MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (ABP) — A county judge ruled Nov. 17 that Muslims
can move forward with plans to build a new mosque and Islamic center in
Murfreesboro, Tenn., in a case that has become emblematic of national
tensions over Islam.
Opponents of a proposed mosque in Murfreesboro took to the streets in a march this summer.
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Rutherford County Chancellor Robert Corlew III heard a total of eight days of testimony spread out over nearly two months in a lawsuit seeking to block construction of a 53,000-square-foot complex. The facility eventually will include a new mosque, multi-purpose and educational facilities, a gym and athletic fields.
The Muslim congregation of about 1,000 says it has outgrown the 2,250-square-foot building that has been home to the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro for about 30 years.
Mosque opponents alleged that county officials did not give proper notice of a hearing to allow neighbors to voice concerns about matters like traffic and environmental impact before granting construction permits.
But court testimony ranged far beyond such mundane concerns. Witnesses claimed that Islam is a political movement bent on world domination rather than a constitutionally protected faith and that Muslims want to replace the Constitution with Sharia law. At one point the United States Department of Justice weighed in with a brief asserting that Islam is fully recognized as a religion and that county officials risked violating civil-rights laws by treating it as something else.
In the end, however, the judge found that the county planning commission did nothing wrong in approving the Islamic Center's site plan and denied a temporary restraining order against building permits.
The lawsuit is expected to cost taxpayers about $50,000. Lawyers for the six individuals who filed the lawsuit worked for donations. Contributors included a Christian Zionist organization.
Proclaiming Justice to the Nations, led by mosque opponent Laurie Cardoza-Moore, retained and paid one of two attorneys handling the case. Although she was not one of the plaintiffs, Cardoza-Moore spoke on behalf of mosque opponents in media interviews including "The 700 Club" on CBN and "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central.
The mosque's approval passed with little notice late last year but started getting attention after someone vandalized a sign at the future mosque site by spray painting it with the phrase "Not Welcome." A second sign vandalism occurred later, and in August somebody set fire to heavy construction equipment parked on the lot for site clearing.
In July, hundreds of angry citizens marched onto the small Nashville-area city's public square carrying signs with messages like "Mosque Leaders Support Killing Converts," "Sharia Law Violates U.S. Constitution" and "Islam is not a Religion." They were met by counter-protesters from a group calling itself Middle Tennesseans for Religious Liberty.
The pastor of a Baptist church that sits next door to where the new mosque is planned, meanwhile, said he has no problems with his new neighbors.
"We want to be neighborly to them," Russell Richardson, pastor of Grace Baptist Church, told the Daily News Journal. "I would not say I support them, but I do not oppose them. We would welcome a synagogue or a Buddhist temple on the same basis."
The polarization has mirrored similar controversies over building a proposed Islamic center near the site of Ground Zero in New York and another in Temecula, Calif.
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Bob Allen is senior writer for Associated Baptist Press.
Previous ABP stories:
SBC ethics czar Land comes out in favor of Tennessee mosque (10/4/2010)
Faith, fear clash in middle Tennessee over proposed mosque (9/10/2010)
Tenn. city latest flashpoint in culture wars (7/15/2010)