Atlantans divided over New York mosque controversy

By Shelia M. Poole

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Rev. Bryant Wright, pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in Marietta, considers himself a champion of religious freedom, yet he's torn over plans to build an Islamic community center and mosque near Ground Zero in New York City.

"We certainly want to respect religious freedom in America, but at the same time churches, mosques and synagogues should always want to be sensitive to neighborhood concerns," said Wright, an author and the recently elected head of the Southern Baptist Convention. "And the reality is that if that [mosque] is built at that site in New York, it's going to seem like a conquest to some in the Muslim world and for some of the victims' families, it's going to be like a dagger in their hearts."

Not so, said the Rev. Timothy McDonald, senior pastor of First Iconium Baptist Church in Atlanta.

"Here's the fact: Islam did not attack on 9-11; al-Qaida did," McDonald said. "All religions have extremes. We don't blame Christianity because the organizers of the Ku Klux Klan were Christians. ... America is too great a nation and too big a nation to be that narrowly focused. [Religious freedom] is one of the hallmarks of our nation and now we're going to say, ‘Except ... ‘"

The debate over the Islamic center and mosque is resonating beyond Manhattan. Faith and community leaders in metro Atlanta appear just as divided as the rest of the nation over whether to build the project near site of a 2001 terrorist attack that killed nearly 3,000.

Is it a political or a First Amendment issue? The debate has gotten President Barack Obama in political hot water. Last week, Obama defended Muslims' right to practice their religion, including "the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances."

Later, though, he appeared to back off. He told reporters his remarks were based on the principle that government should respect and treat everyone equally, regardless of faith, and not the wisdom of the project.

What would the Founding Fathers say?

Grief over 9-11 or fear of Muslims "must not be allowed to override core constitutional principles, such as religious liberty," said David P. Gushee, a professor of Christian ethics at Mercer University's McAfee School of Theology and director of the school's Center for Theology and Public Life.

Whether it's wise for the project to build on that location is for them to decide, he said, "but our responsibility as Americans is to honor our own First Amendment principle of respect for religious liberty."

"Freedom of religion is, of course, a cherished principle of American law and culture," said John Witte Jr., director of the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University. "But it's just too blunt an instrument to deal with the delicate questions raised in this case."

Witte has an opinion as well.

"My opposition to building the mosque is not driven by politics or emotion or anti-Muslim prejudice, but by a constitutional logic of religious freedom," he said. "Expressions of religious freedom are always subject to valid time, place and manner regulations. And the right to build a religious building is always judged against the rights and needs of others. Just as freedom of speech does not allow you to shout "Fire" in a crowded theater, so freedom of religion does not allow to build a church or mosque in a place that's inappropriate."

The proposed project, known as Park51 or the Cordoba House, calls for a multi-purpose center, according to its website. It would include a swimming pool, basketball court, 500-seat auditorium, restaurant and culinary school, a library, art studios and childcare services. There would also be a mosque "intended to be run separately from Park51 but open to and accessible to all members, visitors and our New York community," according to the site, and a Sept. 11 memorial and quiet space.

Soumaya Khalifa, executive director of the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta, which helps promote interfaith dialogue, is amazed at all the attention.

"If any other faith tradition was leading this effort, it would not have received the same attention," she said. "People engaged in this hyper-rhetoric are blaming Islam and Muslims for the action of a few. It seems that Islamophobia is on the rise in New York and else where in the country. This undermines the rights given by our Constitution of religious freedom for all."

The Rev. Bill Britt, senior pastor of Peachtree Road United Methodist Church, thinks the project has a right to be on that site legally, as long as it is done through the proper procedures.

"I strongly believe in that right and I don't want the government to interfere in that selection process," he said. "However, it's also incumbent upon those in the religious community to be sensitive to the neighborhood in which they want to be. ... My prayer is that somehow God uses that [place] to bring together people of all faiths."

Rabbi Ephraim Silverman of the Chabad of Cobb suggests the project's developers get input from the families of the victims of 9-11.

"Let's ask them how they feel about it," he said. "There are two sides to every issue and I think the president was absolutely right. That's what makes this country great and we should should all have the opportunity to worship God in their own faith. At the same time we have to be sensitive to the families of the 9-11 victims."