Ditto PM's question re: name changing and school enrollment. Sounds like a convenient excuse to me, another example of confusing Qatari culture with Islamic religious rules. The two are not the same.
I know of many Muslims in mixed marriages who have named their children religious (Old Testament) names because it satisfies both sides of the family. And correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that Adam is a person who is acknowledged and held in esteem by all three monotheistic religions, so it's not like she named him Jesus or Christopher or something.
Just because the mother called him Adam doesn't necessarily mean that she officially changed his name. None of us are privy to what is listed on his birth certificate. Even if his official name is Fawaz, I know of many families that call their kids something other than what is on a child's birth certificate.
As far as the school goes, I just checked their website. Though they started years ago under the auspices of a church, they were taken over by a consortium of companies in 1975, and have a rep from both the original founding church and the Bahrain MoE on their Board of Governors, as well as numerous business/corporate members. They teach religious education -- which is kind of a survey of world religions class from what I can tell. Students learn about Islam but they also learn about what Buddhists, Hindus, etc. believe.
Bearing all that in mind, I wouldn't call it a missionary school as you did.
She didn't take him away from his family. She IS his family, as much as you are saying his paternal relatives are at the very least (more in my book since she is one who has raised him). She was compassionate enough to stay living in Bahrain (and not return to the UK which is her country of origin), thus enabling her son to maintain contact with his father's family.
They haven't even allowed her to see her son since they took him back in early October.
Adam is ten. He is smart and literate in English. I hope that he reads about his story in the English press here and learns about what his new "family" has done to him. I wonder what story they are telling him now about why he is not allowed to be with his mother anymore. I can only assume it will be a blatant untruth, much like the story they told his mother when they tricked her into signing away her rights to her son.
I have faith that eventually he will learn of their misguided behavior both towards him and his mother/sister/other family. His Qatari relatives might be able to force possession of his physical body, but they should think twice if they expect they will win Adam's heart, soul or affection with their current actions.
"If you're looking for sympathy, you'll find it between sh*t and syphilis in the dictionary."
- David Sedaris
Ditto PM's question re: name changing and school enrollment. Sounds like a convenient excuse to me, another example of confusing Qatari culture with Islamic religious rules. The two are not the same.
I know of many Muslims in mixed marriages who have named their children religious (Old Testament) names because it satisfies both sides of the family. And correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that Adam is a person who is acknowledged and held in esteem by all three monotheistic religions, so it's not like she named him Jesus or Christopher or something.
Just because the mother called him Adam doesn't necessarily mean that she officially changed his name. None of us are privy to what is listed on his birth certificate. Even if his official name is Fawaz, I know of many families that call their kids something other than what is on a child's birth certificate.
As far as the school goes, I just checked their website. Though they started years ago under the auspices of a church, they were taken over by a consortium of companies in 1975, and have a rep from both the original founding church and the Bahrain MoE on their Board of Governors, as well as numerous business/corporate members. They teach religious education -- which is kind of a survey of world religions class from what I can tell. Students learn about Islam but they also learn about what Buddhists, Hindus, etc. believe.
Bearing all that in mind, I wouldn't call it a missionary school as you did.
She didn't take him away from his family. She IS his family, as much as you are saying his paternal relatives are at the very least (more in my book since she is one who has raised him). She was compassionate enough to stay living in Bahrain (and not return to the UK which is her country of origin), thus enabling her son to maintain contact with his father's family.
They haven't even allowed her to see her son since they took him back in early October.
Adam is ten. He is smart and literate in English. I hope that he reads about his story in the English press here and learns about what his new "family" has done to him. I wonder what story they are telling him now about why he is not allowed to be with his mother anymore. I can only assume it will be a blatant untruth, much like the story they told his mother when they tricked her into signing away her rights to her son.
I have faith that eventually he will learn of their misguided behavior both towards him and his mother/sister/other family. His Qatari relatives might be able to force possession of his physical body, but they should think twice if they expect they will win Adam's heart, soul or affection with their current actions.
"If you're looking for sympathy, you'll find it between sh*t and syphilis in the dictionary."
- David Sedaris