What's a name between friends?
Here is a splendid idea...
A proposal by a Roman Catholic bishop in the Netherlands that people of all faiths refer to God as "Allah" is not sitting well with the Catholic community.
Tiny Muskens, an outgoing bishop who is retiring in a few weeks from the southern diocese of Breda, said God doesn't care what he is called.
"Allah is a very beautiful word for God. Shouldn't we all say that from now on we will name God Allah? ... What does God care what we call him? It is our problem," Muskens told Dutch television.
What does God care? God is pretty specific about how He is addressed and how He is worshipped. We may as well call God "Baal" as "Allah", both are idolatrous perversions of the image of the one true God.
The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago supports the idea.
“I think it will open up doors,” said Janaan Hashim, a spokeswoman for the group representing more than 400,000 Muslim Americans in the Chicago area. “Language is a man-made limitation. I think what God cares about is how we fulfill our purpose in life.”
Well, there is a shocker. Of course they do. I would support the idea of Muslims calling Jesus Christ Lord, but I don't see that happening. More from CAIR...
"It reinforces the fact that Muslims, Christians and Jews all worship the same God," Hooper told FOXNews.com. "I don't think the name is as important as the belief in God and following God's moral principles. I think that's true for all faiths."
I would hope that since Mr. Hooper worships the same God as me, he recognizes the Lordship of Christ as the Alpha & Omega, the beginning and the end. One would have to suspect that his idea of interfaith cooperation ultimately leads to submission to Islam.
Clearly "Bishop" Muskens hasn't the vaguest idea who Christ is or why following Him is important. That is why doctrine matters, theology matters, discernment matters and why calls for ecumenism at all costs betray the Gospel.
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