Koran burnt in Florida church
A controversial US evangelical preacher oversaw the burning of a copy of the Koran in a small Florida church after finding the Muslim holy book "guilty" of crimes. Skip related content
Related photos / videos
Pastors Terry Jones (L) and Wayne Sapp are seen here in Gainesville, Florida, in …More
The burning was carried out by pastor Wayne Sapp under the supervision of Terry Jones, who last September drew sweeping condemnation over his plan to ignite a pile of Korans on the anniversary of September 11, 2001 attacks.
Sunday's event was presented as a trial of the book in which the Koran was found "guilty" and "executed."The jury deliberated for about eight minutes. The book, which had been soaking for an hour in kerosene, was put in a metal tray in the center of the church, and Sapp started the fire with a barbecue lighter.
The book burned for around 10 minutes while some onlookers posed for photos.
Jones had drawn trenchant condemnation from many people, including US President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, over his plan to burn the Muslim holy book in September.
He did not carry out his plan then and vowed he never would, saying he had made his point.
But this time, he said he had been "trying to give the Muslim world an opportunity to defend their book," but did not receive any answer.
He said he felt that he couldn't have a real trial without a real punishment.
The event was open to the public, but fewer than 30 people attended.
Life in the normally quiet city of Gainesville is centered around the University of Florida. And while there were public protests against Jones' 9/11 activities, this event was largely ignored.
Jadwiga Schatz, who came to show support for Jones, expressed concern that Islam was growing in Europe.
"These people, for me, are like monsters," she said. "I hate these people."
Jones said he considered this event a success.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience," he said.
How Terry Jones Can Get Away With It
By Kourosh Ziabari
06 May, 2012
Countercurrents.org
Countercurrents.org
Burning the holy books
which are interconnected with the hearts and souls of millions of people
around the world is one of the most heinous and dreadful actions which
one can think of. After decades of bloodshed and bigotry in the two
World Wars, Civil War in the United States and Crusades against Muslims
in the 11th and 12th centuries, burning the holy books can be
interpreted as a new form of barbarity and ignorance in the modern era
and an unforgivable crime which can be justified by no standards
whatsoever.
Over the past decade, several cases of desecrating
the holy book of Muslims, Quran, have been reported that incited the
hatred and frustration of millions of Muslims and non-Muslims in the
four corner of the globe.
In July 2010, an extremist Christian pastor Terry
Jones gained widespread public attention when he announced that he would
be burning copies of the Holy Quran on the anniversary of September 11
attacks for the alleged excuse that they were the Muslims who
spearheaded the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon and
that Islam promotes violence and aggression. Of course such a terrible
idea can be only issued by someone who suffers from an inferiority
complex and yearns for attracting people's attention. Taking a glance at
the background of Terry Jones and what his former colleagues say about
him, one can effortlessly figure out that the Christian pastor has
always had an ambivalent personality and an air of self-importance which
has made him an arrogant and supercilious man. After receiving an
honorary degree from an unaccredited theology school in 1983 when he was
32, he began referring to himself as "Doctor" for which he was
ultimately found guilty and condemned by a German administrative court.
Jones moved to Germany in 1981 and established a
small church in Cologne named Christian Community of Cologne. As
reported by the German publication "Der Spiegel," the congregation fired
him after a while, accusing him of spreading a "climate of fear and
control" in the church. His colleagues say that he preached the
congregants to beat their children with "rods" and also consumed the
church funds for personal, improper purposes. What can be inferred from
his biography is that the traces of sanity and reason can be barely
found in his behavior and disposition.
In July 2010, he made the headlines by announcing
his devilish plan for burning the copies of Holy Quran on an
"International Burn a Quran Day." Several heads of states, politicians,
academicians, peace activists and journalists condemned his plan, and
although he initially retreated from his decision, he finally set ablaze
copies of the holy book of Muslims in Dove World Outreach Center'ss
sanctuary on March 20, 2011.
Surprisingly, the Western politicians refused to
express disapproval of this shocking venture and only stated that Terry
Jones should cancel his plan simply because the lives of multinational
forces in Iraq and Afghanistan might be endangered. Actually, the
Western statesmen credulously overlooked the immoral and decadent nature
of this action or simply refused to practice what they always preach:
religious tolerance and diversity. Of course they would have no response
to give if asked about the veracity of their claims of being supportive
to religious freedom and tolerance. They offended and disappointed
millions of Muslims with their silence and demonstrated that they have
no respect for the beliefs of those who want to live alongside them in
peace.
But the Quran burning controversy of 2011 did not
mark an end to the adventurous ploys of Pastor Jones. The newspapers and
TV stations across the world reported last week that Terry Jones once
again burned copies of the Holy Quran and a portrait depicting Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) on Saturday, April 28 in what was claimed as his protest
to the detainment of a so-called Christian clergyman in Iran.
Before committing this obscene act, Pentagon had
urged Jones not to burn the Holy Quran for the sake of the security of
Americans in uniform, but no other statement was released by Obama
administration to prevent the insane pastor from doing such a crime.
Gainesville Sun reported on April 29 that the Quran burning plan was
attended by a number of local residents and was broadcast live on
internet. Even a group of police officers patrolled around the church
premises and provided security for the ceremony. The region's fire
department chief also said that Jones had received proper authorizations
for burning certain materials on April 28, but it was not specified
what the materials were.
Although the high-ranking officials of Islamic
countries, including the Iranian statesmen condemned the renewed venture
of burning the Holy Quran in strongest terms, the U.S. and European
officials turned a blind eye to the blasphemy, tacitly endorsing the
radical pastor.
However, what is clear is that Jones is certainly
looking for national and international attention. He has established a
campaign for the 2012 presidential elections and even created a website
for his campaign with the slogan "Real America, Real Hope." In this
website, Jones has claimed that he is standing up to speak for "truth"
and confront "Islamic radicalism." This is unquestionably a testimony to
his lunacy and provides evidence for the fact that this mad man has no
clear ideology or worldview. If he is a real Christian pastor, then can
he justify that insulting the holy book of a major religion is in
compliance with the teaching of Christianity?
Different Christian institutions, including the
World Evangelical Alliance have strongly condemned Terry Jones and asked
the U.S. government to take action against him. An Islamic movement in
Pakistan has called for the execution of Terry Jones; however, it seems
that the Obama administration and the Israeli-dominated Congress are so
coward and pitiable that they will get along with the appalling
enterprise that has come out of their country.
Of course, it should not be neglected that Yusef
Naderkhani, the so-called pastor who is in jail in Iran is not detained
on charges of changing his religion or advocating Christianity. He is
charged with sexual abuse and robbery and no death penalty, as the U.S.
mainstream media pretend, has been issued for him. The problem of Terry
Jones and people like him with Islam and its teaching is that Islam
unveils the true evil nature of imperialism and this is something which
the U.S. politicians and their stooges such as the pastor of a tiny
church in Florida cannot tolerate.
No comments:
Post a Comment