Upcoming Ave Maria Radio Conference Asks, ‘Is Islam a Religion of Peace?’
Catholic Marketing Network
July 17, 2013
By Sally Noyola
The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life recently showed that 19% of U.S. Muslims said that “suicide bombing or other forms of violence against civilians in the name of Islam” could be justified. That number in Egypt is 29% and 40% in the Palestinian territories. Do these findings mock the claim that Islam is a religion of peace? On Saturday, August 10, Ave Maria Radio will bring together renowned experts on Islam from around the world to discuss and debate the question, “Is Islam a Religion of Peace?” The one-day symposium will be held in the Student Center at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, MI.
Al Kresta, CEO of Ave Maria Communications notes: “When this conference is over, Christians and Muslims won’t be holding hands and singing Kumbayah. Everyone who participates in this frank, no holds barred discussion, however, will be thankful for free speech and a civil society which permits people with irreconcilable differences to understand, if not agree, with one another.” Featured debaters will be Robert Spencer, director of JihadWatch.org facing off against Shadid Lewis, regional director of the Muslim Debate Initiative in the US, on the question “Is Islam a Religion of Peace?” Muslim columnist for the Turkish News Mustafa Akyol will debate Richard Thompson of the Thomas More Law Center on “Can Islam Support Religious Liberty?”
Other speakers include Andrew Bieszad, author of Lions of the Faith: Saints, Blesseds and Heroes of the Faith in the Struggle With Islam, and Al Kresta, President/CEO of Ave Maria Communications and host of Kresta in the Afternoon. Most Rev. Earl A. Boyea, bishop of Lansing, will celebrate Mass after the conclusion of the symposium. The Eastern Michigan University Student Center is located at 900 Oakwood Street, Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197. Registration for the symposium is $40, and includes a box lunch and free parking. Clergy and student rates are available. Registration will begin at 8:00 a.m., and the conference will run from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. with Mass following. To register for the conference, go to www.avemariaradio.net and click on the conference banner or call 734.930.5201.
