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Faith Leaders Thank Imam Magid
(Dec 22, 2011) Long-time ISNA partners, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick (Archbishop Emeritus of Washington) and Bishop John Bryson Chane (Bishop of the Washington National Cathedral) both took a minute to join the My Fellow American project and share stories of their work with and respect for ISNA President Imam Mohamed Magid.
My Fellow American is an online film and social media project that calls upon concerned Americans to pledge and spread a message that Muslims are our fellow Americans. It asks people of other backgrounds to pledge, and share a real life story about a Muslim friend, neighbor, or colleague that they admire. Using the power of social media, My Fellow American seeks to change the narrative - from Muslims as the other, to Muslims as our fellow Americans.
Cardinal McCarrick reflects on his friendship with Imam Magid:
"Friendship depends on a lot of things, it depends on respect and it depends on trust; I have a lot of respect for the Imam [Magid], he is a man who has given great leadership to our Muslim American community and to the interreligious work that we do. And I have confidence in him too; just as I will always support what he is doing to protect and defend, I know he is going to do the same. So I want to say to my friend, Imam Magid, thank you for being my friend and thank you for being such a great fellow American."
VIEW: Full video of Cardinal McCarrick's Message
Bishop Chane speaks about the need to stand together against bigotry:
"I think one of the great sadnesses is that many of us, broadly speaking, in the Christian community...have been guilty of the crime of silence...we have not really stood shoulder to shoulder and we have not challenged that behavior that continues to demean the image of muslims in this country and also which gives rise by that silence, or that vacuum, to allow this kind of really negative but deadly behavior to continue to grow in this country"
VIEW: Full video of Bishop Chane's Message