• by IPS Correspondents (rome)
• Friday, November 11, 1994
• Inter Press Service

ROME, Nov 11 (IPS) - For a religious institute committed to dialogue and tolerance the new Islamic Cultural Centre and Mosque in Rome did not get off to the best of starts.

Residents of the area in which it has been built -- just off fashionable up-market Parioli district -- were originally less than enthusiastic about it. Many Romans were convinced that some form of Arab 'Suk' or market was about to be erected amidst their suburban bliss.

Fears were expressed that not only would the large centre become an Islamic village but that it would also have diplomatic or extra- territorial status and therefore effectively be out of Italian state control.

Rumours, too, surfaced in the Rome press to the effect that the Mosque's minaret, that distinctive slender Islamic tower, was going to be higher than the Cupola of the Basilica of St. Peter's in the Vatican.

The Mosque, in short, would represent a challenge to Christianity, right in the heartland of Christendom itself.

Fortunately, those misunderstandings have been resolved and next spring the Islamic Cultural Centre will open to proudly reveal not only the largest Mosque in Western Europe but also a 30,000 square- metre complex that includes a library, a museum, a conference centre and a school.

"Many people have understood Islam only through the behaviour of Islamic fundamentalists -- the behaviour of individuals who represent only themselves.

"When a Muslim knows his religion truly, he will never be violent because true Islam rejects violence. Killing one man is like killing all humanity. Those who come here to pray want to make true Islam known and to reject Islamic fundamentalist violence," said Iman Mahmoud Hamed, the speaker at the Mosque who outlined the philosophy behind the new Mosque and Cultural Centre.

First projected 22 years ago, the Mosque was originally the brainchild of a number of Islamic Ambassadors to Italy and the Vatican. The late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia took up the project, intervening with the then Italian President Giovanni Leone.

The result was that, with the help of veteran Christian Democrat Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Guilio Andreotti, the Municipality of Rome and the Italian state contributed a 30,000 acre site for the project, for the symbolic price of one lire -- in other words for free.

© Inter Press Service (2014) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service

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