Cheek Turning or Cheek Smacking
Although the motives of the Dove World Outreach Center in Florida may be difficult to defend. This Saturday, on the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks on America, the members of the small church intend to publically burn 200 copies of the Koran. The situation comes at a time of interesting debate in American society.
In New York, there are many defending the building of a mosque near Ground Zero. This will be a wonderful sign of diversity and tolerance, they say. Mayor Bloomberg claims the display of tolerance and diversity is more important than any possible offense the mosque might cause for the families of the victims of murdering Islamists.
The sponsoring imam and funding developer claim Islam is all about diversity and respect for others. The mosque will help educate the ignorant about how Islam is a tolerant and peaceful religion.
So in the next few days we will see the truth of these claims.
Will we see Muslims around the world taking offense, but peacefully acknowledging the rights of others to disparage their holy book? Or will we see violent retaliation? Cheek turning or cheek smacking?
Will the tolerant and diversity-loving folks in New York and Washington defend the rights of Rev. Terry Jones and his flock, as they have the New York imam and his funders. Or will the members of the Dove World Outreach Center be condemned as troublemakers, insensitive, and provocative bigots?
The media plays a role in this affair as well. Would Muslims in Pakistan, Sudan, and Indonesia be aware of the burning if the media had not made a front-page spectacle of it? It really isn’t such big news. (This weekend, I intend to burn some old newspapers. One issue has an article about Ramadan. If CNN wants to cover it that’s okay, just don’t pull your satellite trucks onto my lawn.)
Rev. Jones said he wants to send a message to al-Qaida. "…International Burn a Koran Day, to honor those who were murdered at that time [September 11th]. And to put a real clear message out to Islam that we will not tolerate, we do not want them trying to push their agenda on us, in other words Sharia law," he said. He believes Islamic extremism poses a threat to the United States and the world.
He may be just a preacher in a tiny church in a small town, but this weekend, much of the world will know if he is right.
In New York, there are many defending the building of a mosque near Ground Zero. This will be a wonderful sign of diversity and tolerance, they say. Mayor Bloomberg claims the display of tolerance and diversity is more important than any possible offense the mosque might cause for the families of the victims of murdering Islamists.
The sponsoring imam and funding developer claim Islam is all about diversity and respect for others. The mosque will help educate the ignorant about how Islam is a tolerant and peaceful religion.
So in the next few days we will see the truth of these claims.
Will we see Muslims around the world taking offense, but peacefully acknowledging the rights of others to disparage their holy book? Or will we see violent retaliation? Cheek turning or cheek smacking?
Will the tolerant and diversity-loving folks in New York and Washington defend the rights of Rev. Terry Jones and his flock, as they have the New York imam and his funders. Or will the members of the Dove World Outreach Center be condemned as troublemakers, insensitive, and provocative bigots?
The media plays a role in this affair as well. Would Muslims in Pakistan, Sudan, and Indonesia be aware of the burning if the media had not made a front-page spectacle of it? It really isn’t such big news. (This weekend, I intend to burn some old newspapers. One issue has an article about Ramadan. If CNN wants to cover it that’s okay, just don’t pull your satellite trucks onto my lawn.)
Rev. Jones said he wants to send a message to al-Qaida. "…International Burn a Koran Day, to honor those who were murdered at that time [September 11th]. And to put a real clear message out to Islam that we will not tolerate, we do not want them trying to push their agenda on us, in other words Sharia law," he said. He believes Islamic extremism poses a threat to the United States and the world.
He may be just a preacher in a tiny church in a small town, but this weekend, much of the world will know if he is right.
Comments