Monday, May 11, 2009
You might be forgiven for believing that some people were trying prove the Pope's comments about Islam being a bit on...the violent side...absolutely correct. Of course Sheik Tamimi has been on the radar screen many times before. He was even an honored guest of CAIR. Here's the man wielding the religious stick over the heads of the politicians, not in Hamas, but in the PA itself. Sheikh attacks Israel, pope walks out
A leading Palestinian cleric commandeered an evening devoted to interfaith dialogue with Pope Benedict XVI on Monday to rant against Israel for "killing Gaza's children," "bulldozing Palestinian homes" and "destroying mosques."
In an impromptu speech, delivered in Arabic at the Notre Dame Pontifical Institute in Jerusalem, Sheikh Tayseer Tamimi, chief Islamic judge in the Palestinian Authority, launched a 10-minute tirade against the State of Israel for confiscating Palestinians' land and carrying out war crimes against the residents of Gaza.
He also called for the immediate return of all Palestinian refugees, and called on Christians and Muslims to unite against Israel.
Tamimi invoked the name of Saladin, the Muslim sultan who recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders in 1187. Tamimi said that unlike Israel, Saladin upheld the religious freedoms of all faiths.
Following the diatribe and before the meeting was officially over, the pope exited the premises. However, he shook Tamimi's hand before walking out.
The pope, speaking before Tamimi, discussed the importance of religion and truth for the advancement of humanity's mutual understanding.
He was visibly uncomfortable with the tone of Tamimi's discourse. Even those who did not understand his Arabic quickly understood that the Muslim cleric was giving a militant speech.
Several attempts were made by Latin Patriarch in the Holy Land Fouad Twal, a Palestinian, to politely stop Tamimi. But Tamimi would not be deterred from reading his written speech, apparently prepared in advance without the knowledge of the organizers.
When Tamimi finished, applause could be heard from a few dozen in an audience of a few hundred...
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They were demanding the Pope apologize to Islam or Muslims or some such again. I know the Pope understands the vileness of Islam...and hope he returns to his robust confrontation with it....instead of apologizing to it.
There's a worse problem. As I saw the film clip, I blogged this:
http://myrightword.blogspot.com/2009/05/tamimi-is-pal-problem-one-of-projection.html
Another report indicated that the Pope waited until the rant was finished, then shook Tamimi's hand, and then left before the entire gathering was over...not that he got up and left because of the vile rant...
It also indicated that Tamimi did the same thing at a meeting with Pope John Paul several years ago
youTube has some videos. Tamimi essentially insinuated himself and usurped the proceedings. At one or two junctures the church officials attending the Pope attempted to persuade Tamimi to cease, but Tamimi was (surprise, surprise) resistant to any such persuasion.
After Tamimi completed his contemptible rant he passed by the Chief Rabbi, himself having remained on the dais, stopped briefly by the Pope and imposed and extended his hand. (It was decidedly not, however, a "hand shake" in the sense of any affirmation whatsoever.) The Pope did in fact shake or briefly grasp the extended hand and then, immediately afterwards and before the meeting completed, abruptly left.
It was an awkward and particularly contemptible insinuation, to say the very least. The religious figures present need to take some lessons in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and other MMA disciplines, but until that time they're not going to be prepared for such low, contemptible showings.