Washington September 11, 2012 ISNA National Director Dr. Sayyid M. Syeed participated in a launch ceremony for the new book, Three Testaments: Torah, Gospel, and Quran, a scholarly work which illustrates the interconnected nature of each of the three Abrahamic scriptures. He and others associated with the Islamic Society of North America joined the Rev. Brian Arthur Brown, the contributing editor of the book, and a number of ambassadors to the United States, faith leaders, and government officials who attended at the event in the Canadian Embassy to the United States in Washington, DC.
"Three Testaments connects three great religions," Dr. Syeed said at the book launch. "We can move from one scripture to the other with utmost respect and appreciation for different traditions without losing our own. The diverse messages of different religions with common themes of love, peace, and empowerment of men and women, without discrimination and based on a commitment to justice and equality, will have to be bundled together in our communal society, as this book has done.
"The three great scriptures testify about each other in this book. The Qur'an uses the word musaddiq (testifying) twenty times. This word in various forms has been used to describe the role of the Qur'an and of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in testifying to the earlier revelations. It is therefore very natural to have these scriptures in one volume to speak for themselves. This is a powerful antidote to those who tear verses out of context and in so doing tear our humanity apart and reject our legacy of peace, love and harmony. We hope and pray that copies of this book will find their way to every home, every library, school and worship center, and to a place in every heart."
The book was created and compiled with the assistance of numerous Jewish, Christian, and Muslim scholars. It has been approved for interfaith college courses, and its engaging and accessible style will lend itself well to congregational book clubs and informal religious discussions. The Canadian editor welcomed other Canadian contributors and their American counterparts who fashioned the commentary sections of this impressive compendium, seen by many Islamic scholars as representing Old Testament, New Testament and Final Testament.
Dr. Sayyid expressed gratitude to His Excellency Gary Doer, the Canadian Ambassador, for his hospitality and making possible this unique opportunity to remember our peaceful fellow human beings, the victims of hate and extremism on 9/11 eleven years ago. Sayyid concluded his remarks by saying, “Canadians have done it once again. Canada has taught the world how we can have the longest borders that unite us and not divide us. Eighty five years ago, Canada built the Peace Bridge to facilitate easier border crossing. I have many friends, Canadian and US citizens, who work one side and live on the other side of the border. For years they have been living peaceful, prosperous lives contributing richly to both nations at the same time.
“The peace bridge connects two great nations, respectful of each other. The Three Testaments book connects three great religions. We can move from one scripture to the other with utmost respect and appreciation for different traditions without losing our own. The new century has been described as “The Century of God,” and the role of religions has become paramount. The diverse messages of different religions with common themes of love, peace, empowerment of men and women without discrimination based on commitment to justice and equality will have to be bundled together as has been done in Three Testaments, Torah, Gospel and Quran.”