Colorado student quits high school choir over Islamic song praising 'Allah'

[Forever_frost]

So there were also christian songs in there but he was ok with those? He was given a choice to just not sing them and instead quit all together?

Im not a fan of any religion honestly but sounds like the kid was throwing a tantrum more than anything.

Throwing a tantrum? You mean by quitting the choir because he refused to sing praises to Allah? Pretty sure that whole freedom of religion thing kind of makes him right in this one. Where are the liberals and Avary's Dad saying that the school district are racist bigots for forcing religion on it's students?

Oh wait. It's Islam. Nevermind

[Lason]

Throwing a tantrum? You mean by quitting the choir because he refused to sing praises to Allah? Pretty sure that whole freedom of religion thing kind of makes him right in this one. Where are the liberals and Avary's Dad saying that the school district are racist bigots for forcing religion on it's students?

Oh wait. It's Islam. Nevermind

Did you read the same story I did? Here is a quote to help you out....

"Students are not required to participate, and receive no academic credit for doing so," he said.

So if he didnt like the song then just say "I dont want to sing it". Also, had he and his parents disagreed with it then why not say something when they had the chance?

"The teacher consulted with students and asked each of them to review an online performance of the selection with their parents before making the decision to perform the piece," Kirtland said, and members who object to the religious content of musical selections aren't required to sing them.

I deal with schools doing dumb crap all the time but if my oldest son came to me and said he was quitting orchestra because they were doing one song he didnt agree with I would teach him that he will never agree 100% with anything he does in life but that doesnt mean he gives it up.

This kid is throwing a damn tantrum and his parents are supporting it and so are all the sheeple.

[racrguy]

That kid knows nothing of his religion, nor muslim religion. They both believe in the same god, they just think the path to salvation and saviors/prophets are different.

[Forever_frost]

That kid knows nothing of his religion, nor muslim religion. They both believe in the same god, they just think the path to salvation and saviors/prophets are different.

You're assuming he knows nothing of his religion or Islam. They don't believe in the same God, Islam worships a moon god.

[The King]

You're assuming he knows nothing of his religion or Islam. They don't believe in the same God, Islam worships a moon god.

Wat?

[HarrisonTX]

That kid knows nothing of his religion, nor muslim religion. They both believe in the same god, they just think the path to salvation and saviors/prophets are different.

That's a pretty big assumption. The kid just doesn't want to say that shit. I doubt the Pope would either, and I don't think you can make the similar claims about him. How much he knows about the muslim faith is irrelevant

Also, what is the students religion? Does he have one? Because it sure doesn't mention it in the article. You're assuming again. Maybe he doesn't believe in any god, and that's why he doesn't want to say ""there is no truth except Allah".

[racrguy]

You're assuming he knows nothing of his religion or Islam. They don't believe in the same God, Islam worships a moon god.

lolwut

That's a pretty big assumption. The kid just doesn't want to say that shit. I doubt the Pope would either, and I don't think you can make the similar claims about him. How much he knows about the muslim faith is irrelevant

Also, what is the students religion? Does he have one? Because it sure doesn't mention it in the article. You're assuming again. Maybe he doesn't believe in any god, and that's why he doesn't want to say ""there is no truth except Allah".

Judging by the article certain assumptions can be made. Take this for instance

"I don’t want to come across as a bigot or a racist, but I really don’t feel it is appropriate for students in a public high school to be singing an Islamic worship song,” Harper told KREX-TV. "This is worshipping another God, and even worshipping another prophet ... I think there would be a lot of outrage if we made a Muslim choir say Jesus Christ is the only truth."

Since he isn't raising a stink about the topic of religions in general and has no problem singing christian songs we can deduce that he's a christian. A christian saying the only god is allah is not contradictory to their belief structure, in fact it's right in line with it. Read smarter, not harder.

[ELVIS]

you guys are slacking. WTH is a guy doing in choir?

god bless.

[racrguy]

you guys are slacking. WTH is a guy doing in choir?

god bless.

I think we all agree which team he bats for is in question.

[The King]

you guys are slacking. WTH is a guy doing in choir?

god bless.

They used to call it "glee club" instead of choir back in the day.

[HarrisonTX]

lolwut



Judging by the article certain assumptions can be made. Take this for instance

Since he isn't raising a stink about the topic of religions in general and has no problem singing christian songs we can deduce that he's a christian. A christian saying the only god is allah is not contradictory to their belief structure, in fact it's right in line with it. Read smarter, not harder.

I still fail to see how this proves he knows "nothing" about "his" religion, or islam.

[Forever_frost]

Wat?

I thought most people knew this.

Caesar Farah in his book on Islam concludes his discussion of the pre-Islamic meaning of Allah by saying:

"There is no reason, therefore, to accept the idea that Allah passed to the Muslims from the Christians and Jews" (Islam: Beliefs and Observations, New York, Barrons, 1987, p. 28).

According to Middle East scholar E.M. Wherry, whose translation of the Quran is still used today, in pre-Islamic times Allah-worship, as well as the worship of Ba-al, were both astral religions in that they involved the worship of the sun, the moon, and the stars (A Comprehensive Commentary on the Quran, Osnabruck: Otto Zeller Verlag, 1973, p. 36).
Astral Religions

In Arabia, the sun god was viewed as a female goddess and the moon as the male god. As has been pointed out by many scholars such as Alfred Guilluame, the moon god was called by various names, one of which was Allah! (Islam, p. 7).

The name Allah was used as the personal name of the moon god, in addition to other titles that could be given to him.

Allah, the moon god, was married to the sun goddess. Together they produced three goddesses who were called "the daughters of Allah." These three goddesses were called Al-Lat, Al-Uzza, and Manat.

The daughters of Allah, along with Allah and the sun goddess were viewed as "high" gods. That is, they were viewed as being at the top of the pantheon of Arabian deities.

"Along with Allah, however, they worshipped a host of lesser gods and "daughters of Al-lah" (Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, I:61)".

[Forever_frost]

When you prepare to go to a hostile country where a portion of the population want you dead, you tend to research the beliefs and history of the people

[racrguy]

I still fail to see how this proves he knows "nothing" about "his" religion, or islam.

I'm going to bold all the parts that should help you out.

A Colorado high school student says he quit the school choir after an Islamic song containing the lyric "there is no truth except Allah" made it into the repertoire.

James Harper, a senior at Grand Junction High School in Grand Junction, put his objection to singing "Zikr," a song written by Indian composer A.R. Rahman, in an email to Mesa County School District 51 officials. When the school stood by choir director Marcia Wieland's selection, Harper said, he quit.

"I don’t want to come across as a bigot or a racist, but I really don’t feel it is appropriate for students in a public high school to be singing an Islamic worship song,” Harper told KREX-TV. "This is worshipping another God, and even worshipping another prophet ... I think there would be a lot of outrage if we made a Muslim choir say Jesus Christ is the only truth."

skool_dis.jpg

The Colorado high school where a student quit the school choir over Islamic song lyrics is seen in this undated photo.

But district spokesman Jeff Kirtland defended the decision to include the song.

"Choral music is often devoted to religious themes. ... This is not a case where the school is endorsing or promoting any particular religion or other non-educational agenda. The song was chosen because its rhythms and other qualities would provide an opportunity to exhibit the musical talent and skills of the group in competition, not because of its religious message or lyrics," Kirtland told FoxNews.com in an email while noting that the choir "is a voluntary, after-school activity."

"Students are not required to participate, and receive no academic credit for doing so," he said.

At an upcoming concert, the choir is scheduled to sing an Irish folk song and an Christian song titled "Prayer of the Children," in addition to the song by Rahman.

"The teacher consulted with students and asked each of them to review an online performance of the selection with their parents before making the decision to perform the piece," Kirtland said, and members who object to the religious content of musical selections aren't required to sing them.

Rahman, who has sold hundreds of millions of records and is well-known in his homeland, has said the song is not intended for a worship ceremony. He told FoxNews.com in a written statement that the song, composed for the move "Bose, the Forgotten Hero," is about "self-healing and spirituality."

"It is unfortunate that the student in Colorado misinterpreted the intention of the song," Rahman said. "I have long celebrated the commonalities of humanity and try to share and receive things in this way. While I respect his decision for opting out, this incident is an example of why we need further cultural education through music.”

The song is written in Urdu, but one verse translates to "There is no truth except Allah" and "Allah is the only eternal and immortal." Although the choir sang the original version, Wieland distributed translated lyrics.

Grand Junction High School Principal Jon Bilbo referred questions to Kirtland.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/02/15...#ixzz1mYhLY8gp

Notice in the article it makes absolutely no mention of him objecting to singing Prayer of the Children, only Zikr. In fact, it says he quit solely because he was asked to sing Zikr, and that it's worshiping another god, when in fact it isn't. Deductive reasoning, get some.

[The King]

I thought most people knew this.

Caesar Farah in his book on Islam concludes his discussion of the pre-Islamic meaning of Allah by saying:

"There is no reason, therefore, to accept the idea that Allah passed to the Muslims from the Christians and Jews" (Islam: Beliefs and Observations, New York, Barrons, 1987, p. 28).

According to Middle East scholar E.M. Wherry, whose translation of the Quran is still used today, in pre-Islamic times Allah-worship, as well as the worship of Ba-al, were both astral religions in that they involved the worship of the sun, the moon, and the stars (A Comprehensive Commentary on the Quran, Osnabruck: Otto Zeller Verlag, 1973, p. 36).
Astral Religions

In Arabia, the sun god was viewed as a female goddess and the moon as the male god. As has been pointed out by many scholars such as Alfred Guilluame, the moon god was called by various names, one of which was Allah! (Islam, p. 7).

The name Allah was used as the personal name of the moon god, in addition to other titles that could be given to him.

Allah, the moon god, was married to the sun goddess. Together they produced three goddesses who were called "the daughters of Allah." These three goddesses were called Al-Lat, Al-Uzza, and Manat.

The daughters of Allah, along with Allah and the sun goddess were viewed as "high" gods. That is, they were viewed as being at the top of the pantheon of Arabian deities.

"Along with Allah, however, they worshipped a host of lesser gods and "daughters of Al-lah" (Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, I:61)".

Read your Bible, particulary the Old Testament regarding Abraham and Isaac and Ishmael. There you shall find enlightenment about the beginning of Islam.