cartoons again

Again I have to comment on the furor over the political cartoons of Muhammad. There is so much misinformation that must be clarified before one can make an informed statement in dialogue.

Who? The people rioting are using something that occurred in the fall of 2005 as a pretense to riot. There was no mass reaction to the cartoons until now, I would argue because political organizations that were looking to cause a reaction added two forged cartoons that were much more insulting, and then paid demonstrators to react. There is an ongoing investigation to see if there is any connection to the Syrian and/or Iranian government providing some support for the violent protests.

What? Again, this is not primarily a reaction that is supported in Islam. There is no absolute prohibition to depict the prophet Muhammad in the Q’uran. This is a later interpretation by some denominations of Islam to not allow the depiction of any prophet artistically. I witnessed first-hand that there is no absolute prohibition as I spent a month touring museums of Istanbul and saw Muhammad portrayed in paintings, tapestry, and illuminated manuscripts.

The reason why you know very quickly there is something else going on here than anything having to do with Islam is that the denominations that interpret no portrayals of prophets certainly haven’t been in an uproar over Islam’s second most important prophet, Jesus. For example, there were no riots or violent responses I am aware of by people of the Muslim faith back in 1987 when Andres Serrano published photos portraying Jesus on the cross submerged in a glass of Serrano’s urine. I also mentioned before the depictions of Jesus in TV shows such as The Simpson’s, Family Guy, and South Park, while sarcastic and offensive to many Christians, must be so to Muslims, as well, and yet where are the protests?

This is not about Islam, it is about using some interpretations of the teachings of some branches of Islam, distorting them, and waiting for the resulting political consequences. Even to say it is a Muslim extremist reaction isn’t helpful. There is nothing specific in the Q’uran that warrants violently reacting to an issue of this nature.