"Christian-Muslim" Priest Suspended
IslamOnline.net & Newspapers
CAIRO — An American Episcopal woman priest has been suspended for one year from the priesthood and other church tasks for claiming to be both Christian and Muslim, The Christian Today reported on Tuesday, July 10.
"[ Rev. Ann Holmes Redding] is not to exercise any of the responsibilities and privileges of an Episcopal priest or deacon," Rev. Geralyn Wolf, bishop of the Diocese of Rhode Island, wrote in an e-mail to church leaders.
He said she should instead "reflect on the doctrines of the Christian faith, her vocation as a priest, and what I see as the conflicts inherent in professing both Christianity and Islam."
Redding, who was director of faith formation at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral in Rhode Island, had been a priest for 23 years.
She made headlines last month after telling the Seattle Times that she was "100 percent" Muslim and Christian.
In a front-page article, Redding said she had been a practicing Muslim for 15 months and pronounced the Shahadah; namely, testifying that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is His Messenger.
On Sundays, she used to take the church's pulpit and take part in Masses, while on Fridays she wore a hijab and prayed along with Muslims.
Redding said she was "deeply saddened" by the suspension decision, but would comply.
"I wish it could've been at a more convenient time, but as far as I know I am responding to God's will and God's timing," she told The Christian Today.
"Not About Feelings"
"Having two religions at the same time, though, seems to be stretching interfaith dialogue a bit too far," said Tawfiq.
Redding faith duality has drawn rebuke from both Christians and Muslims alike.
Chuck Colson, founder of the Christian ministry Prison Fellowship, said religion is not only about "feelings."
"There’s so much wrong here that I scarcely know where to begin."
He explained that being Christian is about believing in Christian concepts such as the Trinity and the divinity of Christ.
"Redding is simply an extreme example in the Episcopal Church."
Muslims believe in Jesus as one of the Messengers of God and in his miraculous virgin birth but that only God is divine and none else, including all prophets.
Edris Tawfiq, a former Roman Catholic priest who embraced Islam a few years ago, believes that Redding has taken it to the extreme.
"There is no doubt that interfaith dialogue, whereby the people of different religions get to know each other more through open and frank discussion, as well as friendly interchange, is one of the most pressing needs in the world today," he wrote for Reading Islam, a sister website of IslamOnline.net, in an article published Tuesday.
"Having two religions at the same time, though, seems to be stretching interfaith dialogue a bit too far."
Tawfiq, a Briton who is now based in Egypt, says Islam and Christianity are incompatible.
"Muslims believe that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the final Messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets. The problem, in this situation, lies in what Christianity teaches. Christians believe that the final revelation of Almighty God to humankind is in the person of Jesus Christ."
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