Al Shindagah

Al Shindagah | Issue 138 | 9 attended Gay Prides held everywhere in the West, in Israel and even in Turkey, a Muslim majority country. Egypt is doing its best to protect society by cracking down on gay activists who promote homosexuality in public and along with several African and Middle Eastern nations is shamefully being condemned by international human rights groups and western journalists for defending social cohesion. Movies, television, newspapers, social media are brainwashing young people to accept the unacceptable under the false banner of human rights, civil liberties and equality amid an era when rampant political correctness silences objectors. Governments are colluding and abetting with laws sanctioning gay marriage for instance, laws which have upset many who hold to their faith or wish to preserve traditional values. Religious leaders should unite against the lauding of homosexuality instead of pandering to liberal demands. Jewish, Christian and Islamic Holy Books all condemn homosexual practices as an abomination. Today, there are Protestant churches which ordain openly gay clergy and sanctify gay marriage despite Biblical verses condemning unnatural perversions. The New Testament condemns “men committing shameless acts with men” (Romans 1:26-27) and elsewhere. The Torah describes such acts as “detestable” (Leviticus 18:22) meriting severe punishment. Islam considers homosexual acts as al-fasha (obscenity). “Of all the creatures in the world, will you approach males, and leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your mates? No, you are a people transgressing (all limits)” (Quran 26: 165-166). The West has learned nothing from the collapse of the mighty Roman Empire, weakened by a culture of moral decadence and is paying a price in terms of the break-up of families, disrespect to parents, drugs, violence, suicides and the kind of mental health issues that cause men to indiscriminately slaughter their compatriots, as recently occurred in Las Vegas – the last of a long line of such tragic incidents. I warned about the smashing of taboos that have held societies together in a column published in June, 2015 titled ‘Immorality and barbarity plague our planet’. I expressed my discomfort with President Barack Obama for his championship of gay marriage. He claimed it perfected the Union (the United States) when, in fact, it undermines the sanctity of the most important union of all – marriage. A civil contract and a Will could give cohabiting men or women all the legal protections they need. Moreover, the media’s glorifying of men who alter their God-given gender, such as reality star and Olympiad Bruce Jenner who unveiled his female form in a Vanity Fair cover story, is abhorrent. Far from being disturbed that a father had so little consideration for the feelings of his daughters’ followers on social media overwhelmingly praised him for being “courageous”. According to Islam men imitating women and women imitating men constitutes a sign that the Day of Judgment is approaching. Yes, there are newborns with indeterminate gender, mistakenly registered at birth with the wrong sex but they are exceptions. What concerns me is the way transsexuals or homosexuals flaunt their sexual preferences and, more importantly, the fashion in which the media holds them high as trendsetting modern-day heroes which is confusing for young children growing up. Frankly, I was flabbergasted to read in The Sunday Times the extent to which Great Britain is going overboard with this PC nonsense: “A Christian family is preparing to sue their sons’ Church of England school after boys (as young as six) were allowed to come to class wearing dresses…The couple are going to mount a legal challenge against the school, arguing it has not respected their rights to raise their children in line with Biblical values”. The Daily Telegraph reports that children in British schools are being forced “to unlearn” the difference between boys and girls and are actually promoting “Transgender policies” and introducing gender- neutral uniforms resulting in “children questioning their gender identity at younger ages”. A recent headline in the Daily Mail reads: “Schools to be rated on how transgender friendly they are. Education guide will compile list of primary and secondary schools which have made ‘fabulous efforts’ with equality. Where, oh where is this madness leading? One thing is certain, Arab leaderships must resist damaging Western influences as well as pressure from governments and human rights groups to relax laws protecting the moral fibre of our citizens. Never before has the expression ‘east is east and west is west and never the twain shall meet’ been as meaningful as it is today. ©Shutterstock