Blog Stage 3: A critique

Have you heard of the mosque proposed to be built on the site of the Trade Towers? It has caused quite a controversy. Robert Wright put together an opinion piece in the New York Times about it.

For the most part, I agree with his point of view. He is very cirtical of the officials in New York and their snap reactions to the mosque. He paints them in a very judgmental and narrow-minded light. I think there is a larger emotional picture that he has failed to take into account though. If the Islamic world wants to show that it is in large part a peaceful group of people, that's fantastic. Outreach from Islam to Christianity and vice versa would be a huge step to resolving global issues. Putting a mosque on the site of the Trade Towers however, is the wrong answer. The intent may be (and in all likelihood is) good, but that would be like pouring salt into an exposed, gaping wound then washing it out with alcohol. It's too large and ambitious a step with 9/11 only 9 years behind us and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan still costing the lives of US citizens on foreign soil. I agree with the New York officials as far as the construction of the mosque. Don't do it. Not right now.

Still, Mr. Wright is correct in his critique of those same officials' reactions and opinions and their reasoning for them. I would like to point out a few facts regarding Christianity and Islamic faiths. Islam has more followers than Christianity, followers who believe just as strongly as devout Christians that what they believe is correct. Absolutely and undeniably correct beyond any question or doubt whatsoever. So if we base our views of what is right and wrong on majority vote (a core American tenet), then Islam carries the day. Secondly, there are as many radical, even terrorist Christian cells as there are Islamic. Just this year, raids were carried out in 3 different states on Christian extremist groups who were planning attacks on Islamic people. The existence of these groups and their goals are eerily reminiscent of the ideology of the Trade Tower attackers albeit on a much smaller scale. The KKK is also a Christian group, and they committed atrocities for decades without reprisal on US territory even. My point is that we should not blanket Islam as an evil religion. 99 percent of the Muslim/Islamic world is peaceful and wants it to stay that way. It's the extremist groups we need to concern ourselves with. Both Islamic and Christian.

In summary, I believe the officials in New York absolutely have the right to disallow the construction of the mosque on the Trade Towers site and should do so. It would do them well, however, to step back from their anger and narrow views and reconsider their conception of Islam. Mr. Wright does an excellent job of exposing the ridiculousness of some of their reasoning and points out the need for deep cultural change within our nation, especially it's Christian culture.