A number of Religious scholars raised controversial issues in Egypt this week. Copt Leader Pope Shenouda III declared that the Coptic Church does not consider Jehovah’s Witnesses as Christians, and thus if one’s spouse became a Jehovah’s Witness, that would be seen as grounds for a divorce.
Dr. Zeinab Radwan, professor of Islamic Philosophy at Cairo University and MP for the ruling National Democratic Party, declared that polygamy was forbidden in Islam, and that Quranic scriptures often used to support the practice have been misrepresented. In response, many scholars at Al Azhar University criticized her views as being baseless, while others agreed with her analysis.
Souad Saleh, a professor at Al Azhar and member of the International Union for Muslim Scholars who recently joined the Al Wafd party, stated on a talk radio show that it is against Sharia for a Christian to be president of Egypt, in light of it being a majority Muslim country. Her view was criticized by several callers, including a fellow member of the Al Wafd party, Salah Soliman.
An Egyptian who converted to Christianity 34 years ago is considering dropping his petition to be allowed to travel abroad. Maher El-Gohary filed a case in November after being banned from traveling, but a dispute between three lawyers representing him has convinced him that he is being exploited for money and attention.
The push for a new personal status law in response to the rift between the Coptic Church and the High Administrative Court continues, though not without a few hitches. Members of human rights groups and the other Churches are asking that adoption, something allowed in Christianity but forbidden in Islam, be added to the new law. Pope Shenouda fears that this may harm the petition’s chance of being passed. He also emphasized that the Coptic Church respects Egyptian law and abides by all of its rulings, with the exception of those that order the Church to go against its religion. Video coverage (with English subtitles) of the issue is available at this link.
On the international front, a recent Minority Rights Group International report declares that religious intolerance is the modern form of racism. The report mentioned Western mistreatment of Muslims along with the attacking of Christians and other minority groups in the Middle East, especially in more unstable regions.
Legislators in Spain are looking to join Belgium and France as the third country to place a ban on the full face veil (Burka or Niqab). Proponents of the bill claim it is essential for the advancement of gender equality, but Amnesty International has called upon legislators to remember the values of freedom of religion and privacy in addition to the goal of gender equality.
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