CNN: Florida pastor calls off burning of Qurans

[panel]

Hmmm. Obviously there are Muslims out there who burn bibles,

I don't know about that

[GoSkins561]

I don't know about that

There is a link a few posts before yours.

[Burgold]

I swear I think they have nothing else better to do over there than to just sit around and get pissed off at stuff and use that as an excuse to burn things...I bet a normal conversation goes something like this:

Abdel: Hey Mohammad, you been watching the news?

Mohammad: Havent had the chance lately, Abdel. My wife is about to give birth soon.

Abdel: Oh, congrats. I heard there was some crazy guy in America who wanted to burn Qurans.

Mohammad: No ****ing way, seriously??!

Abdel: I heard it from Malik, he never lies.

Mohammad: well ****, we should protest that. I've been meaning to get rid of this old couch I got last riot....we can use that

Abdel: Sweet man, my friend Saad can set us up with some American flags to burn...this will be awesome!

Mohammad: Alright, meet you in the quad in 30....gotta go tell Zainab I'll be out for the night.

That's actually pretty funny. There's probably some truth in it. You know there are conversations that go on like that in America where people riot just to break into stores and collect goodies while there is so much chaos.

[Zguy28]

Some crazy ass muslims they are...the Bible is considered holy to them too.

Hmm..I thought Mohammed taught that the Christians and the bible were in error?

[Burgold]

Hmm..I thought Mohammed taught that the Christians and the bible were in error?

Well, they are.

Imagining going to church without covering your head. It's just disrespectful!

[The Brave Little Toaster Oven]

Hmm..I thought Mohammed taught that the Christians and the bible were in error?

Yes, they believe the message has been corrupted over time and that's why God chose Mohammad. They still believe its a holy book revealing God's revelation though.

[techboy]

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/285123/christians_in_gaza_fear_for_their_lives.html

All right, now I guess I've heard of one case, though I'd note that an organized book burning is very different than a bunch of idiots caught up in a riot and doing crazy stuff, possibly without meditation.

I'm still not sure that many Muslims would plan to burn bibles.

Christians, on the other hand, have gotten together almost routinely to burn Bibles. This is one of my favorite stories about the great textual critic Bruce Metzger, as related by Ben Witherington:

Of course, many will remember Professor Metzger for his work on the RSV translation committee. I remember when that translation first appeared in the '50s. RSV Bibles were burned soon afterward on the lawn of a fundamentalist church in my home state of North Carolina because of the translation of Isaiah 7:14. Metzger quipped: "Well, we have come a long way since William Tyndale. Now, at least, they burn the translations rather than the translators!"

Ultimately, though, the comparison to burning Bibles misses a much larger point.

It is my understanding that to the Muslim, the Koran is holy in its form, the one miracle of Mohammed, and so burning it is a grave sin and blasphemy.

To a Christian, the Bible contains the Word of God, but the paper and ink itself is not anything special.

There's no parallel here, and a little cultural sensitivity is warranted (similar to the drawing of Muhammad deal).