WASHINGTON, DC (21.11.2016) – Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi, Director of the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers in Washington DC, spoke Friday on the deep sense of solidarity interfaith communities have shared following the 2016 U.S. election.
In an appearance on Aljazeera’s Min Washington, Elsanousi emphasized the importance of building alliances and working together to uphold the American values of religious freedom and the rule of law enshrined in the U.S. Constitution in the coming months. He stressed that the critical collaboration the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers has striven to foster within interfaith communities will continue to grow with renewed commitment to inclusive peace and coexistence.
Though Elsanousi acknowledged the increase in anti-Islam sentiment at this time, he pointed to the outpouring of support for Muslim communities from communities across the U.S. as cause for hope. Prior to Friday’s interview, Elsanousi attended a Shoulder to Shoulder Campaign press conference on the steps of Masjid Muhammad, the oldest mosque in the nation’s capital, which demonstrated the strong bonds between diverse faith communities and their Muslim brothers and sisters.
Muslim, Christian, Jewish, and Buddhist leaders spoke on behalf of their congregations and denominations to express their support for the American Muslim community and participate in Friday prayers at the mosque. One of these leaders, Bishop Bill Gafkjen, Chair of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Conference of Bishops, stated:
“In coming to know our Muslim neighbors, we have become familiar with this verse from the Qur’an: O Humankind, indeed we have made you from male and female, and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Today, as we gather as peoples and tribes who have come to know and love one another, we also come together committed to standing for the dignity of every person, all created in God’s image. We stand together committed to defending whatever rises up as bigotry, violence, and hatred, wherever it exists…
We serve as ministers of reconciliation in a time of deep division and we seek to find ways to become ourselves signs of hope. Some of those signs of hope are emerging already… Through dialogue, and joint community projects, these religious communities have come together to know one another in the ways that God intended, and as such, they are a force for peace. They are salaam: peace in this world.”
Watch full Arabic-language interviews with Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi of the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers on Aljazeera, Min Washington and Alhurra.