- Born:
- October 23, 1948, Kuwait (age 78)
Feisal Abdul Rauf
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Who is Feisal Abdul Rauf?
Feisal Abdul Rauf (born in Kuwait, October 23, 1948) is an Egyptian American imam, author, and interfaith leader. He is known for leading an effort to build Park51, an Islamic community center in Manhattan, near the World Trade Center site. This sparked a national debate about religious tolerance and sensitivity.
Rauf's early travels and exposure to theological debate shaped his views on Islam and religious pluralism. He became the imam of Masjid al-Farah, a Sufi mosque in Manhattan, in 1983 and founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement in 1997 to promote interfaith dialogue. Following the September 11 attacks, Rauf wrote a book on the relationship between Islam and the West and traveled to Muslim countries on outreach tours funded by the U.S. State Department.
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Where was Feisal Abdul Rauf born and where did he grow up?
Feisal Abdul Rauf, an Egyptian American imam, interfaith leader, and author, was born in Kuwait on October 23, 1948. His father was an Egyptian Islamic scholar who held teaching and administrative positions at universities and Islamic institutions worldwide.
Rauf's upbringing and early travels exposed him to theological debate, shaping his views on Islam and religious pluralism. He was educated in the United Kingdom, Egypt, and Malaysia before moving to New York City with his family in 1965.
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What kind of religious leader is Feisal Abdul Rauf?
Feisal Abdul Rauf is an Egyptian American imam, author, and interfaith leader. He gained prominence for leading an effort to build Park51, an Islamic community center in Manhattan, near the World Trade Center site. Rauf founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement in 1997 to promote interfaith dialogue about Islam in the United States.
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What books or major works has Feisal Abdul Rauf written?
Feisal Abdul Rauf is an Egyptian American imam, author, and interfaith leader anchor text. Hoping to promote interfaith dialogue about Islam in the United States, he founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement in 1997. Following the September 11 attacks, Abdul Rauf wrote a book on the relationship between Islam and the West, provided cultural training to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and traveled to Muslim countries on outreach tours funded by the U.S. State Department during the administrations of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
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How has Feisal Abdul Rauf worked to promote interfaith understanding?
Feisal Abdul Rauf, an Egyptian American imam, has actively promoted interfaith dialogue and understanding through various initiatives. In 1997, he founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement to foster discussions about Islam in the United States. Following the September 11 attacks, Abdul Rauf engaged in outreach efforts, including writing a book on the relationship between Islam and the West, providing cultural training to the FBI, and participating in U.S. State Department-funded tours to Muslim countries during the Bush and Obama administrations.
Abdul Rauf also planned an Islamic community center, Park51, near the World Trade Center site, emphasizing it would be open to all faiths and host interfaith programs.
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Why has Feisal Abdul Rauf sometimes been a subject of public debate in the United States?
Feisal Abdul Rauf, an Egyptian American imam and interfaith leader, has been a subject of public debate in the United States primarily due to his leadership role in the proposed construction of an Islamic community center near the World Trade Center site in Manhattan.
The project, called Park51, sparked a national controversy over religious tolerance and sensitivity. While some praised the plans as a symbol of religious tolerance, others opposed the location, arguing that it would offend the memory of the victims of the September 11 attacks. This led to demonstrations and heavy media coverage, with opinions divided among families of victims and political leaders.
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Feisal Abdul Rauf (born October 23, 1948, Kuwait) is a Kuwaiti-born Egyptian American imam, author, and interfaith leader. He led an effort to build an Islamic community centre in Manhattan, New York, a few blocks from the World Trade Center siteāone of the targets of the September 11 attacks by Islamic extremists in 2001āwhich sparked a national debate over religious tolerance and sensitivity.
Abdul Rauf was born in Kuwait, the son of an Egyptian Islamic scholar who served in a series of teaching and administrative posts at universities and Islamic institutions throughout the world. Abdul Raufās devout upbringing, travels, and early exposure to theological debate did much to shape his later views on Islam and religious pluralism. Educated in the United Kingdom, Egypt, and Malaysia, Abdul Rauf moved to New York City with his family in 1965. He earned a bachelorās degree in physics at Columbia University in 1969 and a masterās degree in plasma physics from the Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1972. Still deeply interested in religion, in 1983 he became the imam of Masjid al-Farah, a progressive Sufi mosque in Manhattan. Hoping to promote interfaith dialogue about Islam in the United States, he founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement in 1997. Following the September 11 attacks, Abdul Rauf wrote a book on the relationship between Islam and the West, provided cultural training to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and traveled to Muslim countries on outreach tours funded by the U.S. State Department during the administrations of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
In July 2009 a group of Muslim investors purchased a vacant building two blocks from the site of the World Trade Center and began to develop plans for an Islamic community centre to be headed by Abdul Rauf. Developers said that the 13- to 15-story community centre, to be called Park51, would house a Muslim prayer area, athletic facilities, a day-care centre, and a memorial to the September 11 attacks that would serve as a nondenominational space for prayer and meditation. Abdul Rauf emphasized that the centre would be open to non-Muslims as well as Muslims and that it would host interfaith programs and events.
Plans for the community centre were praised as a symbol of religious tolerance by some, including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, but also met with significant opposition, led by conservative activists and politicians who argued that placing the Islamic community centre near the site of the World Trade Center attack would offend the victimsā memory and would signify a victory for Islamic extremists. Families of the victims were split on the proposed centre. At the proposed site, demonstrations for and against the Islamic community centre peaked in the summer of 2010, drawing heavy national media coverage to the controversy. Abdul Rauf defended the community centre, saying that if the project were moved to a different location, it would strengthen Islamic extremist groups by seeming to confirm their claims that Muslims are subject to discrimination in the United States.
In 2011 Abdul Rauf was dismissed as head of Park51 by the community centreās developer, Sherif el-Gamal, after disagreements between the two over the projectās name and size and the extent of its interfaith outreach programs.