A picture of a recent meeting between Muslim leaders in Austria and priests in a mosque.

By Ahmed Al-Matboli, IOL Correspondent

VIENNA , May 16, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – Mosques in Austria have become a meeting point for peoples of different faiths and backgrounds from across Europe , enhancing inter-faith dialogue and disseminating true information about a much-stereotyped Islam.

“The aim of these activities is for non-Muslims to learn more about Islam, particularly in view of a distorted image painted by some Western media which impedes their acceptance of Muslims,” Ramadan Ismail, an official with the main Islamic Religious Authority (IRA), told IslamOnline.net.

“Most of the visits are initiated by the visitors themselves,” he said, noting that one of the mosques has recently received Austrian police cadets and a theological school graduates.

On May 11, a delegation of 25 students and alumni of a German theological school visited Al-Shura mosque in Vienna to get a first-hand experience on the mosque’s integrationist role.

According to statistics, an estimated 50,000 Austrians visit the Islamic Center in Vienna annually to know more about Islam.

The center also regularly receives requests, mostly from schools, universities and NGOs, to organize know-Islam visits.

In March, the Cultural League in Austria (Alte Schmiede) organized an inter-faith forum in a bid to cement dialogue between Islam and the West.

The three-day forum showcased books of divergent ideologies reinforcing common grounds between Islam and the West through out the centuries and how they both helped enrich one another.

Frequent Visits

“The visitors have expressed their admiration for the success story of Muslims in Austria ,” said Rawi.

Omar Al-Rawi, the Islamic Religious Authority (IRA)’s official in charge of the integration file, said Germans from leading parties like the Greens and the Socialists have frequently visited mosques in Austria at their own request.

“The visitors have expressed their admiration for the success story of Muslims in Austria and hoped German Muslims would have the same chance,” Rawi told IOL.

He said Austrian Muslims want to send the message that they play a positive role in their society by hosting such constructive meetings.

Rawi attributed the Muslims’ success story in Austria to two main factors.

“It is thanks to the state, which recognized Islam in 1908, and to a group of enlightened Muslim scholars and imams who inspired Austrian-born Muslims, who in turn managed to reach out to non-Muslim natives,” he said.

Muslims in Austria are also keen on keeping in touch with one another.

The imam of the Shura mosque led last Friday, May 13, a 21-member delegation to the southern city of Klagenfurt , where they met with fellow Muslims and performed Friday prayers in the city’s Islamic Center.

Muslims, estimated at nearly half a million, make up some 6 per cent of Austria ’s population.

Islam is considered the second religion in the country after Catholic Christianity.

A law issued in 1867, which guaranteed respect for all religions, gave Muslims the right to establish mosques and practice their religion in Austria .

There are 76 mosques and prayer rooms across the country, including 53 in Vienna alone, according to recent estimates.