The Alabama Muttawa
As we were driving into Alabama this morning (not such a big deal as it sounds, as we live right on the border of Alabama) we passed through Foley, where we found a large group of Alabama members of the committee to prevent vice and promote virtue:
They find a busy corner and parade their signs, hold up their Bibles, and read aloud from the bible to passing motorists. No switches to hit women in shorts or sundresses or swimming suits, no authority to tell people how to behave, only armed with conviction. It’s a very gentle kind of moral authority, encouraging people to make the right choice.
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even with a notorious reputation of intolerance, alabama can teach arabs a thing or two.
🙂 missf
Your comment gave me a big guffaw, Mrm, because grammatically, I cannot figure out if your initial clause refers to the muttawa or to Alabama fundamentalists! I miss you, habibti! Come visit! Come go shopping, LOL!
I KNEW you would continue to make your blog interesting and thought-provoking, no matter where in the world you were!
hmmm. Maybe these particular holy rollers are peaceful, but many of our fundamentalists do their ”amr bil-marouf wa nahiy` min al-munkar’ by pressuring lawmakers to change textbooks, to prevent classes on the human body and human sexuality, and to include the 10 commandments in public offices. They aren’t part of the state apparatus, but they do make use of it.
Grammy, I adore you. 😡
Exactly, Little Diamond, in many ways our muttawa are every bit as dangerous as the Saudi muttawa IF you believe that morality is a matter of making moral choices. While we all sin, and only by grace are we saved, muttawa in every religion want everyone to toe the line – and they want to tell you what the line is!
There is a lot of pressure on lawmakers these days to buckle under. I am horrified by some of what I am seeing – like all the Texas amendments to history books. . . very scary.
Intlxpatr :
Thats how all of it starts , with a Placard . Get out of Alabama while you still can 🙂
I don’t mind religious people sharing their truth when it is peaceable, Daggero, but, as Little Diamond mentions above, they are most dangerous when they start using the political powers to thrust their truths on others. These people are not aggressive, just . . . energetic. 🙂 Nonetheless, we are back in Florida – where they are also on the street corners many weekends.