Build a mosque near Ground Zero? So, what?

By now, most have taken sides on the controversy as to whether the Cordova Islamic Center which includes a mosque (adroitly called a prayer room) should be built near Ground Zero.

Right off the bat, let me concede that Constitutionally, and, yes, legally, the Muslims have a right (including the necessary permission) to build the center near Ground Zero. On the other hand, should they?

The answer is a contorted one, that's for sure.

Of course, the presenting answer is that these peaceful Muslims want to establish an interfaith center for peace, brotherhood, tolerance and understanding.

So far, so good.

However, a couple of question beg for answers; if, indeed, a center for peace is their reason for proposing such a mammoth edifice near Ground Zero. Surely, the imam and his congregation know that the majority of Americans, and certainly the overwhelming majority of those that lost loved ones because of the Muslim terrorist on 911, fiercely oppose the construction of the center.

The question is, “Do these Muslims truly want to promote peace? If so, then is this logically the first step?” Rubbing salt into the emotional wounds of those affected is certainly not promoting peace!

If the peace seeking imam and his followers really want to promote peace, then why do they not offer to negotiate an acceptible site with the opposition. At the very worst it would at least it show good faith.

I, for one, however, am not convinced that Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf [left] and those backing the project have clear motives. I base that suspicion on the name chosen for the center. Why is it called the Cordova Center?

Perhaps, a little history lesson will help to answer this question.

Córdoba was the capital of the Spanish Muslim dynasty of the Ummayads (756-1031), and it was during this period that The Great Mosque of Córdoba (La Mezquita) was founded in 785 CE. Further, It is of interest to me, that previously the site had been occupied by a Christian church dedicated to Saint Vincent. Be that as it may, however, The Cordova mosque was added to and expanded over the next two hundred years to make it the third largest structure in the Islamic world. Eventually, by God’s grace, Córdoba was captured by the Christian Spanish king of Castile, Ferdinand III, in the 13th century, and the mosque reverted to a Christian sanctuary.

The Cordova, Spain mosque site, however, has remained a luminary nostalgic symbol ever since for agressive Muslims with spiritual and political hankerings for the good old days when the sword of Islam ruled over the Baltic and most of the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea.

And, a center of peace, the Great Mosque in Cordova, Spain, was not.

Furthermore, who can say that this newly proposed Cordova Center (mosque) will serve a peaceful purpose in the future, if and when radical jihadist use this as a sanctuary to hatch yet another 911 under the guise of a center for peace? Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf can not guarantee that. And, that’s for sure. However, in all honesty, and to be fair, these plots can be engineered almost anywhere, and diehard Islamist probably will.

This is one man’s opinion. Now, what’s yours?