I understand the pressure this man is under, but who is he kidding with a statement like that? Blasphemy leads to violence and hence undermines the war on terror? So are we to assume that if there is no blasphemy, there will be no jihad terrorism? Of course, that is absurd, unless the good cleric wishes to consider the very existence of non-Muslim polities and blasphemous. But in any case, not only is he a good dhimmi, but he is advocating that the free West play the dhimmi as well by adopting Islamic Sharia restrictions on free speech and free inquiry — which would not be an act of tolerance or respect for religion, but an act that would begin the institutionalization of Islamic supremacism in the non-Muslim West by creating a protected class, sheltered from all criticism or any speech they disliked.
“Bishop condemns anti-Islam film and caricatures,” from the Daily Times (thanks to Twostellas):
LAHORE: The Bishop of Iran and the Gulf, Azad Marshall, and the National Council of Churches in Pakistan (NCCP), have condemned the publication of the anti-Islam caricatures and a film by Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders.
According to a press release issued on Wednesday, the bishop and the NCCP expressed concerns over “the mischievous acts, maligning the Islamic faith in the name of modernisation, secularism and so-called freedom of expression”. They said the freedom of expression did not provide an open licence to hurt the religious sentiments of 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide.
Marshall called these acts “misconceived, malicious and politically motivated”. He said that these acts, especially in a society that propagated human rights, human dignity and tolerance, were against all decent norms and demonstrated a lack of respect for others religious feelings.
On one hand, the West seeks to bridge gap between different faiths and on the other it creates rift by such acts, Marshall said. “No religion, society or culture should be allowed such acts of blasphemy, which give rise to violence and undermine the global war on terror,” he said and demanded that the United Nations evolve a code of ethics that all religions be treated with same respect and dignity. The Muslim countries should use diplomatic means so that there should be no more instances in future, he added.
That bolded demand means that the UN should criminalize and prosecute those who violate Sharia norms about speaking of Allah, Muhammad, and Islam. In other words, it should become a Sharia-enforcing body.