against Islam are continuous. There is a military onslaught, a cultural attack and a missionary campaign in more than one Muslim country.

There are the Zionist Christian groups that believe in the Jewish state and promote the idea of a clash of civilization between Muslims and Christians thus stirring the extremist thinking in the West. Unfortunately, this anti-Islamic campaign is growing. Many Republican leaders in the US embrace this extremist ideology to fuel more hostility between Muslims and Christians.

The Islamic discourse should be strong, but not militant and united in the face of this demonization”.

 Ayatuallah al-Muayyad

 Sheikh Ayatullah al-Muayyad said:

“Offending Islam and Muslims is no longer just a narrowly restricted activity. It is being waged deliberately and it requires a carefully thought-out response that is equally proportional to the size of the danger posed by this anti-Islamic campaign.

There were many reasons for this phenomenon. One is the result of the end of the cold war and the establishment of the new world order. In the twenteith century there were two dominant powers, the communists and the western capitalists. With the end of communism the conflict turned into one of a religious nature. Thus, instead of launching a cross cultural dialogue, these different cultures came into conflict with each other. Within this conflict, Islam has become the ‘other’ party.

The second reason behind this phenomenon is extremism in parts of the Muslim world. The West exploited this to advance its hostility to Islam,

The campaign waged against Islam is designed to weaken the Islamic world and prevent it from resuming its role in leading the world. It also aims to distort the bright and positive image of Islam and to provide a cover for the failure of western culture to create cultural balance and harmony in the West. This failure is being covered up by creating conflict with other cultures”. 

Dr. Ibdah

Dr. Abdel Rahman Ibdah, the Assistant Secretary-General of the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs said:

The repetition of these offences against Islam is meant to merely draw a reaction from the other party --the Muslims.

However, the more the westerners abuse Islam and Muslims the more they close the door to dialogue which makes it appear as if they are afraid of this dialogue. This means that the campaign is counterproductive for them. It has a negative impact on the western people.

The Awqaf Ministry has dispatched Muslim Imams and preachers to western countries for dialogue and they met with Muslim communities there in order to teach them how to present the positive image of Islam.

Violent actions by the Muslim masses such as violent demonstrations or the burning or sabotaging of embassies and Christian facilities must be rejected because this is more harmful for Muslims and Islam.

Fortunately, with every attack on Islam more people come forward to embrace the religion”. 

Rababeh

Abdel Qader Rababeh from the Ifta’a Department  said:

“There must be a reasonable and rational reaction. The Quranic verses call for dialogue with the other and the respect of other divine religions. This is our ideology as Muslim and we should not be driven by this campaign to have any conflict with others”. 

Al Shamali

Dr. Yasser Al Shamali, the former dean of the Shariah College and member of the Islamouna Net Religious Commission said:

“We can only convey the message of Islam through moderation and rational dialogue. The western media is dominated by the Zionist lobby which is using it to spark conflict between Islam and Christianity.

It is important to address the Danish government and parliament and try to draw up a universal document that define freedom of expression as well as an international law that could firmly ensure that no religion is abused.”