Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Miss Kelly has a bunch of questions for the new Imam for the Islamic Society of Boston. A few samples:
2. Who is the imam that Nehela reportedly used to introduce to his disciples as the "Kashmir Jihadist"? (I assumed that would be Muhammed Masood, but maybe it was the recently deported Imam Muhammad Hamid of Worcester!)...
3. Does Imam Nehela conduct mixed marriages, say between an Arab Muslim and a non-Arab Muslim? From this narrative by a local female Muslim convert, I suspect that the person she is talking about is Nehela:
"The conversation turned to cultural conflict. "The Imam of our mosque does not condone marriages between Arabs and other Muslims," he (taxi driver) said. My heart turned over in my stomach like a stone. "Why is that?" I asked him. I cautioned myself against taking him too literally; better to hear what the Imam thinks from his own mouth, than through someone else's filter. 'Because the marriages do not work out well,' he answered me. 'The cultures are too different. Too much must be sacrificed.' ""When I tried to pay him that day, the driver refused my money. Instead he gave me a slip with his number printed on it. As I walked into the masjid, I felt an air of sadness over me which did not drift away for several days. What if the taxi driver were right? What if the the Imam really and truly does not approve of mixing?"
4. Does Imam Nehela conduct mixed marriages, say between a Muslim and a Christian or Jew? Or does he refuse to perform interfaith marriages?
5. Imam Nehela apparently makes Hajj trips to Mecca. Can Imam Nehela tell us about the literature he distributes to pilgrims while in Saudi Arabia? Does the ICE or FBI know what kind of literature he reportedly gave out?...
Sounds like someone knows something. More.
If you asked most rabbis whether they would conduct a mixed marriage, they would say no. I bet a lot of Catholic priests would not look favorably on it, either.
You're stretching, Ron. There are 11 questions there, only one relates to mixed (religion) marriages.
Like I said over at my blog to the same comment from Ron:
Even Reform Judaism rabbis?
That used to be true of Catholic priests, but no longer is. A Catholic can even marry an atheist in a Catholic wedding(!!). Both still need to attend pre-Cana classes though, and they must agree to raise the children in the Catholic faith.
I don't even disagree with those who aren't big fans of mixed religion marriages. I believe studies show that children brought up in a mixed Christian/Jewish household tend to follow neither faith. But it's one thing to not be in favor of something, and it's another thing to absolutely refuse to marry people. Especially since Islam does allow Muslim men to marry Christian or Jewish women (although Muslim women can only marry Muslim men). It seems to me it's a bit disingenuous to claim to support interfaith dialogue, and claim to be moderate, and yet refuse to marry people of different faiths. Or nationalities!
A Catholic priest refused to conduct a marriage between a Muslim man and a Catholic woman. The excuse was that the woman will burn in the hellfire if she married someone outside he faith.