He got a standing ovation – most of us would have stood even longer. Jawad Khaki provided our club with some timely solace and inspiration after another horrible, hate-filled tragedy filled our lives. A quintessential part of being a Rotarian is to build goodwill and spread peace around the globe. During these difficult times, it was comforting to hear one of our local Muslim leaders provide his insights on how we can respond to and overcome hate and intolerance. Here is the entire text of Jawad’s reading and prayer:
As we gather here today to reflect on the tragedy of last week, I would like to begin reading thoughts written by a Chinese revert sister who addressed the killer of Muslims in NZ. She writes:
(I) Appreciate that you made the effort to find out the timing of our noon prayer.
Appreciate that you learnt more about our religion - to know that Fridays are the days the men go to the Mosques for their congregational prayers.
But I guess there were some things you, rather unfortunately, didn’t get to learn.
Perhaps you did not know that what you did, made them Martyrs.
And how you have single-handedly raised the statuses of our brothers and sisters in the eyes of their beloved Creator with your actions. And how, through your actions, they will be raised as the most righteous and pious of Muslims.
Perhaps you did not know that doing what you did, at the time and place you chose, it actually meant that the last words that escaped their lips were probably words of remembrance and praise of Allah. Which is a noble end many Muslims could only dream of.
And perhaps you did not know, but what you did, would almost guarantee them paradise.
Appreciate that you showed the world how Muslims welcome, with open arms, even people like yourself into our Mosques, which is our second home.
Appreciate you for showing that our mosques have no locks or gates and are unguarded because everyone and anyone is welcome to be with us.
Appreciate you for allowing the world to see the powerful image of a man you injured, lying on back on the stretcher with his index finger raised high, as a declaration of his faith and complete trust in Allah.
Appreciate how you brought the Churches and communities together to stand with us Muslims.
Appreciate that you made countless New Zealanders come out of their homes to visit the mosques nearest to them with flowers with beautiful messages of peace and love.
You have broken many many hearts and you have made the world weep. You have left a huge void.
But what you also have done, have brought us closer together. And it has strengthened our faith and resolve.
In the coming weeks, more people will turn up in the Mosques, a place you hate so much, fortified by the strength in their faith, and inspired by their fallen brothers and sisters.
In the coming weeks, more non-Muslims will turn up at the gates of mosques, with fresh flowers and beautifully handwritten notes. They may not have known where the mosques in their area was. But now, they do. All because of you.
You may have achieved your aim of intended destruction, but I guess you failed to incite hatred, fear, and despair in all of us.
And while I understand that it may have been your objective, I hate to say that after all of that elaborate planning, and the perverse and wretched efforts on your part, you still failed to drive a divide among the Muslims and non-Muslims in the world.
For that, I can’t say that I’m sorry.
She signs as “A Radiant Muslim”
As we come to grips with yet another tragedy of our time, we must continue to reach out to our neighbors, school friends, and workmates, to reiterate the eternal truths of all faiths, that unity, and safety of mankind is the very heart of the spirit of our common humanity.
In this hour of crisis, exacerbated by prevailing Islamophobia, many in the community are increasingly anxious about the potential of harassment and attacks emanating from anti-Muslim sentiments.
America has millions of Muslims among its citizens who make an incredibly valuable contribution to our country. Together, we must send a clear message that those who may be inclined to intimidate our fellow citizens that they don’t represent the best of America.
I must say living in Kirkland, Washington (and in the greater Seattle area) we are surrounded by love and support from so many in our beautiful communities. There has been a constant stream of messages and phone calls from neighbors, faith, and civic leaders to express love and support. They have been handing out flowers or leaving them on our doorsteps and parked cars. Police officers have reached out to express support and assurance to keep us all safe, which is very much appreciated.
We must use our awesome community cohesion and strengths to build a better future.
The clarion call by Dr. Phil Eaton to the Seattle Downtown Rotary, inviting us to see through New Glasses and educate the next generation in a changed world, rings as true today as it did on October 31, 2001, when we were both here after the tragedy of 9/11
Dr. Eaton invited us to:
- First, refocus our new glasses with moral vision.
- Second, our new glasses must be able to see again a vision for human unity and the common good.
- Third, our new glasses must give us a new vision for how to share our prosperity
- Fourth, our new glasses must let us see again what is good about our own way of life.
Dr. Eaton reminded us:
“In 1863, at the site of the battle of Gettysburg, where 50,000 soldiers died, Lincoln gave a two-minute address, and put on a new pair of glasses for the nation. In those dark hours of fierce disunity and brutal self-destruction, the country stared through a glass darkly. Lincoln knew his country might not survive. He had to convince a nation that there could be something better than this, that there were stronger, deeper, and more enduring principles that could hold the country together, that one view of the world, one view of race and human nature, had to give way to another, better view. He believed human dignity was worth fighting for. “
As a human family, we must today muster courage to call out and dismantle these leaderless racist supremacist movements – movements which are not rooted in any religious ideology - supremacist movements that are not just confined to attacking Muslims.
We must win the hearts and minds of our neighbors and colleagues to take on this struggle.
We must also challenge the dangerous rhetoric from echelons of government that could aid these movements – clear evidence of which we are beginning to see.
The world today is blessed with upstanding human beings like Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who had the compassion and moral courage to invite us to show "sympathy and love".
The Holy Qur’an informed more than fourteen centuries ago:
O mankind, indeed, We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is All Knowing and Acquainted.
Here in Seattle, we have taken important steps to sows the seeds of compassion. Over ten years ago, in April 2008, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and many other luminaries came to Seattle for an unprecedented five-day gathering, engaging the community in an in-depth conversation on compassion. In the words of Dalai Lama, “Seeds of compassion plant hope for future children and our world”
We must continue planting these seeds of love and compassion. For in the words of Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī,
Which seed fell in the earth that did not grow there? Why do you doubt the fate of human seed?
I conclude with prayer for the speedy recovery of the injured and for patience and strength for the families of those slain in the Christchurch. Please join us at the IMAN Center in Kirkland on March 31st, 2019 for an interfaith dinner dialogue on “The Question of Evil”.
