Tuesday, August 06, 2019

Cultural issues

On Gulf News:

Dubai: Sometimes words fail to express human compassion towards a mother who has lost her child. Saudi Arabia's Minister of Islamic Affairs Sheikh Abdul Latif Al Asheikh, was seen on video embracing and kissing the forehead of a woman, who was grieving the loss of her son. He was killed in the New Zealand Christchurch mosque shooting.
The footage, which is currently circulating on social media, shows the Saudi minister trying to calm the woman pilgrim crying in Makkah.....

Sheikh Abdul Latif said on Sunday that bringing the Christchurch pilgrims over to Makkah, was part of the Kingdoms efforts to “confront and defeat terrorism.”

Generally the laws of Islam prevent females and males from embracing, if they are not direct family members, especially when they are performing Haj. Many took to Twitter to criticize Sheikh Abdul Latif for coming into contact with the woman.

Twitter user @AlodidanSalwa tweeted that the Minister owes the public an apology for his behaviour.

“The minister owes an apology to the public for his behavior, even if it was spontaneous and in the moment. What is considered haram is forbidden. He embraced a non-muharam woman. We are waiting for his apology.”

"Is this the Minister of Islamic Affairs of the Unification State?! How has he legalised something for himself that is prohibited in Islam. To hug a woman, when she is someone who should not be hugged by him?" tweeted @1s2s3n4h

While another user, @Jawahir61 tweeted “You can express your feelings without the use of arms to hug.”

"It is not permissible to even look at a women, let alone touch her. God counted on you, God showed us the correct way," tweeted @ar_coffee1.

Others praised and supported Sheikh Abdul Latif for being kind and warm to a crying grieving woman.
What an over prescriptive religious/cultural tradition, based on antiquated ideas about the meaning of physical contact. 

11 comments:

TimT said...

This reminds me of some local Melbourne nuts going even more nuts over a portrait on a silo of Jacinda Ardern hugging a Muslim woman.

I mean, I think the portrait is awful too, but that's because I'm sick of silos being painted and art being forced on us all.

Steve said...

Um, GMB, you nut - how have the Israelis caused Muslims to be paranoid about a middle aged man comforting a grieving middle aged woman by brief physical contact?

Steve said...

"art being forced on us all". Is there a dystopian Netflix series about that yet? One featuring plucky teenagers, trying to escape the tyranny of...bad art. :)

Steve said...

Oh I see, GMB. Now that I understand your nutty, completely evidence free slur on Jews, your comments are deleted.

GMB said...

Come on Steve. Who did it? Kalahari Bushmen? Obviously someone did it. Its just a matter of figuring out who did it.

GMB said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Steve said...

Good thing you were born in the 20th century, GMB, as your conspiracy mindset in other ages would have meant you would be a prime witch accuser responsible for scores of unwarranted deaths because of your idiotic need to pin malfeasance on people who have nothing to do with events.

TimT said...

Is there a dystopian Netflix series about that yet? One featuring plucky teenagers, trying to escape the tyranny of...bad art. :)

There should be! Jane Turner/Gina Riley/Magda Szubanski did a similar act once on one of their short-run comedy programs - "Attack of the mock-Edwardian Facades", I think. Very weird and funny.

Steve said...

By the way, Tim, I did look at Dark again (the first season) and remembered that it was the show that I had watched the first two episodes of, and decided it wasn't really worth sticking with. Didn't grab me enough.

Hey, I do recommend looking at a new, Indian (!), ghost story series called Typewriter. It is odd in many respects, and I will write a post about it soon.

GMB said...

We have no case of a major modern terrorist attack where the attack is not meant to be blamed on someone other than the group who actually caused it to happen. Try to think of even one example.

Steve said...

Bird, as Sigmund Freud probably never said, even though it is true: "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar". In fact, most people would say "yeah, 99% of the time, cigars are just cigars."

In your case, however, Freud's notes would read "GMB compulsively imagines he is putting a penis to his lips every time he has a cigar. And he keeps telling people so. It causes him to lose friends."