France to open its first Islamic high school

Arab News ^ | PARIS, 12 December 2002 | By Paul Michaud, Special to Arab News

[dennisw]

France to open its first Islamic high school
By Paul Michaud, Special to Arab News
Published on 12 December 2002

PARIS, 12 December 2002 — Although France has had an important Islamic population (a lie or Muslim fantasy, you decide) that goes back to the start of its own history, the French Muslim community will be getting its own Islamic high school — the Ecole Averroes — only next year. Indeed, inscriptions will be taken as of January, and the school will start offering courses come September, at the same time as traditional governmentally-operated French schools.

Named for the celebrated philosopher whose writings on Aristotelian metaphysics had such an enormous impact on the thought of Christian France of the Middle Ages, the school is to open for the 2003-2004 school year next Fall and will occupy a full floor of the building in Lille, France, that has heretofore served as the headquarters of the Ligue Islamique du Nord, the Muslim League of the North.

Makhlouf Mameche, the man who has fought so many years to impose the idea and who will quite appropriately become Ecole Averroes’ first director, says that as far as he’s concerned, an Islamic lycee for France was a dire necessity, a way of telling the French that the country’s Islamic community was capable of establishing its own educational institutions, just as have, for example, French Catholics, who over the years have given France an important educational infrastructure, indeed attracting students from other religions, which is something that Mameche would like to do too.

“Besides offering the identical curriculum offered by traditional French schools of the same educational level,” adds Mameche, “we’ll also provide special instruction in Islamic civilization and religion.”

And just like the Catholics and other religious communities who have officially-recognized schools in France, Mameche says that the Ecole Averroes expects to sign a contract with the French government so that the degrees it offers will be just as legitimate as those proposed by the establishments of other religions.

[knighthawk]

France will be the first islamic republic in Europe.

[swarthyguy]

At least they didn't destroy it as opposed to Zorostrian and Hindu temples in Persia and all across the subcontinent, including Afghanistan.

Remember the Bamiyan Buddhas.

[knighthawk]

The Netherlands fund it's 33 islamic schools, it's mosques and islamic foundations, along with our friends, the Saudis.

[aristeides]

High school? If it's an ecole, doesn't that mean it's an elementary school? Wouldn't a high school be a lycee or a college?

[swarthyguy]

Don't you fellow "peoples of the book" feel blessed. That should give you a nice warm glow.

They'll take Hindu, Buddhist, and Parsi women for slaves but the men are out of luck, i think, depending on the whim of the generalmullah.

[knighthawk]

If Europeans prefer to be blind to what is happening, it's their problem. It's not that they were not warned.

[knighthawk]

I mostly slept during French, so I don't know.

[Nachum]

Ecole Averroes

Aptly named. In Hebrow "Averoes" is the word for sins.

The school of sins.

[mhking]

I'd prefer this teacher....

[reagan_fanatic]

This may actually be a good thing.
It must be pure torture not knowing whether to blow yourself up or surrender...

[Nebr FAL owner]

This is not a good thing . Any bets on the time that will pass before the damands that France honor/obey sharia law?

How long before the riots start , the bombings of various landmarks like Notre Dame ,the Louve museum, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triumphe ?

[monkeyshine]

Funny if the socialists in Europe are willing to fund private schools while the American left fights tooth and nail against vouchers.

[monkeyshine]

ROFL!

[monkeyshine]

dang you folks have made this one funny thread! ROFL

[Terridan]

Is it any wonder why the French are sooooooo opposed to the U.S. attacking Iraq, or any other "sister" muslim country?
Best wishes!

[Caipirabob]

France has a death wish. Lets face it all the manly French were killed off in the Napoleanic wars and WWI while all the manly Germans got killed in WWI and yes fighting for the nazis.

The one comforting factor is that the smartest among them and most other cultures came here. At least the best aspects of these cultures will live on within us, even though the country itself has faded into obscurity.

*Yawn* It's early to start feeling sad about the death of these cultures. Now, what goes better on Cheerios? A nice Heffer-Wietzen or a Bock?

[Morrigan]

ping and a heads up to you, Karl.......thought you may find this thread interesting