From Imam Rauf in Dubai

The Imam cited that the American Constitution and Declaration of Independence expressed Islamic values of life, dignity, religion, family, property and intellect. Interspersed in his remarks were references to the Qur’an and the Hadith (sayings of the prophet) to substantiate his points. What surprised many in the audience was when he went even further, challenging some Muslims for neglecting the values within Islam, and its inherent principles of tolerance. He said that many Muslims have in fact “made Islam itself into a god to worship,” while forgetting its “inner concepts.” He said that in centuries passed it was natural to have different religious and ethnic communities living side-by-side within Muslim societies. What has happened, he asked, in the last fifty years, as many of the Jews and other minority groups have emigrated from countries such as Egypt, for example? He answered his own question, “We are poorer for it.” The audience’s reaction was applause and enthusiasm.
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The audience at the Dubai School of Government, consisted of a motley crew of journalists (from CNN, ABC News, Reuters, and a bevy of local papers), students, financial professionals, government officials, and academics. Largely Muslim, but not exclusively so, the crowd hailed from nearly every country in the region. Libya. Syria. Iran. Pakistan.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/taufiq-rahim/imam-praises-america-as-m_b_700156.html

Rauf on Islam

Meanwhile, he is taking the message back to the Islamic world and challenging what he calls the "politicisation of Islam", which has seen the religion merged with nationalism over the past century "to massive detriment". His book, What's Right With Islam: A New Vision for Muslims and the West, argues that pluralism and tolerance are fundamentals of Islam, and was rated by the Christian Science Monitor among the top five non-fiction titles of 2004.

Harkening back to the multicultural and cosmopolitan Golden Age of Islam - the centuries in which Muslims governed a vast region of diverse faiths - Mr Rauf is enlisting the support of modern-day Muslim leaders to deliver an Islamic renaissance. In his bridge-building enterprise, he counts among his advocates such reformist leaders as Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Malaysia's prime minister, and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

"We know that our societies are not what we want them to be, but we are trying. And that is one of the good things about our societies, we are trying to make them better," Mr Rauf said. "The modern rulers of the Muslim world are increasingly of that mindset, that they are responsible to their communities. "There is a famous saying from Imam Ali, the Fourth Caliph, which is, 'Bring up your children for a time different from your own'. And that is what we must all do now. We must bring up our children for a different time."
http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/americas/in-new-york-imam-builds-cultural-bridges?pageCount=0