"Destroy all churches in the Arabian Peninsula" - Saudi Grand Mufti

Story here.

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The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia has said that all churches in the Arabian Peninsula must be destroyed. The statement prompted anger and dismay from Christians throughout the Middle East.

Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah made the controversial statement in a response to a question from a Kuwaiti NGO delegation. A Kuwaiti parliamentarian had called for a ban on the construction of new churches in February, but so far the initiative has not been passed into law. The NGO, called the Society of the Revival of Islamic Heritage, asked the Sheikh to clarify what Islamic law says on the matter.

The Grand Mufti, who is the highest official of religious law in Saudi Arabia, as well as the head of the Supreme Council of Islamic Scholars, cited the Prophet Mohammed, who said the Arabian Peninsula is to exist under only one religion.
The Sheikh went on to conclude that it was therefore necessary for Kuwait, being a part of the Arabian Peninsula, to destroy all churches on its territory.
In February, Kuwaiti MP Osama al-Munawar announced on Twitter that he was planning to submit legislation that would remove all churches in the country. However, he later clarified that existing churches should remain, while the construction of new non-Islamic places of worship would be banned.

Another MP, Mohamemd Hayef, backed al-Munawar, saying the number of churches in the country was already disproportionate to the number of Christians.

As for Saudi Arabia, all religions other than Islam are banned and there are no churches, although a small minority of Christians is theoretically allowed to practice their religion in the privacy of their own home.

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Peaceful coexistence thought for the day.

:)

Muslims will do anything to destroy others and other countries will not do anything to protect anyone from Islam, this is all for oil. A war against Islam is waiting, once the Europe stop depending on oil. Christians like Sonia and Rahul in India are also working for Muslim appeasement against Hinduism.

The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia is a nutjob. Well, most of Saudi Arabia is, to be honest. The majority of the country belongs to the Wahhabi sect of Sunni Islam.

I hope you don't let him represent all Muslims. Christians are given a high place in Islam. They are apart of the ahlul kitab (people of the book) and the following is said about them (as well as other non-Muslims) in the Qur'an:

Verily! Those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians, and Sabians, whoever believes in God and the Last Day and do righteous good deeds shall have their reward with their Lord, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. [2:62]

To you your religion, and to me mine [109]

Do not curse the idols they set up beside Allah, lest they blaspheme and curse Allah out of ignorance. [6:108]

So it's quite obvious from the Qur'an that what they are doing is wrong. Not to mention in the religious tradition, non-Muslims that live in Muslim lands are called Dhimmis. Dhimmis pay a special tax (which obviously they do if they live in Saudi Arabia) and the Muslims protect the religious minorities in exchange. So the Grand Mufti is actually being quite unislamic.

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Originally Posted by Mu'mineen

The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia is a nutjob. Well, most of Saudi Arabia is, to be honest. The majority of the country belongs to the Wahhabi sect of Sunni Islam.

I hope you don't let him represent all Muslims. Christians are given a high place in Islam. They are apart of the ahlul kitab (people of the book) and the following is said about them (as well as other non-Muslims) in the Qur'an:

Verily! Those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians, and Sabians, whoever believes in God and the Last Day and do righteous good deeds shall have their reward with their Lord, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. [2:62]

To you your religion, and to me mine [109]

Do not curse the idols they set up beside Allah, lest they blaspheme and curse Allah out of ignorance. [6:108]

So it's quite obvious from the Qur'an that what they are doing is wrong. Not to mention in the religious tradition, non-Muslims that live in Muslim lands are called Dhimmis. Dhimmis pay a special tax (which obviously they do if they live in Saudi Arabia) and the Muslims protect the religious minorities in exchange. So the Grand Mufti is actually being quite unislamic.

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Namaste

I don't think this post is quite accurate. For as many quotes as you can find in the quran that seem to indicate tolerance - even of a very selective sort such as that limited to 'people of the book,' you can find more which exactly support the attitude taken by this nutjob.

The stark historical realities of Islam, even in the era of its birth, indicate that this is the norm, rather than the exception.

In order to be a grand mufti, he must have outstanding knowledge of the Quran, and the traditions of its interpretation. So rather than saying that he is going against Quran, he is in fact interpreting it in exactly in accord with the established traditions.

Namaste

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Originally Posted by Mu'mineen

The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia is a nutjob. Well, most of Saudi Arabia is, to be honest. The majority of the country belongs to the Wahhabi sect of Sunni Islam.

I hope you don't let him represent all Muslims. Christians are given a high place in Islam. They are apart of the ahlul kitab (people of the book) and the following is said about them (as well as other non-Muslims) in the Qur'an:

Verily! Those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians, and Sabians, whoever believes in God and the Last Day and do righteous good deeds shall have their reward with their Lord, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. [2:62]

To you your religion, and to me mine [109]

Do not curse the idols they set up beside Allah, lest they blaspheme and curse Allah out of ignorance. [6:108]

So it's quite obvious from the Qur'an that what they are doing is wrong. Not to mention in the religious tradition, non-Muslims that live in Muslim lands are called Dhimmis. Dhimmis pay a special tax (which obviously they do if they live in Saudi Arabia) and the Muslims protect the religious minorities in exchange. So the Grand Mufti is actually being quite unislamic.

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If all Muslims interpret Q'uran as you do, this world would have been free from so much bloodshed of the innocents ! May your tribe grow and prosper ! :)

OM

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté


What possible good can come from this string ? The intent of this folder is to compare and contrast other views with that of sanātana dharma (hinduism). Not implied differences ( or similarities) , but those that allow one to gain a new perspective on how our sanātana dharma is contrasted to others.


Is this information news worthy ? Perhaps so, yet I can read this in the papers or in other headlines. I do not see HDF as a site that needs to restate or pass along news from other sources that do not meet the core needs of the forums area of interest.




praṇām

Vannakkam: Originally posted 3 months back.. Only now there is a response?

Aum Namasivaya

Namaste,

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Originally Posted by Mu'mineen

Dhimmis pay a special tax (which obviously they do if they live in Saudi Arabia) and the Muslims protect the religious minorities in exchange......

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In rest of the world, such people are called 'the Mafia' - your safety/protection for an additional tax.

Such news items help us to remove the cobwebs from our eyes. As we have been reminded many times, we are not obligated to read or respond to every post (Tom, Dick and Harry (or is it Sally? :))are the actual words used). I live among a sea of humans, some I befriend, and others, well they are just completing their journey, just as I am. So, goes for the posts in HDF; no like-aa, I move on.

Pranam.

Namaste

The logical conclusion of "comparing and contrasting" the views, and activities, of sanatana dharma, and that of abrahamic religions, is recognition of A. the inferiority of abrahamic religions, and B. the threat they have posed, and continue to pose, to all other traditions, the dharmic traditions being virtually the only major tradition left standing after millenia of aggression and deceit that did not suddenly cease because someone invented the steam engine, or flipped on a light switch or turned on a computer. The world's brutality has gotten subtler, true, but no less present. Perhaps more.

Vigilance is called for, for the sake of the continuation of the dharma. Dharma traditions need to understand that which would posture and position itself as an enemy, even if the essence of dharma is to allow the existence of no enemies through the siddhi of ahimsa.

Therefore, yes, these sort of things are newsworthy and worthy of our attention as Hindu if we are so concerned with the world in which we live. I gather some are not, and construe the dharma as something else. Fair enough.

If there are those who would like to impose their view of the intent of this subforum, and I suppose it may have some validity as indeed this forum must have been created with some particular intent by adminstrator, I do not believe that such a subforum as this can exist without threads like this being created, given the nature of the animal.

You may then wish to consider removing it altogether if you are adverse to the presence of such threads.

Namaste

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté

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Originally Posted by Shuddhasattva

Namaste

If there are those who would like to impose their view of the intent of this subforum, and I suppose it may have some validity as indeed this forum must have been created with some particular intent by adminstrator, I do not believe that such a subforum as this can exist without threads like this being created, given the nature of the animal.

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Let's be clear about the intent of this sub-forum -

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For discussion on the diasporic traditions of Judaism, Christianity, Islam and their similarities with Hinduism

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It is rare that this occurs as it ( this folder) quickly becomes a depository of finding fault.

you mention the following,

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Vigilance is called for, for the sake of the continuation of the dharma

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Please talk to us of this viglance and its action items that will be meaningful and sustaining. How does one go about it ? What are its measures ? What are we to look for to see if progress is on the rise ? I am genuinely interested in your ideas.


And let me ask you your point of view on dharma... are you of the opinion that dharma depends on human intervention , that we are the cause or take authorship of this support ( dharma rooted in dhṛ , to hold in balance, support) ? I am of the firm belief that dharma is something we can align ourselves with, practice. Yet it was here before we arrived on this earth and will be here when this earth is long gone. It is not a possession, yet a quality that is universal in nature and apples to all living and non-living things. It is there whether one is open or closed to it.

praṇām