KABUL, Afghanistan – The top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan warned Tuesday an American church's threat to burn copies of the Muslim holy book could endanger U.S. troops in the country and Americans worldwide.Read the entire news piece here.
Meanwhile, NATO reported the death of an American service member in an insurgent attack in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday.
The comments from Gen. David Petraeus followed a protest Monday by hundreds of Afghans over the plans by Gainesville, Florida-based Dove World Outreach Center — a small, evangelical Christian church that espouses anti-Islam philosophy — to burn copies of the Quran on church grounds to mark the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States that provoked the Afghan war.
"Images of the burning of a Quran would undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan — and around the world — to inflame public opinion and incite violence," Petraeus said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
Muslims consider the Quran to be the word of God and insist it be treated with the utmost respect, along with any printed material containing its verses or the name of Allah or the Prophet Muhammad. Any intentional damage or show of disrespect to the Quran is deeply offensive.
Commentary. I have two reasons not to do it. First and foremost, we Christians are commanded not to give gratuitous offense to anyone, and second, I value American lives more than burning a Koran. If not burning a Koran saves one American life by all means, this little church in Florida and its pastor should refrain from doing so.
I understand that Muslims find burning a Koran deeply offensive. Granted. I also wish they would find punitive mutilation and stoning, a barbaric practice common in Iran and Afghanistan, as equally, if not more offensive to their religion than burning a Koran. Also, who destroyed the Buddhas of Bamyan? It was them, but did they protest? Nope. Destroying other people's religious symbols - not to say their bodily integrities or even their lives - are not crimes for Muslim protestors worldwide.
If we could only witness droves of Muslims protesting in the streets for the above abuses with the same passion they vented during the Muhammad Cartoons episode, it would've made their opposition to the impending Koran burning more convincing and less hypocritical. It's because they lack credibility that we Christians have to pick up their slack and ask one of our own to refrain from an action inspired by misguided zeal. Protecting American lives is also, like I've said, another imperative. Despite the moral fog and incoherence found on the Muslim street, we must do what is good.
Pastor Jones, please, refrain from burning the Koran. Don't refrain because of them, but because the Word of God, written in our hearts, impels us to return good for evil.
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4 comments:
Great post. I agree.
I wonder what the good Lord in the clouds is thinking when people burn holy books.
Burning Korans is not something a Christian should do. It is pointless. I agree with your post.
its not the religion fault. mostly its the followers. and every one, every soul, every life, is their own religion. christians are not barbaric plus like he said, burning it will only incite wars and more murders and endangers family members in different countries.. this is basic common sense for those who sit and think of the consequences of what will he do and what will happen. pushing asides religions, what we humans really need is actually, common sense ;).
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