Austinites Walk in Common Father's Footsteps
Hundreds of Austin-area Muslims, Christians and Jews came together Sunday for a journey of unity mirroring that of their common ancestor, Abraham.
The Abraham Walk, an event put together by the Austin Area Interreligious Ministries, the Institute for Interfaith Dialogue and Congregation Kol Halev was designed to promote communication and understanding between the three religions.
The Rev. Emilee Whitehurst said the event was deliberately held close to the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to show how the event has opened people's eyes to other cultures and religions.
"In light of that horrific event, we chose to find celebration in how it made us come together," said Whitehurst, director of the Austin Area Interreligious Ministries. "This is a commemoration for all those who died and for further peacemaking."
Abraham figures prominently in the Christian Old Testament, the Hebrew Bible and the Quran. He is considered the first patriarch of both the Muslimand Israeli people through his two sons Ishmael and Isaac.
The walk, held at the Crossings meeting center and spa in Northwest Austin, is inspired by the path walked by Abraham in the Middle East as he went to Mount Moriah to sacrifice one of his sons. Although Muslims believe God spared Ishmael, and Jews and Christians believe Isaac was spared, the walk had many stations along the one-mile path for participants to learn about Abraham's life and the customs of other faiths.
Whitehurst said the walk stressed the three faiths similarities instead of their differences.
"We used it as grounds for dialogue and reconciliation, and Abraham is a great place to start," she said.
To help disassociate Islam from terrorism, people were given copies of a statement from Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who said the two simply cannot coexist.
"No one, and certainly no Muslims, can approve of any terrorist activity," Gülen said. "Terror has no place in one's quest to achieve independence or salvation. It costs the lives of innocent people."
Nihat Bayhan, who has lived in Austin for four years and is originally from Turkey, said the walk helped many people understand that Islam isn't very different from Christianity or Judaism.
"We are like flowers," Bayhan said. "We have different colors, but we come from the same roots."
Arban Uka, a University of Texas graduate student in physics and a Muslim from Albania, said Austin fosters a good atmosphere for religious freedom and cooperation.
"Austin is a very open place compared to many other cities," Uka said. "Especially at the university, where it is very diverse. But when the goal is total religious cooperation, our work is never completed."
Uka and Bayhan both volunteered at the walk, teaching pilgrims about Islam. Uka said that although Christianity is thought of as a Western religion and Islam as an Eastern one, that is incorrect, and he hopes people realize how closely related the religions are.
"People forget that Jesus was a Jew who lived in Palestine," Uka said. "This is a starting point for us to be together peacefully."
Patrick George
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