Australian Muslim clerics will be asked to register and follow a code of conduct, an Islamic council said on Tuesday.
The Muslim Advisory Council, which comprises 14 Islamic leaders, is expected to meet in January to draft the Imams’ code, said Yasser Soliman, a council member.
"The guidelines are in response to suggestions by the community and clerics,” Soliman told Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
"We're trying to put together some sort of guidelines about who can become a cleric," he said, adding that “there are people who are appointing themselves as clerics when they're really just backyard clerics and unqualified,”
The council has no power to enforce the imams’ code or force clerics to register, but Soliman said he predicted that only five or six clerics would refuse the idea.
"They'll be identified as not plugging into the mainstream and not representing the community," Soliman said. "At this stage, there's a big fog about where they fit in."
Soliman said the guidelines would also be helpful for foreign imams. “Clerics coming from overseas especially would benefit from understanding the politics of the country, the political system, the language if they're not very fluent in English," Soliman said. "It's important that any gaps be identified. It's not something that should come across as being an insult."
Source: AP
The Muslim Advisory Council, which comprises 14 Islamic leaders, is expected to meet in January to draft the Imams’ code, said Yasser Soliman, a council member.
"The guidelines are in response to suggestions by the community and clerics,” Soliman told Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
"We're trying to put together some sort of guidelines about who can become a cleric," he said, adding that “there are people who are appointing themselves as clerics when they're really just backyard clerics and unqualified,”
The council has no power to enforce the imams’ code or force clerics to register, but Soliman said he predicted that only five or six clerics would refuse the idea.
"They'll be identified as not plugging into the mainstream and not representing the community," Soliman said. "At this stage, there's a big fog about where they fit in."
Soliman said the guidelines would also be helpful for foreign imams. “Clerics coming from overseas especially would benefit from understanding the politics of the country, the political system, the language if they're not very fluent in English," Soliman said. "It's important that any gaps be identified. It's not something that should come across as being an insult."
Source: AP
