Israeli Deputy Minister for Regional Cooperation Ayoob Kara appears to hold a view of the Almighty as petty and capricious as Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte . The Druze-Israeli Likud politician has declared that the two earthquakes in Italy this week were divine “retribution” for Italy’s support of the UNESCO resolution critical of Israel over its handling of a holy site in Jerusalem.
On a visit to the Vatican when the earthquakes struck, Kara said “I’m sure that the earthquake happened because of the UNESCO decision.”
So God, killed one person, injured 10 people and destroyed countless homes to send a message over an simple UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) resolution criticizing Israel for its handling of the holy site in Jerusalem. The site is called Temple Mount by Jews, and Haram al-Sharif by Muslims.
Kara met with the Pope and insisted that the Pope “strongly disagreed” with the resolution.
In the process of defending Judaism, are is her right, Bambam finally had something nice to say about Islam. Apparently, Druzism is not a fringe sect, not it is a cult…and considering that many of the good tenets that this religion espouses come from Islam, Bambam hereby, and indirectly, though finally acknowledged that Islam is neither a sect nor a cult, and has redeeming qualities after all.
Thanks, Bam!
There is nothing nice to say about Islam, although, as usual po, you wish and dream that there could be some redeeming qualities to the death cult known as Islam. The article that I posted merely alludes to the fact that the Druze take various elements from various religions and cultures, incorporating them into their own. That’s not saying anything nice about Islam. You will never get over the hurdle of justifying the merits of a violent and destructive cult, such as Islam, as it remains a repugnant death cult, which infects and destroys the minds and hearts of all who adhere to it.
Since when did you convert to Islam, bambam? Or were your mind and heart already destroyed by something else?
International Fellowship of Christians and Jews
Druze Religion
The Druze community, more correctly known as the Muwahideen, number close to 120,000 in Israel. They live primarily in the Galilee and the Golan Heights, and are classified as a separate religious group, with their own courts and their own jurisdiction in matters such as marriage, divorce, and adoption.
The Druze religion has its roots in Islam, but although some members consider themselves “Muslim,” they have been recognized as a separate religion. During the reign of the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt, in the 10th and 11th centuries, the Druze religion was formed, combining tenets of Islam with the philosophy of the Greeks and Hindus. The Druze do not accept converts. They believe that anyone who wanted to join the religion had a chance to do so in the first generation after it was started, and that everyone who is alive today is reincarnated from a previous generation. Therefore, they concluded that people today already had their chance to join, centuries ago, and the religion has been closed to converts since 1050. Proselytizing is not allowed under Druze law.
The religion is heavily monotheistic, and has ties to the world’s three main religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Their prophets include Moses, John the Baptist, Jesus, and Mohammed. Their most revered religious figure is Jethro, father-in-law of Moses. A tomb built over his believed burial site, at the Horns of Hittin near the Kinneret, is a gathering place for members of the Druze faith, and every April, the Druze meet there to discuss matters pertaining to the community.
Despite a few holy sites which have become official gathering places for the Druze, the Druze generally spurn the concepts of ceremonies and rituals. There is no official liturgy or prayer book, no holy days or fast days, and no pilgrimages. They accept “The Seven Precepts,” which they believe are the essential components of the Pillars of Islam. The precepts, which form the core of Druze faith, include truthfulness in speech, belief in one God, protection of others, and the belief that every hour of every day is a time to reckon oneself before God. Druze believe that the various rituals and practices adopted by the three major faiths have turned those believers away from the “true faith.”
The Druze are divided into two groups: al-Juhhal (“the ignorant”) and al-Uqqal (“the knowledgeable”). Al-Juhhal represents the majority of Druze members, approximately 80% of the community, and is the “unlearned” group. They do not have access to the holy writings of the faith, do not attend the religious meetings, and in general are not expected to follow the ascetic rulings of the al-Uqqal. The al-Uqqal, in contrast, which includes both men and women, are the learned minority. Men and women adopt a more stringent dress code, and the spiritual leaders of the community arise from the most influential 5% of the al-Uqqal. The Druze forbid polygamy, along with the consumption of alcohol, tobacco, and pork. Equality between men and women, in marriage and in religious life, is an important part of the Druze tradition. Women are encouraged to participate in daily prayer, can take part in religious ceremonies, and are able to initiate divorce.
The first Druze began settling in modern-day Lebanon and northern Israel centuries ago, and the largest Druze community in the Galilee is called Daliyat el-Carmel, situated in the Carmel Mountains. During the British Mandate, the Druze purposely kept out of the Arab-Israeli conflict; when Israel’s War of Independence broke out in 1948, the Druze fought on the Israeli side. A minority of Druze who live in the Golan Heights protested when the Israelis annexed the land from Syria, following the Six-Day War. Few of them have accepted full Israeli citizenship, and remain Syrian citizens.
The rest of the Druze, however, are full members of Israeli society. The Druze have mainly found employment in the fields of social work, security services, and prison personnel. A new program has been started to help the Druze gain entry into Israel’s lucrative high-tech sector. They have also become prominent members of the IDF and of the Knesset, where they hold a disproportionate number of seats relative to the size of their community. In addition to holding prominent military and political positions, the Druze are active in the realms of sports, media, the arts, and literature.
Well done, bam bam.
Nice try, Turley, to skip past the part that this man, although technically a Druze-Israeli, is not, in fact, Jewish. I know–that doesn’t go along with your typical narrative, that you perpetually continually spout, about the so-called extremist Jews in Israel. This guy, Ayoob, is as Christian as you.
Now, on with the Jew-bashing.
Druze are not Christians, the are a minority sect in Islam. Druze have over the centuries brought hatred upon them themselves by backing whomever they feel will be in power.When the power shifts they often have to answer to those whom they oppressed. They are not well liked in Lebanon or Syria where they have been accused of siding with Israel. They also are considered by other Muslims to be virtually secular. Your comment makes no sense about bashing Jews.
My comment makes perfect sense, as I never claimed that the Druze are Christian. I mentioned that the gentleman, quoted in the article, is as Christian as JT. Make of that what you will. The Druze are a separate and distinct religion from Islam, just as they are a separate and distinct religion from Christianity and Judaism. They adhere to elements from each of these religions, yet they are a distinct and very separate group. I know that this flies over your head, by I’ll try to bring it down to your level–when JT is irresponsible enough to throw out articles about ISRAELIS, who are purportedly saying or doing something outlandish, such as this gentleman, wouldn’t someone, with a modicum of journalistic integrity, at least mention that this man is not Jewish? The tendency, of most, would be to equate ISRAELI with JEWISH. JT is not that thick. He knows that, but still he throws this out there, like chum for the sharks. Of course the majority of people, like yourself, are clueless as to the history of the Druze, as evidenced by your incorrect and fallacious answer. Just as clueless as you, there are others who will assume that JT’s categorization of this individual as ISRAELI necessarily means that he’s Jewish. He’s not. That’s a fact. Since most assume that someone mentioned as ISRAELI is Jewish, the responsible thing would have been to mention what being Druze actually means, but that would not coincide with JT’s tendency to gloss over certain important, not to mention, critical distinctions. As the old saying goes, a half-truth is a whole lie.
You will be up a creek without a paddle if they ever name a hurricane after Fido.
Dog did it. Dog spelled backwards is God. There was a dog on this blog who would tell us the reason. But, talk to your dog if there is an earthquake or hurricane.
There are some higher powers – the powers of physics and chemistry. They don’t have human characteristics, although people like to anthropomorphize what they don’t understand.
There are those that believe God has his hand in everything. There are those that believe there is no God and bad things just happen. And then there are those that believe the bad things that happen are the direct result of one political party. It’s that last group that should be feared the most because their god is government.
Spot on Olly! re: “And then there are those that believe the bad things that happen are the direct result of one political party. It’s that last group that should be feared the most because their god is government.”
Blind partisanship has created this awful situation we find ourselves in. People who can’t (won’t??) think outside the box prop up the corruption of both parties.
And these are the kind of people we let run this world! What a scary thought. He seems to know god personally, but yet can’t prove its existence. Cuckoo.
Everyone has an opinion about everything. Sometimes more than one!
Nuts! That’s what theocracy does to your brain!
Which ‘theocracy’? Israel has ecclesiastical courts of antique provenance. That’s as close as you get to ‘theocracy’. You seemed to have missed it that the man isn’t a black hat. He’s Druze.
I am a huge fan of the Nation of Israel yet there is no doubt that within every Nation, government and general population that there are those whom seem a bit out of touch with reality.
The US has its Inhofe, McConnell, and lots more.
Israel needs to recognize that the world will not tolerate apartheid brutality, even if US officials do.
There is no ‘apartheid brutality’ outside the imaginations of the terminally vicious.
Maybe officials in Italy will arrest him for not predicting the earthquake–especially knowing God as well as he does.
Balderdash! The earthquake was a sign that God wants Trump and the Cubs to lose.