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Dominick Chilcott
Deputy Head of Mission, WashingtonPosted 09 September 2010 by Dominick Chilcott | Comments
The threat by a pastor of a tiny church in Florida to burn the Koran on 11 September gave the Embassy’s second annual Iftar reception last night an even greater purpose and significance.For those of you unfamiliar with an Iftar, it is the traditional breaking of the fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Our wish to commemorate Ramadan was partly a conscious signal of respect for Islam, partly a reflection of the fact that there are about 2.5 million Muslims living in Britain and partly an opportunity to emphasise our belief that differences of religion and faith should not eclipse a more fundamental recognition of our common humanity.
The British Government has unequivocally criticised Pastor Jones’ plan to burn the Koran. A spokesman for the Prime Minister, said Mr Cameron "strongly opposed" any attempt to offend members of a religious group.
And former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who founded his Faith Foundation, after leaving office, to promote understanding between the world's religions, said: "I deplore the act of burning the Koran. It is disrespectful, wrong and will be widely condemned by people of all faiths and none. In no way does this represent the view of any sensible person in the West or any other part of the world.”
Our Iftar also took place in the week following the re-launch, in Washington, of direct peace talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians. And, serendipitously enough, the day itself was also the first night of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. At the launch of the talks, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, referred to the common heritage that Muslims and Jews share, through their veneration of Abraham.
Writing that day in the New York Times, the Imam at the centre of the controversy over the proposal to build an Islamic cultural centre in Lower Manhattan, Faisal Abdul Rauf, also drew attention to the similarities between Islam and Judaism. The very word “Islam”, the Imam pointed out, came from a word cognate of ‘shalom’, which of course means peace in Hebrew. And the part of the Koran regarded by the Prophet Mohammed as the heart of the book contains the verse: “peace is a word spoken from a merciful Lord”.
The UK government welcomes the resumption of peace talks and will do all it can to support a two state solution that sees a viable Palestinian state living beside a secure Israel. We applaud the courage and conviction with which President Abbas and Prime Minister Netanyahu have set out on this difficult journey.
Perhaps the best known mosque in Britain is the golden-domed Regent’s Park mosque. The mosque is joined to an Islamic cultural centre that was opened by King George VI in 1944. We often associate 1944 with D-Day and the Normandy campaign. But it was also the year in which the British fourteenth army succeeded in turning the tide against Japanese forces in India and Burma. That army was the largest volunteer army the world has ever known and a quarter of its soldiers were Muslims. That is just one example from history of Christians and Muslims (and soldiers of other faiths and none) standing shoulder to shoulder to face a common enemy.
At the end of the Iftar, I encouraged our guests to spare a thought for the plight of the 20 million or so Pakistanis, displaced by the terrible floods. Like other governments, the British government is providing humanitarian and other emergency assistance.
The British Embassy in Washington is raising money for Pakistani flood victims. Some of my colleagues are embarking on a 12 hour bike-a-thon; others are holding a bake sale. If you would like to support the bike-a-thon, please visit this website.
Dominick Chilcott
09 September 2010
