Firstly Vers, I have lots of great Qatari, Muslims friends. We talk endlessly about the religion. I have questions, they have answers. So it's not like I'm totally ignorant of the religion.
It's just that the last time I voluntarily went along to one of these discover Islam type things we went around and visited an old style Mosque behind Al Bidda park and then went to the big green Mosque behind the Diwan, and everything was pleasent.
And then I got into a coversation with some Pakistani or Indian guy complete with bushy beard and somehow the topic of Israel came up and off he went on some big diatribe about how Muslims need to reclaim their land and how we should be sympathetic to the Palestinian cause and how the west hates Muslims. Depsite his religious convictions he was totally incapable of condemning the actions of the 'martyrs'. In fact he was more keen to justify them in the name of Islam.
The whole idea of being lectured to about leading a life that God would approve of by someone who thinks that flying planes into office buildings is EVER justifiable is bewildering, to put it lightly.
Since then, if I have questions about Islam, I would rather sit in a Qatari majlis and ask them in a relaxed environment than find myself in the company of one of these guys with a huge chip on their shoulder.
The Muslims who are out to convert everyone they meet typically turn out to be deeply unpleasent people, unlike the practising Muslims who are just happy to answer questions without a political agenda.
So in answer to your question Vers, I have enough people who I can turn to if I wish to ask questions about Islam without troubling myself to visit Fanar.
Firstly Vers, I have lots of great Qatari, Muslims friends. We talk endlessly about the religion. I have questions, they have answers. So it's not like I'm totally ignorant of the religion.
It's just that the last time I voluntarily went along to one of these discover Islam type things we went around and visited an old style Mosque behind Al Bidda park and then went to the big green Mosque behind the Diwan, and everything was pleasent.
And then I got into a coversation with some Pakistani or Indian guy complete with bushy beard and somehow the topic of Israel came up and off he went on some big diatribe about how Muslims need to reclaim their land and how we should be sympathetic to the Palestinian cause and how the west hates Muslims. Depsite his religious convictions he was totally incapable of condemning the actions of the 'martyrs'. In fact he was more keen to justify them in the name of Islam.
The whole idea of being lectured to about leading a life that God would approve of by someone who thinks that flying planes into office buildings is EVER justifiable is bewildering, to put it lightly.
Since then, if I have questions about Islam, I would rather sit in a Qatari majlis and ask them in a relaxed environment than find myself in the company of one of these guys with a huge chip on their shoulder.
The Muslims who are out to convert everyone they meet typically turn out to be deeply unpleasent people, unlike the practising Muslims who are just happy to answer questions without a political agenda.
So in answer to your question Vers, I have enough people who I can turn to if I wish to ask questions about Islam without troubling myself to visit Fanar.