The Issue of Blasphemy

Most of all, we are encouraged by the fact that there are Muslim religious leaders like you whose wise counsel needs to be taken very seriously, not only by the Muslim people but also by persons of other religious traditions as well. We think the hope for intercultural and international understanding and peace lies in the directions charted by such wisdom. Therefore, we are most grateful for the opportunity to meet and talk with you. You have strengthened our resolve to continue our efforts in Muslim-Christian Dialogue in the U.S. with a view toward the dissemination of accurate knowledge of Islam and better relations with Muslims. We appreciate you sharing your thoughts concerning the Rushdie controversy with us, and we thank you for providing us with the articles and pamphlets you have written. If there is some way that we might receive information about your future publications and how we might obtain them, we would be most grateful. Sincerely Yours, Peggy Starkey Archie L. Nations A Reply to a Letter Dr. Muzaffar Shaheen from Rajouri (Jammu and Kashmir) expressed his thoughts in a lengthy letter: “Since the publication of Salman Rushdie’s book, it has garnered significant attention from newspapers and magazines. The entire Muslim world has reacted to it, and the leaders’