Jason Criss Howk

While speaking at the APPNA conference in Virginia with my good friend Dr Babar we had a chance to have a long quiet and private lunch with Dr Syeed and his gracious wife.

It is always interesting to see how conversations about Islam change when they are intimate and calm.

I shared my mission of tolerance with Dr Syeed and he was shocked, in a good way, that a military veteran was traveling the country trying to stress the importance of education about religions as a path towards tolerance.

We had a wide ranging conversation about the many paths to heaven, the need for more religious education, and the atrocities being performed around the world in the name of religion both to Muslims and by people claiming to be pious Muslims.

Dr Syeed spoke about the positive role that the Baptist Church had in America ensuring that the US became a secular nation that strongly believed in the separation of church and state. He and Dr Babar have both seen first hand what happens when religion gets closely intertwined with government and politics. We all agreed that freedom of religion is a critical human right and no religion should be compulsory.

He said he was not surprised that I was a Baptist and that I could therefore easily explain Islam to non-Muslims. As too often both religions get too inwardly focused.

Dr Syeed left me some words that will help me push on with my education mission despite the critics from all religions.

“Jason God has chosen you for this unique mission because you are one of the few that are qualified to complete it. The world needs more peacemakers like you.”

I hope to join the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) next year for their annual gathering to relay my lessons from leading inter-religious discussions around America.

#isna #Islam #Muslim #education #tolerance #baptist #unity #secularism #America #wjta

Muslim Americans for Compassion

As always a huge thanks to Dr Babar for his tireless efforts to bring unity to our great nation.

Education and Tolerance

Read my award winning Quran interpretation (available on all online markets)

Listen to a casual conversation about Islam on my podcast “We’re Just Talking About It” (on iTunes and elsewhere)

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