NY Times: My God Is Your God

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

by John Kearney:

In this op-ed piece, Kearney questions the habit of the media not to translate the name of God from Arabic. He says this results in misunderstandings which are exploited by right-wing fundamentalists. Here's a couple of telling paragraphs:

Last August the Washington Post Web site posed this question to readers: "Do you think that Muslims, Christians and Jews all pray to the same God?" One Muslim respondent wrote yes, each of the three major monotheistic faiths "pray to the God of Abraham."

Christian respondents, however, were equivocal or hostile to the notion. "Jews pray to Yahweh," one Virginia woman wrote. "As a Christian, I pray to the same God." But she insisted that "Muslims pray to Allah. Allah is not the God of Abraham." This woman might be surprised that Christian Arabs use "Allah" for God, as do Arabic-speaking Jews. In Aramaic, the language of Jesus, God is "Allaha," just a syllable away from Allah.



Here's the link:http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/28/opinion/28KEAR.html?th

This is what I've been trying to tell folks since the first Gulf War. Hope the media comes round-otherwise, they are helping the Pat Robertsons and Gen. Boykins spread falsehoods and divisiveness.

[hlthe2b]

1. I too have been trying to convey this...

I have many Muslim and Coptic Christian friends from my time spent in the Middle East. They are simply astounded that there is this view in American "Christianity" that is perpetuated. I do find the view to be pervasive-- even among people I wouldn't expect to hold that opinion...

[amber dog democrat]

2. one could argue

that the fundamentalists American Christians who take this stance are not really Christian at all. I think they would be more like Calvinists.

I love it when I hear this arguement.

[hlthe2b]

3. I usually refer to them as "Xians" since they clearly have taken the

Christ out of "their" religion. In this instance, it appears that many non-fundies have adopted this belief-- probably because of both ignorance and the tendency to believe what the press continues to spew..

[amber dog democrat]

4. Agree

Its really out of ignorance. If they traveled to the Middle East and spent some time there, perhaps they would have a more balanced perspective.

[JohnyCanuck]

5. Just praying to God doesn't cut any ice with most fundamentalsts.

Unless you believe that Jesus was God and died for your sins, you're SOL and will burn in hell for eternity no matter how many prayers you say to God.

Now some of them might give the Jews a break and put them in a special category who might get a pass into heaven, but most I have talked to say unless you believe Jesus died for your sins and was God incarnate in human flesh, your prayers don't count for squat regardless of what God you pray too.

[Merrick]

6. there should be

a test required to earn the right to vote. It should contain questions that can identify people who believe in all that dogmatic/fundamentalist crap so they can be weeded out. The country would be so much better off.
"Yeah, yeah, too bad, you failed. Take it outside, churchee."