By TAREK EL-TABLAWY

NEW YORK (AP) — A female professor led an Islamic prayer service Friday with men in the congregation despite sharp criticism from Muslim religious leaders in the Middle East who complained that it violated centuries of tradition.

Amina Wadud, a professor of Islamic studies at Virginia Commonwealth University, said the service she was leading helped emphasize “the belief in the reality that women are equal” under Islam.

She addressed a congregation of between 80 to 100 men and women attending the service at Synod House at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, an Anglican church in Manhattan.

Many of the women in attendance were modestly dressed and, in accordance with Islamic tradition, covered their hair with the hijab, or head scarf.

Wadud conducted the service primarily in English with verses of the Quaran read in Arabic.

“Women were not allowed to (have) input in the basic paradigms of what it means to be a Muslim,” she said, adding that while the Quran puts men and women on equal footing, men have distorted its teachings to leave women with no role other than “as sexual partners.”

Dismissing criticism by some that the event was little more than feminist rabble-rousing, Asra Q. Nomani, an author and former Wall Street Journal reporter who helped organize the prayer, said it was intended to draw attention to the inequality faced by Muslim women.

“We will no longer accept the back door or the shadows,” Nomani said. “Today, we are ushering Islam into the 21st century, reclaiming the voice that the prophet gave us 1,400 years ago.”

She introduced a 10-item list she dubbed as “An Islamic Bill of Rights for Women in the Mosque,” which included the right to enter through the front door and to lead prayers.

For many critics, the forum was a blasphemous affront to mainstream Islam.

Particularly controversial was Wadud’s periodic substitution of the Arabic word for God, Allah, with the pronouns, he, she and it, arguing that God’s omnipresence defied gender definition.

“All she is doing is twisting the interpretation of Islam to suit her needs. This is blasphemy, pure and simple,” said Mohammed Nussrah, a Brooklyn native whose family is Algeria. Nussrah, a member of a local Muslim group named the Islamic Thinkers, added: “If this was an Islamic state, this woman would be hanged.”

It was not clear whether Wadud heard opponents’ comments or saw the placards they carried outside, one of which read: “Mixed-Gender Prayers Today, Hellfire Tomorrow.” She did not accept interviews after the event.

The prayer had been scheduled at an art gallery in Manhattan, but that venue was dropped after a bomb threat was received, said Nomani. Three mosques also refused to host the service.

Many in the service said they were inspired by the event.

“It’s time for us to take our place in the mosques,” said Nadwa al-Dawari, who moved to the United States from Yemen.

Yvonne Haddad, a professor of Islamic studies at Georgetown University, said Islam has become increasingly suspect in U.S. culture. But even as American Muslims search for new leadership after “the U.S. government has delegitimized the Muslim leadership in America,” their efforts are unlikely to win support abroad.

“People in America think they are going to be the vanguards of change,” Haddad said. “But for Arab Muslims in the Middle East, American Muslims continue to be viewed on the margins of the faith.”

The sheik of Cairo’s Al-Azhar mosque, the Islamic world’s leading Sunni Muslim institution, said Islam permits women to lead other women in prayer but not a congregation with men.

Other critics say Muslim women do have important roles.

“When we said women should not be imams, it’s not because they are less worthy or unequal to men, but because they have different, equally important, roles in society,” said Iman Husham al-Husainy of the Karbalaa Islamic Center in Dearborn, Mich. “This is nothing more than an attempt to divide by outsiders.”

On the Net:

Great to hear you raising the issue.

Domestic violence against women is unfortunately a pretty universal thing. It affects, surprisingly, women right across the board. From the wealthiest to the poorest, across all ethnicities, age groups and religions. In fact about the only thing these women have in common — is being female. And unfortunately, domestic violence also affects children, young boys and elderly men, so we must resolve to protect their rights as well.

Laws are a start, but laws alone don’t seem to stop it. Especially when a lot of the people who apply those laws are men. So we need laws, and we need many women lawyers, judges, police and advisors to administer those laws. We need 50% women in each of these professions.

Plus we need to provide kids with safe learning environments where they can learn to respect each other, and learn how to resolve difference without resorting to assault.

There are many voices in the Arab world that are for more equal rights and against women abuse, why where they cut out from Memris report is something that really bothers me. Leaving out this important group’s voice for a better life for the Arabic women is not helping the Arabic women issues at all. It looks more to me that the report is about giving a negative image of Arabs nothing else.

Equality ? in which Arab country they take it as serious matter? let take an example (Iraq) was the best Arab country in women rights but still at that time in the court two women witnesses will equal one man witness as the Quran said.

so do I, they are so cute!

I have lived in Iraq, travelled in Tunisia and Egypt and equality between women and men have not been difficult to talk about with people at all, neither I nor they ended up in prison or abused, just normal debate. That is my experience.

Why not focus on the other part too, their views against abuse are as important aren’t they?!! To see the big picture of this show, that as in other cultures you have people for and against and a debate to a better life for all.

I happen to be active in a woman’s national group against abuse in Sweden and believe me, there is lot’s of women in this society that are being abused daily by Swedish men. In fact in front of me I have a magazine and in it it’s a report of abused women in India. The other day there was a report of abused women in the US etc etc. It’s an international problem and there is lots of international work being done to target this problem.

Memri have this sort of news where negative views of Arabs are the focus.