"A kingdom might survive in infidelity, but it cannot survive in injustice and inequity."
Muhammad, Hadith (Nasr, The Heart of Islam, p. 240)
This is one of my favorite adhadith (that is, sayings of the Prophet). It's bizarre how countries will seemingly happily accept gross inequality and injustice, but then get insanely angry about a perceived breach of moral norms (essentially anyone who is different than them). From its illegitimate inception the Trump junta has been attacking the rights of the LGBT community here in the US. Right now it's Pride Month so the alt-Christians here in the US are losing their minds. Beyond religion in this specific instance the Marxist in me suspects that one doesn't threaten our great god Capitalism and the other almost certainly would, but it also has to be deeper than that. Now, this doesn't mean that there isn't profound inequity and injustice in the Muslim world, because there certainly is. Simply because the Prophet called it out fourteen centuries ago doesn't mean that it's been addressed. You just have to see the massive five star hotels around the Kaaba in Mecca to understand how far the Muslim world still has to go. Still, Islam does continue to stress this essential doctrine, whereas too many of the Christians seem to have given up on the notion entirely. Locally, and as I've discussed, our Islamic Society of Vermont is end the middle of an attempt to buy a local church and convert it into a mosque, which entails a massive fund raising (or probably borrowing) campaign. It's not that we're being unjust in our pursuit of the church, but I wonder if we're somehow letting vanity cloud our judgment. I'm having one of those The Bishop's Wife moments wherein Dudley tells the Bishop that one big roof would pay for many small roofs. Might we be better off devoting our time and money to helping the many members of our community, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, who are suffering?
Muhammad, Hadith (Nasr, The Heart of Islam, p. 240)
This is one of my favorite adhadith (that is, sayings of the Prophet). It's bizarre how countries will seemingly happily accept gross inequality and injustice, but then get insanely angry about a perceived breach of moral norms (essentially anyone who is different than them). From its illegitimate inception the Trump junta has been attacking the rights of the LGBT community here in the US. Right now it's Pride Month so the alt-Christians here in the US are losing their minds. Beyond religion in this specific instance the Marxist in me suspects that one doesn't threaten our great god Capitalism and the other almost certainly would, but it also has to be deeper than that. Now, this doesn't mean that there isn't profound inequity and injustice in the Muslim world, because there certainly is. Simply because the Prophet called it out fourteen centuries ago doesn't mean that it's been addressed. You just have to see the massive five star hotels around the Kaaba in Mecca to understand how far the Muslim world still has to go. Still, Islam does continue to stress this essential doctrine, whereas too many of the Christians seem to have given up on the notion entirely. Locally, and as I've discussed, our Islamic Society of Vermont is end the middle of an attempt to buy a local church and convert it into a mosque, which entails a massive fund raising (or probably borrowing) campaign. It's not that we're being unjust in our pursuit of the church, but I wonder if we're somehow letting vanity cloud our judgment. I'm having one of those The Bishop's Wife moments wherein Dudley tells the Bishop that one big roof would pay for many small roofs. Might we be better off devoting our time and money to helping the many members of our community, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, who are suffering?
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