Feisal Abdul Rauf

Feisal Abdul Rauf
Born	1948 Kuwait

Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf (Arabic: فيصل عبد الرؤوف, born 1948) is an Arab-American imam, author, and activist for improvement in relations between the Muslim World and the West. For 25 years, he has been Imam of Masjid al-Farah, a New York City mosque. He has written three books on Islam and its place in contemporary Western society, and has founded two non-profit organizations whose collective mission is to enhance the discourse on Islam in society.

Professional career

Abdul Rauf has emerged as a leader in the American Muslim community through his work as a bridge builder between American society, the American Muslim community and the wider Muslim World.

In 1997, Abdul Rauf founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement, a civil society organization aimed at promoting positive engagement between American society and American Muslims. The organization is now headed by his wife, Daisy Khan.

In 2003, Abdul Rauf founded the Cordoba Initiative, another registered nonprofit organization with offices in both New York and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As CEO of Cordoba Initiative, Abdul Rauf coordinates projects that emphasize the bonds that connect the Muslim World and the West.

Abdul Rauf has been Imam of Masjid al-Farah in New York City's Tribeca district since 1983.

Starting in the Spring semester of 2009, he will be an Associate Professor of Islamic Studies at St. Joseph's College's Brooklyn Campus in Brooklyn, New York.

Views

Speaking at his New York mosque in 2004, Imam Feisal said: "The Islamic method of waging war is not to kill innocent civilians. But it was Christians in World War II who bombed civilians in Dresden and Hiroshima, neither of which were military targets." He also said that there could be little progress in Western-Islamic relations until the U.S. acknowledged backing Middle East dictators and give an "American Culpa" speech to the Muslim world, because there are "an endless supply of angry young Muslim rebels prepared to die for their cause and there [is] no sign of the attacks ending unless there [is] a fundamental change in the world".

In a 60 Minutes interview shortly after the September 11 attacks Imam Rauf said, "Fanaticism and terrorism have no place in Islam" and went on to say, "I wouldn't say that the United States deserved what happened, but the United States policies were an accessory to the crime that happened." When the interviewer asked Rauf how he considered the U.S. an accessory, the Imam replied, "Because we have been accessory to a lot of innocent lives dying in the world. In fact, in the most direct sense, Osama bin Laden is made in the USA."

During an interview on New York WABC radio in June 2010, Imam Rauf declined to say whether he agreed with the U.S. State Department's designation of Hamas as a terrorist organization. Responding to the question, Rauf said, "I'm not a politician. I try to avoid the issues. The issue of terrorism is a very complex question... I am a peace builder. I will not allow anybody to put me in a position where I am seen by any party in the world as an adversary or as an enemy."

Cordoba House

In December 2009, Imam Feisal announced plans to build Cordoba House, a 13-story community center, including a mosque, two blocks from ground zero, winning support from the local Community Board, as well as elected officials, but also protests from some 9/11 families and others. The Imam's wife, Daisy Khan, who is the executive director of the ASMA Society, speaking at a public hearing in Lower Manhattan on May 25, 2010, is widely quoted as having said building a community center two blocks from ground zero was "no big deal." The building of the mosque, as well as the initiative itself, was criticized by other Muslims, such as Sufi mysticist Suleiman Schwartz, who says that a building built by Rauf barely two blocks from ground zero, is inconsistent with Sufi philosophy of simplicity of faith and sensitivity towards others. Similarly, the Anti-Defamation League, the leading Jewish civil rights group in the United States, also opposed the construction of the mosque, saying that a mosque at that site will cause more pain for some victims of 9/11. Another Jewish political group, J Street, supported the construction.

Selected works

Abdul Rauf has written four books:

• What's Right with Islam: a New Vision for Muslims and the West (HarperCollins, 2004)
• Islam: A Sacred Law (Threshold books, 2000)
• Islam: A Search for Meaning (Mazda, 1996)
• A Call to Prayer from the WTC Rubble: Islamic Da'wah from the Heart of America Post 911 (Mizan, 2007) (Published under that title only in Malaysia, Seruan Azan Dari Puing WTC:Dakwah Islam di Jantung Amerika Pasca 9/11) [2]

Abdul Rauf has also contributed numerous chapters and other pieces to notable publications, including:

• “Preventing Chaos.” The Star (Malaysia). 9 Mar. 2008.
• “Asceticism in Islam.” Cross Currents. Winter, 2008, (vol. 57 No. 4) ed. by Pederson, Kusumita.
• “The Ideals We Share.” Newsweek. 31 July 2007. with Khan, Daisy.
• “The End of Barbarism: The Phenomenon of Torture and the Search for Common Good.” Pursuing the Global Common Good: Principle and Practice in US Foreign Policy. Washington, DC: Center for American Progress, 2007. with William F. Schulz, ed. by Steenland, Sally et al.
• "What is Sunni Islam?" in Voices of Islam: Voices of Tradition, vol. 1 of 3, ed. Vincent J. Cornell. Westport: Praeger Publishers, 2007.
• “Al-Qaeda’s Greatest Fear may be US Leaving Iraq.” Aspen Times. 11 Oct. 2006. with Bennett, John.
• Arab Reform Final Report. New York: Council on Foreign Relations, 2005. with Albright, Madeleine, et al.
• “Bringing Muslim Nations into the Global Century.” Fortune Magazine. 18 Oct. 2004.

External links

• Imam Feisal's page on the Washington Post/Newsweek "On Faith" blog [3]
• ASMA Society Bio [4]