Dutch imams promoting ‘shared’ values

    While Muslims in the Netherlands are often regarded as ‘strange’ and ‘different,’ a recent study shows that imams often use their sermons to discuss values and issues which the mainstream Dutch population also believes is important. Fred Leemhuis, professor of Arabic at Groningen University, is using the research on Dutch imams for his PhD dissertation, which includes analyzation of six randomly chosen imams from different ethnic backgrounds, in addition to extensive interviewing of the imams. In a parallel study Pieter van Oudenhoven, a social psychologist, looked at important and overlapping virtues among Protestants, Catholics, and non-religious Dutch persons. In his study of imams, their virtues hardly differed from other Dutch people. Additional information and details about the research conducted by Mr. Leemhuis and van Oudenhoven can be found at the article below.

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