Sunday, December 18, 2005
The story of the Mosque project of the Islamic Society of Boston has made the front page (below the fold) of today's Boston Globe. It's not that detailed, but the fact that the story is making the front page is somewhat significant. Also significant is the fact that the project is now stalled out. The various controversies have dried up funding, and the lawsuit concerning the land purchase has given the banks cold feet about providing any loans -- which the ISB pursued out of necessity even though charging and paying interest is forbidden in Islamic law.
Conceived before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and blessed by the city, the mosque has been beset by challenges. A Mission Hill man is suing the city, alleging that the land deal that got the project underway was unfair. Others have accused officials of the Cambridge-based Islamic Society of Boston, which is building the mosque, of sympathizing with Islamic extremists.
The accusations have battered the project. Donations have slowed to a trickle and Islamic society officials blame the allegations of extremism, which they have vehemently denied, for deterring benefactors. The funding difficulties have all but halted construction and forced the society to seek bank loans to complete the project, a step they had long hoped to avoid, given Islam's prohibition on charging and paying interest. However, those loans were denied, society officials said...
