In response to pastor Perry Jones’ horrific burning of the Qur’an in March, the Salt Lake community is stepping up. Throughout this week the Wasatch Presbyterian Church in partnership with the King’s English Bookstore has distributed over seventy free Qur’ans, the holy book of Islam, to our community.
Included with the book is a bookmark which states, “This book was donated by the leaders of Wasatch Presbyterian Church who are not afraid of truth wherever it can be found”. Also included were handouts from the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community which explained the peaceful nature of Islam. Anna Holman, the general manager of the King’s English Bookstore, said distribution of these books is a crucial way to participate in our community and promote understanding. I think this is an inspirational example of religious pluralism and “loving one another”.
This Salt Lake event couldn’t have been timed better either. Isn’t it ironic that the distribution of free Qur’ans in our community occurred the same week as the death of Osama Bin Laden? Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda’s cruel acts of terrorism can be blamed for the powerful intolerance of Islam in the United States today. Under the direction of this Muslim man thousands of American’s lost their lives.
On the other hand, killing Bin Laden will not end our wars, will not cause radical Islam to end, and will not teach our children religious tolerance. Rather, I believe, it will teach future generations that “an eye for an eye” is justice. Are we really just in our patriotic anti-Islamic celebrations that have dominated our T.V. screens this week?
In my opinion, this invitation to seek truth within the Qur’an by Wasatch Presbyterian Chirch is the best way to celebrate this “victory” and is the most important step to ending our conflicts with the Middle East. As Obama said following the death of the Al-Qaeda leader, “We are not at war with Islam”.
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