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Alaa Al-Marjani / AP
Two men, standing and second from right, are seen with wax figures depicting Shiite clerics at the wax museum in the holy city of Najaf, Iraq, in a picture taken on Feb. 18, 2012 and made available today.
Alaa Al-Marjani / AP
Even before they go on display, the wax figures have become embroiled in controversy.
The Associated Press reports from Najaf, Iraq — An exhibit of wax statues depicting some of Shiite Muslims' most beloved clerics, aimed at paying tribute to this Iraqi holy city's contributions to culture, has been dipped in controversy as some Sunnis decry the figures as heretical.
Even before the exhibit opens, some Sunni Muslims - rarely shy about highlighting their religious differences with Shiites - are denouncing them as a violation of Islamic law. Even some Shiite clerics are a bit leery.
Some Muslim clerics of both sects interpret Islamic law as forbidding most depictions of people and even animals in art or other likenesses. They believe such likenesses could be perceived as false idols and, therefore, taboo. Read the full story.
Alaa Al-Marjani / AP
The exhibit is the brainchild of Sheik Ali Mirza, a Shiite cleric. He says the figures are so lifelike visitors sometimes "raise their hands to salute the statues as if they were alive."
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Muslims seem to have no ability to determine what is right or wrong, themselves, so they insist on blaming others' actions for their own failings. If one KNOWS a statue is not the actual person and refuses to 'worship' it, they are fine. However, some Muslims assume that no one can tell the difference, so that makes this heretical and illegal under their interpretation of Islamic law. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I suppose if someone built a model of Muhammad, they would rather bomb the building than remove the statue. No common sense over there at all! None!
About as backward as you can get.
This human rubbish isn't worth even one American life...stone age mentality in the 21st century.
Find a statue in any Muslim country....oops, hypocrisy!
Plenty of statues of Saddam during his reign. Many people worshiped him in a personality cult setting. Also you could probably find plenty of posters of those self-same popular "clerics" all over the place back in the day... don't know about today.
the mentality of uneducated, over religious people, never ceases to baffle me.
I'm so sick and tired of reading about and hearing of all of these stories about religious fanaticism. The Muslims seem to be the worst, but Orthodox Jews and Fundamentalist Christians aren't too far behind - they just haven't taken to the wholesale offing of people in the name of their faiths. Yet.
I wonder if that is because the media chooses to run Islamic fanaticism stories rather than Christian fanaticism stories.
Idolatry is in one's own mind. And their definition of "idolatry" is pretty loose. If we go by their definition (the ones who think wax figures of mullahs fit in this category), then it should include one's dead body/tomb, or object or picture representing this person, or a statue of this person, when people treat said body or tomb like an Idol (according to their definition of course, since they include wax figures of people NOT considered God). They should include, for instance, Khomeini's tomb (and pictures), that people visit and worship.
I think it is pretty unfortunate when you can't understand the difference between statues (including wax figures) or images of people (or pets) you loved, and worshipping a statue or image as if it was God (which clearly is not the case here, with those wax figures).
I don't care either way tho, to each his own.
In the 6th cnetury pagans actually believed that carved scultural representations of the God's with divine power. Nobody in the world that I am aware of believes this when looking at a wax representation. There are still people who believe in magical books, or magical scriptures, however.
This is what happens when you allow a religion to be part of a government and make illogical laws and rules. Until they split the two they will always have this foolish trouble. Furthermore, attending a madrassa and memorizing the Qu'ran is NOT an education. Education without religious involvment, housing, and regular healthful food is the major part of the solution. But, until a couple of generations pass, there will always be boneheads with bombs with which to deal.
PS, Once they have enough people in our country, they will begin to vote people with their scewed way of thinking into our government. Once they achieve a majority, they will throw out the constitution and invoke sharia law. We must prevent that from happening. Write to your representative with your concerns.
The Right To Participate In The Affairs Of State:
"And their business is (conducted) through consultation among themselves." (42:38)
The "Shura" or the legislative assembly has no other meaning except that the executive head of the government and the members of the assembly should be elected by free and independent choice of the people.
Lastly, it is to be made clear that Islam tries to achieve the above mentioned human rights and many others not only by providing certain legal safeguards but mainly by inviting mankind to transcend the lower level of animal life to be able to go beyond the mere ties fostered by the kinship of blood, racial superiority, linguistic arrogance, and economic privileges. It invites mankind to move on to a plane of existence where, by reason of his inner excellence, man can realize the ideal of the Brotherhood of man Crimes and punishments have their own long history behind them. From inhuman punishments of the monarchical past to the soft policy of the present-day democratic age, the punishments have been showing an upward trend. This is how the so-called humanizing process has yielded results. The spurt in crimes following the economic boom in the West has brought its own strange interpretation from the Western sociologists, who, till only a few days back were ascribing unsatisfactory economic and social conditions to the increasing criminal mentality. The very sociologist now harps a different tune. He unabashedly calls the criminal mentality an essential element of human nature. This clear succumbing to the situation has come as a result of the West's failure to dam the advancing wave of crimes. More sorrowfully the West has committed the folly of taking a few retrograde steps, so to say, to improve the situation merely on the paper. This has been done in order to cut down the burden on national exchequer; which has been claiming an increasingly bigger slice of the financial cake for the maintenance of Police, Jails, and Courts. This foolish tampering with the situation has been affected mindless of the future repercussions by de-listing a few crimes.For example, Norway and Sweden have stolen the march by legalizing homosexuality and lesbianism. West Germany and almost all the Scandinavian countries have respectively lifted the ban on import and circulation of pornographic literature. England and Italy have allowed abortions (either for a mother or spinster). The fresh blow to the existing ethical values has come from Spain where, according to an approved bill of cabinet, adultery will no longer be a crime. In sharp contrast to this situation, the Islamic world presents a peaceful and much cleaner society. When we cast a glance at the Muslim countries where Shariah is applied, crime rate has become negligible to the extent that Saudi Arabia reported just one murder in one year. This can wholly be attributed to the deterrent punishments of Islam. Turning a blind eye to these facts, the West is solely guided in its criticism by the superficial understanding of Islamic code.
You're full of it Gull Akbar with your criticism of "the west" (didn't you say you were american born???), shariah law punishments are worse then the so-called crimes.
Hundreds of cold-blooded murderers stoning a couple for leaving the spouses they were forced to marry and loving each other, that's shariah law at its best, and who's going to put these murderers in prison? yeah talk about a "much cleaner society"
youtube.com/watch?v=jJkYJ3cbxh0
And sorry man but we really don't have the same definition of a "clean society", but if that's what you believe in Gull maybe you should just join them, and shove your shariah law youknowwhere..
Saudi Arabia reported just one murder in one year? That's a laugh...I don't believe it at all!! And
all Islamic republics, especially Iran, have failed miserably in the human rights arena. Iran has an
atrocious human rights record. I would give it, Afghanistan and Pakistan, a big fat "F" for
human rights progress.
give me a break, I suppose it says in there toilet paper bible the quran that YOU CANNOT MAKE ANY CLERIC OUT OF WAX, IT IS AGAINST ALL muslum religous crap. But what we can do as americans is put pig blood on all and every bullet that is used to kill those sand monkeys so they dont get there 40 virgins when they go to meet there maker, the wax man. lol
EATING PORK DRINKING THE DEVIL PEE WHAT SHOULD I ASPECT FROM YOUR now you cursing the Holy quran or the Holy God that;s between you and God let the God curs you out but don't you forget that only Afghan's beside of the other Muslims we more than twenty seven millions in Today, Muslims in America others Muslims represent a colorful mosaic that is unique in the world. African-Americans, Southeast Asians, North Africans, Arabs, and Europeans come together daily for prayer and support, united in faith, with the understanding that they are all equal before God we are American born group and doing all kind of work officialese Administratively with respectively
Atheism will crush all infidels with the omnipotence of the elemental forces! Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of religious mumbo-jumbo, I shall fear no evil, thy gravity and thy electro-magnetism they comfort me