Florida church plans Quran burning on anniversary of 9/11
by Maggie Hyde, Medill News Service for Religion News Service on 07/22/10
WASHINGTON – A Florida church with “Islam is of the devil” signs in its front yard announced that it will host an “International Burn A Koran Day,” on the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks this year.
The Dove World Outreach Center, a non-denominational church in Gainesville, Fla., has marked the date in previous years with protests against Islam. The church holds protests on other issues, such as homosexuality, same-sex marriage, and abortion.
Pastor Terry Jones said members of the church plan to be at the Gainesville City Hall on Aug. 2 to protest the election of the city’s openly gay mayor.
Jones, who is also the author of a book titled “Islam is of the Devil,” said protests are key to the mission of his church.
“We feel, as Christians, one of our jobs is to warn,” said Jones. He said the goal of these and other protests are to give Muslims an opportunity to convert.
In response to the posting of the event on Facebook a little more than a week ago, Jones said that people have been mailing Qurans to the church to burn. He said organizers got the idea, in part, from another Facebook page, called “Everybody Draw Mohammed Day.”
Sept. 11 will fall during the Eid Al Fitr holiday this year, which Muslims celebrate at the end of the Ramadan fast. The local Muslim community is planning to use the feast as an opportunity to share Islamic traditions and Qurans with the church members and the wider community.
“We don’t want to do anything that would be reactive,” said Ramzy Kilic, communications director of the Tampa Chapter for the Council on American Islamic Relations. The council is a non-profit group that offers educational services on Islam.
On May 10, a pipe bomb exploded in the Islamic Center of Northwest Florida in Jacksonville. No worshippers were hurt.
The planned burning of Qurans could escalate tensions in the area, Kilic said.
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Louis William Rose
Jul 30th, 2010
For a reasoned discussion of the First Amendment go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qq4gue6TO0
and watch while I burn a Bible, a Quran, the Constitution, and the United States Flag, and talk about freedom of speech.