Islamic Council of NE Hosts National Mid-Atlantic Dialogue between Catholics and Muslims in Worcester
By Tahir Ali
Photos by Majid Ali
Worcester: “The collective happiness of the society depends on human conduct,” Dr Riaz Khan observed at a banquet held at the Worcester Islamic Center (WIC), hosted by the Islamic Council of New England (ICNE). Dr Riaz Khan, past president of ICNE and one of its founding members, was quite eloquent when he added, “The ethnic and religious polarization, cultivation of cultural divisions, and a relentless fueling of ideological differences by the evangelists, media pundits, civilization experts, opinion makers, and soulless politicians lead to the conclusion that a more turbulent time lies ahead for humanity. It is disturbing to note that we have made an amazing progress in just about every field of life except the one that matters the most – the human conduct.” Dr Khan paused and glanced over the audience and distinguished guests, and said, “This brings the necessity of Interfaith Dialogue.”
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) have sponsored the Mid-Atlantic dialogue between Catholics and Muslims jointly since 1996. This time the Northeastern region been selected, ICNE serving as the host. Dr Khan, elaborating on that acknowledgement, thanked the ICNA officials, WIC officials, Helping Hand, and Archdiocese of NY Father Brian McWeeney of USCCB.
Dr Mohammed Ramzan, WIC president, welcomed everyone and thanked the organizers for selecting WIC as the host venue. He emphasized the need of such dialogues to reduce and eliminate the hatred and racism embedded in this society. Naeem Baig, Director of Outreach, ICNA, could not agree more. “For almost 20 years, these dialogues have been going on. We meet on a regular basis." He pointed out that “Dr Zahid Bukhari has been part of this effort from the very beginning. Dr Abdul Jabbar of NY, Professor of Theology Sandra Keating and your [WIC] Imam Asif Hirani have been there for seven years.”
Dr Riaz Khan as “my elder in wisdom” introduced young Yusuf Bremble, ICNE president, who said, “Allah made us all tribes. Let us bring these tribes together. Let’s bridge the gap between these tribes.”
Father Brian thanked Reverend Thomas Ryan of CSP Paulist Center in Boston and Professor Sandra Keaton for their passionate participation in the interfaith dialogues, “In our dialogues there is only one disappointment - that we don’t meet that often. We have a superb relationship with Muslims, beautiful dialogue is pure delight.” Looking across the room to find Naeem Baig, he said, “ICNA has become my life. I cannot escape ICNA. I go for a walk and around the corner there is ICNA distributing food to the needy.”
Tahir Ali told a reporter, "More than ever we need to build and cultivate inter-religious alliances to strengthen our shared values and collectively address issues that affect the moral fabric and well-being of our society. As part of this effort undertaken by ICNA, it’s gratifying to note that this time the northeast region has been selected for a two-day “Mid-Atlantic Catholic Muslim Dialogue”.
The evening ended with a scrumptious dinner, social pleasantries, and photo sessions.
(Tahir Ali is the author of the book 'Muslim Vote Counts')
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