| I think Abdullah's intentions are good, but he can't come up with anything better than an occasional dish of warm milk on this subject in public. Of course, we have little idea what's going on behind the scenes. He's obviously not dumb enough to actually believe what he's dishing up... |
 Jordanâs King Abdallah yesterday lashed out at extremists who he said were harming the image of Islam, urging a unification of the religionâs disparate schools of thought to create greater moral clarity.
| Yeah. They need a pope. Look how well it worked for the Christians... |
âActs of violence and terrorism practiced by some groups and organizations ... do not correspond to the principles and spirit of Islam,â the king said as he opened an international conference aimed at improving Islamâs image. The Jordanian monarch singled out âwhat is going on in Iraq, Pakistan and other Muslim countries in the form of accusations of apostasy and the killing of Muslims in the name of Islamâ.
| We kinda take that as representative of the religion here at Rantburg, and tend to regard the places that don't explode as the exceptions... |
King Abdallah told the 180 clerics and scholars that such acts contributed to harsh criticism from the West against Islam, particularly since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States claimed by the Al-Qaeda network. âSuch practices generate turmoil and corruption on earth because they give justification to non-Muslims to judge Islam according to acts that Islam disavows, and subsequently interfere in Muslim affairs,â he said.
| See, there's where he falls down the intellectual stairs. I'd phrase that as "because they give justification to non-Muslims to judge Islam according to its acts, rather than its (occasional) words, and forces it to interfere in Muslim affairs as a matter of self-preservation." |
He urged delegates representing the eight Islamic schools of jurisprudence attending the three-day conference to unify their message and ensure that fatwas, or religious edicts, are not issued haphazardly. âAcknowledgement of the schools of jurisprudence within Islam would permit the emergence of a fundamental methodology in the issues of fatwas and the definition of who is qualified for this undertaking,â the king said. âThis, with Godâs will, would end the practice of defaming others as apostates and close the door on ignorant people who practice killing and terrorism â of which Islam is innocent â in the name of Islam,â Abdallah said. |