Maher Hathout, Interfaith Muslim Leader, Dies at 79

LOS ANGELES — Jan 6, 2015, 8:05 PM ET
By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press

Dr. Maher Hathout, a prominent interfaith leader hailed as the father of the Muslim American identity, has died. He was 79.

Hathout, who was born in Egypt but became a steady and insistent voice for Muslim American civic engagement over four decades, died Friday at the City of Hope in Duarte after a yearlong battle with liver cancer, said Salam al-Marayati, president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, which Hathout co-founded in 1988.

Hathout, also a practicing cardiologist, spoke passionately of the need for Muslim Americans to create an identity that did not rely on Middle Eastern cultural interpretations of Islam. He encouraged Muslims in the U.S. to embrace their dual identity and advocated participation in American politics, volunteerism and interfaith work. Deeply religious and deeply patriotic, he often reminded colleagues that "home is not where my grandparents are buried, but where my grandchildren will be raised."

His work, particularly the foundation of MPAC, cultivated a unique sense of identity that sustained Muslim Americans as they weathered the backlash from the 9/11 attacks.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/maher-hathout-interfaith-muslim-leader-dead-79-28042370

http://www.mpac.org/