Click here: TodaysTHV.com – Synagogue Becomes Reality With Muslim’s Help
The congregation of Temple Shalom, the Hebrew word for peace, will build its synagogue on land they purchased in Fayetteville. On Sunday, about 100 people and religious leaders gathered to bless that land, where they hope to have a temple built by next year.Since 1981, the members of Temple Shalom practiced their faith where they could.
That’s when Fadil Bayyari, a Muslim from Palestine who works as a general contractor in Springdale, volunteered to help. Bayyari waived his contractor’s fee, which typically would be as much as 15 percent on the million dollar project.Temple Shalom founding member and building coordinator Jeremy Hess and Bayyari acknowledge their religions’ common roots, including their belief in one God. Bayyari says they are like cousins.Bayyari built the Islamic mosque in Fayetteville and says his kinship with the Jewish congregation also stems from when his faith did not have a home in northwest Arkansas.
Filed under: News
