The proposed mosque on the site of the September 11 Terrorist Attack on the World Trade Center in New York is intended as Islamic triumphalism. Indeed, minarets, which are the towers on mosques from which muezzins call Muslims to prayer, are symbols of Islamic military conquest.
The message a mosque at such a site in particular, unlike any other site, would convey is that the reward for a terrorist attack by Muslims on a Western target that destroys major buildings is that a mosque can then be built in its place, which would incentivize additional attacks by militant jihadis intend on spreading Islam through holy war. The presence of a mosque at the sight of a militant Muslim terrorist strike would suggest that the jihadist enemy is winning the War on Terrorism, which would thereby aid its morale and win new recruits to its cause of holy war against non-Muslims.
Moreover, as I have noted previously, Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, was highly successful in military conquest, which attracted others to convert to this new religion, as his success seemed to confirm that he was being favored by Allah, while others were converted by force. Muhammad’s successors were also successful in conquering vast lands and winning many new converts for Islam. There have been several waves of Islamic militancy ever since, including the present. Therefore, it is necessary to defeat militant Muslims on the battlefield in order to prove that their leaders are not divinely favored. The placement of the proposed mosque on such a battlefield would confirm Islamic victory and suggest divine approval of their cause and even their strategy of terrorism. Furthermore, it is also necessary to defeat them militarily because they will not stop until they have conquered all lands for Islam and forced everyone to submit.
Some have argued that the freedom of religion requires the proponents of the mosque to be allowed to practice their religion freely, even to the extent of placing a mosque wherever they wish. The militant Muslim enemy would interpret its ability to use Western permissive interpretations of liberty against the Christian West as a sign of Western weakness and, by contrast, Islamic strength, which would further suggest that Allah favors Islam over Christianity. No one has a right to spread his faith through violence, even if only indirectly, which is what the proponents of the mosque at the bloodiest site of the September 11 terrorist attack would be doing.
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A few days ago, the Chicago Tribune reported that President O'Bama supported the move to build a Mosque near ground zero while at a Friday, White House hosted gathering to honor the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. He stated that "commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable." He also stated that "Ground zero is indeed hallowed ground."
While I agree with our President that we need to preserve the value of religious freedom, something is missing from the sincerity of his statement. President O'Bama is quite silent on the support of Christians. St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, also near Ground Zero was destroyed by the 9/11 attack. The owners are struggling to maintain this land, while the city is trying to claim the land under "eminent domain." See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sj8HKiFRnog. Where is President O'Bama defending the Christians? Likewise, does President O'Bama have the White House host Christian holidays, particularly Christmas? Does the President have the White House host Jewish holidays?
I am reminded of the contemplative Sisters who had a convent in Auschwitz. Their prime apostolate was to pray daily for the victims of the holocaust tragedy and victims of war and violence. There were many protests coming from the Jewish community. In order to resolve the conflict, and to prevent any further harm, to keep peace without serious ramifications, Pope John Paul II asked them to move elsewhere, while maintaining their apostolate.. The Sisters move.
This is my position on the Mosque. Many people believe in the President's value of freedom of religion, but see this Mosque as a source of controversies, which may have serious consequences. For some the Mosque is a symbol of peace coming from Islam. For many non-Muslims, it is a triumph for Islam. Which ever way we believe, my hope is that all religions will be safe to worship freely according to their beliefs. I hope that if the Muslims succeed, violence will not erupt.
Lastly, I believe our President needs to be more consciously aware of this with Jews and Christians. He has no need to do this for Islam, he is already setting a prime example for the freedom of Muslims to worship in the United States and the world.
God bless.
Thank you, and God bless you, too. And thank you for your congratulations last week for the 2,000th visit to my blog.
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