Speaker to discuss Christians, Muslims coexisting peacefully
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BY ERIN ANDERSEN / Lincoln Journal Star
Before Sept. 11, 2001, Islam was simply a religious faith and Muslims were its practitioners.
Most of us thought little about how the differing philosophies of Muslims and Christians could affect the United States and the world.
That was then.
What: Mateen Elass presents the lecture "The Jewel of the Middle East," a look at the unique claims of the Muslim and Christian faiths.
When: 7:30 p.m. Monday
Where: Lincoln Berean Church, 6400 S. 70th St.
Admission: Free
Today, mention Muslim and most Christians grow wary. Some become fearful, saying that Muslims are violent and unyielding in their beliefs.
The religions are very different, agrees the Rev. Mateen Elass, but they can co-exist peacefully — which is part of the message he will bring to Lincoln when he presents a public lecture Monday night at the Lincoln Berean Church and three days of classes at the Christian Leadership College.
The college, which is offered through Lincoln’s Berean Church, offers Christian leaders a worldview of religion through comparisons and contrasts, said Mark Mathewson, academic dean of the college.
“Christians are often accused of not taking the time to understand religious perspectives and world views,” Mathewson said. The college helps leaders gain perspective and understanding and see where various religions intersect.
Mathewson says Elass offers a Christian perspective to understanding Islam.
The son of a Muslim father and Roman Catholic mother, Elass grew up in a secular home in Saudi Arabia surrounded by conservative-thinking Muslims. At age 20, Elass, converted to Christianity.
Educated at Stanford University, Fuller Theological Seminary and the University of Durham in England, Elass is senior pastor of a Presbyterian Church in Edmond, Okla., and author of “Understanding the Koran, A Quick Christian Guide to the Muslim Holy Book.”
To understand the religions, people must recognize what elements are precious to the doctrines, he said in a phone interview from his church office in Edmond.
The prophet Muhammad founded Islam. The Quran is the centerpiece of Islamic life and Islamic law, Elass said.
By comparison, the Bible is the word of God for Christians. But unlike the Quran, the Bible is not the centerpoint. Jesus is, Elass said.
“Its (The Bible’s) purpose is not to stand by itself and for itself, but to point people to Jesus Christ. In Christianity, the official jewel is Christ himself,” he said.
As religions, Islam and Christianity are expansionist and evangelistic.
“Both see it as God’s call to spread their message to the whole world and bring everyone together as either Christian or Islamic,” he said. “The stakes are eternal.
“Muslims believe if you are not Muslim, you will go to hell. Christians believe if your life is not given to Christ, you will go to hell,” he said. “We have competing goals, and if one side advances its goals, the other side has sort of lost ground in reaching its goals.”
So how can the two religions co-exist?
“We can co-exist as long as there is common agreement that we will each proclaim our message and let listeners decide which is the truth, but we will not resort to violence and intimidation,” Elass said.
In fact, Christians have no other option, he said.
“Christians are commanded by Christ to live at peace with all and to love those who consider themselves enemy to us.”
And so, Elass holds on to hope and enthusiasm that while the differences between the religions are great, peace will prevail.
Reach Erin Andersen at 473-7217 or eandersen@journalstar.com.
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Yeah, well, the Christian bible also commands the faithful to kill witches and heretics, and believers did a very good job of that at one time. And I might point out that 'God' told Bush to attack Iraq, or so he claims. Palin says we're doing 'God's will' in Iraq, although she seems to confuse Iraq (which had nothing to do with 9/11) with al Qaeda (which did). For 2,000 years, Christians have rarely "lived at peace with all," especially if they had the power to do otherwise.
Certainly, you Christians have never turned down a chance to kill people in a good war, even when Christians are on the other side, too. But admittedly, most of you have learned to be relatively tolerant (hating other people, but not actually killing them), which is definitely a step forward. It's something Muslims desperately need to learn. But will they?
You want to "let listeners decide which is the truth"? How about neither one? Both are based on faith (i.e. what you've been taught and what you WANT to believe), not on evidence. Personally, I think that both superstitions could do with some good rational thinking,... but as long as we have freedom of religion and a strict separation of church and state, it's really none of my business. THAT is also something Muslim countries need to learn. "