1948 Creation & Catastrophe

TG12345 wrote: Salaam Alaikum, Caringheart. Islamispeace has condemned crimes perpetrated by Muslims (or people claiming to be following Islam) in email discussions I have had with him over the years. On this forum, he has condemned Al Qaeda's mistreatment of Syrian Christians in Raqqa. http://www.islamicity.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=28104 Abu Loren condemned the attack on Nigerian Christians by stating that Islam does not teach its adherents to kill innocent men, women and children. http://www.islamicity.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=27746&PN=1 AbuAyisha has spoken out against the religious indoctrination of West Papuan children by some Indonesian Muslims. http://www.islamicity.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=27424 Abu Loren* wrote one of the angriest pieces I have seen on this forum against people who kill and terrorize in the name of Islam. http://www.islamicity.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=26536&KW=abu+loren+terrorist *If you read my exchanges with Abu Loren, you will see that we often don't get along. Unlike Islamispeace who I consider a friend, Abu Loren and I fight more often than not. Yet he is very much a Muslim and as you can see, he is very much vocal about Muslims harming non-Muslims. I have seen Muslims in this forum condemn terrorism by Muslims (or people claiming to be following Islam) against non-Muslims. As a Christian, I also condemn terrorism perpetrated by Christians (or people claiming to be Christians) against Muslims and other non-believers. We should not be defending abuses perpetrated by Israel, just as no one should be defending abuses perpetrated by Hamas.

Greetings TG,

I appreciate what you are saying here, and I too do not excuse wrongful behavior.
What I am saying is...
where are the people getting up in arms to lob missiles at all the other people who are committing atrocities... taking away land and lives, committing 'genocide' as everyone likes to say is being done to palestinians?   And I'm not saying that they should,  I am saying that the only place we see this is over the Israel issue.  That is all that I am saying.  There are atrocities going on all over the world but everyone is not jumping on board to fuel those fires.  I am speaking against prejudice.

asalaam,
Caringheart


Edited by Caringheart - 09 March 2014 at 10:33pm

Islamispeace wrote: I asked if your specific church (the one you attend) which sent 150 sweaters to Syria has also sent aid to Palestinians. Have you personally donated to Palestine?

Yes. We donate money to Canadian Lutheran World Relief, which in turn forwards money to the World Lutheran Federation, which spends the money supporting The Augusta Victoria Hospital in East Jerusalem.

Reepicheep wrote: I just read a particularly depressing article on Syria: Doctors in Syria are being forced to give children unnecessary amputations and patients are choosing to be knocked out with metal bars rather than endure operations without anaesthesia, a new report on the disintegration of the war-torn nation�s health system says. Three years of brutal conflict has left 60 per cent of Syria�s hospitals damaged or destroyed, while many health workers and medical staff have been killed, imprisoned or have fled the country altogether. Children given unnecessary amputations as Syria's health system deteriorates

Greetings reepicheep,

I just heard about this in the news.  So sad.
Caringheart

I recommend reading the book "MICHAEL LERNER - Embracing Israel/Palestine: A Strategy to Heal and Transform the Middle East"

Summary: A major modern conundrum is how the Arab/Israel conflict remains unresolved and, seemingly, unresolvable. In Embracing Israel/Palestine, Rabbi Michael Lerner examines how the mutual demonization and discounting of each sides� legitimate needs drive the antagonism, and explores the underlying psychological dynamics that fuel the seeming intransigence on both sides. Lerner shows the importance of being both pro-Israel and pro-Palestine, challenges the master narratives in both Israel and Palestine to the extent that they demean the other side, and exposes the false idea that �homeland security� (either for Israel or for the U.S.) can be achieved through military, political, economic, or cultural domination. Lerner argues that real security is best achieved through an ethos of caring and generosity toward �the other� and presents a Global Marshall Plan whose first location would be the Middle East. Insisting that any agreement reached at the negotiating table will be worthless without a fundamental transformation of consciousness, Lerner shows how we in the West could play a central role in facilitating that change if we ourselves were to adopt a more rational approach to homeland security and foreign policy. Lerner�s approach, drawn from his own work as a psychotherapist with Israelis and Palestinians and addressing the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder that politically cripples both societies, presents a vital and creative new direction that will provide hope and instruction to anyone who seeks a lasting peace for the Middle East and a healing of the U.S. as well.

Rep. Keith Ellison, the first elected Muslim to the U.S. Congress and chair of the seventy-member Progressive Caucus of the U.S. House of Representatives about the book: "Rabbi Michael Lerner is one of America�s most significant progressive intellectuals and political leaders, and Embracing Israel/Palestine is not only a great conceptual breakthrough in dealing with the Middle East but also demonstrates a methodology for how best to think about global and domestic U.S. politics. For many decades Muslims, around the world have been cheered by Rabbi Lerner�s challenge to the media�s demeaning of our religion and dismissal of the rights of Palestinians, just as they have been challenged by his insistence that they recognize the importance of truly and deeply accepting Israel�s right to exist in peace and security. I hope my colleagues on Capitol Hill, the cynical media, and leaders in Israel, Palestine, and throughout the world are pushed by ordinary readers to grapple with the brilliant path to peace and reconciliation put forward in this book. Rabbi Lerner�s commitment to nonviolence and a path of love and generosity should not be dismissed as utopian. My experience in the Congress leads me to believe, on the contrary, that it is precisely his way of thinking that is the only path that will give Israel, Palestine, and the United States the peace, security, and well-being all three deserve!"