Norwegian Muslims invited to visit churches

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Trygve Slagsvold Vedum (Centre Party) says Norwegian Muslims should visit churches during the Christmas holiday, in order to understand Norway and Norwegians better. He says Norwegian Christian traditions are part of the Norwegian history and culture that immigrants, including Muslims, would be better off knowing. Vedum also emphasized that ethnic Norwegians should visit the mosques and ceremonies of other religions.

Mehtab Afsar, General Secretary of the Islamic Council of Norway, was positive about the idea, but said it happens more often than people think. It is not uncommon for people to visit each other's holy places and to attend each other's ceremonies. Muslims increasingly participate in cultural Christmas celebrations, even if they do not participate in the religious aspects.

On another level, a survey conducted lately by Radio Norway has shown a noticeable change regarding how Norwegians view Islam and Muslims. 54% of them now consider that Islam does not constitute a threat to Norway. The survey also showed that the view of women and those who acquired higher education towards Muslims are less negative than those of men and the less educated.

Although 65% of the surveyed said that they do not have any knowledge about Muslims, the department of political science in the University of Oslo has ensured that the crime committed by Brejvik on July 22, 2011 had a positive impact concerning the acceptance of a pluralistic Norway.

There is no problem in the openness of Muslims on the societies they live in, nor in celebrating their occasions in the way that preserves their religion and gives a positive and pure image of the aware and open Islamic personality that preserves the security of the society and helps in enriching it, as well as promoting the existing cultural ties.

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