Man Stands Up for His Mustache. Will We Stand Up for Christ?

Mark Steyn packs so much into this brief article, that it's easy to miss his deeper meaning. His first sentence is a quick survey over some of the more ridiculous topics Muslims have rioted over during the last several years. And now, we can add Mr. Afridi's mustache to the list.

Why do I post this?

Because this absurd true story says so much about the problem of discussing Islam, and about the 'Problem of Islam' itself. When certain bishops, priests and scholars parrot the 'Religion of Peace' line, and go so far as to say that "Muslims and Christians worship the same God," or that "Muhammad was a Prophet, a true man of God," we know we've entered into a bizarro, alternate-reality universe. But if we turn and simply look at Islam, its 'prophet', its teachings, its history — and how its most devout adherents today behave themselves — with the simple, guileless view of children, we can see perfectly clearly that the 'god' of Muhammad cannot possibly be the same as the Holy Triune Godhead, the Second Person of Whom became incarnate as one of us, in order to restore us back to the Father.

Once we see that Allah is a false god, and Muhammad is a false prophet (a "forerunner of antichrist," as St John Damascene tells us), then we have to be prepared to confess Jesus Christ all the more firmly, for we will be tested. In our world, people demand that we be "nice," and not denigrate Islam or hurt the religious feelings of Muslims. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is even calling private citizens telling them not to hurt the religious feelings of Muslims. Confessing Jesus Christ as True God is the biggest offense to a devout Muslim. It's not "nice" to stand up for Christ, it will offend Muslims.

Mr. Afridi stood up for his mustache. Can we stand up for Jesus Christ?

Riotwatch Update: Un-Islamic Moustache Sighted
by Mark Steyn

Okay, so it’s not just films, and cartoons, and dogs and teddy bears and Winnie-the-Pooh’s Piglet and decorative swirls on Burger King ice-cream tubs, but also non-sharia-compliant mustaches: A Pakistani man with a 30-inch mustache said he moved to Peshawar from his native town in the Khyber Agency after Islamic militants shaved him… Afridi, 47, who operates an electronics business, spends 30 minutes a day grooming his mustache. He sports thick hair in a straight line from his mouth that tapers into thin points curling up to his forehead on both sides. “My mustache style is unique,” he said. “It has made my tribesmen proud as no one in Pakistan has such a mustache.” But in Bara, his hometown, the mustache angered members of Lashkar-e-Islaami. They arrested him, took him to a cleric who confirmed their belief the mustache was not in accordance with Islamic law and then shaved him at gunpoint. Why has the Tweeting Desk of the U.S. Embassy remained silent on the hurt caused by disrespectful mustaches? Mr. Afridi remains defiant: “I left my dear homeland, my friends and relatives and prepared to sacrifice all that but will not compromise my mustache,” he said. If we could have President Obama’s and General Dempsey’s backbones replaced by waxed Pakistani mustaches, we might have a sporting chance. UPDATE: Several readers have demanded to see a picture of the non-Sharia-compliant mustache. Here it is. I must say the splendid Raj English of the KarachiExpress Tribune puts the bloodless prose of UPI to shame: The iconoclastic facial hair caused him to abandon his hometown of Bara in Khyber Agency after the militants declared it ‘un-Islamic’… The pride of Afridi’s life was shaved at gunpoint. Refusing to be cowed by the militants’ threats, however, he decided to move to Peshawar so that his moustache may thrive unfettered. If American reporters could write like that, they might still have long-term career prospects. And, as I said above, if only the U.S. government felt about the First Amendment the way Mr. Afridi feels about his facial hair: Despite his wife’s protestations, Afridi said he would only surrender his moustache – over his dead body. Source: National Review Online