On fatwas for animal welfare

[Guest guest]

I am largely in agreement with what Merritt Clifton has said. The danger

lies in what value we assign to them. If we give too much importance to what

an expert religious scholar has said on a particular issue like animal

welfare, then we would likely give importance to some of their opinions on

other issues that are destructive. And many of these fatwas are self

contradictory and I do admit that there have been very damaging fatwa like

statements issued by Hindu scholars.How many fatwas do we see misused in

religion, especially Islam? Does a religious leader have to convince people

that it is wrong to be cruel to animals? Is that not plain common sense

guided by decent human principles?

On 12/12/08, Merritt Clifton <anmlpepl wrote:

>

> >The intention might be noble, but no civilised society should

> >condone the use of any fatwa, no matter what the motive. In my view,

> >fatwas are

> >monstrous and insane.

>

> A fatwa is simply an expert opinion, issued by a recognized

> expert in Islamic religious law, no different in nature from a papal

> bull except that the custom of issuing fatwas admits & tolerates the

> possibility of informed dissent & debate -- whereas, papal bulls

> have at times in the past been enforced by the Inquisition.

>

> Similar opinion-giving by religious scholars is practiced in

> Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.

>

> It is also practiced by every garage mechanic who gives

> written estimates. The gist of it is that someone who knows how the

> vehicle works says, " This is what's wrong and this is what we have

> to do in order to fix it. "

>

> Whether you accept the advice & the possible consequences,

> in the case of either a written estimate or a fatwa, is totally up

> to you.

>

> --

> Merritt Clifton

> Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE

> P.O. Box 960

> Clinton, WA 98236

>

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>