The recent events involving the dreaded cartoon depiction of the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him), have got me thinking about how far do we stretch our limits when we tease people.
During the course of this time, I've heard many arguements over this, and quite a few of my friends have sort of tip toed around me not quite knowing what to say.
To ease the minds of all of my friends, I will tell you that I am angry about the depiction, but not enough to destroy property, and harm people.I would rather take my energies and educate the ill informed.
It's one thing thing to tease someone about wearing a turbin, or snake charmers as such, but it's another thing altogether to show disrespect for a leader that one fifth of the Earth's population have reverence for.
Yes, you can say that we Muslims need to learn to take a joke, and there may be truth to that, but I don't like being called a nigger either, especially if it is being said as a way to disrespect me, or de-moralize me.
In my band the Carpenter Ants, there is friend who sits in with us on percussion at our shows at the Empty Glass on Wednesdays, his name is Michael Jones. Now Mike is (I think ) six feet six, and has feet the size of small countries,and I tease him relentlessly every week. He is a good natured fella, and accepts his teasing with grace and honor, but I've never made fun of him, even though his life circumstance isn't where he'd like.
Muslims in today's society aren't as accepted as we once were before all of the headlined terrorism that constantly bombards us, but there are a great many of us who are decent well meaning human beings just trying to live in life, and achieve our goals.We don't need ribbing about the Holy Prophet (pbuh) it's just not right.None of the Allah's apostles need, nor deserve that.
So if you must, joke about other aspects of Islam, but really, let's leave religion in general out of the humor. It would do us all some good to pray, and ask yourself...it's just us, but is it justice?
To learn more about the faith of Islam, and the life of Prophet Muhammad, I would like to invite you to a community meeting being held at the Islamic Center of West Virginia , Sunday February 19th from 6-8 pm.Call me or e-mail me if you need directions, or click on the link above.
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5 comments:
Joking about little things in life is one thing (I'm blonde....and blonde jokes don't bother me...even if it is stereotypical - It's a joke and I can take it!)
But I DO NOT TOLERATE BULLIES - of ANY SORT!
Injustice, intolerance, lack of compassion, ignorance.....any of these things anywhere are upsetting. I truly value your faith and your beliefs. It is important that we all understand other cultures, faiths, and beliefs.
I think that it is also important to learn more about our own beliefs. Educate ourselves about others, but also educate ourselves about one's OWN history, heritage, faith, etc. I think people make quick judgements or uneducated decisions when they don't even know what they believe or who they are!
While I understand that there are people who will always disagree, we must pray and believe that there has to be a way that we can all be tolerant, educated, and understanding.
Thank you for your willingness to teach me more about the faith of Islam. I am eager and excited to learn!
Information is power! If we could just educate everyone, I feel that hatred would cease! (It's a big dream, but I can dream, can't I?)
In the words of Sammy Davis jr.,yes you can!!
hi, i always try to be respectful of other's faiths. i always try not to stick my foot in my mouth as they say, about anything, but i know there are times when i have done so, probably will again, but i hope those that know me will, "cut me some slack" as they say and those that don't i hope they just calmly tell me what i said and why it might have upset or hurt them.
i have run into more grief tho, because i am eclectic in my path and that i take from all faiths that which sustains me and helps me to be a better person. it seems that some people almost demand that one choose a faith and declare it. i say to myself, why? i see people of the same faith go to wars over the course of history over a word or two. i see people of different faiths at thier worst, war over beliefs and at their mildest, still, they have a prejudice against others, petty names and distrust or just a general feeling of superiority.
i was amazed about 20 years ago to be channel surfing and come across jimmy swaggert yapping against catholics, saying that we(me at that time still)worshipped the goddess astarte but told everyone it was the virgin mary(as some sort of super secret squirrel coverup i guess!) this man and the panel that he had were SERIOUS! i almost fell on the floor. one odf the very FIRST things the nuns taught us was that no one, not mary, not any of the saints or prophets were worshipped, only God was worshipped!
now, i know my history, i know that the christian faith was pretty smart and took their cue from the pagan faiths in that mary did , centuries ago ease some pagan peoples minds as they were used to having goddesses, but that'a a far cry from some big secret astarte cult!!!
anyway. i belive that one has to walk their own path, that almost all religions (from the reading i've done) have their version of the "golden rule" and if one follows that,there would be no wars, no prejudices, and the world would be a better place, but man, being what we are, we just insist on being arrogant and warlike and domineering. that is our fault, not any faith's!
i do tease friend's that i have had for years, they tease me, all in a gentle good natured way. one can always tell, truly, if a comment was meant to wound.
one of my very best friends and her family are jewish. she converted to the faith. i have been to different sevices with them, bar mitzphas(spelling?)weddings, and as the poem for noah that i posted just recently shows, i said kaddish over his tiny grave this week and i put my shovel full of earth down onto his casket in the ground with the others there.
to me, a prayer is a prayer is a prayer, or as we said in the 60's i sent good vibes to speed little noah on his journey.
there are those, that i know, that looked at me when they found i have jewish friends, but then, these are the same peoiple that admitted that if they had known me when i weas a child, their parents might not have let us play together because i am 1/2 italian. sad, isn't it? so, to wrap it up, if i say anything that upsets anyone, please, do tell me. that is how one learns. ; )
p.s. i also wish that people would stop demonizing athiests and agnostics, truly, when one is totally honest about any faith, the saying,"i don't know and you don't either!" does apply. none of us "know", not really, we have faith, we believe, but no one knows, til we die. so take people as they come, treat them as you wish to be treated and look for the small bright spots in life.
Yes, Sherry. If we all operated under the Golden Rule all the time, we would all be okay. Maybe that is my dream...that we can all find a central message to follow or to live by.
I've said so many times before that Christians can be their own worst enemies. I am member of the Christian faith, but I don't feel that God ever wanted us to be so critical and judgmental. It makes me gringe to hear the judgments....I hear them every day. The saddest thing is that people feel justified in doing it! How scary is that?
it is very scary. whenever anyone really believes that "their" god has called on them or has written that they should and can hate others or ever just think that they are somehow better than others because "god" says so, well, how can you argue that point?
they are convinced that they are rightous and are doing "god's bidding"
me, i say, treat others as you would be treated and i am sure that the divine (no matter whose concept) would be able to see your heart and smile, even if you didn't believe in the right name. perhaps. they are all the right name and GOD in the wisdom of the divine gave us all a slightly different aspect or a different cultural view or the beliefs we needed in our time or in anyone's time according to the centuries and customs? think of it, a beautiful multicultural, ageless, timeless everchanging yet the same god. or perhaps, as the atheists believe, nothing at all but what we have now and so, we should strive to make this world a better place before we go because, "we" are all we have?
i have no answers, but i have faith in the fact that if we just try to be kind, it will all work out. i could be wrong, but that is what is great about america, we still, can believe as we choose, or feel we must to live.
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