Jewish, Muslim and Christian leaders are sending out a “Call for Prayer” on the upcoming weekend of 9/11 and in light of recent hate speech and crimes against Muslim Americans. Here is the statement and signatories:
United interfaith response to the call for burning a sacred text day and in respect for memory of the victims of 9/11 and in support of vulnerable among us:
AN INVITATION TO PRAY TOGETHER FOR THE EXTINGUISHING OF FIRES AND THE KINDLING OF A FLAME
What could inflame hatred and violence more than to set afire that which others hold sacred?
In the past, burnings of the Talmud were often a prelude or accompaniment to killings of Jews. And today again, hatred and violence can be the only source and purpose of those who promise to burn the Holy Quran on the day we Americans and the whole world remember the tragic events of 9/11.
We — who thank God for the diversity and vitality of religious commitments in our nation and who seek, from the wellsprings of our many faiths, to promote mutual understanding and respect and to advance justice and peace — cannot remain separated and silent on the 9/11 weekend. Our own religious commitments call on us to speak out.
We ask you, therefore, to join us in prayers that will kindle a different flame –
a prayerful spark that will ignite us again to bring comfort to those who lost loved ones on that terror-filled day and in the wars that followed from it;
a prayerful spark that will ignite us again to stand against the forces of distrust, hostility, and cruelty;
a prayerful spark that will ignite us again to stand with the documented and undocumented immigrant, the homeless and those losing their homes, the jobless and the despairing;
a prayerful spark that will ignite us again to seek healing and reconciliation at home and abroad for the cause of justice and peace.
In whatever way is in keeping with your own religious tradition, we ask you to pray with us on the weekend of September 10 -12 that the fires of hatred and violence in our nation and in our world will be extinguished and that, together, we can stand in mutual dignity and respect, see the image of God in every human being.
Signed:
Rabbi Andrea London
Beth Emet Synagogue, Evanston, Ill.
Jewish-Muslim Community Building Initiative, JCUA
Dr. Zaher Sahloul, Chairman
Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago
Joshua Hoyt, Director
Illinois Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Jane Ramsey, Executive Director
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
Jay Moses
Chicago Presbytery
Dr. Bambade Shakoor-Abdulla
Chicagoland Shura Council
Imam Kifah Mustapha
Mosque Foundation
Rabbi Bruce Elder
Congregation Hakafa
Board Member, Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
Orlando Rede Kopp
Church of the Brethren
Sidney Hollander
Board Member, Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
Bishop Jung
United Methodist Church
Rev. Andrea Christopherson
Northern Illinois Conference
Rabbi Michael Zedek
Emanuel Congregation
Bernie Wong
Chinese American Service League
Rev. Livingston
Rainbow PUSH Coalition
Father John Mukasa
United African Organization
Samuel Fleischacker
Director of Jewish Studies, University of Illinois at Chicago
Fr. Robert Oldershaw
St. Nicholas Church
Rev. Tom Rosa, Interim Rector
St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
Rev. Nancy M. Waite, PhD; BCC
Director and Chaplain, Pastoral Care and Healing Arts Department
NorthShore University HealthSystem
Rev. Robert V. Thompson
Lake Street Church of Evanston (Ill.)
Pastor Daniel Ruen
Grace Lutheran Church
The Rev. Canon Jane P. Henderson
St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church
Rev. Dr. Ann L. Rosewall
Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary
Rev. Richard Mosley, Jr.
Hemenway United Methodist Church
Rabbi Brant Rosen
Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation, Evanston, Ill.
Charlotte Lehman, M.Div., Lead Pastor
Reba Place Church
Richard Rhodes
Board Member, Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
Rev. Wendy Mathewson, Associate University Chaplain
Northwestern University
Rev. Esther Williams-Hays
The Bread of Life International
Mary Katharine Deeley, Director of Christ the Teacher Institute
Sheil Catholic Center at Northwestern University
Rev. Barbara Pescan
Unitarian Church of Evanston (Ill.)
Reverend Jessica Gregory
Northminster Presbyterian Church
Frank C. Senn, Pastor, Immanuel Lutheran Church, Evanston, Ill.
Rev. Dr. William M. Youngblood
Northminster Presbyterian Church
Janet W. Boyd, Pastor
St. John’s United Church of Christ
Susan Murphy
Interfaith Action of Evanston (Ill.)
Rev. Thomas Libera
St. Athanasius Church
Rev. Dean L. Francis, Senior Pastor
First United Methodist Church
Fr. John Kartje
Chaplain & Director
Sheil Catholic Center/Northwestern University
