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| Our Soddy Friends: "Slavery is a part of Islam" |
| 2003-11-12 |
| Another version of the report from day before yesterday... [EFL] A leading Saudi government cleric and author of the countryâs religious curriculum believes Islam advocates slavery. "Slavery is a part of Islam," says Sheik Saleh Al-Fawzan, according to the independent Saudi Information Agency, or SIA. In a lecture recorded on tape by SIA, the sheik said, "Slavery is part of jihad, and jihad will remain as long there is Islam." Al-Fawzan is a member of the Council of Religious Edicts and Research, the Imam of Prince Mitaeb Mosque in Riyadh and a professor at Imam Mohamed Bin Saud Islamic University, Saudi Arabiaâs main center of learning for the strict Wahhabi interpretation of Islam. His religious books are used to teach 5 million Saudi students, both within the country and abroad, including the United States. Al Fawzan is a member of the Senior Council of Clerics, Saudi Arabiaâs highest religious body. As for those who disagree with him: [He] says Muslims who contend Islam is against slavery "are ignorant, not scholars." [They are] infidels ... their blood and money are therefore free for the taking by "true Muslims." Al-Fawzan, a leading opponent of curriculum reform, opposes elections and demonstrations as Western influences, is against Arab women marrying non-Arab Muslims and has issued a fatwa forbidding the watching of television. According to Saudi liberal writer and scholar Sheikh Hassan Al-Maliki, Al-Fawzan threatened him with beheading if he continued in his criticism of the extremist Wahhabi interpretation of Islam. Al-Maliki, who worked for the ministry of education, was fired after he wrote a 50- page paper criticizing Al-Fawzanâs book âAl-Tawheedâ. Ah yes, Islam, the religion of peace. Peace as long as you lock up the slaves and cut the tongues out of the infidels (after robbing them first). These guys make the Klan look liberal. And the Saudi Royal family prop these guys up and try to spread their close-minded hate around the world. When is the US going to get smart, and cut the source of the cancer in the middle east: the Wahabbi bigots and the bastards in Soddy that support them. |
| Posted by:OldSpook |
| #16 To follow up on mhw's comments. Slavery in the West consisted mostly of putting Blacks on ships and sending them to the Americas to cut sugar cane, cotton, etc. In other words, for economic reasons. From my readings over the years, many slaves in Arab-Muslim lands were the unfortunate folks who got captured in war. In other words, not for economic reasons. Those who were black, however, and converted or whose children became Muslim, pretty much kept their stations in life since their "stained" backgrounds made them lepers in the eyes of the Arab ruling classes. One can make the argument that they got double-whammied (former slave AND black)in their new lives. Think why the Alouite dynasty of Morocco always seems to have dark skinned folks working for the royals there. I can't link any photos to prove it, but the books I've read about that country seem to be frequently illustrated with engravings done by 18th and 19th century Euros showing black folks to be the ones fanning the sultan. Hope al-Jubeir gets asked about Al-Fawzan the next time he's on the Sunday talking-head shows. |
| Posted by: Michael 2003-11-12 3:21:34 PM |
| #15 Another point is that the Western nations have never looked favorably on sexual relations with slaves (in ancient Rome it was punished by death): this has protected slaves against rape. On Islam they are recommended and many Arabic writings delight on describing how after taking a city "the pride of their women was shattered". |
| Posted by: JFM 2003-11-12 3:19:23 PM |
| #14 A world cannot exist part free and part slave. I am for eradicationg slavery and if slavery is part of Islam that means... |
| Posted by: JFM 2003-11-12 3:11:38 PM |
| #13 Robert Crawford Charles V of Spain forbade slavery in 1542. And now let's talk about the doctrine of predestination in Calvinism and how it makes easy to put it at the service of slavery and apartheid: "savages" are obviously abandonned by God otherwise they would be civilized, AFAIK the pro-apartheid South African churches were those of Calvinist obedience<. |
| Posted by: JFM 2003-11-12 3:09:46 PM |
| #12 "their blood and money are free for the taking buy true muslims." Boy thats a mouthfull. Could it be so easy? Hey Hasan, you might want to act preemptively on ol' Al Fawsan on that beheading thing as he means it. Just pay some hit cash to a Somalli beggar, It's cool as it's allowed to be done by any "true muslim", whatever that means. Ramadama ding dong daddy. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2003-11-12 12:05:38 PM |
| #10 liberalhawk. For one thing the Iranians are Shiite and those not practicing Wahabism in SA are Sunni. Also the Egyptians, if I am not mistaken, announced last week that they are not Arabs. This soup is too much for me to swallow. |
| Posted by: Barry 2003-11-12 11:40:15 AM |
| #9 Someone kindly tell Rip Van Winkle that it is 2003, not 1095. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2003-11-12 10:41:03 AM |
| #8 It's ironic, because Islam IS slavery. |
| Posted by: ISLAM SUCKS 2003-11-12 10:32:57 AM |
| #7 Robert, Could be something to this. Recent historic research has been examining the close working relationships between the European slave traders and the Islamic slave traders in Africa. There is enough on this to make a very good PBS special except that the subject isn't PC. |
| Posted by: mhw 2003-11-12 9:44:21 AM |
| #6 "is against Arab women marrying non- Arab Muslims " This may go over in saudi, but i suspect he'd be considered a heretic in Iran, Pakland, Indonesia, etc. |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2003-11-12 9:32:59 AM |
| #5 mhw -- I've occasionally wondered if the European views of slavery and servitude as "Christianizing" weren't adapted from Islamic practices. Not saying that pre-Islamic Europe was a paradise, just that the peculiar practices in the Americas and Africa, particularly those of the Spanish, might have had a touch of Moorish influence. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2003-11-12 8:30:54 AM |
| #4 The institution of slavery was historically vital to the spreading of Islam. Since the Islamic children of slaves who convert to Islam can't be made slaves and non Islamic children of slaves remain slaves, it created an enormous incentive for conversion to Islam. |
| Posted by: mhw 2003-11-12 8:00:18 AM |
| #3 The institution of slavery was historically vital to the spreading of Islam. Since the Islamic children of slaves who convert to Islam can't be made slaves and non Islamic children of slaves remain slaves, it created an enormous incentive for conversion to Islam. |
| Posted by: mhw 2003-11-12 7:58:36 AM |
| #2 My take on this. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2003-11-12 5:33:10 AM |
| #1 It would be interesting to hear from the Louis Farrakhan on this. |
| Posted by: Ben 2003-11-12 4:32:40 AM |