“The floor is yours, dear Tareq!” Half a dozen students are seated around a U-shaped table in large rooms in Ostwald, in the suburbs of Strasbourg. A handful of others follow the course from home, in Marseille or even Reunion, by videoconference. The Grand Imam of Bordeaux, Tareq Oubrou, who taught that day to this very first promotion of the National School of Muslim religious executives and chaplains (Encram), newly opened in Strasbourg, is also at a distance.
While the Forum de l’islam de France (Forif) meets in Paris, Saturday 5 February, in a way taking over from a completely paralyzed CFCM, the question of the training of imams and chaplains is one of the priority issues. Many are now linked to foreign countries, mainly Turkey, Algeria and Morocco, because France has too few places of training: only three, including this new school located in Alsace.
Tareq Oubrou, the grand imam of Bordeaux, unfolds his theology course: “Yes, language is a factor of inculturation: that is to say, speaking of God in French is already living it and thinking it differently!” Hanane Lamouri, a 32-year-old young woman, responsible for the Muslim chaplaincy of the university hospitals of Strasbourg, takes notes:
“Theology is not something dusty! See, this evening with Tareq Oubrou: we really have content that is thought out, and which is in tune with what we live in France. That’s what is important !”
Hanane Lamouriat franceinfo
Like many here, in this very first promotion of Encram, the young woman – who does not wear the veil – does not necessarily want to become an imam, but wishes to perfect her approach to Islam. “I live it every day in the hospital, with the people we support, continues Hanane Lamouri. Some have never set foot in a mosque, or not for a very long time. In any case, they have a very loose relationship with Islam! We support them, but not as some countries that have a rigorous vision would do. We do it with a vision of openness, since we are in France. You have to live in the French context!”
Behind the creation of this school, a local figure, very involved in inter-religious dialogue, but also a doctor in nuclear physics: Abdelhaq Nabaoui, 57, former president of the Regional Council of Muslim worship in Alsace. “Today, there are not enough structures to train chaplains and imams, indicates the latter. We must act on the level of thought. An imam must be able to meet the expectations of Muslims, of French society, but also to build bridges with other religions.”
A pastor, a rabbi, moreover, have recently been invited to class. The courses are of course entirely in French, and even attract young retirees, such as Nejib Lejri, former head of the pediatric department. He wants to continue to convey, this time speaking of Islam: “I could possibly animate discussion circles for young people, because they have a lot of questions : how to practice Islam in Europe? How to adapt without making waves ?”exposes Nejib Lejri. “I am convinced that Islam adapts to everything.” The school also insists: here, no funding from abroad: it is the students who pay, to train: 800 euros per year. Abdelhaq Nabaoui hopes for a promotion of forty people at the start of the next school year and within five years, up to 500 students, some of whom will become the imams of the 2,500 French mosques.
In Alsace, a school to train future imams capable of “meeting the expectations of French society” – Agathe Mahuet’s report
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