Rabat – The Ibn Rushd-Goethe mosque in Berlin is embroiled in a major controversy over an unprecedented decision to raise the rainbow flag on July 1 ahead of Friday prayer to show support to the LGBTQ+ community.
Attendees of the flag-raising event, including Berlin’s Culture Senator Klaus Lederer, wore stickers that read “Love is Halal” to show acceptance toward LGBTQ+ worshippers. Meanwhile, many Muslims in Germany and across the world have sharply criticized the mosque’s move, describing it as outrageous and unacceptable
Located in Berlin’s Moabit district, the Ibn Rushd-Goethe mosque claims to be the first mosque in Germany to raise the rainbow flag and support LGBTQ+ members of the Muslim community.
Founded in 2017, the self-proclaimed liberal mosque also allows men and women to mix up during prayers and women to take the role of an imam, moves that are forbidden in other mosques across the world.
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Seyran Ates, a Turkish-German lawyer, writer, and rights activist, is the founder of the Ibn Rushd-Goethe mosque and the first woman to assume the role of the imam – the person who leads prayers in a mosque – in Germany.
“We want to promote the good things that a religious community has to offer: love towards one another, towards God, protection against loneliness, having dialogues about the doubts we have,” Ates told Exberliner Magazine.
The move has triggered mixed reactions across the internet with many strongly denouncing the idea of a mosque supporting the LGBTQ+ community, saying that it distorts the image of Islam and goes against its teachings.
But others have welcomed the idea, saying that Islam is a religion of acceptance and tolerance that should embrace all people, regardless of their sexual or gender orientation.
Mo el-Ketab, one of the imams of the Ibn Rushd-Goethe mosque, encouraged other mosques to follow suit and accept Muslim LGBTQ+ members. German news outlet Deutsche Welle quoted him as saying: “I hope that many other mosques will also show the flag in this way or set other positive signs for the LGBT community.”
Amid the controversy, the Ibn Rushd-Goethe mosque says it will also participate in LGBTQ+ pride celebrations that will take place in Berlin during this month, including the Lesbian and Gay Festival on July 16 and 17 and Christopher Street Day (CSD) on July 23.
In recent years, several liberal Muslims, including Muslims for Progressive Values organizations, have pushed forth the claim that homosexuality is not Haram, arguing that the Quran forbids rape and sexual assault, not homosexuality.
