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NAZ MOHAMED

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Ruth Hooke

HADLEY - About 90 Muslims, Christians and Jews had dinner together Sunday and agreed that dialogue among the three faiths promotes understanding.

But they expressed a variety of opinions on whether organizers of an Islamic cultural center near the site of the Sept. 11 attacks in New York should proceed with their plans or seek an alternative location.

The cover of this week's Time magazine asks if America is becoming "Islamophobic." Plans to build mosques have been opposed this year by neighbors in Tennessee, Wisconsin, California - and Amherst.

The Interfaith Opportunities Network, which includes 13 faith communities in Amherst and Hadley, was invited to Sunday's Ramadan dinner at Wesley United Methodist Church by the UMass Rumi Club and the Turkish Cultural Center of West Springfield, which provided the food.

"So prevalent is the negativity that divides us as people when there is so much more we have in common," said the Rev. Lyle Seger, pastor of the Methodist church, after the dinner. "We gather to celebrate our common bonds, elevating those over our differences, and knowing this is truly the way to have peace in this world."

The dinner started at sundown, in keeping with Ramadan, with Abdul Kadir Kocak, president of the UMass Rumi Club, singing a call to prayer. Seats at the dinner were allocated so that Christians, Muslims and Jews sat together.

Interviews with participants revealed a diversity of views on the prospect of building an Islamic cultural center two blocks from the site where the World Trade Center was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001.

The contentiousness in New York is "appalling," said Hafig Amamad of the UMass Rumi Club. "I don't get what the issue is, and have a hard time seeing where the right wing is coming from."

Nigar Khan, of Amherst, said she understands the feelings of people who lost loved ones in the attack on the World Trade Center. "But there were not just Christians, there were Muslims and Jews there, too," she said.

If the organizers of the Islamic center back off under pressure, "the entire cause is defeated," Khan said. Imam Feisel Abdul Rauf, the main organizer, is "the most moderate person you could think about, and he has suddenly become someone who has relations with Hamas," she said.

Khan is a native of Pakistan, where flooding that's affected 20 million people hasn't gotten the attention it deserves while the American media focuses on the discord in New York, she said. "The entire world should be looking and helping, but for some reason help is not coming the way it should be," she said.

Naz Mohamed, of Amherst, said opponents of the Islamic Center show "a lack of understanding of what the religion is really about" and are following "propaganda" from the right-wing media.

She's a member of Hampshire Mosque, which abandoned attempts to relocate to a former Christian school on Harkness Road earlier this year in the face of neighborhood concerns over traffic. She attributed the opposition to "a lack of understanding."

But some Muslims at Sunday's dinner said that although Rauf has a right to build at the designated site, he should look at other options.

Hasan Arslan of the Turkish Cultural Center said he hopes organizers of the Islamic center will reconsider and not insist that it be near the Sept. 11 site. "I don't push the limits if I know it would hurt some people's feelings," he said.

Fatih Akdemir, a corrections officer from Connecticut who studied at Sacred Heart University, gave the main address at Sunday's dinner. He said that although "America is famous for religious freedom and tolerance," his opinion is that the Islamic center should seek a new site.

"I always avoid debates and disrespecting other people," he said. "First you ask permission and show respect."

Scott Nielsen, a member of the Jewish Community of Amherst, supported the Islamic Center's planned location.

"Freedom of religion demands that we not only tolerate but accept different religions, even where we don't want them," he said. "My experience with American Muslims is we should listen more to them. They have something to contribute to our national life."

Hannah Zuckerman, another JCA member, said that although organizers have a legal right to build the Islamic center near the Sept. 11 site, "just because something is legal doesn't justify causing a lot of pain to a lot of people.

"If they're trying to foster good will and understanding between people, they should find another site," she said.

Members of five Christian churches were at the dinner and they strongly supported the center and denounced opposition to it.

"It's racism raising its head again," said Carole Ann Camp, of Sunderland. Ruth Hooke, of Amherst, said she "totally disagrees with this madness" and the organizers of the center "are trying to show Islam stands for things other than terrorism."

John Muerle, of Amherst, said some "nutcases" are "reacting emotionally" and are motivated by xenophobia. "It's a sad commentary on this country," he said.

Many of those at Sunday's dinner said the experience provided an opportunity to learn about other faiths and build bridges between them.

"We're all believers in the same universal God, and we should try to remember that," said Naz Mohamed. "There's a universal thread that goes through all human beings."