Religious hatred, Saudi-style

www.townhall.com ^ | 6 Feb. 2005 | Jeff Jacoby

[dzzrtrock]

By: Jeff Jacoby Religious hatred, Saudi-style

In which country are Muslims being taught the following lessons?

+ “Everyone who does not embrace Islam is an unbeliever and must be called an unbeliever. . . . One who does not call the Jews and the Christians unbelievers is himself an unbeliever.”

+ “Whoever believes that churches are houses of God . . . or that what Jews and Christians do constitutes the worship of God . . . is an infidel.”

+ To offer greetings to a Christian at Christmas -- even to wish "Happy holidays" -- is "a practice more loathsome to God . . . than imbibing liquor, or murder, or fornication."

+ Jews "are worse than donkeys." They are the corrupting force "behind materialism, bestiality, the destruction of the family, and the dissolution of society.

+ Muslims who convert to another religion "should be killed because [they] have denied the Koran."

+ Democracy is "responsible for all the horrible wars" of the 20th century, and for spreading "ignorance, moral decadence, and drugs."

If this sounds to you like the kind of fanaticism you might encounter in Saudi Arabia -- where the established creed is Wahhabism, an intolerant and extremist version of Islam -- you’re right. Unfortunately, this religious hatred isn’t confined to the Arabian peninsula. Thanks to the Saudi government’s elaborate campaign to export Wahhabism worldwide, such anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, anti-Western poison can also be found throughout the United States. (read the article at...) http://www.townhall.com/columnists/jeffjacoby/jj20050207.shtml

[Truth666]

This is a good thread to find the answer I'm looking for here:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1317990/posts

[NRA2BFree]

Thank God I'm an infidel. It could have been worse. I could have been born a Muslim!!

[hussain]

Really it is difficult to convince others that Muslims are not those who are living in Suadia or as they called Wahhabins . Those people do not represent our Islam and its flexible forgiving rudiments.They are brutal and absorbed in the world of sin and atrocities. You r right when u say the call everyone unbeliever . I dont know if the kingdom responsible for the existence of such doctrines like Wahhabis!

[jolie560]

..."...Thanks to the Saudi government’s elaborate campaign to export Wahhabism worldwide, such anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, anti-Western poison can also be found throughout the United States...."...

[Lead Moderator]

To prevent duplication, please do not alter the heading. Thanks.

[jan in Colorado]

ping

[USF]

Thanks Jan.

This article is a nice continuation from this one.

The original report here is worth reading.

[womcg]

Although Wahhabism may be the most virulent, visible, and well funded Islamic group today,it is only a manifestation of a larger Islamic problem. To blame "only" Wahhabism is much like stating that the KKK in the South was the "only" problem, and ignore the enabling culture. While not all Muslims advocate terror, historically and culturally, Islam enables the breeding ground for terror. Arab history, not the Koran, is the best source to study this.

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

[thombo]

It's ironic that the Saudi gov. supports and promotes a radical islamic death cult(Wahabism)that supports the violent overthrow of the Saudi royal family.

[shubi]

Don't believe everything you read. The Saudi Royal family are committed to keeping control. The fundamentalism they established is part of that control.

[Heatseeker]

While not all Muslims advocate terror, historically and culturally, Islam enables the breeding ground for terror. Arab history, not the Koran, is the best source to study this.

I don't disagree and I certainly have been very anti-Islamafascist hereabouts, but on this I side with hussain - there are many strands of Islam that are tolerant and OK. Sufism for example. And even beyond this, many Muslims are reasonable people. The problem is that too many of them have been terrorized by the fanatics.

[womcg]

I agree in part, but IMO, until there is some type of "internal" reformation ( for want of a better word) within Islam, and a hard look at how values and views derived from Arab tribalism of the 600's translate into what is essentially a cultural and political theocracy, then we have a problem. Of course, not all followers of Islam are terrorist, but overall, Islam enables the xenophobic, stunted cultures that gives rise to the problems. BTW, this is not from a religious bias on my part, but a long study of Arab history and culture. "Tolerance", even in Sufi tradition, means just that. Islam tolerates other beliefs,..with a price tag. To Americans, religious tolerance means religious freedom. Same word, different meanings.Of course, many Muslims are reasonable people. But Islamic history points to some real problems.

[Heatseeker]

Up until 1979, I think evidence is mixed as far as Islamic history (in the modern era) is concerned. As for an internal Muslim Reformation of some sort, the example of western Christianity is not encouraging - the early protestants quickly became far less tolerant, by most standards, than the Catholics of the time were.

Overall, I am not very optimistic. It's difficult for me to see how moderate Muslims can make any headway in societies where the ruling elite either allows the Islamafascists to have their way, or is Islamafascist itself. Ethnicity plays a role - the best hope now seems to be for a counterrevolution in Iran. I think most non-Muslims not infected with political correctness would agree that Islam in the Arab lands has had the effect of freezing Seventh Century mores in place.