We have seen many memorable examples of the vigor with which Muslim groups denounce and attempt to stamp out heretical teachings and movements, including the recent actions against the Ahmadiyya sect in Indonesia. So if the jihadists have hijacked Islam, why don’t we see the same level of indignation leveled at them? Why is the response from major groups so fraught with dissimulation and half-measures for public consumption? –˜Sky messenger” nabbed,” from The Star, June 14:
A MAN who claimed to be a “messenger from the sky” and lived for “more than 3,000 years” was nabbed by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) in a raid in his house in Damansara, Harian Metro reported.
The man, in his 80s, used his home as a gathering place for his followers, and spread deviant teachings that were against the teachings of Islam.
During the last Maulidur Rasul celebration, he brazenly sent invitations to the Sultan of Selangor, Mentri Besar, Mufti, Jais, and a few government agencies, inviting them to his speeches.
Jais director Datuk Mohammed Khusrin Munawi said the group was believed to have been active for a long time. However, it was hard to trace their activities as the man and his followers conducted their affairs secretly.
During the raid, approximately a hundred followers were caught listening to his lecture. One of the group’s deviant beliefs is that the basic tenets of Islam such as praying five times a day, fasting and performing the pilgrimage to Mecca were not obligatory for a Muslim.