In the wake of the awful killings of Michael Snee and Aidan Moffitt in Sligo, there has naturally and rightly been an outpouring of shock, outrage and grief from all corners of Irish society.
Obviously, two men being senselessly murdered and then mutilated in their own homes is an appalling crime. It should give us all serious pause about the sad and dangerous direction our society is heading. And so it’s completely understandable that a demonstration of support would be held after such a tragedy.
Granted, if you were there, you might wish that there were a few less public representatives grinning ear-to-ear during photo ops like they just won the lotto, but c’est la vie – that’s politicians for you.
Ive been a comedy shows with less smiling
— Dave Dublin 🇮🇪 (@dave77737115) April 15, 2022
Distasteful carry-on aside, in principle, there’s nothing wrong with the demonstration itself. But what’s interesting and noteworthy, however, is the presence of one Islamic cleric speaking at the vigil, and Sinn Féin’s willingness to post a photograph with him on their social media.
His contribution was beautiful and powerful https://t.co/PDaEcNOpQ1
— Dr Panti Bliss-Cabrera (@PantiBliss) April 15, 2022
Now, let’s be clear from the outset: in no way do I intend to criticise or offend Sheikh Umar al-Qadri here personally. From what little I know about the Sheikh, he seems to be a good man.
He’s condemned the persecution of Christians in Kenya at the hands of Islamist jihadis. He’s called on Muslims to integrate into Irish society, and has publicly spoken against Islamic extremism. All of this is commendable.
While I’m admittedly not overly familiar with his personal background or views in any detail, the things I’ve heard about him to this point seem admirable, and I have no particular axe to grind with him as a person.
With that said, the Sheikh does have traditional Islamic views of many issues (as you would expect), including the belief that homosexual acts are inherently sinful.
As outlined in a 2016 Irish Times article:
To be clear, the belief that homosexual lifestyles are a sin is in no way unique to Islam. Christians believe the same, as do Jews, and basically all other religions.
The point of bringing this up, therefore, is not to single out the Sheikh or his religious beliefs. The point is to highlight an attitude of hypocrisy.
Imagine if a Catholic priest, who was on record as having said that homosexuality is a sin, decided to turn up to a rally in memory of the victims.
Would Sinn Féin tolerate that? Would they take a photograph with that priest, and post it to their social media channels?
They would in my eye. We all know they’d be the first ones loudly condemning such a cleric.
And in fact, we don’t have to guess what their reaction would be. Here at Gript, we previously reported how Sinn Féin decided to protest outside a Catholic Church in Ballyfermot after the archdiocese removed a gay pride flag from the church grounds.
Sinn Féin protests outside Catholic Church for not flying gay pride flag
For Catholics not wanting to promote a symbol which went against their faith, Sinn Féin’s reaction was to picket a solemn place of worship and prayer with banners and placards. They were the first group to do this in Ireland since Loyalists in the 1990s.
And yet, when Sinn Féin encounter an Islamic clergyman who openly states the same belief, they’re all smiles and want to take photos with him.
In other words, this is a party which is seriously intolerant of sincere Christian beliefs on social issues, but totally tolerant of other faiths. They hold Christianity to a standard they were never dare apply to a religion like Islam.
To Sinn Féin, if you’re a Catholic or a Protestant, and you believe in a traditional perspective on human relationships, that’s a backward view which must be protested. Your church should be made to fly the flag of Sinn Féin’s view, and to hell with your traditions.
But if you’re a Muslim, or some other faith, with the exact same beliefs? Why, you have carte blanche to do and say as you please.
If Sinn Féin has a problem with Christianity, they’re entitled to feel that way – but they should at least be honest and not try to hide behind excuses of alleged “homophobia.”