The group's other name, Boko Haram, means "Western education is a sin" and is another title used by local people to refer to the group...
If their name is uncertain, however, their mission appears clear enough: to overthrow the Nigerian state, impose an extreme interpretation of Islamic law and abolish what they term "Western-style education".
In an interview with the BBC, the group's leader, Mohammed Yusuf, said such education "spoils the belief in one God".
"There are prominent Islamic preachers who have seen and understood that the present Western-style education is mixed with issues that run contrary to our beliefs in Islam," he said.
"Like rain. We believe it is a creation of God rather than an evaporation caused by the sun that condenses and becomes rain.
"Like saying the world is a sphere. If it runs contrary to the teachings of Allah, we reject it. We also reject the theory of Darwinism."
I would disagree with the assertion that a spherical earth is "contrary to the teachings of Allah" since some of the greatest astronomers of medieval times were Muslim, and they needed
spherical geometry to determine the correct direction to Mecca - but I wouldn't bother trying to explain that to these guys...
Brian - I deleted your comment because it was so clearly of the "troll" variety. It offered no new information, did not enhance the conversation, and it played upon archetypal racial and ethnic stereotypes in a derogatory fashion. It appeared to be writen for the sole purpose of generating controversy. Such comments are not welcome at TYWKIWDBI.
ReplyDeleteStan - Clearly, you have the right to censure anything you want on your own blog, for what ever reason, and publicly spank your readers for their comments.
ReplyDeleteWould it be trolling to suggest that some members of the Texas State Board of Education (based on recent activity) would feel right at home among these anti-science, anti-education, anti-reason religious fanatics?
ReplyDeleteIt's not trolling if I agree with you...
ReplyDelete:.)