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I was pleased to see that religious leaders (including Cardinal McCarrick) gathered to raise concerns about a perceived growing anti-Muslim sentiment in this country.  (I'm not sure if it's actually growing or whether it's just become more apparent in recent weeks given current events.)  As for the Koran burning planned for September 11th, I don't think there's much to say that hasn't already been said about the sheer stupidity and decidedly un-Christian hatred that motivate it.  I will say, though, that I'm taken aback by how the pastor of a 50-person congregation can attract the entire world's attention by such a stunt.  I'm guessing that the Koran has been burned in this country before at some point, but in the age of social media, everything is a globally significant event.  I heard an interview with the pastor (Terry Jones), and he defended the burning as sending a message only to Muslim "extremists," not to peaceful Muslims.  That sort of targeted message probably has a similar likelihood of success as a Bible-burning aimed only at Christian killers of abortion providers, not at peaceful Christians.  Though Pastor Jones is embarking on a wildly destructive course of action that bears no comparison with the (often good faith) disagreement over the location of the mosque near Ground Zero, I do see a common underlying question that cannot be avoided: to what extent should we allow the most radical elements of Islam define our relationship with Islam?

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