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The Utah Statesman – April 4, 2004
Descendants of Abraham focus
on shared beliefs
By Brooke Nelson
In an effort to show the similarities between the three religions professing to be descendants of Abraham - Islam, Judaism and Christianity - a religion panel was held in the Taggart Student Center Auditorium.
Local representatives from each of three major world religions spoke about their primary beliefs and then answered questions from the audience. Representatives included Yasser Nazzal, a local Muslim leader; Bruce Roghaar, a teacher of world religion from the LDS Institute of Religion; and Terry Treseder, a rabbinical student who leads a group in Ogden. Professor Norman Jones from the history department monitored the discussion.
"The point was to draw more campus community support and to establish the commonalties among those representing religion," said Keri Tolboe, a senior in history who organized the event. "All are descendants of Abraham."
The discussion was designed to give each religion a chance to explain its beliefs in a peaceful and non-threatening situation. Jones told participants at the beginning to be respectful and remember that "no one was trying to convert each other in this setting."
Many of those attending were surprised to find how many beliefs the three religions share.
"I was surprised how similar they are. It really is a recipe for peace," said Nancy Cheal, a member of the community who attended the event, adding that if all members of each religion truly practiced their beliefs there would be no reason for conflict or war.
Katy Sampson, an undeclared sophomore, said, "I thought it was very interesting to hear about their beliefs. We need more of that to understand better and to live our religions better."
Some shared beliefs included the recognition of one God over all of creation, the ability for man to choose between the morally right and wrong and the importance of holy words of scripture as written by the prophets. All three panelists also discussed how religion is something that should affect daily life and behavior and not be in profession only.
"The thing you have control over is your deeds in life, you can take the right path or the wrong path. You can choose," Nazzal said.
Roghaar also stressed the importance of agency in God's plan, saying God loves everyone and will respond to each person but will never compel them. "We believe that man has been given moral agency, that we have the opportunity to choose right or wrong, good or evil," Roghaar said. "This comes as light to us at birth that man is given the light of Christ as a conscience or guide to help him."
Treseder also spoke of moral conscience that has been "divinely breathed" into every human being. However, Treseder did speak about the belief that Jewish members have a special role in society.
"We are a people in a covenant relationship. We conclude that God may be in other covenant relationships. In fact, we are fairly sure that God sends prophets to other people on earth," she said. "We do feel we have a special role in the world - that of a God wrestler. That is after all what Israel means. It means God wrestlers. We are a questioning people. We struggle with God, we struggle with society, with each other and ourselves."
One of the main differences between the religions presented during the panel was the presence of a central authority. Roghaar explained the LDS church believes in modern-day revelation and a prophet who continues to testify of the Savior. Neither the Jewish or Muslim religions currently have a central authority or prophet alive today they look to.
"Muslims now have just one authority - the Koran," Nazzal said. "The prophet Mohammed ... was an example for Muslims on how to treat their wives, children and neighbors in a good way. It is a constitution and a way of life for Muslims."
Treseder said the lack of a central authority allows for different interpretations of the Torah to take place, leading to several different strains of Judaism. Treseder said the majority of American Jews are orthodox and are "very much committed to progression."
http://www.utahstatesman.com/news/2004/04/02/CampusNews/Descendants.Of.Abraham.Center.On.Shared.Beliefs-649713.shtml
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