Session has started. Please submit your questions. We apologize beforehand for not being able to answer all of your questions due to time limitation.
Answer
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Name
MG
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Profession
Question
Dear Dr. Campo,
There is a wide observation that American society, in comparison to many societies in Europe, is more religious, i.e., religion continues to form a good part of social consensus. How do you attribute this? Is it due to the fact that America did not witness the same dispute between sciences, arts, and the Church? Has there not been any friction within American society between science and religion?
Answer
Religion is taken more seriously in America than in Europe. This is due to several factors. First, when America began to be colonized in the 16th & 17th centuries, many of the first colonists came here to escape religious persecution in Europe. In other words, they came to practice their religion more freely. This is the Puritan strain of Protestant Chrsitianity that established itself in New England. Other colonies had Catholic populations. Pennsylvania is known for having been a Quaker colony. Spanish colonization occurred more in Mexico, but it too was tied to the spread of Catholic Christianity among the indigenous peoples—even with the use of force. There were no strong anti-religious parties among the colonists.
When the US was created out of these colonies in the 1770s, many of the founders (Hamilton, Jefferson, Franklin, Washington, etc.) were Deists. That means that they believed in a universal God, but that he did not require following a particular church or religion. They therefore included in the Constitution the first amendment, which prohibits both the “establishment” of religion by the state and an effort to prevent “the free exercise” of religion. In other words, government was not to impose religion on the citizens, nor was it to interfere with their religious practice. This created a large space within which Americans have been able to follow the church or religion of their choice, to create new ones, or not to have any at all.
Yes, there have been clashes between science and religion. These have become more pronounced in public life in the last few decades. Secularists argued that scientific thought should prevail and that the Bible was not meant to be read literally. Today, major issues concern stem-cell research and right-to-life issues.
Name
Bo Azza
- Tunisia
Profession
Question
Since the 9/11 attacks, the "War on Terror" has been in the forefront of the US political scene.
Has this negatively affected the Muslim minority status in the US until this day?
Thank you for your time.
Answer
Dear Bo Azza,
The Muslim community has many different facets to it. Immigrant Muslims (about 60% of Muslims in the US) have especially been affected negatively— they experience it most when they go through customs. Right after 9/11, many were forced to prove that they were in the US legally, some were imprisoned and/or deported. There have also been hundreds of documented instances of harassment, as well as vandalism against mosques. FBI has also been closely monitoring mosques and Islamic charities.
More positively, the 9/11 events have called Muslims to engage in more public dialogue with non-Muslims and to get involved with democratic politics and the media. Many have college educations and are professional people who are affirming American freedoms to assemble, protest, and work together with other Americans on behalf of civil rights. New coalitions have formed as a result.
Name
Ahmad
- Canada
Profession
Question
On the dollar there is a clear statement that says "In God we trust."
This gives religion a strong weight in what comprises and American identity, if we may use such a term.
Some observers, based on that understanding, argue that America was founded on religion, and therefore its sympathies with Israel lie in the fact that they were both founded by a religious group that immigrated to find a new home and establish its own state. Do you agree with this notion? Do you feel that this is the root of the bond between America and Israel?
Answer
Dear Ahmad,
I think you have two different questions in mind. What goes on the dollar bill is one thing. Relations between America and Israel is something else. The dollar reflects the deistic religion of the country’s founders, including secret Masonic symbols (e.g., the pyramid with the all-seeing eye).
Israel, unlike the US, was not founded by religious Jews. Most of them were very secular, and more likely to be socialist or communist in outlook. One of the most important developments in Israel since its founding, therefore, has been how it has increasingly become a Jewish religious state. This became evident in Israeli politics with the election of Menachem Begin in the late 1970s.
In the US there were very strong anti-Semitic attitudes until after WW II. Indeed, Jews fleeing the Holocaust were refused entry into the US, and it is known that Roosevelt knew about the concentration camps during the war, but did nothing about them. That relation began to change when Truman became President and he recognized Israel when it was founded. Even then, US policy was not as biased in favor of Israel until after the 1967 war. Remember that Eisenhower intervened to force the withdrawal of Israeli, British, & French troops during the Suez war.
Name
Adam
- Egypt
Profession
Question
Are Muslims an active group in the decision-making process of US policy?
If not, then how can they assume this kind of role?
Answer
Dear Adam,
American Muslims have had little if any role in shaping American foreign policy. Many have been recent immigrants and had other priorities. Also, many wanted to pursue professions like medicine, pharmacy, and engineering. This steered many away from involvement in public policy and politics. In the last 10 years this has changed somewhat. Younger Muslims, educated in US schools and universities, are taking a more active interest in international affairs and are getting involved with policy-related organizations and advocacy groups. There is still a lot to be done to even come close to matching the influence of pro-Israel lobbies on US policy. CAIR and MPAC are among the organizations that are attempting to play this role.
Some are also becoming familiar with how to use the media. Yes, there are Muslims who work in broadcasting now, but they do not seem to have had an impact yet. It may only be a matter of time.
Name
Samar
- Syria
Profession
Question
What are your observations of Islam and the way it is practiced in the US? Having studied the religion, do you feel there is a gap between theory and practice?
If there is a gap, do you feel that it is the same in other religions practiced in the US?
Answer
Dear Samar,
In general, I note that there are always gaps between what a religion proposes (or requires) and what a religious person or group disposes (or actually does).
The growth in the number of mosques in the US, with religious education classes that they offer, helps inform American Muslims about the requirements of Islam. This was not always the case in the past. There is also widespread availability of books and magazines in English, plus all the internet resources. Regular mosque attendance, like church and synagogue attendance for Christians and Jews, only involves a fraction of America’s Muslims.
The duties of Islam that I think most American Muslims try to follow are fasting during Ramadan (but maybe not the whole month) and observing the dietary rules, especially the prohibition against pork. I think they are more relaxed when it comes to other aspects of the religion. Of course, there is always a minority who try to adhere to all the requirements (fard and the mustahab). Because of American civil law, this is not always possible, as is the case with marriage and divorce.
Name
Jay
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Profession
Question
Why do you think has religion lost its trust in Western society? Why is it that religious people are often mocked as either fanatics who believe in nonsense or terrorists out there to kill? Do you feel a difference in the US from Europe regarding that matter?
Answer
Dear Jay,
The history of public attitudes towards religion in the West is one that has gone through different phases since the 18th century. It is difficult to generalize. Also, much of the negative discourse in public about religion is more with relation to organized religion rather than individual religiosity and spirituality.
Nevertheless, we can look back in part to the Protestant Reformation, which condemned the authorities and rituals of the Roman Catholic Church. Centuries of religio-political warfare between Catholics and Protestants plagued Europe subsequently. This gave rise to a new spirit that surfaced in the French Revolution, one that favored human reason over religious dogma and ritual, and one that called for the destruction, or containment, of the Church.
Scientific thinking was divorced from religious belief, which came to be seen a full of the irrational and superstitions. Philosophical currents in the Age of the Enlightenment gave an intellectual basis to this outlook— Voltaire, Kant, Feuerbach, Compte, and ultimately Marx and Freud.
Name
Shawkat
- Pakistan
Profession
Question
There are serious endevours on both sides, Muslims and Christians, to understand each other.
However, misundertanding seems to overshadow any instance of cooperation or mutual involvement between the two sides, whether inside the US or elsewhere.
What are the reasons of these never-ending misconceptions?
Answer
Dear Shawkat,
To some extent “misunderstandings” between religions are shaped by historical circumstances, rather than lack of knowledge or understanding. In other words, I don’t think there are any historians who would argue that the medieval Crusades were a matter of misunderstanding between Christians and Muslims. The same could be said for attacks by al-Qaeda against the US, or vice versa (leaving aside the question as to whether al-Qaeda is Islamic or not).
There are also barriers to understanding brought about when Christianity and Islam are being framed in terms of the outlook of religious maximalists, in contrast to secularists and others who would minimize the influence of belief in their relations with others. From the maximalist perspective, both religions have strong missionary impulses (the desire to go out and convert), which implies “my religion is better than yours,” no matter how well a person understands the religion of the other. Along with this is a belief that their scripture is the true word of God, which, when taken literally, will create a serious barrier for Muslims and Christians to overcome.
Fortunately, not all religious people are maximalists. Engaging in dialogue is an important step in the right direction for these people. At least they can find points of agreement, and where they differ, they can find it in their hearts to “agree to disagree” and move on from there in the spirit of mutual understanding, acceptance, and cooperation.
Name
Omar
- Saudi Arabia
Profession
Question
What kind of projects do followers of different faiths work on to further understand one another in the US?
I would appreciate it if you use Muslims as an example.
Answer
Dear Omar,
There are many opportunities for engaging in interfaith activities. The most effective occur on the local level—in the community and on university campuses. After 9/11 I have seen more of this happening in the US than ever before. Local churches have organized outreach activities to Muslims & Jews. Leaders of Islamic organizations get together with open-minded leaders of non-Muslim religious organizations. There are also interfaith conferences.
In my own community, the Islamic Society has organized interfaith Ramadan iftar dinners, making sure that important community and non-Muslim religious leaders are invited. The campus MSA organized an interfaith iftar to raise funds for New Orleans flood victims and Pakistani earthquake victims. Such activities sometimes receive press coverage, too, which helps. Jewish & Muslim dialogue groups have also formed in some locations. Obviously, these are healthy developments, and more is needed.
