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Why I Meet With Muslim Leaders |
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There are a number of reasons why I seek to build friendships and practical working relationships with Muslim leaders. Firstly, the commands of Jesus make it very clear that we have an obligation to love our friends, love our neighbors, love our fellow believers and to love our enemies. That pretty well includes all of humanity. The first step toward communicating about Jesus Christ is the step of friendship and mutual respect. It is very difficult for anyone to receive the truth about Jesus unless it is first being presented in an atmosphere of trust and respect. Secondly, I have found that Muslim leaders really want Christians to speak out in our nations and often they would like to add their voices to ours. They are more comfortable when they are dealing with Christians who are clear about their biblical foundations and strong in their faith in Jesus Christ. They find it hard to understand those whose faith is less certain. Another reason I met with Sir Iqbal and the Evangelical Alliance leadership was to open discussions about how we can present a unified front in the face of secularism which is consistently eroding the fundamental values of our society. We can join together on important subjects like the sanctity of life and the role of the traditional family in society. In fact, I believe that we can find agreement on a very wide range of important subjects as we seek to be salt and light in our western nations. Christians in the west are well aware of areas in which we disagree with Muslims and their society, but I have concluded over the years that we tend to magnify the differences out of all proportion. We often allow the fear of extremists to shape our attitude to all Muslims. In truth, we share many common values and desires. I have to say, as I have spent time in Muslim societies, I admire many of their qualities. In fact, in the wide range of Muslim societies there are some things which I find very attractive. Many who read this article might take exception to that idea, but that is usually because our opinions are shaped by the media, not by personal and relational experience. Our scriptures speak much about the fear of God and being God-centered in our thinking, but our western materialistic environment excludes God from conversation and the normal routines of life. In most Muslim societies, God is still very much at the center and the subject of many conversations. Because of this, I believe the Muslim minorities in our western nations can often be valuable allies with Christians. I think we are mistaken when we identify Muslims as our greatest opposition. Let me illustrate. Some years ago, I was in Istanbul for the Reconciliation Walk. I was with a friend, walking near the Blue Mosque. In a most unusual coincidence, he recognized an American woman walking down the street. We stopped to chat and she let us know she was part of an intercession movement and was in Istanbul because she felt it was the central stronghold of enemy resistance to the gospel. She asked us, "Where do you think the strongest Principalities are?" The answer that immediately sprang to my mind was not a Muslim stronghold, but rather shopping malls back in America and other western nations. In my opinion, when it comes to dulling the spiritual senses there is nothing more powerful than the secular materialism of our consumer society. Even if I did think that Islam was our greatest threat, I would still try to make friendships with Muslims. I participated in these recent meetings and have initiated many others because our polarization and lack of personal contact with the Muslim populations of our nations is dangerous. When we allow the impersonal forces of the news media, books, and other written, visual and tele-visual materials to shape our opinions, we are in peril. I believe Christians need Muslim friends to help them understand how to relate to the people of this other monotheistic faith. As we reach out in friendship to them, we also provide a moderating force that counteracts their more radical elements. You can see that I believe there are many good reasons to reach out to Muslim neighbors, leaders of mosques and Muslim colleagues. If every Christian made a point of building trust with the Muslims they are in contact with, this would be a safer, more God-centered world. In addition, Jesus still commands us to love all—even those whom we fear are our enemies. --Lynn Green is YWAM's International Chairman in 'International YWAMer Magazine', February - May 2007 |
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