{"version":"1.0","provider_name":"Sgwrs Tei Bow","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.clarkeroberts.co.uk\/cy","author_name":"Clarke Roberts","author_url":"https:\/\/www.clarkeroberts.co.uk\/cy\/author\/clarke-roberts\/","title":"Is It Wrong To Draw Muhammad? | Bow Tie Talks","type":"rich","width":600,"height":338,"html":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"CCfdw69gyV\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.clarkeroberts.co.uk\/cy\/2015\/08\/23\/is-it-wrong-to-draw-muhammad\/\">Is It Wrong To Draw Muhammad?<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarkeroberts.co.uk\/cy\/2015\/08\/23\/is-it-wrong-to-draw-muhammad\/embed\/#?secret=CCfdw69gyV\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" title=\"&#8220;Is It Wrong To Draw Muhammad?&#8221; &#8212; Bow Tie Talks\" data-secret=\"CCfdw69gyV\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/www.clarkeroberts.co.uk\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>","description":"Inspired by a frankly embarrassing debate on\u00a0 the BBC&#8217;s Sunday Morning Live today, I wanted to address the issue of whether or not non-Muslims should be &#8216;allowed&#8217; to draw Muhammad (pbuh*). This debate stemmed from the cancellation of an art exhibition, showcasing numerous images of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and asked as to whether or not the fear of reprisal from Islamic extremists is an infringement on our freedom of speech. This is a topic I covered with my year 7 classes at the end of last academic year and was met with much confusion. I asked the students to draw a storyboard of the Prophet&#8217;s life, but told them that they must not depict the Prophet in any way, shape or form. As year 7s they found this quite difficult until I advised them that Islamic art is mostly comprised of calligraphy, so they may write his name either in English, or for a merit, in Arabic. They did as most year 7s do and obeyed my request to abstain from drawing the Prophet, but a few of the students asked why. And of course as\u00a0their Religious Studies teacher, I explained to them the reasons why. Firstly, it is a &#8216;commandment&#8217; of the Qur&#8217;an to not make idolatrous images or statues of either Muhammad (pbuh) or Allah. The reasons for this are not explicitly stated, I can only conclude that it is to remove any distractions during worship. If one focusses their attention on an image rather than the concept or entity itself, then the object of their worship has been misdirected. After Muhammaed (pbuh) conquered Mecca and returned from his exile, he banished all idols from the city so as to stay true to Allah&#8217;s commandment. Much like the Iconoclasm in Christianity. Secondly, Muslims feel it disrespectful to assume Muhammad&#8217;s (pbuh) appearance. I think this is a lesson that Christianity could certainly learn from. Depictions of a white, Western-European male have undoubtedly inspired generations of oppression for people of other ethnicities and indeed, women. All because of someone&#8217;s assumption that because the Church was based in the Western World, Jesus therefore must have been white. There are perhaps other reasons as to why Muslims find it disrespectful to draw the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), but I shan&#8217;t spend too long here discussing them. Let&#8217;s get to the key point. Should non-Muslims be &#8216;allowed&#8217; to draw the Prophet? No. We should not. Such drawings cause offense to a large proportion of the world&#8217;s population\u00a0 and it is often the creator of these images&#8217; intention to overtly cause offense. It may be a simple objection, but this is just unkind. Why is it people feel it acceptable to cause offense to people of religious groups, yet it is completely unthinkable to cause offense to people of different races? It would be illegal to draw a cartoon that depicted slavery in a humours way that used the N-word; it would be highly controversial to draw a cartoon about the Holocaust. Why should [&hellip;]"}