Pope Paul VI on Christmas

Neal Maxwell on Faith

Pope St. John Paul II on Advent

Obama:"I am Jewish, in my soul"

On the third day of Hanukkah for year 5775 (according to the Jewish calendar), President Barack Obama hosted Jewish leaders to celebrate the festival of lights.  

After the President made his Hanukkah remarks and there was prayer and the ceremonial lighting of the menorah, it was time for the President to glad hand the greeting line.  A gentleman with a booming voice proclaimed: "Mr. President, when I told my Christian friend that I was coming to a Hanukkah party at the White House, he told me: 'I didn't know that the President was Jewish!'".

After Mr. Obama had a good belly laugh, he said as he was walking away: "I am [Jewish], in my soul."  This sotto voce utterance impressed Jewish Journal writer  David  Suissa.  This does jibe with a New York Magazine proclamation in 2011 that Mr. Obama was America's first Jewish President.  

But to my goy ears, the quip sounded like pandering pleasantries which mean about as much as "If you like your health care plan then you can keep it."  However, there are some similarities.  Mr. Obama had  a secular and politically progressive secular upbringing which showed Marxist sympathies.  That definitely parallels sensibilities on Manhattan's Upper West Side.  

So maybe he is what he says, but a self hating one who harbors little affinity towards the state of Israel.

Sydney Siege Terrorist Advised Obama on Apostasy

The perpetrator of the Sydney Siege, Man Haron Monis (ne Mohammad-Hassan Manteghi Borujerdi and a.k.a. Ayatollah Manteghi Boroujerdi) has been portrayed as damaged and unstable individual who was facing a raft of criminal charges.  Alas, this is only part of the picture. The 50 year old self self styled imam and spiritual healer had immigrated to Australia from Iran claiming political asylum in 1996. Moreover, Monis had  converted from  Shia to Sunni Islam and pledged himself to the ISIS cause.

What ought to be interesting to Americans is Monis' correspondent to 2008 Presidential candidate then Senator Barack Obama (D-IL). In the missive, Monis urged "Brother Barack Obama" that:

"Shariah law doesn’t allow you to do so, your reason for hiding your religion Islamically is not a legitimate reason. You must rely on Allah (SWT) and avoid the satanic style of politics. You will be apostate by denying your religion, I advise you to avoid such a big sin."

Even though candidate Barack Obama has once mistakenly referred to "My Muslim faith" and was quickly corrected by ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos, this seemed like a slip of the tongue.  News reports have indicated that Mr. Obama was baptized in 1988 at the Reverend Jeremiah Wright's Trinity United Church of Christ.  There is no reason to question this profession of faith.

The problem is that Islam attributes the faith of one's father to the scion.  Barack Huissan Obama, Sr. may have been a Marxist who did not believe in any spiritual religion but he was born a Muslim.  Thus a radicalized Muslim would be offended by such person being baptized as a Christian and then denying their proscribed faith.

Obviously, Mr. Obama gave little heed to crank letters from Australia during the Presidential general election campaign.  But Islam is not just a faith system, but a holistic philosophy which encompasses faith, law (shariah) as well as polity.  As seen practiced by ISIS, slavery and sexual submission is permissible under shariah law.

Radicalized Muslims, such as ISIS and Al Qaeda do not appreciate freedom of religion or politically correct secular pluralism which tolerates the so called freedom of worship outside of the public square. This was quite evident in Mosul, where "Narzarines" were expropriated and evicted from a place where they had lived (Ninevah) for two millenia.  Then the extermination of the Yazidis in Iraq.   Islamic activists even agitate over saying  "Merry Christmas" as a friendly season's greetings.

As radicalized salafists who seek to bolster a Caliphate call for lone wolf attacks in the West, it is important to understand what enflames such a psyche.  While occidental sociology tends to encourage tolerance and free will, these norms are abhorrent to many members of the so-called religion of peace (even though Islam actually means submission).

During Christmastide, westerners usually revel for peace and Earth and good will towards men.  It is key to remember that these noble sentiments may not be reciprocated by faith filled radicals.