National Cathedral In Washington, D.C., To Hold Muslim Prayers On Friday – Dc Gazette

National Cathedral In Washington, D.C., To Hold Muslim Prayers On Friday – Dc Gazette

National Cathedral In Washington, D.C., To Hold Muslim Prayers On Friday

11/10/2014

If the founders of the United States weren’t rolling in their graves already, this should do it:

Washington National Cathedral and five Muslim groups announced today the first celebration of Muslim Friday prayers (Jumaa) at the Cathedral on Friday, November 14.

Leaders believe offering Muslim prayers at the Christian cathedral shows more than hospitality. It demonstrates an appreciation of one another’s prayer traditions and is a powerful symbolic gesture toward a deeper relationship between the two Abrahamic traditions.

So now Muslims are getting the Episcopalians to do their bidding?  (Yes, the National Cathedral is Episcopalian.)  Note the choice of churches to invade is not St. Matthew’s Cathedral or the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception or even the Mormon Temple, but the symbolic church of the country used for state occasions.

The opportunity grew out of a trusted relationship between the Cathedral’s liturgical director, the Rev. Canon Gina Campbell, and South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool, who met while planning the national memorial service for Nelson Mandela.
Rasool, who is also an Islamic religious thinker and leader, brought together Muslim leaders from the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS), Masjid Muhammad (the Nation’s Mosque), the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), and the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) for this historic event.

“Deep relationships come out of prayer,” said Canon Campbell. “Different connections come out of being in prayer–beyond the political or academic.”

Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart.   We Catholics can tell stories about what happened in Europe prior to the First Crusade and how our cathedrals and great churches were appropriated, torn down and replaced by mosques following the tolerance and “let’s pray together” phase.  Several former mosques in Spain still exist.  All Christians ever get out of trying to get along with Muslims is pushed out of the way.
This is not a positive development.