Warning to Terrorist Baghdadi, caliph of ISIL

Muslims Challenge Al-Baghdadi’s Lunatic Message

Dallas, Texas – May 18, 2015. Al-Baghdadi, the self proclaimed Caliph of ISIL released an audio message on May 14, misrepresenting the values dearly held by millions of Muslims for fourteen centuries.  He said, "Islam was never a religion of peace. Islam is the religion of fighting” and added, “It is the war of Muslims against infidels."

Mike Ghouse, President of America Together Foundation said, “Al-Baghdadi has angered the entire Muslim world, no one thought he would stoop that low to flip the entire religion to suit crimes against Muslims and non-Muslims alike.  My concern is not only his lunatic statement, as many such men have come and gone, but it is the joy expressed by the war mongers that concerns me. It is, as if Baghdadi has reaffirmed their (false) belief about Islam, and now they can continue to malign Islam.”


We are just coming out of the two longest wars; they not only destroyed Iraq and Afghanistan, but cost billions of dollars and affected thousands of lives here in America.  Now the war Mongers want to put boots on the ground again in the Middle East that is not acceptable.

Al-Baghdadi is a narcissistic dude and is for himself.  The truth is Quran advocates justice with mercy.  It directs the humanity to build cohesive societies where no human has to live in apprehension or fear of the other.  A few verses are referenced below.

The entire Muslim world has condemned Al-Baghdadi,  even the rival countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia have condemned, the OIC representing all of the 57 Muslim nations, British Muslims and American Muslims have condemned it. References are given below.

I hope that we capture Al Baghdadi and his soldiers and put them on trial.  We need to demand proof from Al-Baghdadi to produce support for his claim that, “It is the war of Muslims against infidels” from the Quran.  We hope the world will see that it is neither Islam nor the Quran, it is the bad guys.  The world should not let go of this opportunity to put the ISIL ideology die its own death.  We also urge the war-mongers among us to stop looking for excuses to destroy world peace.

Mike Ghouse
(214) 325-1916MikeGhouse@aol.com 

References continued at: http://americatogetherfoundation.blogspot.com/2015/05/press-release-muslims-challenge-al.html

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Muslim Condemnations  

Baghdadi may have a force of 31,500 his side, and thus far he is the only spokesperson for the group, indeed he is the driving force for this self proclaimed rulership. Threat Matrix reports, “Islamic State fighters in Iraq and Syria number around 20,000 to 31,500 — a figure far higher than previously estimated, the Central Intelligence Agency has said.”

Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia’s Highest Religious Authority:  On August 19, Al Jazeera reported that Saudi Arabia’s grand mufti, Abdulaziz al-Sheikh, the country’s top religious authority, said that terrorism is anti-Islamic and said that groups like the Islamic State which practice violence are the “number one enemy of Islam”

Iran: Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, addressed the victories of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) against a fleeing Iraqi military in a meeting with Syria’s ambassador to Iran. “The expansion of terrorist elements of [ISIS] and their violent acts in Iraq was a warning for the region,” Shamkhani said. “There is a need for attention and action from governments and the international community.”

USA: On August 15, 2014, the World Muslim congress had called on Muslims to Dedicate Friday Sermons for the Safety of Christians, Yazidis, Shia and Other Minorities at Huffington post. World Muslim Congress of Dallas has urged Obama to go ahead degrade and destroy ISIS in an op-ed at Huffington Post on September 4, 2014.  Just about every American Islamic and Muslim organization has condemned it.  ING has compiled the list.

UK: Huffington Post reported, 100 Sunni and Shiite Imams from the U.K. came together to produce a video denouncing the Islamic State, releasing a statement that they wanted to “come together to emphasize the importance of unity in the UK and to decree ISIS as an illegitimate, vicious group who do not represent Islam in any way.”  
OIC - The Organization of Islamic Cooperation represents all the Muslim majority nations: The Islamic State Has “Nothing to Do with Islam,” Has Committed Crimes “That Cannot Be Tolerated.”  

Quranic Verse

Quran remains a pristine, inclusive book of wisdom committed to building cohesive societies, where no human has to live in apprehension or fear of the other.  

Quran (55: 1-13):  God created an integrated and interconnected world in harmony and balance, and wants us to preserve and maintain that balance.

Quran; (5:32) (Asad) “Because of this did We ordain unto the children of Israel that if anyone slays a human being-unless it be [in punishment] for murder or for spreading corruption on earth-it shall be as though he had slain all mankind; whereas, if anyone saves a life, it shall be as though he had saved the lives of all mankind.  And, indeed, there came unto them. Our apostles with all evidence of the truth: yet, behold, notwithstanding all this, many of them go on committing all manner of excesses on earth

Quran: (1:1 and 114:1) From the very first verse in the first chapter to last chapter is addressed to the humanity, all the humanity.  Quran is a book of guidance for all.

Quran (49:13) (Asad) “O men! Behold, We have created you all out of a male and a female,  and have made you into nations and tribes, so that you might come to know one another.  Verily, the noblest of you in the sight of God is the one who is most deeply conscious of Him. Behold, God is all-knowing, all-aware.”

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Links:

• http://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/commonwordcommonlord/2014/08/think-muslims-havent-condemned-isis-think-again.html#ixzz3aMiTQx89
• http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/06/iran-officials-call-action-isis-mosul.html#
• http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2014/09/on_the_cia_estimate_of_number.php#
• https://www.ing.org/community-statements/1336-global-condemnations-isis-isil
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/president-obama-go-ahead-_b_5765264.html#es_share_ended
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/muslims-to-dedicate-frida_b_5679118.html

US Islamophobia industry bolsters 'fear-mongering'

Islamophobes are like vultures, waiting for the opportunity to pick on the flesh of yet to be dead. When people die, its feast to these folks. There is a whole industry out there. I wish they spend their energy and time on education to benefit the whole humanity. In the midst of these vultures, it is so good to read pieces like this.  Mike Ghouse

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1759764/Opinion--Islamophobia-industry-ramps-up-in-US

(AAP)

The US Islamophobia industry has seized on the Boston bombings to bolster its campaign of misinformation and fear-mongering, and we would do well to pay careful attention. By Chloe Patton, University of South Australia.

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By Chloe Patton, University of South Australia

Local commentators have variously described reactions to the Boston Marathon bombing, which killed three people and injured 183 others, as “restrained”, “refreshingly honest” and wholly different to what unfolded after September 11, 2001.

True, this time round we were spared the “with us or against us” clash of civilisations rhetoric from those in power. And thankfully, save for a hijab-clad woman punched while dropping her daughter at a Boston playgroup and a Bangladeshi man bashed for looking Arab in the Bronx, we have not seen the same wave of violent attacks on Muslims that gripped the US in the wake of 9/11.

Nevertheless, the US Islamophobia industry has seized on the bombing to bolster its campaign of misinformation and fear-mongering, and we would do well to pay careful attention.

Within hours of last Monday’s explosions, a number of media outlets, including theNew York Post, named a young Saudi man as a suspect, when he was in fact a witness injured in the blasts. The story, unfortunately, refused to die.

By Thursday, US conservative commentator Glenn Beck was issuing ultimatums to the Obama administration: admit that the bombing was the work of a “bad, bad, bad” Saudi national who has since been deported back to the Kingdom, or Beck would expose the government’s complicity in the culprit’s escape from justice. Once one Tsarnaev brother was killed and the other taken into custody, Beck merely expanded this fanciful story to include them as co-conspirators, demanding Obama’s impeachment.

While it is unclear where Beck sourced his wild allegations, they bear a striking resemblance to the nonsense that former CNN reporter and self-styled terrorism expert Steven Emerson consistently spouted throughout the week. Emerson told C-Span that the irrefutable evidence of the Saudi student’s guilt was the fact that his burns bore traces of explosive residue which matched the compound used in the bombs. This was hardly surprising, given that the student was injured by one of those bombs.

Although officials emphatically stated that the Saudi student was not a suspect, within days Emerson was pushing the story that Obama had attended a hastily scheduled meeting with the Saudi government to arrange the student’s deportment: “This is the way things are done with Saudi Arabia,” Emerson told Fox News. “You don’t arrest their citizens, you deport them because they don’t want them to be embarrassed and that’s the way we appease them.”

Emerson has an impressive and well-documented record of spreading false information. The US media watchdog FAIR (Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting) has been drawing attention to Emerson’s consistently anti-Muslim and anti-Arab reportingsince the early 1990s. In 1999, FAIR chronicled a raft of Emerson’s wrong assertions about Muslim involvement in acts of terrorism, including the bogus 1998 claim that Pakistan was planning a nuclear strike on India, which escalated tensions in the region to boiling point.

Most notorious was Emerson’s claim in the immediate aftermath of the 1995 Oklahoma bombing – which turned out to be the work of far-right extremist Timothy McVeigh – that it bore a “Middle Eastern trait” because it “was done with the intent to inflict as many casualties as possible”. That same year he wrote in the Jewish Monthly that Islam “sanctions genocide, planned genocide, as its religious doctrine”.

Like many other self-appointed terrorism experts, Emerson’s career blossomed in the wake of 9/11. Lately he has come to focus on what he terms “legal insurgency”,claiming last month that Islamists are succeeding in a plot to “quietly” take over the US by means of:

Faustian deals with the media where the ultra-fascist ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood is totally consistent with the ultra-left-wing ideology of the media and it’s reflected on campuses in academia and student groups, it’s reflected in books and it’s also reflected in policies by the US government.

Emerson’s ideas are not only warmly received by the Christian Right and the pro-Israel lobby, they have also made inroads into Congress. After 9/11, Emerson testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee and distributed copies of his 1994 video Jihad in America to all 535 members of Congress. Republican congressman Chris Smith told the Washington Post that the film “played a real role” in the passing of the 2001 Patriot Act.

Emerson’s is but one voice in a well-resourced industry of Islamophobia in the US. This network includes Daniel Pipes, Frank Gaffney, Robert Spencer, Pamela Geller, Brigitte Gabriel and others, and a seemingly endless stream of funding ensures that its anti-Muslim diatribe is a steady feature of mainstream US political discourse.

A Centre for American Progress report found that between 2001 and 2009, Emerson’s Investigative Project on Terrorism organisation, along with Daniel Pipes’s Middle East Forum, Frank Gaffney’s Center for Security Policy, the David Horowitz Freedom Centre, the Clarion Fund, Robert Spencer’s Jihad Watch, the American Congress for Truth, and the Counterterrorism and Security Education and Research Foundation received over US$42 million from just seven major foundations.

The largest single donation, over US$17 million transferred from Donors Capital to the Clarion Fund in 2008, paid for a DVD titled Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West that was distributed to over 28 million swing-state voters in the lead-up to the 2008 presidential elections. The same fund’s large-scale backing of climate change denial groups has been blamed for creating a backlash against Obama’s environmental agenda and ruining the chances of Congress taking action on climate change.

In the wake of the gun lobby’s successful scuttling of any hope of even the most moderate gun law reform in the US by paying off senators, the threat that cashed-up conservatives pose to democracy cannot be ignored.

While Muslims may not have faced as many random attacks on the street this time round, they remain fixed in the crosshairs of a multi-million dollar industry dedicated to the sole purpose of hating them.

Chloe Patton does not work for, consult to, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has no relevant affiliations.

Prayers to honor victims of Connecticut shooting

We have to work on developing a society, where no American has to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other. We pray for peace and kindness to prevail, please join us for the interfaith prayers to honor the ones who have lost their lives.

Dec. 15, 2012 - We stand with the families, who have lost their loved ones at the Connecticut shooting today, and we pray for the safety and security of the ones shaken by the incident, and pray that confidence is stored to the children and families who are scared.

As Americans we have to come together to mourn and reflect on this tragedy, and find sustainable solutions. We have to assure our children, or those children who have no one to assure, that what happened is bad, and we all have to work to prevent it.

We have to remember that no matter how hurting it is, we cannot blame an ideology or guns; it is the reckless attitudes of the deranged individuals that caused the killing. They need help, if we spot such individuals, we need to report them to find help for them, it is our silence that is bad, and we need to let our children know that if they see any one behave unusually, they need to tell the parents or their teachers in school. We have had four incidents this year in Colorado, Wisconsin, and Illinois and now in Connecticut and we cannot have our children live in fear.

We pray for peace and kindness to prevail, and seek the divine guidance to bless us with guidance to prevent these tragedies. At this time, we have to come together to express our support to the victims and their families.

We have to work on developing a society, where no American has to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other. We are all in this together.

Join us tomorrow for interfaith prayers, at 3:00 PM at 1210 E. Beltine Road, Richardson, TX 75081 

 

 
1st Press Release at:  http://americatogetherfoundation.blogspot.com/2012/12/press-release-prayer-vigil-for-victims.html

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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work place and standing up for others as an activist. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. Mike has a presence on national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News, fortnightly at Huffington post, and several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes everything you want to know about him.

TEXAS FAITH: Is God good?

God is neither good nor bad. He is like the nuclear power, in itself, in the right hands he is a blessing, and in the wrong hands he is a barbarian. We can make the Bible, Quran, Torah, Bhagvad Gita, Guru Granth Saheb and other religious text to be hell or heaven; it is not about God, but about the disgusting selfishness in us. We need to take responsibility for the balance and not blame God or Religion for it.

Now, onto this week's question, which panelist Cindy Rigby suggested after she read this column by Gary Gutting, a Notre Dame Philosophy professor. The essay hits on several major questions, but the one for this week deals with this issue: If you believe in God, do you believe God is good? If so, why?

Fifteen Texas Faith Panelists weigh in on this, here is Mike’s take:

If you don't believe God is good, please explain.

MIKE GHOUSE, President Foundation for Pluralism, Dallas

God is neither good nor bad, and it is not micro-managing every moment of the universe either.

It is not a being, not a thing, and not an entity but simply the energy that caused a "balanced universe" and functions on the principle of balance, where every component of it is programmed to seek its own balance; both physical and metaphysical.

For lack of linguistic expression, we normally address God as "him" instead of "her." God only knows what it is. Indeed, we have created God in our own image. Each one of the 7 billion of us has a belief and a perception, each perception is unique like our thumb print.

The Jewish culture expresses it beautifully in a dialogue between God and Abraham to illustrate the point. Apparently God tells Abraham to be grateful. He says, "I created you, and you exist because of me." To which Abraham retorts, "Wait a minute, you exist because of me. Had it not for me, who would have known you? "

The dished-out versions of God did not appeal to me for nearly half of my life, but in my reflective moments, I believed that there is something that is causing life and death, and systematically changing forms of matter, not necessarily second by second, but according to a well-defined system.

There is a song in Urdu/ Hindi language by the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. It was a signature song for my talk radio show between 2003 and 2005. And it was called "Wisdom of Religion, all the beautiful Religions."

Our fellow panelist Nityananda Das co- hosted over 100 hours of talk on Hinduism with me, while I did 500 hours of wisdom of all religions. The show opened with the song, "Koi to hai jo nizam-e-hasti chala raha hai, wahi khuda hai."

There is some energy, some power out there that has programmed to run the world systems with precision; someone who is causing day and night, someone who is changing the seasons, someone who is causing the planets to remain in orbits and someone who gives life and ends it as well... that someone must be God.

When universe came into being, through evolution, creation or big bang, it produced two major items: Matter and Life.

Matter is programmed to "remain" balanced with a few anomalies built into it. But overall the universe is on autopilot. It is programmed to run with precision and it will. Jupiter, Earth and the moon will orbit precisely, planets and other universes are expanding and shrinking but have their own space, and their own systems functioning with the laws of physics in place.

However, life in general, but human life in particular was not set on autopilot. A new component was added between balance and life; free will and a brain capable of finding the balance.

So this creator or causer of life is about balance. When we are at balance we have found home (God), defined in terms of living without anxiety, fear or discomfort. I believe this was the bottom line message of Abraham, Zoroaster, Moses, Buddha, Krishna, Jesus, Muhammad, Nanak, Bahaullah, Confucius and all the great teachers.

They manifested love of the creator God (balance) and sought creating cohesive societies where no one has to live with fear of the other. Their intensified effort was directed to get us out of utterly disgustingly selfish interests to the interests of the humanity to achieve salvation, mukti, moksha, nijaat and freedom. Also known as being in heaven.

God is like the nuclear power, in itself, it is neither good nor bad, but in the right hands he is a blessing, and in the wrong hands he is a barbarian (Quran 84:7-15). We can make the Bible, Quran, Torah, Bhagvad Gita, Guru Granth Saheb and other religious text to be hell or heaven; it is not about God, but about the disgusting selfishness in us. We need to take responsibility for the balance and not blame God or Religion for it.

For the rest of the fourteen opinions, please visit Dallas Morning News: http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2012/04/texas-faith-is-god-good.html

MikeGhouse is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam, India, Israel, peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he writes weekly at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington post, The Smirking Chimp and several other periodicals. His daily blog is www.TheGhousediary.com

Happy Lent, a Muslim perspective

As a token of solidarity, today, I join my Christian friends and give up drinking soda for the next 40 days to honor their practice.

Lent reminds me of 3o days of Muslim Ramadan of Muslims; 7 days for Jain Paryushan of Jains; 8 days of Jewish Passover; and 9 days of Hindu Navaratri. The essence of all these events is renewal of the soul and reflection on life. I am happy that these actions are designed to make better humans out of us.

Every faith is composed of a set of unique rituals to bring discipline and peace to human life. Fasting is one of the key elements of observing Lent.

The spirit and intent of Lent lies in a human transformation in a forty days long inner spiritual journey of finding oneself in tune with spirituality.

Continued

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Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a speaker thinker and a writer and a frequent guest on Fox TV with Sean Hannity and a regular on National syndicated Radio shows talking on Pluralism, Politics, Islam, Justice and cohesive societies. His work is all listed at www.MikeGhouse.net

TEXAS FAITH: Across religious spectrum, voters are increasingly identifying themselves as Republican. Why?

Every religious group is clamoring to have their personal religious interests take precedence over the interests of America. In the long run it is not sustainable and does not bode well for America. There are two critical factors in the play to explain the voter shift towards Republicans; unemployment and religion.

TEXAS FAITH: Across religious spectrum, voters increasingly identifying themselves as Republican. Why?

Across almost every major religious group, the share of voters identifying with or leaning toward the GOP has either grown or held steady. So what's going on? Why has the number of religious voters identifying themselves as Democrats declined - and as Republicans risen? Why do you think this is happening?

We asked our panel of Texas Faith experts to weigh in. Their responses follow:
MIKE GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism, Dallas
There are two critical factors in the play to explain the voter shift towards Republicans; unemployment and religion.

Every religious group is clamoring to have their personal religious interests take precedence over the interests of America. In the long run it is not sustainable and does not bode well for America.

There is a positive correlation between the swap among unaffiliated Independents and Democrats. The 4% loss to Democrats comes from the 4% gain to the unaffiliated independents; there is also an identical 4% increase in Republican leaning independents from 39% to 43%. The major contributing factor seems to be the unemployment. Per the department of Labor, the unemployment grew from 6% in July 2008 to 9.2% in July of 2011 and the shift has occurred during the same period. Disenchantment factor seems to be in the play.

While the Republican base has remained even at 28% in the survey period, the loss has occurred in the Democratic Party, moving away towards independents. Which throws a challenge to the Democratic Party that it was a performance based change and the gain will shift back with new and improved results, which is yet to be surveyed.

Not sure, how big a factor unemployment is when you review the new analysis in the same survey that claims, "the share of voters identifying with or leaning toward the GOP has either grown or held steady in every major religious group."

The biggest gain for the Republican leaning registered voters comes from Mormons, Jews and White Catholics respectively. That is 12, 9 and 8 points. Is it easy to draw conclusions?

Is Romney a factor for a 12% gain for the Republicans among Mormons? That is the highest singular gain among all religious groups.

What percent of the 9% Jewish shift towards Republicans is attributable to Democratic President's stance towards Iran? What percentage goes towards his call for the 1967 borders and stopping the settlements?

The White Catholics have the third largest leaning towards Republicans with 8%. Is it the abortion issue or the same sex marriage? We cannot entertain political candidacy as Gingrich and Santorum had not announced their candidacy during the entire survey period, where as Mormons know Romney was going to run.

America was founded on liberty from religious persecution and we should consciously not let a religious ideology dominate the nation, we are the final frontier land of freedom and we should preserve it, unless we have the promised moon colony ready to flee.

Let people have the freedom to choose and not let the government regulate what we eat, drink, wear, believe or who we marry.

. . . . . .

The other panelists responses at: http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2012/02/texas-faith-across-religious-s.html

. . . .

Here's the link for the Pew study: http://www.pewforum.org/Politics-and-Elections/Trends-in-Party-Identification-of-Religious-Groups.aspx

. . . . . .

Additional Notes: I am glad to see the spread in party identification – 34% identify themselves as Democrats with an additional 14% independents who lean towards Democrats giving them a 48% political share, where as 28% identify themselves as Republicans with an additional 16% who lean towards Republicans giving them a share of 44% and that leaves an 8% true independents. Where are you in this affiliation game?

. . . . . .

Mike Ghouse is a thinker, writer speaker and an activist of pluralism, interfaith, co-existence, peace, Islam and India. He is a frequent guest at the TV, radio and print media offering pluralistic solutions to issues of the day. His websites and Blogs are listed on http://www.mikeghouse.net/

Dallas school districts controversial use of religious buildings

Dallas Morning News writes a report on the topic and includes some of my comments in the article following my notes.

The School District’s decision to hold the commencement ceremonies at churches, synagogues, mosques and other religious buildings without restrictions does not bode well in the long haul.

A few religious places will be generous in their offer; however, it implies an association with that place of worship and carries the baggage in the long haul. What if the new pastor is a bigot and has a problem with gay or lesbian kids or kids of other faiths. It is always the individual that drives the society towards ill-will or goodwill. Why do we need to subject ourselves to such whims?

We are a pluralistic society and deeply want our kids to grow up and interact with the real world out there that comprises people of different faiths, races, ethnicities and sexual orientation. A religious building does not offer such an environment, even with a few exceptions.

The Federal court just rejected a referendum in Oklahoma to ban families from seeking guidance from international or Sharia law to resolve disputes among family members even though 70% of the voters had approved it. In California proposition 5 met the same fate years ago and the Farmers Branch overwhelmingly approved the anti-immigration bill, which is in the courts now.

I would suggest the board members not to vote for this motion; the school will end up squandering money on legal suit rather than children’s education.

As a pluralist, I do welcome this, but since we are still not there we have to hold this off.
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Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. A writer, thinker and a speaker and is available to speak on pluralism, politics, Islam, peace, cohesive societies and a variety of topics. Check out 4 websites and 27 Blogs indexed at www.MikeGhouse.net. Current articles at www.TheGhousediary.com
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ACLU warns Dallas ISD against plan to allow graduations at churches
By TAWNELL D. HOBBS Staff Writer thobbs@dallasnews.com
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/headlines/20120113-aclu-warns-dallas-isd-against-plan-to-allow-graduations-at-churches.ece
Published: 13 January 2012 12:26 AM

The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas is warning Dallas ISD to “tread cautiously” on loosening restrictions to allow graduations at churches and other religious facilities.

Dallas school trustees discussed the proposal at Thursday’s board briefing. Two of eight trustees voiced concern about the plan, which will be considered Jan. 26.
The change would eliminate a clause that prohibits commencement exercises from being held at churches, synagogues, mosques and other religious sites without permission of the superintendent, and only under extenuating circumstances when no other nonreligious facility is available.

District officials said the change is being proposed because some schools have for years been using churches for graduations. The schools, which were not aware they were violating board policy, raised the issue with district administration, they said.
But the ACLU of Texas said in a news release Thursday that it cannot understand why DISD would consider changing what the group calls a “neutral policy.” It also noted that such a change could result in legal proceedings.

“DISD should tread cautiously in this area,” Lisa Graybill, ACLU of Texas’ legal director, warned in the news release. “The current policy provides a safeguard to ensure commencement exercises are held in appropriate, nonsectarian locations where all students, their families, and school personnel feel equally comfortable. Changing the policy could ultimately result in a constitutional challenge and costly litigation.”

The ACLU of Texas also submitted a public information request to the school district, asking for information that includes costs for off-site events and the reason for the proposed change.

Board President Lew Blackburn said that neither he nor school attorneys have a problem with the proposal. Blackburn said that he has attended graduations at churches and that nothing religious occurred.

Several Dallas school trustees, including Bruce Parrott and Carla Ranger, said they were unaware of the ACLU’s misgivings when they discussed the matter at Thursday’s meeting. Parrott and Ranger voiced concerns about the proposal during the discussion.

pointed to a similar situation that involved the separation of church and state in the Irving school district last year. The ACLU of Texas had contacted that district with questions about a plan to hold graduations at The Potter’s House church. In response, district officials decided against the move.

“We don’t need to be involved with any lawsuit,” Parrott said. “We’ve got a policy; let’s just adhere to the policy.”

Ranger voiced similar concerns.

“We all know there have been problems in other places because of this very issue,” she said. “Removing this would put us in a situation that we don’t want to be in.”
The vast majority of religious leaders contacted Thursday agreed that the school district should not make such a change.

“I would suggest the board members not to vote for this motion; the school will end up squandering money on [a] legal suit rather than children’s education,” Mike Ghouse, a Muslim and president of the Foundation for Pluralism in Dallas, said in an email.

The Rev. Daniel Kanter of First Unitarian Church of Dallas said in an email that “it could make people uncomfortable to have their graduations in a house of worship, and we shouldn’t be putting citizens in that situation.”

He added: “Unfortunately, some people of faith might also have prohibitions about attending events in a house of worship other than theirs.”.

But the Rev. Trey Graham, senior pastor of First Baptist Church Melissa, said in an email that he “applauds the school board” for considering the change. He said the district shouldn’t be deterred by possible legal action by the ACLU.

“The elimination of this restriction makes sense for the school district financially, logistically and relationally,” Graham said. “Financially, school districts can often save money by utilizing church facilities at lower cost than other large meeting places.”
Graham said that his church’s facilities are often used by school, civic and community groups that need meeting space. “We consider the use of our church’s space by outside groups as another way to positively impact our communities,” he said.
Staff writer Holly K. Hacker contributed to this report.

Faith leaders on DISD proposal

Several religious leaders from North Texas, including regular contributors to The Dallas Morning News’ Texas Faith blog, weighed in on a proposal to allow Dallas ISD schools to hold graduation ceremonies in religious facilities. Here are excerpts from their comments:

Ric Dexter, Northeast Texas area leader in SGI-USA, a Buddhist lay organization

“I can’t imagine any religious facility that would be willing to remove or cover over a symbol of their reason for being, simply not to offend some of the graduates. While most Christians would have no problem with a crucifix as a backdrop, I wonder if they would feel as comfortable with Shiva or Buddha overlooking this important moment in their children’s life.”

Trey Graham, senior pastor, First Baptist Church Melissa

“Our church’s facilities, on multiple campuses, are often used by school, civic and community groups who need meeting space at times that do not interfere with our regular church ministries. We consider the use of our church’s space by outside groups as another way to positively impact our communities. The threat of legal action by the ACLU should not deter school board personnel from making this sensible change.”

Katie Sherrod, Episcopal lay leader, Fort Worth

“I don’t know what freedom of religion and freedom from religion is worth, but way too many U.S. soldiers have died to defend those American values. However much money the district might save by using religious buildings doesn’t even come close to being worth sacrificing that. While Christian children and parents might be OK with sitting under an image of the crucified Christ, I doubt it would be comfortable for Jewish children and their parents, given how often the crucifixion has been used as an excuse to persecute Jews. And I’m trying to imagine how some Christians would feel about having their child’s graduation in a mosque.”

Mohamed Elibiary, spokesman, Islamic Asssociation of North Texas/Dallas Central Mosque

“We would advise DISD to slow down its consideration to change the current neutral graduation venue policy and instead launch a broad stakeholders’ feedback effort. It is a fact that some faith communities with larger percentages of new immigrant constituencies will view this policy change as biased towards certain denominations, such as megachurches, with the large facilities to lease to the school district in the first place. Public schools were partially established more than a century ago so that various segments of the American public can find that uniting neutral ground that reminds all that despite numerous differences, we are still all equal Americans, civically speaking.”

Mike Ghouse, a Muslim and president of the Foundation for Pluralism, Dallas

“It implies an association with that place of worship and carries the baggage in the long haul. What if the new pastor is a bigot and has a problem with gay or lesbian kids or kids of other faiths? It is always the individual that drives the society towards ill will or goodwill. Why do we need to subject ourselves to such whims?

“We are a pluralistic society and deeply want our kids to grow up and interact with the real world out there that comprises people of different faiths, races, ethnicities and sexual orientation. A religious building does not offer such an environment, even with a few exceptions.”

Holly K. Hacker