I’ve always
believed that breaking break is a sure-fire way of helping see people different
from one’s self in clearer, more realistic ways. This conviction came to life
for me last weekend during a breakfast meeting I attended that was held at the
Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, Mich. Dubbed the Interfaith Breakfast,
the annual affair was initially established partly in the name of world peace.
Yet (and not with some measure of irony), it is held each year to host men of
war.
These guests of
honor are Fellows of the National Defense University (NDU) in Washington, DC,
and largely consist of international high ranking military officers from
countries around the world. For the last 5 years the Islamic Center of America
has hosted a breakfast for them prior to their return. The NDU is the premier
center for Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) and is under the
direction of the United States Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. Each year the
Fellows are embark on 15 trips to 20 states around the country. The purpose is
to show these future world leaders the diversity of America. This year, 57
persons from 52 countries participated in the one-year, invitation-only fellowship.
The Interfaith
Breakfast at America’s largest Islamic mosque rounded out the group’s visit to
the Detroit area. It was preceded by a week-long visit to the area, hosted by
General Motors and Ford Motor Company. The annual morning event is an
opportunity for the interfaith community in the region to meet these
distinguished guests and also for the military officers to see the diversity of
America, in terms of cultures, religions and color. According to organizers,
previous participants have found America’s diversity to be an unbelievable
dream, adding that all too often Americans take their richly diverse nation for
granted.
Prior to the
breakfast, guests at the mosque removed their shoes to enter the building’s
sanctuary where prayer is conducted. Beneath the impressive domed structure, a
female facilitator led a Q&A discussion, sharing information about the
mosque in particular and American Muslims in general. For instance, the group
learned that like some other forms of religion, Muslim women may have
leadership roles and positions, with America especially leading the way in this
practice.
The keynote
speaker during the actual breakfast was the local imam. In the Sunni ‘branch’
of Islam under which the people of this Dearborn mosque worship, the imam is a
leader of an Islamic community. Over breakfast, the imam discussed the meeting’s
theme: for people from differing places to ‘know each other.’ He also made
reference to their holy book, the Koran, mentioning facts I was unaware of –
like the story of Adam and Eve being within its pages, and that Jesus is mentioned
more than 120 times. The imam also pointed out that the Koran devotes an entire
chapter to Jesus’ birth mother, Mary.
I listened in
relative astonishment at these revelations and wondered how many of my fellow
Americans were aware of this information. I learned even more about Islam from
the people at my table. My biggest take away from the breakfast was something I
suspected all along: Muslims are like Christians in more ways than not – especially
those born in the U.S., and that we share many of the same values, such as love
of family, peace, and respect for others. They also love their home, America.
Their biggest hope is to be judged less as a group and more as individuals.
That seems a common theme these days.
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