> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Blind World Magazine <
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> > To: Blind News <
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> > Sent: Sunday, January 22, 2006 8:21 PM
> > Subject: What's With All the Blind Clerics?
> >
> >
> > >
> > > What's With All the Blind Clerics?
> > >
> > >
> > > January 20, 2006.
> > > By Daniel Engber,
> > > Slate - USA.
> > >
> > >
> > > Omar Abdel Rahman: the blind bomber
> > >
> > >
> > > The Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri denied preaching racial hatred in
a
> > > British courtroom on Thursday. Al-Masri has been linked to the
would-be
> > > shoe-bomber Richard Reid and stands accused of starting a terrorist
> > training
> > > camp in Oregon. Most news reports also mention that al-Masri has only
one
> > > eye and no hands. It seems like we're always hearing about blind or
> > > half-blind Muslim clerics-what's the deal?
> > >
> > >
> > > There is a pattern of the blind leading the not-blind in modern Islam.
A
> > > traditional Muslim education in some ways favors the blind, since it
> > > proceeds largely through the repetition and memorization of sacred
texts.
> > > Children chant Quranic verses until they know them by heart; those who
> > learn
> > > the whole book often receive advanced religious training. Blind
kids-who
> > > often make up for their disability with a finely tuned sense of
> > hearing-tend
> > > to do quite well at this.
> > >
> > >
> > > Children who can't see may also get pushed toward the clergy by their
> > > parents. Clerics often preach through the artful recitation of the
> > > Quran-something a blind person can learn to do as well as anyone else.
The
> > > same child would be at a severe disadvantage in a conventional
classroom,
> > > and he'd have a harder time holding down a regular job.
> > >
> > >
> > > Muslims have revered blind clerics for over 1,000 years. In one scene
in
> > the
> > > Quran, the Prophet frowns and turns away from a blind man, only to
have
> > > Allah castigate him for rejecting a spiritual seeker. The man, called
> > > Abdullah ibn Umm Maktum, became an important early follower of the
> > Prophet.
> > > (The tradition of blind religious figures extends back to early
Judaism
> > and
> > > Christianity as well.)
> > >
> > >
> > > Today, even blind people without religious training enjoy a certain
level
> > of
> > > respect in the Muslim world. Turks, for example, refer to a blind man
as a
> > > hafiz-meaning one who has completely memorized the Quran-whether or
not he
> > > has earned the title. In Egypt, blind men are casually described as
> > > moulanas, a term of respect given to Muslim scholars.
> > >
> > >
> > > Another factor in the prevalence of blind clerics may be the high
rates of
> > > blindness in Arab countries. A 2002 study, for example, reveals a dire
> > > situation in Lebanon, Oman, and Morocco, where more than 5 percent of
the
> > > people over the age of 50 couldn't see.
> > >
> > >
> > > The blind clerics most often mentioned in the Western press are
radical
> > > jihadis like Abu Hamza al-Masri or Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman-the "blind
> > sheik"
> > > accused of masterminding the World Trade Center bombing of 1993. But
blind
> > > clerics are just as likely to be moderates. The revered Saudi
Abdelaziz
> > ibn
> > > Baaz, for example, renounced violence in the name of installing
Islamic
> > > governments. He also issued a fatwa allowing Muslim men to take
Viagra.
> > >
> > >
> > > In fact, blindness could be a liability within the most militant sects
of
> > > Islam. In the 1980s, members of the Egyptian jihad movement debated
> > whether
> > > Abdel Rahman's blindness made him a poor operational leader. The
strongest
> > > voice opposing him belonged to Ayman al-Zawahiri, now thought to be
> > > al-Qaida's No. 2 figure.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Explainer thanks Richard Antoun of the State University of New York,
> > Mahmoud
> > > Ayoub of Temple University, Fawaz Gerges of Sarah Lawrence, and
Valerie
> > > Hoffman of the University of Illinois.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Source URL:
http://www.slate.com/id/2134506/
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