CECF NEWSLETTER, ISSUE 1

DECEMBER2013

Imam Mohamad Bashar Arafat's first visit to Al-Azhar, the oldest Islamic university in the world, was in 2005 when he proposed the idea of establishing an important language center at Al-Azhar for their faculty to learn English and to have native English language speakers teach. The hope is to be able to reach out beyond the Middle East as future Muslim leaders. The idea was implemented and ELRC was born. Imam Arafat was active and enthusiastically supported the center. He visited and lectured in the ELRC again in 2010 and spoke on the importance of understanding the global cultural diversity in the 21st century. At this time, he suggested to the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, having exchange programs for the students of Al-Azhar.The goal of the programs is for the students to be introduced to the multi-cultural, multireligious Diversity" in America. The delegations started to visit the U.S. in 2011 and third delegation retuned from the U.S. at the end of September of 2013. Photos of the program can be seen HERE

After returning to Egypt, the participants of these programs asked to have a branch of CECF at Al-Azhar. With the encouragement of Imam Arafat through his visit in December of 2012, sponsored by the U.S. Embassy, a group of exchange program Alumni started an organization called "Litaarafoo" (To Know Each Other). The objective is to share their travel experiences with others at Al-Azhar and extend the bridges of cooperation between Al-Azhar and religious institutions abroad. The hope is for Litaarafoo to partner with CECF in Cairo and benefit from its innovative vision and extensive experience in training and mentoring Imams around the world and promoting cultural and religious understanding.

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