NYC Muslim Leaders Seek To Dispel Misconceptions
NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Officials from the Islamic Leadership Council of New York were among the Muslim leaders promoting what they called a "Week of Dialogue" designed to dispel misconceptions about Islam.
LISTEN: 1010 WINS' Carol D'Auria reports
At the Masjid At-Taqwa on Bedford Avenue and Fulton Street in Brooklyn, Imam Siraj Wahhaj said men and women were invited to visit a mosque and ask lots of questions, 1010 WINS' Carol D'Auria reported. There are 18 mosques in New York City and Long Island alone.
Wahaj said there were many similarities between Islam, Christianity and Judaism.
"We believe that the Torah is from God. We believe that Moses is the prophet of God. We believe that the gospel is from God," Wahhaj said.
Wahhaj acknowledged that there were bad Muslims who were terrorists and he called Faisal Shahzad -- the man sentenced to life in prison after attempting to explode a car bomb in Times Square -- "a nut."
Muslim leaders hope the week-long open house at mosques across the United States will ease concern about the proposed mosque and Islamic community center near Ground Zero.
