Islam: My Journey toward Understanding and Tolerance

My first introduction to Islam came in 1980 when two sons of the Qatari ruling family were placed under my supervision. I was Catholic and had never met any Muslims, but I was curious about Islam and asked questions. The boys’ father invited me to visit Qatar, and I agreed, hoping to learn more. I enrolled in beginning Arabic classes at the YMCA and hired private tutors to learn the alphabet and a vocabulary of about 200 words. I was given my first copy of the English translation of the Quran.

While a guest in Doha, I was treated to a variety of instructional tours, observing the active waterfront and hearing the call to prayers five times a day from the mosques. I began to understand the beauty of this faith, a religion embraced by over 1.6 billion people worldwide. That’s one in every 4.5 people is a Muslim (approximately five million Muslims in the USA). However, during the years since my introduction to Islam, I did little to advance my knowledge of the Quran.

Then planes flew into buildings.

September 11, 2001, the deadliest attack by extremist Islamists on America, was a major brain change for many Americans, including me. I was shocked into a new reality: Some radicals in the peaceful religion were bent on killing everyone who did not subscribe to their brand of Islam.

However, my most recent change in thinking and tolerance comes from watching media like Aljazeera America and CNN shows by Fareed Zakaria’s (GPS) and Anderson Cooper.

For example: On September 28, 2014, Dr. Zakaria’s guests were Hasan Rouhani, President of Iran and Simon Perez, former Israeli diplomat. These in depth interviews would never be seen on usual TV. Fareed’s one-hour weekly show has real information straight from the world leaders. In addition, Charlie Rose has informative interviews on PBS daily from 2-3 pm. Christiana Amanpour is another respected journalist providing well thought-out news stories.

Now, two American journalists have been decapitated, an ISIS soldier, standing next to them with something like a long dagger. The world is exposed to atrocities occurring in northern Iraq. Some views show Christians, Kurds, Yazidis, among others being killed by the extremist group. Horrific deeds are ostensibly being done in the name of Islam.

The members of ISIS claim to be Muslims. So do most of the people they are fighting. Why is a Muslim killing another Muslim? The statistics and numbers speak for themselves. The majority of Muslims are not radicals! Most Muslims fast, pray, give to charity, and feed the poor—as in every faith. They abide by the Five Pillars of Islam.

“Islam is to blame for all these problems,” a TV talk-show guest recently proclaimed with certainty. I assume most westerners watch regular news channels like ABC, NBC, CBS , FOX, and maybe CNN.

In prior years, after watching such biased news, I would most likely have convinced myself this was somewhat correct and accurate news reporting. I was not being tolerant of Islam in so believing.

Lately, as the days of world events unfold, I have become convinced that westerners are being spoon fed what the media moguls want us to hear and see. I suggest considering where these reporters get their stories. Who are they asking? Do they actually see the events they report upon? Are they fluent in the languages of the countries they purport to observe? We know that few of our military during any of the wars in the Middle East even knew two sentences of Arabic, or Urdu, or Farsi.

In my view, even more valuable for a proper news analyst is knowledge of the culture of the regions. Does the average person hear stories about the cultural differences between any two warring factions? Using LINK TV and Free Speech TV, gives a better world perspective of problems, in my opinion.

This summer I was invited to attend my first Iftar at a mosque. Over 500 people attended. The speakers were informative and had a good sense of humor, the food plentiful and delicious. Each table had two local Muslims, a man and a woman, who courteously helped non Muslim guests with any questions we had. It was an educational and enriching learning experience and helped me become a more tolerant person.

This is one way I have begun to change my thinking, adjusting my moral compass and tolerance, especially with regard to Islam and Muslim peoples. Second, I watch more responsible television stations, and third, I interact with concerned Muslims. A Muslim friend so aptly remarked, “The deeper teachings of any religion are subtle and include guidelines for becoming a person who is just, who seeks wisdom and who cares about others. For some, politics is more interesting than engaging in a discussion about the eternal truths that great religions all point to. The qualities of a good Jew, Christian, or Muslim are similar, if not the same. “

Bernard S. Sadowski, Ph.D.

Bernie Sadowski, a retired college professor who lives in Seattle, serves on the Board of Directors for the Ballard NW Senior Center.

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