An Event to Follow

This week (July 28-31), Yale University is hosting the “Loving God and Neighborhood in Word and Deed: Implications for Muslims and Christians” conference, involving more than 60 Muslim participants (mostly from the Middle East), a similar number of Christians (including Brian McLaren), and nine Jewish guests.

An “emergent” turn among some Muslims will surely draw multiple reactions.  Consider the following post:

“I hate to admit it, but I don’t like going to mosques. Whether it’s the crudely written signs informing me I must cover myself, or the awkward way men and women avoid each other, or the Friday preaching that is just so irrelevant to my life, I usually feel happiest when I’m walking out the door.

I long for a Muslim environment that is spiritually fresher, deeper, and, perhaps most importantly, untainted by a Saudi-style conservatism or bitterness over the war on terror. With a small but growing number of “emergent Christians” – and now “emergent Jews” – reinventing the very idea of religious communities, I have also begun to hope for the emergence of a post-modern, post-9/11 Muslim faith life.”


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