The Images of Prophet Muhammad

Just w

Just when you thought the firestorm that came from the cartoons of Muhammad awhile back were settling down, a new controversy is brewing. Apparently, many Muslims are upset that the information site Wikipedia has pages with art images of Muhammad.

According to Abdul Azis, a reporter at The Jakarta Post, a petition has been created to force Wikipedia to remove all images of Muhammad from the site. I took a look at the links provided and was shocked to see that the whole outcry is not because of a cartoon (which I maybe could understand), but of fine art that has been created over the centuries.

This goes far beyond the Wikipedia site. One must ask what the objectors will have done to the original pieces of art after the digital images are removed from the web? Should all art of Muhammad, no matter how reverently done or important to the art world, be burned because some are offended?

This reminds me of book burnings.

Who gets to say what the world can enjoy as art and literature? Religious groups? The government? Where do we draw the line and say "enough"?

I do like what the reporter, Abdul Azis, a Muslim, had to say in his article.

It sounds so nice and simple, but I'm sure that art will never be able to bend to everyone's will, tastes, and beliefs.

You can check out the web pages in question here and here, then send me your opinion and it may be used in a future “sound off” blog.

Alina