By Dr. Steven Carol
Arab-Muslim conquerors have a penchant for destroying other people’s religious shrines and many times building their own on the ruins. It was, and remains, Islam’s way of saying, ‘We have defeated you, we rule you, and our god–Allah– is greater than your god.’ As I have pointed out, with numerous examples, in my book: Middle East Rules of Thumb: Understanding the Complexities of the Middle East, this has been a long established historic practice.
Islam’s holiest shrine–the Kaaba, a cube-like building in Mecca–is an older pre-Islamic pagan Arab shrine. According to Islamic tradition the first building was constructed by Adam and rebuilt by Abraham (Ibrahim). The Black Stone, possibly a meteorite fragment, is a significant feature of the Kaaba. The Masjid al-Haram mosque was built around the Kaaba.
The Ibrahimi Mosque was constructed in Hebron, in 637 CE, over the second-most venerated Jewish holy site, the Cave of Machpelah–the Tomb of the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
The Dome of the Rock was built on the ruins of Judaism’s holiest site, the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem, by the Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik, 687-691 CE. Al-Walid, son of al-Malik, erected the Al-Aqsa Mosque at the southern end of the Temple Mount and also over the Basilica of St. Mary of Justinian, in 712 CE.
By no means is this practice limited to venerated Jewish holy sites. The Grand Mosque of Damascus was put up over the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in 715 CE.
On October 18, 1009, the Muslim Fatimid caliph Abu ‘Ali Mansur Tariqu’l-Hakim destroyed, down to the bedrock, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, a Christian church venerated by most Christians as Golgotha, the Hill of Calvary, where tradition says that Jesus was crucified. Gravestones were also destroyed. Muslim forces tried to dig up all the graves and wipe out all traces of their existence. The site is now within the walled, Old City of Jerusalem.
This practice continued through the centuries and was applied not only to Jewish, Christian and Hindu sites but other faiths as well. Late in the 20th century, in Libya, on November 26, 1970, the Catholic Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Tripoli was converted into the Gamal Abdel Nasser Mosque.
Two 1,400 year-old statues of Buddha in the Bamiyan Valley of Afghanistan were blown up in March 2001. This came after a fatwa (a religious edict), ordered by the Taliban directed all Afghan “idols” be destroyed as being anti-Muslim. In the Central Asian republics no Buddhist temples remain.
While not a religious site, the World Trade Center stood as a symbol of Western commerce, industry and civilization. Then came the horrors of the destruction of those twin towers on September 11, 2001. No doubt many prayers were said there both during and after the calamitous collapse.
In May 2010, it was announced that near the ruins of buildings reduced to rubble in the name of Islam, an Islamic mosque would rise. This fits the historic pattern of Muslim construction near or atop the ruins of their enemies’ symbolic buildings as a mark of Islamic supremacy.
The land for the mosque has been bought for $4.85 million in unaccounted for cash. The estimated cost of the new building that will house the mosque is $100 million. It is to be funded by donations. Just who specifically, would be making these donations is one unanswered question? Once built, 1,000 to 2,000 Muslims are expected to pray at the mosque every Friday. The target date for the opening of this mosque is September 11, 2011, the tenth anniversary of the attack on New York and Washington, D.C.
Furthermore, a second mosque seeks to build near ground zero. The Masjid Mosque has raised $8.5 million and is seeking an additional $2.5 million to begin construction. While it apparently has not settled on a final location, it has told donors it plans to build very close to where the World Trade Center once stood. In fact, the Masjid Mosque website states: “Insha’Allah we will raise the flag of La-Illaha-Illa-Allah in downtown Manhattan very soon!”
The World Trade Center was destroyed in the name of Islam. The perpetrators stated the people that were murdered were not innocent, which is blatantly false. The planned mosque will be just 600 feet from ground zero, at the site of the greatest Islamofascist achievement over infidels in hundreds of years. Thus, three questions can be raised. Are these mosques to honor the perpetrators of 9-11 rather than its victims? Is the mosque to indicate Islam’s triumph and supremacy? Finally, how will the establishment of these mosques be viewed in the Arab-Muslim world?
Historian Dr. Steve Carol is the author of two books, Middle East Rules of Thumb: Understanding the Complexities of the Middle East and Encyclopedia of Days: Start the Day with History, as well as numerous articles. He is Associate Producer and official historian of The Middle East Radio Forum, heard Sundays at noon in Phoenix on KKNT 960 AM and on the world wide web at middleeastradioforum.org. Dr. Carol is a Middle East Consultant to Salem Radio Network (SRN) News.
I am just noting the hypocrisy of the first two commenters.
They support a politician (Sarah Palin) who is foremost in promoting the American Health denial services aka The American Health Insurance Companies who have committed actual mass murder through denial of services for decades so much so that they have lowered the average life expectancy to age 65 the same as a third World Country such s the Philippines.
They have been exercising a program of nothing less than Nazi Eugenics (eliminating the unworthy) for over half a century.
And this is only one of the sins of that fascist political elite they support that destroys and leads millions to endless suffering.
So they support the actual mass murder that has existed and is ongoing but simply the naked expression of simply fantasizing to get rid of the world of terrorists and their supporters they scorn with “moral indignation”.
The absurdity of the morally bankrupt having “moral indignation”.
But it makes sense those with no ability to enjoy a fantasy because of their moral censor end up uncontrollably acting out.
These to have a lot in common with terrorists in several ways – in acting out and in willing to help the elite terrorize their fellow citizens.
These are the passive aggressive types that cannot manage or face their own aggression or take responsibility for it. They may be the the same types that in Israel caused the withdrawal from Gaza and from Lebanon (twice over).
And it’s this article itself that says this mosque is part of religious warfare. Does that not make anyone who goes there a soldier of Allah, involved in an act of War? Stop being such a politically correct, reality-denying milksop, Narvey.
It’s far from fantasy, it’s more like a prediction. I don’t think there are enough police in NY State to protect such a mosque if there are any willing. How many NYC firemen do you think would take a call to go there? How many NYC firemen died in 9/11?
If they are insane enough to open such a thing then someone will open a “dead pool” in Vegas.
There is a street reality beyond what “should” be.
There’s nothing to protest, let nature take it’s course.
Narvey killing many of your enemies is not mass murder it’s joyous and something to celebrate.
Here’s mud in your eye! As I raise my glass.
In this particular case it isn’t necessary to make the people mad; they can proceed directly to step #2.
sorry for all the typos in the above I used a different browser with no spell checker or ability to edit.
When the Ja[panese were buying up America it was mostly politically beneign. They were interested in prifit and diversification.
When the Muslims invest in America it is for control and influence before prpfits.
When the Germans buy up millions of acres of American real estate they have a long term political agenda that juxtaposes with American moneyed eites. Most of corporate American media organiztions are multidemential in that they cover the broadest spectum of all communications outlets in America. a handfull of pwople control the media and therefore control the message.
Whoever controls the message controls the state. This is not Republican or Democrat they control both,donate to both,support both at different timesbut it dosen’t matter They own the presidency whether Republican or Democrat.
When a Whitman can be allowed to spend her own money (70 million) you gotta know somethis is rotten and corrupt even obscene!
When the American people are silent on such obscenities. It means to me that they have lost any semblance of a moral compass. That’s what the controlled press and media have brought about, a country that has lost her values where people have lost the capacity to tell right from wrong.
There is no longer a moral certainty in America relativism and nihilism reign supreme.
For whom the God would destroy they first make mad
Speak for yourself. Your protesting is pipe dreaming. If I’m going to pipe dream I’ll have my own pipe dreams.
If the Islamofascists don’t kill you, the Superclass will take your life one way or another. You have no future, get used to it. You just get to watch the show on your way out.
I have no idea what those are, and what you are talking about. And I don’t care, North America is under the control of the economic fascism of the Superclass and soon they will approach the Singularity and none of your squabbles or illusions about politics will mean anything. None of modern politics works for the public or is in the control of the public, the system is locked. There is only a one party system and it belongs to the Superclass.
If you could only change your ideology to far left, you’d fit in great at Daily Kos, The Huffington Post, or the Democratic Underground.
Max, mass murder might constitute making a statement, but it does not change the fact that it is mass murder.
I suggest you devote your energies, not to pipe dreaming, but lending your voice to those opposed to the building of the Mosque by the Muslim Cordoba group
Let them build it, It’ll be fun watching it get blown up on the news. Just hope they got room for 2800 worshipers in there.