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US scholar first woman to lead Muslim prayers in Britain
An American scholar has become the first woman to lead a Muslim prayer service for both men and women in Britain.
- Agencies
- Published: 09:22 October 18, 2008
Oxford: An American scholar has become the first woman to lead a Muslim prayer service for both men and women in Britain.
A handful of protesters demonstrated on Friday against Amina Wadud, who led about a dozen male and female worshippers in prayer at a conference hall in Oxford. The service took place before a university conference on women and Islam.
Critics said Wadud should not have led the service, because she is a woman and because men and women attended. Muslim practice holds only men should lead services in which men are present.
"We believe women are equal in Islam," countered Taj Hargey, the chairman of Muslim Education Center of Oxford. The group sponsored the event.
Wadud, an author and scholar at a seminary in Berkeley, California, received death threats for conducting a similar service at a church in New York three years ago.
"The purpose of prayer is a relationship with God, and it has been politicised by people who see it as a power dynamic," Wadud said after the service. "It is important that British women take up the mantle, and feel able to take the lead in prayer."
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