Shirin Taber - Muslims Next Door

ZONDERVAN

muslimsnext door
Copyright 2004 by Shirin Taber

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ePub Edition June 2009 ISBN: 0-310-86311-2

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Taber, Shirin, 1966
Muslims next door : uncovering myths and creating friendships / Shirin Taber
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0-310-25564-3
1. Missions to MuslimsUnited States. 2. Islam. I. Title.
BV2625.T33 2004
261.2'6'0973dc22

2004008351

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04 05 06 07 08 09 10 / DC/ 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

To Patricia Ann Madani and Pamela Ann McPoland
for their Christlike devotion to family and neighbors

The stories of people in this book are true, although
in some cases the names and details have been changed
to protect the privacy of the people involved.

CONTENTS

2 Muslims and Christians
have nothing in common spiritually

I am deeply grateful to my editor, Paul Engle, and the staff of Zondervan, who believed in the power of my story. Thank you for mentoring me and making my dream to be a writer a reality. Im also thankful to family members and friends with Muslim backgrounds who have opened my eyes to the virtues of honor, stylish modesty, hospitality, and the pursuit of beauty and excellence, and were the inspiration for this book.

Many thanks to those who encouraged me as a new author and spent hours reading my manuscript: my loving and patient husband, Clyde; my resilient children, Quinn, Elena, and Sage; my father; my brothers, Thom and Cameron; my relatives Emilie, Elaine, Michele, and Diane; and dear friends Pam and Dennis McPoland, Barbara and Roger MacDonald, Marsha, Kirsten, Alisa, Mary H., Robin, Anne, Larisa, Pebble, Mary P., Dan and Bridget, Jill and Janine, Peggy and Allan, Susan, Mary G., Donna, Dave E., Cy, David M., Jim L., Sky, Mark J., Chris S., Mike A., Lou Nelson, John Eames, Mark Rodgers, Paul Marshall, Dr. Miriam Adeney, Dr. Ralph Covell, and Pastor Lyle Castellaw.

Blessings, joy, peace (Matt. 5:16; 1 Peter 2:9). You have profoundly impacted my life and given me the courage to see myself as a writer.

Eileen, a stunning brunette in her thirties, caught my attention in the checkout line of an Albertsons store one crisp fall morning. I watched as she freely conversed with customers. I found myself drawn to her jewel-black eyes, olive coloring, and inviting smile, all of which reminded me of the many exotic women I had met over the years as I traveled in the Middle East: Mina from Iran, Leila from Tunisia, Hulya from Turkey. Eileen, however, is not of Middle Eastern origin, but Latino and, like me, is part of the browning of America.

A few months later, Eileen and I ran into one another at a Christmas tea hosted by my church. It intrigued Eileen to learn that I was to be the guest speaker that night. She thought of me as just a customer in the checkout line. Before the evening ended, she thanked me for my talk, which she said had touched her. Little did I know how profoundly.

The following week, Eileen pulled me aside at the checkout line and gave me a small gift. Inside a red box was a silver angel pendant. The gift, she said, was her way of expressing her gratitude for the things I had shared at the tea. My Middle Eastern background fascinated her, and she asked if we could get together sometime for coffee. She had a few questions, questions about Islam.

Over the years, various people who have been curious about Muslims have been brought into my pathparents of my childhood friends, a math teacher in junior high, businessmen at dinner parties, members of an adult Sunday school class, friends in my book club.

It took a few weeks to coordinate our schedules, but finally one afternoon Eileen made her way to my home. Eileen wondered if I could help her understand why Muslims are so angry with America. She has friends who are Muslims, and she wanted to learn about their point of view. After we were comfortably seated in my living room, I began to tell her about my background as a daughter of an Iranian-Muslim father and an Irish-Catholic mother. She heard for the first time an insiders view of Muslim life.

When the topic of 9-11 came up, she wondered about Americas response. Revenge? Strike back militarily? And how do we respond now to Muslims living in the United States?

I turned the questions over in my mind, trying to think of the best way to respond. Most Americans cant identify with the complex issues that fuel Muslims mistrust toward the West and toward the American government in particular, I said. Wed have to cover hundreds and hundreds of years of history to understand Muslim animosity. But regardless of how America responds to terrorism, there is an issue that is far more important, and one that each of us can do something about. We need to cultivate peace with Muslims living in our homeland. We need to make them feel a part of America. Make them feel like they belong. They arent going to go away.

She nodded, trying to grasp the issues confronting our Muslim neighbors. I went on to explain that the Muslims shown on the news as gun-toting, flag-burning religious fanatics in some Middle Eastern country are not typical followers of Islam. The truth is that millions of North Americans and Europeans study with, work with, and live near Muslims. Its no longer uncommon to hear the names Fatima or Mohammed on campus, at a neighborhood park, or in a boardroom. In the past, Muslims have been marginalized in our homeland, seen as resident aliens and not as part of the fabric of our country. Christians in the West rarely have any close contact with practicing Muslims, leaving all discussions of religion and faith to missionaries overseas. But times have changed.

Our World After 9-11

When historians look back, it will be radical Islam and the war on terrorism that will mark our times. In our post9-11 world, many Westerners are suspicious of their Muslim neighbors. Public anger against Muslims has increased.