American Islamic lecturer Yusuf Estes captivates audience in Oman

Muscat: Oman is one of only a handful of countries in the world that follows the true principals of Islam, respecting diversity, tolerance and hospitality, said Yusuf Estes, an American Islamic lecturer. Estes spent Tuesday night preaching Islam to an audience of more than 300 people. The lecture was extremely interactive and Sheikh Estes had audience members laughing and cheering in their seats.
The lectures are organised by the Diwan of Royal Courts and the Sultan Qaboos Higher Center for Culture and Science. The theme of the lecture was Islam and the West which included the media portrayal of Muslims.
The original venue was in the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque Auditorium, but with an occupancy of only 300 seats, the event was moved outside and mats were placed on the ground for more people to sit on.
The first two to three rows of both the male and female section were reserved for non-Muslims and were completely occupied. The book merchandise was free to non-Muslims and included titles such as ‘Atheism’, ‘Jesus in the Quran’ and ‘The Quran and Modern Science.’
Atiya Alzadjali, one of the organisers and volunteers, said that the event only took two weeks to plan. She added that Sheikh Yusuf had visited Oman nearly three years ago for another lecture.
Different angle
“The reason we bring these international speakers is to expose people to a different angle of Islam.” Alzadjali said. “It allows them to understand the proper Islam, the peaceful Islam, far away from the terrorism and it also helps clear misconceptions from the media,” she added.
A second lecture will be held on the October 27 at the Oman Convention and Exhibition Center. The event will start at 8pm and the theme will be Islam: The Universal and Moderate Religion hosted by Sheikh Yusuf.