ALL FAITH ROOM?

Normandale Community College has an all-purpose meditation room; however, to the untrained eye or not, it looks suspiciously like a Mosque.

By de Andréa

The Muslims are coming, the Muslims are coming.

The last time I wrote about this particular Infiltration into our society, the Muslims denied that it was a mosque only an all purpose meditation room, just as they deny that foot -washing stations are Muslim foot-washing stations. Islam is so bold that it will deny the obvious and believe that they should get away with it. The sad part is; they do.

Katherine Kersten of the star tribune in Minneapolis St Paul Minn (Think Again blog, Star Tribune) visited a Muslim place of worship. Posted at the entrance was a schedule for Islam's five daily prayers, and a sign stating that shoes must be removed. Inside, a barrier divided men and women's prayer space, an arrow informed worshippers of the direction of Mecca, and literature that demanded women to cover their faces.

Sounds like a Mosque to meThe place being described is the “All purpose meditation room" at Normandale Community College, a 10,000-student public institution in Bloomington Minn.Until recently, the room was the school's only usable racquetball court. It is now being used for another kind of racquet. College administrators have converted the court into a meditation room at the urging of the Muslim students. Oh well, we don’t need all that rotten exercise anyway…

A row of chest-high barriers splits the room into sex-segregated sections. In the smaller, enclosed area for women sits a pile of shawls and head-coverings. Literature titled "Hijaab [covering] and Modesty" was prominently placed there, instructing women on proper Islamic behavior.

”They should cover their faces and stay at home,” it said, “and their speech should not be such that it is heard. Enter into Islam completely and accept all the rulings of Islam," the tract read. "It should not be that you accept what entertains your desires and leave what opposes your desires; this is from the manners of the Jews. The Jews and the Christians are the enemies of Allah’s religion.” The document adds: "Remember that you will never succeed while you follow these people.” A poster on the room's door advertised a local lecture on "marriage from an Islamic perspective," with "useful tips for marital harmony from the Prophet's ... life.” I wonder if that is the tip about Muhammad marring a 6-year-old child. Or maybe it is the one about killing your wife if she dares to show her face in public. Probably not… Other fliers invited students to join the Normandale Islamic Forum, or participate in Ramadan and EID celebrations.

According to Katherine Kersten, one very conspicuous thing was missing from the meditation room: evidence of any faith but Islam, no Bible, no crucifix, no Torah.

Normandale's administration is facilitating the college’s Islamization. The college building crew erected the barrier separating men and women's sections, according to Ralph Anderson, dean of student affairs. College officials also posted signs at the room's entrance asking students to remove their shoes -- a Muslim custom before prayers. This was "basically a courtesy to Muslim students," Anderson said.

I can’t help but wonder where the Christian foot washing stations are. Uhh… Oh yes, that would probably violate the schools Islamic separation of church and state statute.

Despite the room's Islamic atmosphere, Anderson says it "is open to everyone."Why then is the meditation room segregated by sex? "Muslim students prefer that areas be divided into male and female," he said. Doesn't sex-segregation present a constitutional problem in a public educational institution? "I don't want to comment on that," he said. The literature regarding Jews and Christians? "I would probably take it out if I knew it was in there," said Anderson. Oh sure, he would…

Normandale's zealous effort to accommodate Muslim students is not new. Chad Lunaas, a former student who works at the college part time, cites examples. Last year on Fridays, he says, he often entered the bathroom to find that "every sink and toilet stall had someone washing his feet.” Other students could not use the bathroom at these times, and those who tried were intimidated

Lunaas finally expressed his concerns to a Muslim student who seemed to be in chargeHis attitude was, “we don't have to listen to you, we can do whatever we want,” he said.Confrontations also erupted in the sex-segregated meditation room, according to Lunaas. "Muslim students just took it over. They intimidated people who were not of the Muslim religion, especially if they were female.” One female student tried to use the room when Muslim students were in it, said Lunaas. She believed she should be treated equally. They were telling her to leave, to take off her shoes, to go to the other side of the divider.

Anderson says he met several times with concerned students. But "the whole thing was just basically swept aside," according to Lunaas, Anderson said that in the incident involving the young woman, "both sides were probably out of line." Another elite academic that has never read the Quran… I wonder if he ever read Mein Kampf, naw.

Howard Odor, who advises the college's Somali Student Association, said he has not been aware of "any issues" since the meditation room has been in the racquetball court. "I can guarantee that college policy is that anyone who wants to go in there and pray or meditate can do so.” Surly Mr. Odor must be misinformed.

Some at the college see a bigger issue.
"For all practical purposes, this meditation room is essentially a Mosque," said Chuck Chalberg of Normandale's history faculty. "Something this unprecedented goes beyond religious toleration.

THE BOTTOM LINE: What happened to the so-called “Separation of Church and State” Why is there only a separation of church and state when one is referring to any religion except Islam, or have we already replaced the Constitution with Sharia Law? Maybe it is just the moderate Sharia Law, like the one in the picture displayed by a so-called moderate Muslim.

One thing that is blatantly overlooked, is the fact that this is our country. When I have traveled to, and visited, or in this case attended a school in a foreign country, I have always respected the culture of that country. The Quran however does not teach respect for anyone, on the contrary it teaches disrespect for everyone except Allah their satanic god who demands everyone’s respect. As their document said, “the Jews and the Christians are the enemies of Allah” while that may be true, more importantly Allah is the enemy of everyone including the deceived Muslims.

de Andréa