Struggle Over Proposed Mosque In Staten Island
Rabbi Brad HirschfieldA group called the Muslim American Society wants to build a mosque on the grounds of an old convent in Staten Island, New York. Having purchased the building from the church, they went before a packed community meeting last night to discuss their plans. It wasn’t pretty.
Issues like this can bring out either the best or the worst in our communities. In this case, it is definitely the worst. Though, as is often the case, whether best or worst, whatever comes out reflects real issues in the communities involves.
Rabbi have you done any research on the MAS? They want an Islamic world. Please explain how non-Muslims fighting the threat of Sharia, is bad behavior.
They are also in bed with the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), that says a lot.
In this case that means that as TV cameras rolled, people got to watch a rage-filled, deeply Islamaphobic group of Christians and Jews challenge a less than transparent and overly defensive group of Muslims. In short, everybody behaved as if they had been sent over from central casting to participate in a show called “people behaving badly in the name of God”.
You admit that the Muslims were less than transparent, yet you are calling the Christians an Jews Islamophoic. Please explain what the Christians and Jews are supposed to like about Islam advancing, and less than transparent Muslims.
I think the most troubling words came from one participant in last night’s shout-fest, Bill Owens, who declared, “This is our D-Day”. D-Day, Mr. Owens? Do you actually want to compare the struggle over whether or not a mosque gets built to the allied invasion of Europe and the long, bloody process of beating the Nazis? Do you really think this is a war, and if so, at that level?
This goes way beyond the Mosque, this is about Islam advancing across the West. For the record though, Islam has been at war with the non-Islamic world for approximately 1400 years, and the death toll under Islam, is much higher than WWII.
The tragic irony is that such language is not all that different from the jihadist language which frames every communal and cultural struggle and a violent war against and all people who differ from the jihadists. The old adage is true – the longer one fights against an enemy, the more alike they become.
So you are saying is that the countries that made up the Allied Forces, turned out to be Nazis. Thanks, I had not noticed. Please point out just one person who opposes the Mosque, that wants to subjugate the world under a barbaric set of religious laws.
As you are a Jewish man, I would like to ask you which is your favorite part of Islam.?
The part that calls for your extortion, and dominance?
009.029
YUSUFALI: >Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.
Or the part that tells Muslims that they have to fight and kill Jews, to reach judgement day?
Book 041, Number 6985:
Abu Huraira reported Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: The last hour would not come unless the Muslims will fight against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them until the Jews would hide themselves behind a stone or a tree and a stone or a tree would say: Muslim, or the servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me; come and kill him; but the tree Gharqad would not say, for it is the tree of the Jews.
If interfaith dialogue is the answer, why is Islam taking over more and more of the world?
Thank you,
Christopher
For anyone that is interested, the Rabbi can be reached @ [email protected].
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