”You Burn Quran You Burn In Hell”
September 11 this year is the ninth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center Towers in New York City and on the Pentagon. At a time when tension is running high over the controversial plan to build a mosque near Ground Zero, along came the Dove World Outreach Center’s provocative plan to mark the occasion by burning copies of the Koran (Quran).
About The Dove World Outreach Center
The Dove World Outreach Center calls itself a nondenominational church in Gainesville, Florida. It is a small church, with a congregation of 50 people. Last year, the Dove World Outreach Center made headlines when it distributed a T-shirt that said, “Islam is of the Devil.” Pastor Terry Jones who pastors this church had also written a book entitled “Islam is of the Devil”, a phrase that is also printed on coffee mugs that the church sells.
September 11 Is “International Burn a Quran Day”
Earlier this week, Pastor Terry Jones told CNN: “We believe that Islam is of the devil, that it’s causing billions of people to go to hell, it is a deceptive religion, it is a violent religion and that is proven many, many times.” And on the church’s blog, this announcement appears: “On 9/11/10 we are burning Korans to raise awareness and warn. In a sense it is neither an act of love nor of hate. We see … that Islam is a danger. We are using this act to warn about the teaching and ideology of Islam, which we do hate as it is hateful. We do not hate any people, however. We love, as God loves, all the people in the world and we want them to come to a knowledge of the truth. To warn of danger and harm is a loving act.”
On Facebook, the Dove World Outreach Center invites Christians to burn the Muslim holy book at its church from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on September 11 this year. And the reason for burning the Qurans? “Eternal fire is the only destination the Quran can lead people to, so we want to put the Quran in its place - the fire!”
Larry Reimer, a local pastor said concerning Pastor Terry Jones: “He represents only 30 people in this town. It needs to get out somehow to the rest of the world that this isn’t the face of Christianity.”
Loving Act Or Provocative Act?
While the folks at the Dove World Outreach Center think of their Quran burning action as a “loving act” to “warn of danger and harm”, many Muslims and non-Muslims see it as a provocative act. In Indonesia last Sunday, the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir staged a peaceful rally outside the US embassy in Jakarta to protest against the planned Quran burning by Dove World Outreach Center. Muhammad Ismail, spokesman for Hizb ut-Tahrir said: “The burning is not only an insult to the holy Koran, but an insult to Islam and Muslims around the world.” During the demonstration, protestors carried placards that read: “Jihad to protect Koran” and “You burn quran you burn in hell.”
Also attending the rally were members of a multi-faith group called the pluralism care movement. Damien Dematra, the coordinator of the pluralism care movement said: “We hope that the U.S. government to stop this plan. We represent Muslim, Christians and other religions who all wants to avoid any clashes as a result.”
Reaction From NAE
The Natonal Association of Evangelicals (NAE) issued a statement that reads: “The NAE calls on its members to cultivate relationships of trust and respect with our neighbors of other faiths. God created human beings in his image, and therefore all should be treated with dignity and respect.” The NAE also issued a statement urging the Dove World Outreach Center to cancel the event, warning it could cause worldwide tension between the two religions.
Reaction From CAIR
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) took a different tack. It called on Muslims to host “Share the Quran” dinners to educate the public during Ramadan. To that end, CAIR is also giving out 100,000 copies of the Quran to local, state and national leaders. Ibrahim Hooper, a CAIR spokesman said: “American Muslims and other people of conscience should support positive educational efforts to prevent the spread of Islamophobia.”
Reaction From An Imam
Imam Plemon el-Amin from Atlanta, Georgia said that Pastor Terry Jones is “really quite uninformed.” Why? Imam Plemon el-Amin elaborates: ”He doesn’t know that he’s going to burn a book that has some of the most beautiful passages about Christ Jesus throughout, as well as Moses, Abraham and all of the prophets he reads about and says he follows in the Bible.”
Added Imam Plemon el-Amin: “But in America, there is the freedom to be ignorant. The only problem is in the world, many people don’t understand that particular freedom. So what he is doing is like shouting fire in a theater, in a world theater, and people are upset.”
So what should Americans do now? Imam Plemon el-Amin said the best solution is to simply ignore Pastor Terry Jones “like we do people on corners saying the end of the world is coming.”
Reaction From US Army In Afghanistan
Gen David Petraeus, the US commander in Afghanistan said concerning the Quran burning day: “It could endanger troops and it could endanger the overall effort in Afghanistan. “ Elaborating further, Gen David Petraeus said that burning Qurans “is precisely the kind of action the Taliban uses and could cause significant problems – not just here, but everywhere in the world we are engaged with the Islamic community.” There are about 120,000 US and NATO troops fighting al-Qaeda and its ally, the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Lt Gen William Caldwell added: “We very much feel that this can jeopardize the safety of our men and women that are serving over here in the country.” Then referring to the planned Quran burning by the Dove World Outreach Center, Lt Gen William Caldwell said: “What I will tell you is that their very actions will in fact jeopardize the safety of the young men and women who are serving in uniform over here and also undermine the very mission that we’re trying to accomplish. I would hope they would understand that there are second- and third-order effects that will occur that will affect that young man and woman who’s out there on point for America, serving their nation today, because of their actions back in the United States.”
Reaction From US Government
Hilary Clinton, the US Secretary of State said: “I am heartened by the clear, unequivocal condemnation of this disrespectful, disgraceful act that has come from American religious leaders of all faiths. Our commitment to religious tolerance goes back to the very beginning of our nation.” US Attorney General, Eric Holder, called the idea “idiotic and dangerous”. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the other day that “any type of activity like that that puts our troops in harm’s way would be a concern”. Meanwhile, Deputy Fire Chief Tim Hayes said that the Fire Department had rejected an application by Pastor Terry Jones for a bonfire permit. He said: “We have no idea what this guy’s planning. We will do everything we can within the law.” Deputy Fire Chief Tim Hayes added however that contained residential fires that did not extend beyond three feet by three feet do not need a permit.
Reaction From Pastor Terry Jones
Do all these protests make any impact on Pastor Terry Jones on his plan to burn the Qurans? Pastor Terry Jones said he is praying about it, but it seems he is praying about proceeding with the burning of Qurans. Pastor Terry Jones said: ”We must send a clear message to the radical element of Islam.” With that, it appears that Pastor Terry Jones is not listening to the protests, and that a the Quran burning will proceed as planned.
Think About It
Does the end justify the means? Are Pastor Terry Jones and the Dove World Outreach Center not concerned that their “loving act” of burning the Qurans “to warn of danger and harm” may cause many deaths, including American deaths, either in Afghanistan or elsewhere through religious riots? In the face of much criticisms, will Dove World Outreach Center change its mind and cancel the “International Burn A Quran Day” to mark the ninth anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks on America? If the action by Dove World Outreach Center is provocative, what about the planned construction of a mosque near Ground Zero? Is that provocative to relatives of people who died during the 9/11 terrorist attacks? What can be done to remove the possibility of deadly clashes over this?
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