Christians and Muslims—how should we relate to each other? Through violent competition, through
conversion efforts, through keeping our distance, through loving our neighbors,
through working together for peace? All
these
options have been exercised by Christians and by Muslims. Both
religions, along with Judaism, trace their spiritual roots back to
Abraham, but the relationships of these religious siblings has been
highly conflicted over the centuries.
Five years ago 130 Muslim scholars from various Muslim
traditions from around the world issued an open letter to the heads of global
Christians communions, including the Vatican, Orthodox Patriarchs, the
Archbishop of Canterbury, and the Baptist World Alliance. The letter was titled from a phrase in the
Qur’an, “A Common Word between Us and You.”
In the letter these Muslim scholars set forth two things that Christians
and Muslims have in common: Calling
people to love God and to love our neighbors.
The Muslim scholars asserted that these two calls can be the basis for
how the two largest religious bodies in the world relate to one another. Various Christian communities formally
responded to the Common Word document including the Baptist World
Alliance. These documents can all be
found on-line at http;//www.acommonword.org.
In Boston this November 30th through December 2nd
Muslim and Baptist leaders from North America gathered for the second
Muslim/Baptist Dialog based on the Common Word document and responses. Papers were shared and
responses given in plenary sessions and small groups. I gave the final presentation, trying to
bring the matter of how we relate into the practical areas of conflicts we face
and how we will live together in diverse societies. (If you want a copy of what I presented, send
me an e-mail!)
Two days later I was landing in Abuja in northern Nigeria as
part of a Baptist World Alliance human rights delegation invited by the
Nigerian Baptist Convention. For the
last decade Northern Nigeria has been the scene of inter-religious violence
between Christians and Muslims in which many churches and mosques have been
burned and people killed from both religious communities. But in the last couple years this conflict
has taken a vicious turn through the appearance of an Islamist extremist group
popularly called Boko Haram. Boko Haram
has engaged in a campaign of bombings and assassinations, targeting government
officials, the military, the police, the United Nations, and churches. Churches, including many Baptist churches
have been bombed or fired upon, often during worship services. Many people have lost their lives and many
churches have been destroyed.
 |
| Praying in the ruins of a bombed church in Jos |
Our delegation visited the sites of destroyed churches in
the cities of Kaduna, Jos, and Kafanchar.
We listened to pastors and other church leaders tell of the attacks, the
loss of members, and the difficulties of trying to rebuild. We expressed our solidarity in Christ with
them, praying together amid the rubble.
The Bible tells us in Romans to “weep with those who weep.” We wept with our sisters and brothers.
 |
| Imam Muhammad Ashafa speaks as Rev. James Wuye looks on |
But what should we do?
Some Christians have responded to violence with violence. Others have responded by trying to work for
peace. We also met Muslims trying to
work for peace. One inspiring moment for
me was meeting Muhammad Ashafa and James Wuye, an imam and pastor who both participated
as leaders in the violence in Kaduna until they began an amazing journey of
reconciliation (told in my book Interfaith
Heroes 2). As a result of their
inter-religious reconciliation work they have been nominated for the Nobel
Peace Prize. We also had Muslims present
at the two-day conference and training on conflict transformation we held in
the Nigerian capital Abuja. I led three
workshop sessions on dealing with conflict nonviolently.
Nigeria is a pivotal state in Africa, the most populous
country on the continent and a key leader in many diplomatic and peacekeeping
efforts. The Nigerian Baptist Convention
has over 6 million members and 10,000 churches.
How the Nigerians deal with the challenges of Muslim-Christian relations
is critical not just for the viability of their nation but also for inter-religious
relationships in Africa as a whole and the rest of the world.
There are many views among Christians about
how we should relate to Muslims. I
believe we must begin with the same call made by the Muslim scholars in the
Common Word, loving God and loving our neighbor. I also believe we as Christians are called to
share the good news of Jesus Christ with everyone we can, but if we include
hatred, suspicion, ignorance and violence in our approach we will not be
bearing a good witness to the love of God.
We would also be unfaithful to some of the clearest and most concise the
teachings of Jesus, who doesn’t even allow violence against us as an excuse not
to love.
There are no easy solutions in Nigeria, but there are people
including some courageous Christians and courageous Muslims, trying to find the way forward. It was a privilege to come along side them
for a while and to share the struggle together.
