Posted on 01/03/2010 1:24:07 PM PST by Steelfish
Pastor Rick Warren, Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) ,and Valerie Jarrett Warn Against Stereotyping Muslims
Pastor Rick Warren, left, shakes hands with Yusuf Islam, best known by his former name Cat Stevens, after speaking at the convention. [Pic in URL]
Ahmed Mohamed Staff Writer
Washington — More than 30,000 Muslims from across America attended the 46th annual convention of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) July 3–6 in Washington, where they heard calls for building bridges of understanding and for increased involvement in community service programs.
The ISNA meeting is described as the largest annual gathering of Muslim Americans. Also included were parallel conventions by the Muslim Students Association of North America, Muslim Youth of North America, the Islamic Medical Association of North America, and many smaller groups associated under the umbrella group ISNA.
In addition to building bridges of understanding and cooperation between diverse Muslim communities, ISNA now plays a pivotal role in extending those bridges to include all people of faith in North America. Various speakers illustrated this new, broader agenda.
Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser and assistant to President Obama for public engagement and intergovernmental affairs, commended ISNA for addressing critical issues such as “increasing civic engagement and interfaith cooperation, protecting the rights of the disabled and elderly, addressing domestic violence, improving education and health care, expanding renewable energy and protecting the environment.”
“As this convention demonstrates,” she said, “gone are the days of describing distinct sets of ‘Muslim issues’ and ‘American issues.’ Your work here is crucial in confronting the challenges that all Americans are facing. And you help advance the new beginning between the United States and Muslim communities around the world that the president called for in Cairo.”
ISNA President Ingrid Mattson talked about the diversity of Islam and Muslims’ changing place in American society.
(Excerpt) Read more at america.gov ...
Right on point- These kind of pastors affirm the old adage, “There is Catholicism” and “Then There’s The Rest”!
“Oh, baby, baby, it’s a wild world, and I’ll always remember” HOW YOU TRIED TO BLOW IT UP.
I think you are mistaken. I don’t believe Cat Stevens ever praised the 9/11 terrorists or supported jihad.
After researching a bit, it’s not at all clear to me what religion Jarrett is (or if it matters). She was born in Shiraz, Iran, of apparently American parents who were in some sort of medical-exchange program.
“...And you help advance the new beginning between the United States and Muslim communities around the world that the president called for in Cairo.”
What the president did in Cairo was make cowardice an official policy. He did not challenge Mohammedans. He just sucked-up to them.
He could have brought up rights questions even in the most diplomatic way but instead he threw their oppressed women overboard with his “chooses to cover her head” idiotic statement.
Cat Stevens didn’t, but Yusuf Islam did...
He wrote something shortly after 9/11 that praised the terrorists. Fortunately, he seems to have had the good sense to shut up after that, and it’s all been forgotten.
Considering how important she is at the WH, I’d say it matters.
I have read that she is Muslim, although, as you point out, one can also read opinions that she’s not. However, she always appears when Islam is discussed and is frequently a WH delegate on things to do with it, so I’d suspect she probably is a Muslim. I don’t think merely having been born in Iran would qualify her for being particularly involved in Islam.
First and foremost, Jarret is a Communist. Her Daddy was a big time Communist in the heady party days in Chi-town.
Trevor over at NewZealBlog has all the details.
When I was 16 I thought Cat Stevens was just about the sexiest man alive
Then he gave it up and became a mooselimb - and I grew up.
“By means of shrewd lies, unremittingly repeated, it is possible to make people believe that heaven is hell - and hell heaven. The greater the lie, the more readily it will be believed.” Adolph Hitler
OK, I just checked out his Wikipedia page. He said some controversial stuff about Salmon Rushdie - he “clarified”, retracted or restated those things (yes, it is controversial), but in regards to 9/11
Wikipedia says:
Immediately following the 11 September 2001, attacks on the United States, he said:
I wish to express my heartfelt horror at the indiscriminate terrorist attacks committed against innocent people of the United States yesterday. While it is still not clear who carried out the attack, it must be stated that no right-thinking follower of Islam could possibly condone such an action. The Qur’an equates the murder of one innocent person with the murder of the whole of humanity. We pray for the families of all those who lost their lives in this unthinkable act of violence as well as all those injured; I hope to reflect the feelings of all Muslims and people around the world whose sympathies go out to the victims of this sorrowful moment.
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