Muslim scholars write the pope – and everyone else (Dan Murphy, 10/19/06, The Christian Science Monitor)
“What you see in the media are people like [Osama] bin Laden, or Zarqawi, the sorts of people who don’t represent Islam or the religion at large,” says Nakhooda, the Jordan-based editor in chief of Islamica Magazine, which has been helping to publicize the “unprecedented” open letter by Muslim scholars.
“These individuals are a law unto themselves and, sadly, they get the most publicity…. The intent [of the letter] is to start a dialogue rolling so the public would see there’s a positive initiative, an alternative to anger.”
…the most important dialogue must take place as such scholars explain to the Islamic world that its theology conforms to our standards.