ROCKAWAY -- The Islamic Center of Morris County steered away from tensions over its proposed mosque in the borough at a "Love Thy Neighbor" interfaith dinner it hosted Thursday night at the First Presbyterian Church.
Aref Assaf, of Denville, who helped organize the event and invited various elected officials and others to attend, said it was aimed at celebrating the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and promoting goodwill, rather than winning over neighborhood critics of the mosque proposed for a Mannino Drive building.
"Our intention is to reach out to our neighbors -- Muslims, Christians or Jews. It has nothing to do with the mosque," Assaf said of the 6:30 p.m. dinner that the church agreed to host.
The Islamic Center is seeking a use variance from the Rockaway zoning board to convert a former warehouse into a mosque, and the next public hearing is Oct. 2.
A hearing on Sept. 4 drew 350 people.
Scene on Thursday
Approximately 65 people attended at Thursday's dinner. It was not clear whether any borough residents who had expressed concern about traffic or raised other objections to the center's plan were in attendance.
"There's a lot of public opposition to it," said Larry Nagel of the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship.
Nagel, eating dinner at a table, agreed with Assaf that the controversy was not the main focus Thursday.
"This is a way we can share the experiences of Ramadan with our Muslim brothers and sisters," he said.
Susan Berkowitz of Parsippany, who organizes weekly vigils on the Morristown Green against U.S. military intervention in Iraq and elsewhere, attended the dinner and said she hopes the mosque gains approval.
"People are afraid because they connect it with 9/11, when in fact these are very peace-loving people," Berkowitz said.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles McKenna, one of several speakers at the dinner, lauded Muslims for cooperating with law enforcement inquiries following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
"Prior to 9/11, frankly, we did not have a lot of interaction with the Muslim community," McKenna said.
That changed following the attacks, he said.
"The Muslim community did not wait for us to come to them. They came to us," McKenna said.
Upbeat atmosphere
Assaf said that "our Muslim community has been facing a lot of adversity since 9/11," but added that he didn't want to dwell on it Thursday.
"Tonight is a time to share in the festival of our holy month," he said.
Another invited speaker, State Sen. Anthony Bucco, R-Boonton, spoke favorably about the mosque in Boonton.
"I've had the opportunity to work with the Islamic Center in Boonton. It has worked out very well. We have had no serious problems with it. It has grown tremendously," Bucco said.
Arif Akhtar, who works as the chief environmental health specialist for Mount Olive, said he was hoping that people will take the time to get to know Muslims who are interested in the mosque plan.
"We invite people from the community to know who we are," he said.
