This Saturday’s three-hour Qur’an burning is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET on the property of Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, FL despite having been denied a permit by city officials last month.
As thousands of Muslims worldwide gathered over the weekend to protest one Florida group’s plans to burn copies of Islam’s sacred text on the upcoming anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Christian leaders – liberal and conservative – reaffirmed their opposition to the burnings.
The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, general secretary of the National Council of Churches, said the council had chosen to reiterate its statement in response to “many requests from persons of good will who wish to make it abundantly clear to the international community that millions of Americans reject the anti-Muslim expressions of some communities who seem to be reacting out of fear and a misunderstanding of the true nature of Islam…”
The official National Association of Evangelicals statement says: “The plans … to burn copies of the Qur’an on September 11 show disrespect for our Muslim neighbors and would exacerbate tensions between Christians and Muslims throughout the world. The NAE urges the cancellation of the burning…”
“We have to recognize that fighting fire with fire only builds a bigger fire,” said Joel Hunter, senior pastor of Northland, A Church Distributed, in Orlando, Fla., and member of the NAE Board of Directors. “Love is the water that will eventually quench the destruction.”
On Monday, hundreds of Afghans gathered in the capital city of Kabul to denounce the Qur’an burnings, chanting “Long live Islam” and “Death to America.”
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