It's Not Enough Just to Say We Aren't Muslim


Recently the RNS included this brief undated article:

Muslims say Obama's denials come up short
By Omar Sacirbey
(UNDATED) To many Muslim Americans, it's understandable that Sen. Barack Obama has vociferously dismissed allegations that he is a “closet Muslim.” But what disappoints them is that the Democratic presidential contender has not followed up the denials -- which leave the impression that being Muslim is bad -- with comments saying that there is nothing wrong with Islam. His perceived silence on the issue, to Muslims and non-Muslims alike, reinforces the impression that politicians view Muslims as personae non gratae. “I was hoping that the response would not be to proclaim the horror of being insinuated a `Muslim,”' wrote one Muslim blogger, Manan Ahmed. “This is the state of Islamophobia in America today, where a simple declaration -- `He is a Muslim' -- casts doubts on a presidential campaign.”

Why must we read so much into everything? In an election season it is expected that every word and phrase of a candidate will be parsed and dissected without mercy, but sometimes this behavior reveals the truly petty nature of this country's hypersensitivities. Did Obama "proclaim the horror of being insinuate a 'Muslim,'" or is it possible, just possible, that he simply clarified a position that was inaccurately reported? Come on now! Can we have some sensible and reasonable discussion on these matters, or must we always resort to irrational assumptions based on reasonable omissions? Only for this religion, it seems, are we required to go above and beyond normal discourse to prove that we are not "Isalmophobic." But then again, it has been this way for other matters as well, including homosexuality and gender issues. It is never enough to simply say "I do not agree." We have to follow this up by proving we are not personally attacking the individual or that we believe they are subhuman or immoral or less patriotic, or whatever. Ugh....

Comments

Michael G said…
Pastor,

Perhaps the rumors about Mr. Obama need to be put to rest: http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp

In one of the mentioned articles, he plainly states that he has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. However, since he's a member of a UCC congregation, I don't know what that means...
February 13, 2008 at 1:52:00 PM PST
Donald V. Engebretson said…
The UCC is one of the most liberal Christian denominations. A fairly informative article on Wikipedia can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Church_of_Christ

As to Sen. Obama's faith, I would simply have to take him at his word, although I do wish that he had picked a church that better represented the Christian faith....
February 14, 2008 at 7:30:00 AM PST
Michael G said…
Actually, Pastor, my last comment was about the relativism of most church bodies today. Is the Jesus of the UCC the same Jesus of Scripture?

I doubt it, considering that their beliefs page, http://www.ucc.org/beliefs/, states: "We seek a balance between freedom of conscience and accountability to the apostolic faith. The UCC therefore receives the historic creeds and confessions of our ancestors as testimonies, but not tests of the faith."

Therefore, you can pretty much believe whatever you want about Jesus, and have whatever kind of relationship to him you want.
February 20, 2008 at 11:04:00 AM PST
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Firefighter's Cross

Image
[Note: A similar article to this will be shared with my department at their next meeting. During this Lenten season when we are meditating on the significance and meaning of the Passion of our Lord and the Cross at Golgotha, it seemed like one way to offer a witness to the department that captured their interest and yet was not too heavy.] [Editorial Note: In response to a recent comment on this article I have made some changes to the original version of this article especially in regard to references to the so-called St. Florian's Cross. For any confusion the previous unreferenced information may have caused I apologize. I hope that the changes are satisfactory.] THE STORY OF THE MALTESE CROSS In many ways the familiar symbol to the right requires no explanation. It is the universal insignia of firefighting nationwide. Yet the precise origins of this symbol are less clear. The most popular explanation proposes its beginning in the far distant past of medieval Crusaders fi...
Read more

Historical Roots of the Warham Guild Hood

Image
In doing just a little checking on the internet, it's interesting to see how the Warham Guild hood, which I have as part of my STM degree attire, is actually a throwback to the Medieval hood. One article notes "the work of the Warham Guild in its imaginative renderings of medieval hoods" (reference is from here ). Again, here is my hood: The Medieval hood, which was originally a very practical outer garment to cover a person's head and shoulders, protecting both from the elements, bears striking resemblance to this revived form: This hood was also a part of the garb of monks in that era. The Medieval hood, in some cases, also had what is known as a "liripipe," a long tail hanging from the back of a hood. You can see the modern stylized version of this on my own hood. From an article on "Academic hood development" we read that "By 1463 the favourite dress of doctors was the hood with round bell-shaped cape, and the lir...
Read more

Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed

Image
According to a recent documentary, for all the talk about academic freedom in the world of the large American university system, it would seem that it extends only as far as the system defines it - especially with regards to the subject of origins and science. Noted speechwriter Ben Stein stars as host of the film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. Dr. Angus Menuge, professor of philosophy at CUW, highlights the film in an article included in the Concordia University - Wisconsin magazine Concordian , including some seemingly revealing details about the expulsion of talented scientists who apparently were ‘expelled‘ from their positions for mentioning the theory of Intelligent Design: “In the current climate, even when academicians have a relevant doctorate and a track-record of peer-reviewed publication, their careers suffer if they argue that the scientific evidence points to an intelligent source involved in the creation of the world. In 1992, Dean Kenyon, a biology professor at ...
Read more