A Muslim Call for Tolerance

In a decade when Islam has been castigated and condemned as a result of the combined efforts of Islamic extremists who seem bent on destroying it and the Western struggle against them, the massive majority of moderates in the Muslim world have felt pushed into a corner and marginalized. 

Yet in Jakarta, a small voice of reason was heard, and even reached page three in the newspapers, that most Muslims want to recognize their problems and deal with them, and fight back against them.  With the Christmas season upon us, it is a good time to listen to what they have to say. 

Ridwan Max Sijabat reported from Jakarta that the largest Muslim mass organization in Indonesia, the Nahdlatul Ulama, (NU), held a joint meeting of the International Conference of Islamic Scholars (ICIS) along with the International Forum of Islamic Scholars.  This hosted more than 100 Muslim intellectuals from Iran, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Palestine, Jordan, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore and Indonesia.