Dealing with genocide and Holocaust across religious lines: What’s politics got to do with it?
By Wayne Slater | wslater@dallasnews.com
9:35 am on January 25, 2014 | Permalink
http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/2014/01/dealing-with-genocide-and-holocaust-across-religious-lines.html/
---
Mike
Ghouse is frequently introduced as ‘the first Muslim guy to commemorate
the Holocaust” with an appeal across broad religious lines. The idea is
to recognize what people have in common, regardless of their
differences as a way of lessening the conflicts, prejudices and
intolerance that has produced genocide. And to go beyond politics to
find common ground. On Sunday, a program attracting disparate groups
around the idea “Never again” is scheduled for Unity Church on Forest
Lane in Dallas, sponsored in part by Ghouse’s organization, the
Foundation for Pluralism. The event is entitled Holocaust, Genocides of
Native Americans and Gujart Massacre.The theme: Sparks of hatred and how
to extinguish them.
Mike Ghouse, speaker, writer and advocate of pluralism across religious lines
Ghouse
says he hopes attendees will walk out better appreciating the
sufferings of others and seeing “the perpetrator in us” as a way of
building trust across social and religious lines.
“I called
on my friends with the idea of commemorating the event, and thus began
this journey,” said Ghouse. “Education is the purpose; we have to learn,
acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things that we humans have
inflicted upon each other, and we have to understand that our safety
hinges on the safety of all others around us.”
Ghouse says the
conference is designed as a comprehensive event where various human
failings, massacres, genocides and the murder of 6 million Jews in the
Holocaust will be addressed. The conference begins at 3 pm with an
American Indian genocide museum exhibit, then a program between 4-6 pm.
“I
have always believed, and I read the assessments of some of the best
brains, that if we can resolve the Jewish-Palestinian conflict, i.e.,
security to Jews and justice to the Palestinians, most of the world
issues will collapse and a period of peace on earth will begin,” said
Ghouse.
“There is a shameless cruelty in us, either we shy away
or refuse to acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will
devalue our own or somehow it amounts to infidelity to our own cause,”
he said. “Shame on us that we justifying massacres by believing and
propagating that the victims deserved it or asked for it.”
http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/2014/01/dealing-with-genocide-and-holocause-across-religious-lines-whats-politics-got-to-do-with-it.html/
Showing posts with label Dallas Holocaust Event. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dallas Holocaust Event. Show all posts
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Holocaust and the Muslim guy
Published by Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/holocaust-and-the-muslim-_b_4629509.html
Frequently, I am introduced in the following manner, "He is the first Muslim guy to commemorate Holocaust, and perhaps the first non-Jewish person to commemorate the Holocaust as well."
As a Muslim committed to building cohesive societies, it was an honor to step up to the plate. Quran 3:133, "And vie with one another to attain to your Sustainer's forgiveness and to a paradise as vast as the heavens and the earth, which has been readied for the God-conscious." I am not driven by paradise, nor do I seek rewards. But it does mean building a cohesive world where no one has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. God-conscious simply means being caring and sensitive to all of God's creation; life and matter.
Of all the people on the earth, my mother would be pleased to know I am doing what it takes to be a "good Muslim," to respect, honor and protect the sanctity of life.
I have always believed, and I read the assessments of some of the best brains that if we can resolve the Jewish-Palestinian conflict, i.e., security to Jews and justice to the Palestinians, most of the world issues will collapse and a period of peace on earth will begin.
Commemorating Holocaust and Genocides for seven years is a fulfillment of a lifelong desire.
Here is how it happened.
When I was ten years old, I read just about every book my mother
read. She was indeed a voracious reader on religion and social sciences;
however, I was banned from reading certain books, and one of them was
"Eishmann 60 lakh Yahudiyon ka Katil" in Urdu language. That is
Eichmann, the killer of 6 Million Jews. My mother insisted that I was a
kid and I should not read the book, she was protective of her child.
However, I was able to sneak in and see a few horrible pictures which
had shut me down for the next 44 years of my life.
The
picture continues to influence me; it is about betrayal of a people. A
group of Jews were shoved in front of a ditch and then were shot into
the pit. The looks of helplessness on their face, as if looking at me
and saying, "you are not going to do anything about it?" They were not
complaining, but with all humility enduring the betrayal from the entire
world, it has been a difficult picture for me.
For the next 44 years of my life, I was not able to see the WWII movies with scenes from holocaust on the screen. I would turn the TV off and go into silence for a while, just could not get over the idea how people can do that to other people. There was fear in me, fear to witness that betrayal. They never begged any one to save their life and just stared into the spaces even without complaining. I have held them in a very high esteem for the dignified death they faced.
Fast forward: Sunday, September 11, 2005.
The first Public commemoration of 9/11 was initiated by Muslims, and we called it Unity Day USA to boldly bring together Americans of different faiths, ethnicities and cultures together to rededicate our pledge to the safety and security of America.
About 650 People attended the event including 10 Mayors and several Police and fire chiefs, FBI Chief, and clergy from every faith and civil leaders were represented in the event.
While Mayor Joe Chow of Addison was speaking, the Fire Alarm went off creating a panic. Remember, it was a 9/11 commemoration! Most people were dashing out of the building including my Jewish friends who sat in the front row, what I distinctly remember was the fear in their eyes, and that bothered me to no end. They were my guests and that is no way to treat the guests.
No human should be afraid of the other.
It was a false alarm; Mayor Simpson of Frisco announced it within 3 minutes. I asked the FBI Chief Guadalupe Gonzalez to assure the people and ask them to come back, finally, everyone made it back and took the seats waiting for the Fire Marshall to come and turn the Alarm off. I love Mayor Joe Chow, while all of this was happening he continued with his speech.
That fear prompted me to do something about it, not sure what. But I do know what Goethe had said, "When you are committed, all sorts of things will happen to you, and providence moves in and God paves the way to fulfill your commitment." In November, the United Nations made a proclamation to commemorate Holocaust on January 27, 2006. I said to myself, did God pave the way for me?
Sixty years after of the Holocaust, the United Nations finally established the Holocaust Remembrance Day on November 1, 2005. "At its sixtieth session, the General Assembly resolved that the United Nations would designate 27 January as an annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust; and requested the Secretary-General to establish a programme of outreach on the subject of the "Holocaust and the United Nations", and to report on the implementation of that programme at the sixty-third session of the Assembly (resolution 60/7).
I called on my friends with the idea of commemorating the event, and thus began this journey. Education is the purpose; we have to learn, acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things that we humans have inflicted upon each other, and we have to understand that our safety hinges on the safety of all others around us. It is a comprehensive event where all human failings, massacres, genocides and Holocaust will be addressed in one fashion or the other.
Yom HaShoah has been commemorated in Synagogues since the 50's, and
for the first time in history, others have joined in the commemoration,
it's just not Muslims, but people of all faiths have participated in the
interfaith pluralistic prayers. I just want to assure my Jewish friends
that you are not alone; we are with you in the most somber moment of
your life.
The first commemoration lifted a huge burden off me. I felt the relief. This was my calling - to build bridges. William and Rosa Lee Schiff, the holocaust survivors delivered a talk for over an hour - it was literally pin drop silence.
There are incredible stories associated with this journey. There was harassment, threats, bias, and prejudices from across the spectrum. Each group was about me, me and my pain.
We had many a tense moments, some were purely political, everyone was reluctantly ready to face them; it was the resistance to the inclusion of pain of others. Although I do not believe in divine intervention, a revelation came to me a few seconds before such an acknowledgment.
"Dear friends, it is painful to miss out the suffering of one people or the other, we do not want to live with the burden of consciously or subconsciously excluding the suffering of any, hence, to be fair to all, let's silently pray for every atrocity that comes to our minds, and pray for the relief of the victims, and punishment or release to the perpetrators" - Sounds simple? But that offered a magical relief to the people who were tensed up for that moment. Thank God, every atrocity was silently included in one's prayer or the other.
It has not been an easy story. A few have dropped me from their lists; a few did not want to see me ever again. People who taught tolerance were intolerant; a few people in the pulpit did not tell the truth to their congregants. Maria Arita of Fox News and I had a heart to heart on a few items. Maybe, I will write a chapter urging people and organizations to guard themselves from a few who can prevent good things from happening. Thank God, we have made through it all.
Hate is one of the many sources of disrupting peaceful functioning of a society and it is our duty, both individually and severally to track down the source of such hate and work on mitigating it. Indeed, each one of us needs to do our share of work. It is also our moral responsibility to keep law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every citizen.
The spark of hatred will not disappear through law and order, it would be temporary off the screen, but will reappear at every little conflagration. As civil societies, this has to be worked out for the long term good.
The injustice done in the past will not fall off the earth, it
lingers and eats away peace between individuals and nations, and we are
responsible to bring a closure to the loose ends of many a conflict, so
we all can trust each other and feel safe, and focus on the collective
prosperity of all.
The program will address preventing such occurrences, and most importantly, how to bring closure to these sparks and work on building cohesive societies, where no human has to live in apprehension or fear of the other.
There is a shameless cruelty in us, either we shy away or refuse to acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will devalue our own or somehow it amounts to infidelity to our own cause. Shame on us that we justifying massacres by believing and propagating that the victims deserved it or asked for it. We sincerely hope the attendees will walk out with the following understanding:
Frequently, I am introduced in the following manner, "He is the first Muslim guy to commemorate Holocaust, and perhaps the first non-Jewish person to commemorate the Holocaust as well."
As a Muslim committed to building cohesive societies, it was an honor to step up to the plate. Quran 3:133, "And vie with one another to attain to your Sustainer's forgiveness and to a paradise as vast as the heavens and the earth, which has been readied for the God-conscious." I am not driven by paradise, nor do I seek rewards. But it does mean building a cohesive world where no one has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. God-conscious simply means being caring and sensitive to all of God's creation; life and matter.
Of all the people on the earth, my mother would be pleased to know I am doing what it takes to be a "good Muslim," to respect, honor and protect the sanctity of life.
I have always believed, and I read the assessments of some of the best brains that if we can resolve the Jewish-Palestinian conflict, i.e., security to Jews and justice to the Palestinians, most of the world issues will collapse and a period of peace on earth will begin.
Commemorating Holocaust and Genocides for seven years is a fulfillment of a lifelong desire.
Here is how it happened.
When I was ten years old, I read just about every book my mother
read. She was indeed a voracious reader on religion and social sciences;
however, I was banned from reading certain books, and one of them was
"Eishmann 60 lakh Yahudiyon ka Katil" in Urdu language. That is
Eichmann, the killer of 6 Million Jews. My mother insisted that I was a
kid and I should not read the book, she was protective of her child.
However, I was able to sneak in and see a few horrible pictures which
had shut me down for the next 44 years of my life.
The
picture continues to influence me; it is about betrayal of a people. A
group of Jews were shoved in front of a ditch and then were shot into
the pit. The looks of helplessness on their face, as if looking at me
and saying, "you are not going to do anything about it?" They were not
complaining, but with all humility enduring the betrayal from the entire
world, it has been a difficult picture for me.For the next 44 years of my life, I was not able to see the WWII movies with scenes from holocaust on the screen. I would turn the TV off and go into silence for a while, just could not get over the idea how people can do that to other people. There was fear in me, fear to witness that betrayal. They never begged any one to save their life and just stared into the spaces even without complaining. I have held them in a very high esteem for the dignified death they faced.
Fast forward: Sunday, September 11, 2005.
The first Public commemoration of 9/11 was initiated by Muslims, and we called it Unity Day USA to boldly bring together Americans of different faiths, ethnicities and cultures together to rededicate our pledge to the safety and security of America.
About 650 People attended the event including 10 Mayors and several Police and fire chiefs, FBI Chief, and clergy from every faith and civil leaders were represented in the event.
While Mayor Joe Chow of Addison was speaking, the Fire Alarm went off creating a panic. Remember, it was a 9/11 commemoration! Most people were dashing out of the building including my Jewish friends who sat in the front row, what I distinctly remember was the fear in their eyes, and that bothered me to no end. They were my guests and that is no way to treat the guests.
No human should be afraid of the other.
It was a false alarm; Mayor Simpson of Frisco announced it within 3 minutes. I asked the FBI Chief Guadalupe Gonzalez to assure the people and ask them to come back, finally, everyone made it back and took the seats waiting for the Fire Marshall to come and turn the Alarm off. I love Mayor Joe Chow, while all of this was happening he continued with his speech.
That fear prompted me to do something about it, not sure what. But I do know what Goethe had said, "When you are committed, all sorts of things will happen to you, and providence moves in and God paves the way to fulfill your commitment." In November, the United Nations made a proclamation to commemorate Holocaust on January 27, 2006. I said to myself, did God pave the way for me?
Sixty years after of the Holocaust, the United Nations finally established the Holocaust Remembrance Day on November 1, 2005. "At its sixtieth session, the General Assembly resolved that the United Nations would designate 27 January as an annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust; and requested the Secretary-General to establish a programme of outreach on the subject of the "Holocaust and the United Nations", and to report on the implementation of that programme at the sixty-third session of the Assembly (resolution 60/7).
I called on my friends with the idea of commemorating the event, and thus began this journey. Education is the purpose; we have to learn, acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things that we humans have inflicted upon each other, and we have to understand that our safety hinges on the safety of all others around us. It is a comprehensive event where all human failings, massacres, genocides and Holocaust will be addressed in one fashion or the other.
Yom HaShoah has been commemorated in Synagogues since the 50's, and
for the first time in history, others have joined in the commemoration,
it's just not Muslims, but people of all faiths have participated in the
interfaith pluralistic prayers. I just want to assure my Jewish friends
that you are not alone; we are with you in the most somber moment of
your life.
The first commemoration lifted a huge burden off me. I felt the relief. This was my calling - to build bridges. William and Rosa Lee Schiff, the holocaust survivors delivered a talk for over an hour - it was literally pin drop silence.
There are incredible stories associated with this journey. There was harassment, threats, bias, and prejudices from across the spectrum. Each group was about me, me and my pain.
We had many a tense moments, some were purely political, everyone was reluctantly ready to face them; it was the resistance to the inclusion of pain of others. Although I do not believe in divine intervention, a revelation came to me a few seconds before such an acknowledgment.
"Dear friends, it is painful to miss out the suffering of one people or the other, we do not want to live with the burden of consciously or subconsciously excluding the suffering of any, hence, to be fair to all, let's silently pray for every atrocity that comes to our minds, and pray for the relief of the victims, and punishment or release to the perpetrators" - Sounds simple? But that offered a magical relief to the people who were tensed up for that moment. Thank God, every atrocity was silently included in one's prayer or the other.
It has not been an easy story. A few have dropped me from their lists; a few did not want to see me ever again. People who taught tolerance were intolerant; a few people in the pulpit did not tell the truth to their congregants. Maria Arita of Fox News and I had a heart to heart on a few items. Maybe, I will write a chapter urging people and organizations to guard themselves from a few who can prevent good things from happening. Thank God, we have made through it all.
Hate is one of the many sources of disrupting peaceful functioning of a society and it is our duty, both individually and severally to track down the source of such hate and work on mitigating it. Indeed, each one of us needs to do our share of work. It is also our moral responsibility to keep law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every citizen.
The spark of hatred will not disappear through law and order, it would be temporary off the screen, but will reappear at every little conflagration. As civil societies, this has to be worked out for the long term good.
The injustice done in the past will not fall off the earth, it
lingers and eats away peace between individuals and nations, and we are
responsible to bring a closure to the loose ends of many a conflict, so
we all can trust each other and feel safe, and focus on the collective
prosperity of all.
The program will address preventing such occurrences, and most importantly, how to bring closure to these sparks and work on building cohesive societies, where no human has to live in apprehension or fear of the other.
There is a shameless cruelty in us, either we shy away or refuse to acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will devalue our own or somehow it amounts to infidelity to our own cause. Shame on us that we justifying massacres by believing and propagating that the victims deserved it or asked for it. We sincerely hope the attendees will walk out with the following understanding:
- Other people's suffering is as legitimate as mine;
- It is easy to see ourselves as Victims, but we must also see the perpetrator in us;
- When we strip the politics out of a conflict, we see hope;
- We can value others suffering without lessening our own;
- The overriding desire to highlight our own blinds us from other's suffering.
- A sense of responsibility for creating a better world is awakened
- Ultimately co-existence and every one's safety and peace should be the driving thought.
William and Rosa Lee Schiff, the Holocaust Survivors at the First Holocaust event by Muslims
The
first Holocaust and Genocides event by Non-Jews was organized by
Muslims in Dallas, Texas. The timing was perfect, right after a delicate
situation in a 9/11 commemoration there was a need to address the issue
of Holocaust and Genocides, and the United Nations unanimously passed
the bill to commemorate Holocaust in their 60th General Assembly meeting
on November 1, 2005. They designated January 27 of each year as
Holocaust Memorial day, the date coincides with the liberation of
Auschwitz.
The first event was organized on Sunday, January 29th and was addressed by the Holocaust survivors, Ms. Rosa Lee Schiff and the late Mr. William Schiff. This year, we will start with the Holocaust conversation followed by the Genocides of Native Americans and the Gujarat Massacre. This is a serious event for us to reflect on the inhumanity within each one of us, and learn to do our individual share of saying never again.
I have always believed, and I read the assessments of some of the best brains that if we can resolve the Jewish-Palestinian conflict, i.e., security to Jews and justice to the Palestinians, most of the world issues will collapse and a period of peace on earth will begin.
Commemorating Holocaust and Genocides for seven years is a fulfillment of a life time drive to build bridges.
Of all the people on the earth, my mother would be pleased to know that I am doing what it takes to be a "good Muslim," to respect, honor and protect the sanctity of life.
A healthy society can be defined by how well it functions together, where no member of the society has to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.
Hate
is one of the many sources of disrupting peaceful functioning of a
society and it is our duty, both individually and collectively to track
down the source of such hate and mitigate it. Indeed, each one of us
needs to do our share of work. This hate takes many avatars including
Anti-Semitism, racism, Misogyny, homophobia, Islamophobia, and other
ailments of the society. Untreated, they will erupt in violent and
hostile expressions like crusades, inquisitions, 9/11, terrorism by
individuals and nations, Holocaust, Genocides and Massacres.
The Jewish Christian conflict stems from Jesus' crucifixion; the Christian Muslim conflict has origins in how each sees Jesus, and the Jewish Muslim conflict took root in the late 1940's. Much of the conflict with Native Americans, Native societies, Hindus, Pagans and others stem from forced conversions by the arrogance of Christian and Muslim missionaries.
Religion came into existence to save the mankind; most people get that right and a few don't. No religion teaches hatred or encourages hostilities. On the contrary, religions are committed to building cohesive societies where no has to live in discomfort or fear of the other. The bottom line of all religions is based on the Golden rule, "Do unto others as you would wish to have done unto you."
There is always a room for bringing a positive change, even if it were a small step. The Foundation for Pluralism, Memnoysne Institute and the World Muslim Congress have teamed up to find solutions, which begins with the acknowledgement of the problem and taking small healing steps.
We are pleased to invite you to join us for the 7th Annual Holocaust and Genocides event is set for Sunday, January 26, 2014 between 3 and 6 PM at the Unity of Dallas, 6525 Forest Lane, Dallas, TX 75230. Details are at www.HolocaustandGenocides.com
The purpose of this event is education, and we hope to learn and acknowledge our failings and make a personal commitment to do our individual share of saying "Never Again".
The spark of hatred will not disappear through law and order, it would be temporary off the screen, but will reappear at every little conflagration. As civil societies, this has to be worked out for the long term good.
What we need is to have a heart to heart dialogue with each community with a goal to acknowledge the differences and figure out how to live with each other with least conflicts. After all we are inextricably connected to each other in our day to day life.
The goal ought to be respecting the otherness of others and accepting the God given uniqueness of each one of us, anything short of that will leave unattended-sparks ready to flare up at short notice with the whiff of oxygen.
There is a shameless cruelty in us, either we shy away or refuse to acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will devalue our own or somehow it amounts to infidelity to our own cause. What a shame it is to believe that the victims deserved or asked for it.
We sincerely hope the attendees will walk out with the following understanding:
Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies where no human has to live in fear of the other -www.MikeGhouse.net
The first event was organized on Sunday, January 29th and was addressed by the Holocaust survivors, Ms. Rosa Lee Schiff and the late Mr. William Schiff. This year, we will start with the Holocaust conversation followed by the Genocides of Native Americans and the Gujarat Massacre. This is a serious event for us to reflect on the inhumanity within each one of us, and learn to do our individual share of saying never again.
I have always believed, and I read the assessments of some of the best brains that if we can resolve the Jewish-Palestinian conflict, i.e., security to Jews and justice to the Palestinians, most of the world issues will collapse and a period of peace on earth will begin.
 |
| Holocaust Survivors Rosa Lee and William Schiff |
Commemorating Holocaust and Genocides for seven years is a fulfillment of a life time drive to build bridges.
Of all the people on the earth, my mother would be pleased to know that I am doing what it takes to be a "good Muslim," to respect, honor and protect the sanctity of life.
A healthy society can be defined by how well it functions together, where no member of the society has to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.
 |
| Rabbi Haas, Mike Ghouse, Bernie Mayoff and William Schiff - seated Rosa Lee Schiff |
The Jewish Christian conflict stems from Jesus' crucifixion; the Christian Muslim conflict has origins in how each sees Jesus, and the Jewish Muslim conflict took root in the late 1940's. Much of the conflict with Native Americans, Native societies, Hindus, Pagans and others stem from forced conversions by the arrogance of Christian and Muslim missionaries.
Religion came into existence to save the mankind; most people get that right and a few don't. No religion teaches hatred or encourages hostilities. On the contrary, religions are committed to building cohesive societies where no has to live in discomfort or fear of the other. The bottom line of all religions is based on the Golden rule, "Do unto others as you would wish to have done unto you."
 |
| Mrs.Elan, Gil Elan (AJC) and Rabbi Haas |
There is always a room for bringing a positive change, even if it were a small step. The Foundation for Pluralism, Memnoysne Institute and the World Muslim Congress have teamed up to find solutions, which begins with the acknowledgement of the problem and taking small healing steps.
We are pleased to invite you to join us for the 7th Annual Holocaust and Genocides event is set for Sunday, January 26, 2014 between 3 and 6 PM at the Unity of Dallas, 6525 Forest Lane, Dallas, TX 75230. Details are at www.HolocaustandGenocides.com
The purpose of this event is education, and we hope to learn and acknowledge our failings and make a personal commitment to do our individual share of saying "Never Again".
The spark of hatred will not disappear through law and order, it would be temporary off the screen, but will reappear at every little conflagration. As civil societies, this has to be worked out for the long term good.
What we need is to have a heart to heart dialogue with each community with a goal to acknowledge the differences and figure out how to live with each other with least conflicts. After all we are inextricably connected to each other in our day to day life.
The goal ought to be respecting the otherness of others and accepting the God given uniqueness of each one of us, anything short of that will leave unattended-sparks ready to flare up at short notice with the whiff of oxygen.
There is a shameless cruelty in us, either we shy away or refuse to acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will devalue our own or somehow it amounts to infidelity to our own cause. What a shame it is to believe that the victims deserved or asked for it.
We sincerely hope the attendees will walk out with the following understanding:
- Other people's suffering is as legitimate as mine;
- It is easy to see ourselves as Victims, but we must also see the perpetrator in us;
- When we strip the politics out of a conflict, we see hope;
- We can value others suffering without lessening our own;
- The overriding desire to highlight our own blinds us from other's suffering.
- A sense of responsibility for creating a better world is awakened
 |
| Indelible Image that has influenced this writer |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)