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IslamOnline Speaks At Interfaith Conference
By Ayub Khan
CHICAGO, May 18 (IslamOnline) - Dina Rashed, an IslamOnline correspondent based in Chicago, spoke on the topic of "The Umma and the Internet" on the second day of the First Annual Catholic-Muslim Studies Conference held in Chicago on Wednesday.
The conference, held at the Catholic Theological Union, attracted several leading scholars, teachers, journalists, students and others involved in interfaith work.
Dina Rashed spoke on the origins of the IslamOnline project and its objectives, goals, and accomplishments in promoting Islam and in building both interfaith and intrafaith bridges throughout the world using the medium of Internet.
She said that the IslamOnline project was in actuality a brainchild of one of the students of prominent jurist Sheikh Yusuf Al Qaradawi who wanted to change the prevailing misrepresentation of Muslims in the U.S. media, especially in the wake of the Oklahoma City bombing.
Even though the bombing turned out to be an act of a homegrown all-American terrorist, fingers were initially pointed at Muslims who were made an easy scapegoat.
Continuing with her presentation, Rashed said that under such circumstances, in
1999, around 160 top Muslim scholars from around the world gathered in Qatar to discuss the prevailing suspicion and mistrust perceived against Muslims, and solutions for correcting the misperceptions.
The scholars decided to present Islam via the Internet under primarily three categories: 1) Dawah, 2) Journalism and 3) a Fatwa Bank.
Thereafter, IslamOnline was launched in earnest in 1999 and has now expanded into a comprehensive website covering many aspects of the faith. One of its most popular sections is the Fatwa Bank, which between October 1999 and October 2000 has delivered over 16,200 fatwas.
Another attractive section of IslamOnline is the Cyber Counselor, which is a big draw among the youth.
In addition, many non-Muslims site visitors tend to frequently visit both the Fatwa and Cyber Counselor sections.
Commenting on some of the guiding principles of IslamOnline Rashed said that the site addresses various groups - Muslims and Non-Muslims, Shias and
Sunnis -, that it is tolerant in language, that stress is laid on the true spirit of the Qur'an and Sunnah as understood by the early Muslim community and that Islamic goals and values are of prime importance.
Rashed said that IslamOnline is keen to develop and connect people of various groups with interfaith and cross-cultural dialogue. It also strives to connect the immigrant Muslims in the West to their homelands.
Speaking on the future vision of IslamOnline, she said it is hoped that the site will be presented in all Muslim languages and that more non-Muslims will contribute their opinions on the site. She also hoped that more Catholics will be involved in erasing the stereo-typical portrayal of
Islam in the West.
Dina's speech was followed by a lively question and answer session in which non-Muslim participants appeared very keen to know more about IslamOnline and asked several questions, especially regarding the Fatwa Bank.
Other speakers at Wednesday's session of the conference included Ghulam Haider Aasi of the American Islamic College, Amina McCloud of Depaul University and Michael Vander Weele of Trinity Christian College.
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