Religious leaders (Hindu Buddhist Jewish Christian Sikh Zoroastrian) decry plans for Quran burning

[Turborama]

Source: Houston Chronicle

Religious leaders gathered in Houston on Saturday to condemn a Florida church's campaign to burn hundreds of Qurans later this week.

Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, Christian, Sikh, Zoroastrian and Muslim clergy spoke to about 120 people at an interfaith symposium held at the Baitus Samee Mosque in northwest Houston. They discussed the sanctity of scriptures and denounced the ill-treatment of religious books.

"Even if it is a human document merely inspired by encounters of the divine, or generations of my people's wisdom passed down and kept sacred, it is still sacred," Rabbi Jonathan Siger told the audience.

Notorious past

The symposium was held in response to the Dove World Outreach Center's announcement of a "Burn a Quran Day" on Sept. 11 at their church property in Gainesville, Fla.

Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7187112.html

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The fire permit has been denied twice: http://citylimits.blogs.gainesville.com/11721/dove-worlds-fire-permit-denied-again/?tc=ar

Even World Nut Daily seem to think it's a dangerous idea. Google, "'Burn a Quran' pastor: Plan could put Americans in danger" to see what I mean.

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This is how it's being reported in Indonesia, where I live as an expat. (The comments on the side of the article are worth reading, too)

Tension Mounts as Groups Protest Plan to Burn Koran
Ulma Haryanto | September 06, 2010

Jakarta. As the weekend saw protests in different parts of the country against an American church’s plan to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks by burning copies of the Koran, pluralism advocates on Sunday called for cooler heads to prevail and violence to be avoided.

The Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, said it will burn the Islamic holy book on the ninth anniversary of the terror attacks.

Local officials have denied a permit for the bonfire on the church’s grounds, but the center — which made headlines last year by distributing T-shirts that said “Islam is of the Devil” — insists it will go ahead with the plan.

In Jakarta on Saturday, about 3,000 members of the hard-line Islamic group Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia marched to the US Embassy in Jakarta waving banners and posters condemning the plan.

The group organized similar rallies in five other cities across Indonesia.

Full article: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/tension-mounts-as-groups-protest-plan-to-burn-koran/394778

[RandomThoughts]

1. To be honest, I find many things sacred that many other people would not.

And if someone messes with them, I find that offensive, so it is just to stoke religious war that they do that.

I think the Machiavellian followers like the monarchs are totally messed up, but I would not burn their books either.


If some writing is wrong, it should be able to be shown wrong without removing it. But what do you do when people disagree, and what do you do when people change movies or songs for that matter.

:shrug:

Or when people can not discuss topics or lie for their own benefits. The social questions on religion and training in ways of thought are so varied and deep, and so much of it is actually from people, it is one of the most complex of situations, far more then economics or politics, because it includes things outside of perception.


If there is a table with 10 loaves a bread on it, and a room with 10 people, and one of them says all the bread is theirs,

what do you do, what do you do.

You defend yourself.

[HuckleB]

2. The whole "sacred" argument seems awkward to me, but the history of burning books is inhuman.

There is no reason to burn the Quran other than to inflame ugly acts. Thus, while I find the statements of the various religious leaders in Houston a bit awkward, I am with them all the way.

This is truly something that Americans should be sickened by, but instead we obsess on the "9/11 Mosque," no matter that it's two blocks from the site, and isn't a mosque, but... well, I guess Americans have never let reality get in our way. (See the Iraq wars of both Bush presidents, as examples.)

[boppers]

3. Burning any sacred text is an attack on *all* sacred texts.

To this day, Christianity is still trying to recover and restore The Gospel of Mary Magdeline, The Gospel of Judas, The Gospel of James, etc.... thousands of years later.

[napi21]

4. They are a radical group the police shoud enforce any and all

laws & punishments against them for burning without a permit. I'm sad to say they probably can't be punished for anything else more severe but as a non lawyer, I suspect that's the only law the would have broken.

Everyone should make fun & a mockery of them and they'll slink into oblivion.

As long as I don't ave to hear them nor see them, I don't care what they do!

[SkyDaddy7]

5. Proud to be an American where at least...

I know we are free to act like idiots for the entire world to see!

[sabrina 1]

6. I wonder if these people realize who in history they align

themselves by burning someone's religious book?

I am glad that they have been denied a permit to do this. Doesn't that mean they can be arrested the minute the attempt to do it?

I hope the police will be standing by ready to stop based on their lack of a permit. They arrest demonstrators against the war if they do not have permits.

And I hope no one plays into their game and becomes violent over this. Let the authorities handle it.

That is a very nice thing to see and good outcome from something so evil. Sometimes there really is a silver lining and all those different faiths coming together in support of Muslims is a wonderful thing to see.

[Turborama]

7. Did you know that National Association of Evangelicals Urged Cancellation of Planned Qu’ran Burning?

I didn't until just now and thought it was worth starting an OP about it in GD: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9083311

[sabrina 1]

9. No, I had not seen that. I will check it out, thanks ~

[Enthusiast]

8. The only history they know

is what they get from Glenn Beck.

[sabrina 1]

10. I saw an OP by kpete, which I think is on the Front Page

now, about these people. I haven't read it all but it looks like they are con artists who are using this to make money. Might not even care much about the issue itself. I hope they get nothing but grief from this. And a lot of legal expenses.

[Turborama]

11. Thanks for the heads up on that. VERY interesting! It's on the front page as a Journal entry

Hopefully the kick and rec I just gave will help it get into the top 5 recommended threads, too.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9080253

Off the the DK diary kpete links to for what looks like a long read.

[Enthusiast]

15. Con artists! Imagine.

:fistbump:

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[madrchsod]

13. the Zoroasters are pissed off?

well since they started the whole one god thing i guess they`d be pissed too.

[madmom]

14. Since there are laws against inciting a riot, there should be something, somewhere they

could be charged with since this is being done simply to incite a reaction, and it could be a very BAD reaction.

[wookie72]

16. Bless them all for speaking out

Even if you aren't religious at all, this is a no-brainer.

[cosmicone]

17. Burning Qur'ans was a stupid idea to begin with

from a teabagging nutcase pastor with an even nuttier congregation.

It accomplishes nothing except being insensitive and incendiary.

It is too bad that the repukes are not speaking out against it and put some sense into the pastor's head.