A pastor in Florida is threatening to burn copies of the Qur’an on 9/11. General Petraeus and others are pleading with him not to do it. USA Today suggests showing up with fire hoses. What is your church doing to help your Muslim neighbors?
Fear looms over a week that should be one of celebration (the end of Ramadan, the beginning of the Jewish High Holy Day cycle) and solemn commemoration for 9/11.
Can interfaith voices for calm, tolerance and reflection — the love and morality taught by world religions — overcome headlines for a church planning to burn the Qur’an?
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General David Petraeus has warned, in an e-mail to the Associated Press, that images of the bonfire is provoking international protests and could endanger U.S. troops.
Meanwhile U.S. Muslims who would, in other years, have celebrated the conclusion of the Ramadan fast with Eid al-Fitr, three days of community parties, family feasts and gifts, have been cowed into dulling the bright days because they coincide with the September 11th terrorist attack’s ninth anniversary. They fear being seen as celebrating the attacks, as if all believers were complicit with the political terrorists.
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Who is standing up against Dove? Is anyone planning to show up at the Florida bonfire with fire hoses and buckets? Would you join such a water brigade?
CNN has more on the story:
The U.S. Embassy in Kabul on Tuesday issued a statement saying the U.S. government “in no way condones such acts of disrespect against the religion of Islam, and is deeply concerned about deliberate attempts to offend members of religious or ethnic groups.” It emphasized that it strongly condemned “the offensive messages, which are contrary to U.S. government policy and deeply offensive to Muslims especially during the month of Ramadan.”
Voice of America quotes General Petraeus:
The commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan says an American church’s plan to burn Korans on September 11 could endanger U.S. troops and damage the overall war effort in that country.
General David Petraeus warned Tuesday that the planned burning of the Muslim holy book “is precisely the kind of action the Taliban would exploit for propaganda purposes.” He said it could stoke anti-U.S. sentiment not only in Afghanistan, but across the Muslim world.
Ekklesia reports:
The National Council of Churches USA has reiterated its condemnation of plans by a Florida church to burn the Qur’an on the 11 September anniversary of the attack on the Twin Towers in New York.
On the eve of Ramadan, the NCCUSA and its Interfaith Relations Commission called upon Christians and persons of other faiths to express respect for Muslims and Islam.
The Rt. Rev. Leo Frade of SE Florida has written a letter here