Militant Islam Monitor > Satire > "The Koran Needs to be flushed" church sign moves CAIR's Hooper to tell Christians what Jesus would not have said & issue press release

"The Koran Needs to be flushed" church sign moves CAIR's Hooper to tell Christians what Jesus would not have said & issue press release

Koran sighting reported in toilet at California college - police suspect 'foul' play
May 25, 2005

The Gospel according to Ibrahim Hooper

"I don't think Jesus, ... would use such hate-filled and divisive rhetoric."

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MIM: CAIR's press release about the Pastor apologizing for the Koran sign distorts the true story. According to the Charlotte Observer newspaper, he did not bow to pressure from Muslim groups, but removed the sign after the the Southern Council of Churches advised him that it could endanger Baptist missionaries abroad.

MIM :Please don't squeeze the Koran'

CAIR says that a church sign saying the Koran needs to be flushed must be responded to by

"Americans of all faiths obtaining and reading a free copy of the Quran".

Didn't they ever hear of Charmin ?

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MIM: A 'Midwestrightwinger' comments on CAIR's Koran giveaway:

"...Git'cher Korans here! Red hot Korans! Filled with tasty jihad and multiple ways to kill the infidel! Red hot Korans; git'cher Korans here!

CAIR, the American Jihad Lovers group. They protect terrorists, have had a batch of their own people and officers imprisoned form terror ties, and here they are, trying to show their peaceful ways to us "Ig'nant Infidel Amercans.

"What a rack of nut sacks".
http://midwestrightwingers.blogspot.com/2005_05_01_midwestrightwingers_archive.html

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MIM: This is an actual CAIR press release and is intended for entertainment purposes only .

Church Sign Says 'Koran Needs To Be Flushed'

CAIR urges Americans of all faiths to obtain and read free Quran

http://news.baou.com/main.php?action=recent&rid=20239

by OfficialWire NewsDesk

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- (OfficialWire) -- 05/25/05 -- A prominent national Islamic civil rights and advocacy group is calling on Americans of all faiths to respond to an anti-Muslim message displayed outside a North Carolina church by obtaining and reading a free copy of the Quran, Islam's revealed text.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) says the a sign outside the Danieltown Baptist Church states, "The Koran needs to be flushed," an apparent reference to the recent controversy over allegations that U.S. military personnel desecrated a Quran by flushing it down a toilet.

"Christians often ask themselves, 'What would Jesus do?'" said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. "I don't think Jesus, who is loved by Muslims and mentioned frequently in the Quran, would use such hate-filled and divisive rhetoric." He called on Americans of all faiths to take advantage of CAIR's recent offer of a free Quran for anyone interested in learning the truth about Islam and Muslims.

CAIR's campaign, called "Explore the Quran," is designed as a positive response to the recent controversy over desecration of the Quran. Click here to request a free copy of the Quran. For more information about the campaign, or to request a copy of the Quran by phone, call 1-800-78-ISLAM (1-800-784-7526).

Hooper added that while the church's pastor has the right to free speech, his actions harm Christian-Muslim relations and do damage to America's international image. He also called on mainstream religious and political leaders to repudiate the sign's bigoted message and urged church members to enter into dialogue with local Muslims.

CAIR, America's largest Muslim civil liberties group, has 31 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

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http://www.beliefnet.com/story/167/story_16755_1.html

Southern Baptist Pastor Apologizes for Anti-Muslim Sign

By Heather Horiuchi

Religion News Service

A Southern Baptist pastor apologized for posting an anti-Muslim sign at his church in North Carolina, following criticism by leaders in the Muslim-American community.

Creighton Lovelace said he regretted posting a message that read, "The Koran needs to be flushed," according to a Wednesday (May 25) report by Baptist Press, the news service of the Southern Baptist Convention, which quoted a written statement made by Lovelace.

Lovelace, pastor of Danieltown Baptist Church in Forest City, N.C., said he was unaware that the Qur'an was so highly valued and "that devoted Muslims view it more highly than many in the U.S. view the Bible."

Lovelace said he now realized how "offensive" his actions were. He decided to remove the sign after praying about it.

"I apologize for posting that message and deeply regret that it has offended so many in the Muslim community," he said.

Lovelace said that his intentions in posting the sign were merely to affirm the Bible.

"It was certainly not my intent to insult any people of faith, but instead to remind the people in this community of the pre-eminence of God's word."

Morris H. Chapman, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee, disavowed Lovelace's action in a statement Tuesday.

"Southern Baptists wish to relate to our Muslim neighbors in a respectful manner that allows mutual sharing of our beliefs," he said.

The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the sign and expressed a desire for discussion between Muslims and other religious leaders in communities throughout the country.

CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad acknowledged Lovelace's apology.

"We thank Pastor Lovelace for his apology and hope this incident will serve to improve relations between Christians and Muslims in North Carolina and throughout America," Awad said in a statement.

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http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/11740077.htm

The pastor of the small Forest City church whose anti-Muslim sign had stirred national headlines apologized Wednesday night and said the sign stating "The Koran needs to be flushed!" has been removed.

The Rev. Creighton Lovelace of Danieltown Baptist Church told the Observer 20 members of the congregation voted unanimously Wednesday to remove the sign after four Southern Baptist Convention officials called to say the message may be putting missionaries overseas in danger.

Lovelace said he still believes the Quran preaches false doctrine. But he said many Muslims hold their holy book more highly than many Christians hold their Bible.

"I apologize and deeply regret that it has offended so many in the Muslim community," said Lovelace, referring to the sign. "I don't want my actions causing death or any violence."

He said the church, which averages 25 to 35 to services in the town 60 miles west of Charlotte, may consider withdrawing from the Southern Baptist Convention to prevent any repercussions against missionaries and overseas workers.

Lovelace said he was stirred to put up the sign by the worldwide furor inspired by the Newsweek magazine report that U.S. military guards at the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba flushed a copy of the Quran down a toilet to rile Afghan prisoners. At least 17 people died in rioting that erupted in several countries over the Newsweek report -- a report the magazine later retracted and apologized for.

On Tuesday, Lovelace said that just because the sign provokes anger is no reason not to say what you believe.

Lovelace, who went to Slidell Baptist Seminary in Slidell, La., said he's led the church for 13 months and didn't need lay leaders' OK for the sign. The church has no deacons, he said.

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http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/05-26-2005/0003690420&EDATE=

CAIR applauds removal of message as boost for Christian-Muslim relations

WASHINGTON, May 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The Council on American-Islamic
Relations (CAIR) today applauded the decision of a North Carolina Baptist
pastor to apologize for an anti-Muslim sign displayed outside his Forest City
church.
Danieltown Baptist Church Pastor Rev. Creighton Lovelace had previously
refused calls to take down the sign, reading "The Koran needs to be flushed,"
posted in front of his church.
CAIR reacted to the controversy by calling on mainstream religious and
political leaders to repudiate the sign's bigoted message. The Washington-
based Islamic civil rights and advocacy group also urged Americans of all
faiths to obtain and read a free Quran available through CAIR's new "Explore
the Quran" campaign. Several thousand people have already taken advantage of
CAIR's offer.

SEE: http://www.cair-net.org/explorethequran/

In today's apology, Lovelace said in part:
"When I posted the sign in front of the church, it was my intent only to
affirm and exalt the Bible and its teachings. It was certainly not my intent
to insult any people of faith, but instead to remind the people in this
community of the preeminence of God's Word.
"When I posted the message on the sign, I did not realize how people of
the Muslim faith view the Koran-that devoted Muslims view it more highly than
many in the U.S. view the Bible.
"Now I realize how offensive this is to them, and after praying about it,
I have chosen to remove the sign. I apologize for posting that message and
deeply regret that it has offended so many in the Muslim community."
In an earlier statement sent to CAIR, Morris H. Chapman, president and
chief executive officer of the Southern Baptist Executive Committee, condemned
the message on the sign and called for "respectful" relations with American
Muslims.
"We thank Pastor Lovelace for his apology and hope this incident will
serve to improve relations between Christians and Muslims in North Carolina
and throughout America," said CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad. Awad
suggested that American churches and mosques host Muslim-Christian dialogues
on Jesus, who is revered by both faiths.
CAIR, America's largest Muslim civil liberties group, has 31 offices and
chapters nationwide and in Canada.

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MIM: Koran sighting reported at California college - police suspect 'foul' play http://www.kesq.com/Global/story.asp?S=3372410

Student reports holy book in toilet at Delta College
STOCKTON, Calif. Campus police at San Joaquin Delta College are investigating a report that a student found a copy of the Quran in a library toilet at the college. The student claims to have found the Muslim holy book in the toilet of a second-floor men's bathroom in the library just after 7:00 Wednesday evening. Campus police Sergeant Geff Greenwood said the student removed the book from the toilet and placed it on a bathroom shelf before contacting the police. The scenario mirrors one described in a retracted Newsweek article that led to deadly riots in Afghanistan and protests in other Muslim nations last week. That Newsweek article, citing unidentified sources, claimed interrogators at Guantanamo Bay had flushed a Quran down a toilet to intimidate detainees.
Post Date: 2005-05-23

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