Posted on 04/16/2003 11:19:30 AM PDT by Remedy
U.S. military officials are refusing to give in to demands from some Muslims who say Franklin Graham shouldn't be allowed to speak at a Pentagon Good Friday service.
The Washington Times reports three Muslim employees at the Pentagon registered complaints when they learned that Graham was scheduled to speak there this Friday. Apparently they felt the well-known evangelist disqualified himself because he has stated publicly that Islam is a "very evil and wicked religion."
But Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Ryan Yantis says he is not aware of any plans to un-invite anyone. As he puts it: "One religion, regardless of the religion, does not have the veto right over another religion."
Yantis also notes that separate Muslim services are scheduled at the Pentagon the same day because Friday is the Islamic sabbath.
Graham's characterization of Islam being an "evil and wicked" religion came shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. At the time, he noted that no Muslim clerics had gone to the World Trade Center to offer prayers or to apologize to the nation in the name of Islam. Anti-Graham Bandwagon
The Council on American Islamic Relations has also demanded that Graham's international relief organization, Samaritan's Purse, not be allowed to do charitable relief work in Iraq. That criticism comes despite the fact, as World magazine's Mindy Belz points out, that Graham's group has been reaching out to Muslims for years in countries such as Bosnia, Afghanistan, Sudan, and Uzbekistan.
And Belz notes that some religion news outlets were among the first to suggest that Graham, because of his post-9/11 comments, is unfit to serve in Iraq. She says both Religion News Service and Beliefnet have questioned the evangelist's motives, the latter stating in a piece by its editor-in-chief and co-founder that President Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell should step in and prevent Graham from doing charity work in that nation.
But a spokesman for the U.S. Agency for International Development, in response to questions from the press, stated: "What private charitable organizations choose to do without U.S. government funding is ultimately their decision." As Belz notes in her World column, that amounted to a quick lesson for reporters on First Amendment rights.
A spokesman for Samaritan's Purse tells World there is irony in the controversy. Ken Isaacs says the relief agency has "excellent solid relationships on the ground because we love people without condition, and they respect us for that. The platform of our witness is built on the quality of our work."
I dunno. I like the quote. It rings true. :-)
Thank God for men like Franklin Graham.
For those who so choose to call someone who would try to dissuade them from that choice "ignorant" is priceless... despite that it's a guaranteed right.
Just like Timothy Robbins, all Americans have such rights, but must share also the right to endure the consequences of their choices without complaint, as the choice was theirs in the first place..
For those who so choose to call someone who would try to dissuade them from that choice "ignorant" is priceless... despite that it's a guaranteed right.
Very well said.
Thanks for telling the truth Franklin.
It is not fair or constitutional to banish Graham for his religious beliefs any more than it would be right to fire the Muslim employees for theirs. All Christians think Islam is wrong. Do we exclude all of them or only the ones who actually express their beliefs in public? If a Muslim can think Graham is an infidel, why can't Graham think a Muslim has an evil religion. (He didn't say Muslim's were evil, btw.)
Is it possible that your view is partly formed by your own negative feelings about Christianity in general?
I also believe that Muslims have the same rights to their beliefs as the rest of us do.
Do you know what they believe?
Islam's Immigrant Invasion of Europe: What sense is there in respecting those who don’t respect us?
Secularists
are Muslims who do not have a knowledge of the contents of the Quran and only know a verse or two to justify enjoying their life such as: "Wealth and children are the adornment of the life of this world" (Surat AI-Kahf 18:46). Moderates
know the Quran but seek to make their faith relevant to modern life. They try to reconcile the contradicting verses in the Quran in such a way that Muslims may tolerate Jews and Christians living among them. They emphasize the verses that came to the Prophet Muhammad when he was weak militarily and in need of the support of Jews and Christians.
Islam means Peace, so they tell us! Several articles by Silas investigate aspects of Muhammad's life and actions that raise questions regarding his prophethood which is the core doctrine of Islam: Muhammad and the Death of Kinana, The Death of Muhammad, Muhammad, Aisha, Islam, and Child Brides. Further: A Rebuttal of Jamal Badawi's "Wife Beating".
Being a non-Muslim under Islamic rule:The theory and the reality ...
The central goal of Islam is to establish Islamic law in every country, and this is the declared purpose of many Islamic organizations also in the USA and in Europe. What could the implications be for your life? What can we learn from the past?
See also: Islamic law, History
The Character of God in Bible and Qur'an
The Qur'an An Evaluation of the Muslim Claims
Muhammad, Islam, and Terrorism The below following article "Muhammad, Islam, and Terrorism" was written nearly two and a half years before the terror attack of September 11th, 2001. This tragedy has shown again how important it is to understand the reasons and dynamics fuelling Islamic terrorism. Determining the right response is not easy. But some kinds of response are definitely wrong.
Top Shi'ite Cleric Bans Muslims From U.S. War ``It is not permissible for any Islamic party, country, ruler or political movement to extend any military, security or economic assistance to the United States in its war against any Muslim country or any Muslim faction,'' Sheikh Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah said in a religious ruling faxed to Reuters. Fadlallah is a former spiritual mentor of Lebanon's Iranian-backed Hizbollah guerrilla group, but he is widely respected as a scholar among Shi'ites abroad, including moderates.
I agree with Franklin Graham about Islam. I also believe that Muslims have the same rights to their beliefs as the rest of us do. They just don't have the right to criminal activity.
Remedy, tell me how many religions in the world you do agree with? The concept of religious freedom does not allow us to pick and choose a persons beliefs no matter how crazy they seem to us. I believe in that freedom.
You and I share the same basic religious beliefs, but the salvation we know is a free gift that we could take or leave. If it is not freely chosen it is meaningless. Christianity is perfectly compatable with religious freedom. Islam may not be but as long as they stay within the law they're entitled to those beliefs. We can't play thought and religion police if we want to protect our own religious freedoms. That's my point.
But in gov't, we can only judge both on their actions, not their thoughts. That is what religious freedom is all about.
Graham had a right to do what he did and the employees have a right to ask their employer to not have this insulting person speak at their work site. Seems simple to me. No one has been banished. You overstate the action of not having him there.
The report did say they are doing away with those books and teachings. (We shall see.)
The fact that you disagree with something or it conflicts with your beliefs does not necessarilly make it evil. By that logic any non-christian can pick a christian teaching they disagree with and call it evil.
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