In light of the attacks of Sept. 11, the Islamic community in the United States has been more noticeable. On the UW-Madison campus, the Muslim Student Association strives to create an Islamic cultural environment for students of the Muslim faith and to increase awareness of their culture within the Madison community.
\[We are here] to provide an Islamic environment to Muslim students [and] to enhance understanding of Islam amongst non-Muslims,"" said UW-Madison senior Asif Sheikh, president of MSA.
In addition to their regular events, which include study circles, lectures, presentations and social activities, MSA works to clarify the fundamental ideas of Islam within the UW-Madison community. Sheikh said Islam is a monotheistic religion that believes that no human being is superior to another.
""Human beings should be wary of their actions and strive only to do good in this world, as there will be judgment from God at the end of time,"" he said.
Due to current U.S. relations with the Islamic world, many Americans hold misconceptions about the ideas of Islam. According to Sheikh, Islam does not condone terrorism or the anti-U.S. sentiment that is presently found in much of the Islamic world.
""I would affirm that there are many Muslims who are against the West and hate it, but this is due to political inclinations and not religious,"" he said. ""This attitude in Muslims has developed due to a very static and irrational culture in the Muslim world and a lack of implementation of Islamic values and teachings.""
Sheikh further explained that suicide is forbidden in Islam, and war can only take place under certain conditions. Muslims are only allowed to go to war to defend Muslims and their religion or to confront oppression or injustice against any people.
""War is not supposed to be against civilian populations, for the objective of Islam is not to hurt people,"" he said.
UW-Madison senior Reem Hilal, a member of MSA, said Islam is a peaceful religion that does not condone violence. The word Islam comes from the same root as the Arabic word for peace, salaam.
""[Islam] is a religion of peace, and terrorism has no place in the faith,"" she said. ""People who carry out acts of terrorism are not acting within the scope of Islam because this religion of peace does not condone it.""
The idea of jihad is often associated with a holy war. However, jihad holds a much wider meaning, that of struggle or exerting effort. It is most commonly used in reference to the inner struggle between good and evil.
""The greatest jihad is considered to be self discipline against one's bad or lustful desires,"" Sheikh said.
Furthermore, the term jihad is never associated with war in the Quran, the Muslim holy book.
""In the Quran the word 'jihad' never shows up within the context of war and in Islam war cannot be holy,"" Hilal said.
Another area of Islam that is often misunderstood is the role of women in the faith. Hilal stressed that Islam gives women a very high status and gave women rights long ago that were only recently granted to women in the West.
""[Women are] recognized as individuals who are spiritually, and in terms of humanity, equal to men,"" Hilal said. ""[They have the right] to own property, vote, choose their spouse [and] be an active participant in the community.""
In Islam, however, equality is seen in terms of spirituality and humanity. Men and women are equal, but different, so they are given different roles.
""It is recognized that [men and women] are not the same, so they have different responsibilities. But, neither are inferior to the other,"" she said.
Hilal sees this positively. Particularly, Hilal finds the traditional wearing of a veil empowering rather than degrading.
""A Muslim woman, when she wears the veil, actually achieves two important things,"" Hilal said. ""First, she lets everyone know that she is Muslim and that she has a set of beliefs which she wants to be identified with. Second, she decides how people, specifically men, are going to approach her. [They] will have to approach her and interact with her on a higher level than her physical level.""
Hilal says that despite these misconceptions and the hate crimes that have occurred elsewhere, she has not noticed any ill will toward Muslims on the UW-Madison campus. She believes this is due to the education within the community.
UW-Madison sophomore Ayman Kotob, Da'wah (an Arabic word meaning calling to or summoning) coordinator for MSA, agrees.
""I feel that there has been a huge amount of support shown to the Muslim community,"" he said. ""I think we are blessed to be in Madison because other cities have been so much worse. I think people now want to know about Islam; they want to learn.""
Through MSA, Sheikh, Hilal and Kotob strive to fulfill their obligations as Muslims by being a part of the Muslim community and interacting with and giving back to the community at large.
MSA was formed in the 1960s to create an Islamic environment in the United States for students coming from overseas. Since then, it has grown and contributed to the formation of the broader Islamic community within the United States.
""Islam and America have so much in common and have so much to offer in tandem,"" Kotob said.
Thus, MSA works to bring the two together on the UW-Madison campus.
""Islam is a religion which always motivates its followers to work with the community,"" Sheikh said. ""[MSA allows me] to present Islam to non-Muslims and to look after the community, both Muslim and non-Muslim.""
MSA has about 15 to 20 active members, with a total membership of more than 200 students on the UW-Madison campus.
MSA will be hosting Alison Weir, an independent journalist, Nov. 10. She will speak on the topic ""Palestine, Afghanistan, and the Current World Crisis"" at 7 p.m., 145 Birge Hall.
""[Weir] is a journalist who has been to both Palestine and Afghanistan. She will basically be showing pictures of both places [and speaking about] her experiences there,"" Sheikh said.
In an effort to educate the community about Islam, MSA will also be hosting an open house Nov. 11 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Islamic Centre, 21 N. Orchard St. The group held an open house last month that had good attendance, according Sheikh. The group hopes even more people will attend this weekend to learn about and better understand Islam and the Muslim community here and around the world.
""The open house is where people on campus and the community are welcome to come and see presentations on Islam and ask any questions that they may have,"" Hilal said. ""These events, along with all the other events the MSA organizes, are intended to be forums for educated and peaceful exchange of ideas and questions related to Islam and world issues. [We hope] that people can learn about Islam and Muslims also can learn from the ideas and questions that are often brought up at these events.""
To further this community education, MSA is sponsoring Islam Awareness Week Dec. 3 through 10, which will include lectures and informal teach-in sessions at university housing facilities.
MSA hopes that through these programs, it can educate the non-Muslim community about its members' beliefs in order to promote good relations with the Madison community.
