Friday, July 24, 2009

Assimilated Imams Not Wanted

Well-meaning officials in the Dutch government thought they had it all figured out: to stop “radicalism” in the country’s mosques, well-educated Dutch-speaking imams were needed. To address the perceived need, a state-funded program was created to do just that, and turned out a cohort of imams ready to go to work eliminating violent fundamentalism from Dutch Muslim society.

But — surprise! — they’re not wanted by Dutch Muslims. Not only are they too expensive, but the congregations in the mosques like Islamic radicalism just fine, thank you very much. They want no truck with these fancy-pants Dutch-speaking “polder imams”.

So not only did the state pay for the training of the new imams, it will now have to provide them with unemployment benefits. Another little joke on the Dutch taxpayer.

According to NIS:

Mosques Refuse Dutch ‘State Imams’

THE HAGUE, 24/07/09 — Not a single mosque in the Netherlands has to date been prepared to take on an Imam trained in the special government courses. “Mosques have no money and no confidence in the ‘polder Imam,” reported Trouw newspaper yesterday.
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The Free University Amsterdam, the University of Leiden and Hogeschool InHolland college have developed Imam training courses, at the initiative of the cabinet. It wants to put a stop to the ‘import’ of Imams from Morocco or Turkey. These are said to be conservative, get in the way of integration of Muslims and sometimes incite to radicalisation.

The universities and college courses supply Imams that speak Dutch and understand Dutch society. But the Imams trained in the Netherlands should not count on a job for now. “Poor mosques have no money for expensive, qualified Imams. Additionally, the older generation of mosque-goers, who pay contributions and therefore decide what happens there, do not want a Dutch-speaking Imam at all,” says Trouw.


Hat tip: TB.

9 comments:

Unknown said...

Can't they just give the current imams their P45, together with a plane ticket to the Islamic country of their choice, then install the new guys?

ps. I wouldn't mind being trained as an anti-jihadi imam, I'd quite like to have a captive audience of Mohammadlovers & be able to really teach them the facts of life.

Homophobic Horse said...

Where now for the hope of a moderate Islam?

Zenster said...

Kenny: Can't they just give the current imams their P45, together with a plane ticket to the Islamic country of their choice, then install the new guys?.

"P45"? I was thinking of a 9mm and saving the money wasted on any plane tickets. High velocity swift onset lead poisoning is the best way of preventing recidivism among Islamic radicals.

X said...

The form P45 is the British equivalent of a pink slip, I think. I don't know if it's europe-wide or whether it's just us but that's what it does. Been a while since I handled one but, if I'm not mixing it up with the P60, it carries your tax code and similar information to so your next employer can work out how much of your wage they have to hand over to the government.

Zenster said...

Archonix: The form P45 is the British equivalent of a pink slip...

While I certainly thank you for clarifying, I still maintain that this is an ideal opportunity to save the trees and spare us any further air pollution from plane flights.

laine said...

" the older generation of mosque-goers, who pay contributions and therefore decide what happens there, do not want a Dutch-speaking Imam at all,” says Trouw."
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So much for the pretense that mosques are filled with moderate Muslims who are being misrepresented by fire breathing jihadi-preaching Wahhabist imams from Saudi Arabia.

You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him (the congregation) drink. It is clear that as far as Muslims in western countries are concerned, inability to speak the local language and despising local citizens and customs is part of the job description to be an imam. Only such a person can reinforce the home teachings of parents who are turning out little umma loyalists and traitors to their western birth countries.

While living in western countries, western ways are seen as "contaminating" by Muslims and shunned by creating sharia compliant ghettos with constant indoctrination of youth at home, via the Internet and in mosques. Some parents are so afraid of western "contamination" they keep their children virtual prisoners in ignorance. Others send them back to a Muslim country for immersion courses in hate for the West. Still others kill children who are rebellious as an example to the others.

These are colonists, not immigrants. They never intended to assimilate and resist all western attempts to do so.

Indeed, they have succeeded in making the West assimilate to THEIR ways far more than the reverse!

One by one, the West gives up its customs for this eternally whining minority so as not to "offend" them. Crucially there's been government curtailment of even the keystone of the West, freedom of speech and belief to reject and agitate against threats including this takeover by hostiles.

Zenster said...

laine: Crucially there's been government curtailment of even the keystone of the West, freedom of speech and belief to reject and agitate against threats including this takeover by hostiles.

Two words: Lamp posts. L A M P ... P O S T S

Solkhar said...

The failure is not the idea of having Imams that fit the profile for integration (not assimilation) and thus showing and towing the correct line.

The failure is failing FIRST in getting rid of the established radicals from the communities and cutting their links to other radical groups. If they go then you will see support for the "polder Imams" and together with a supportive but strong/firm hand from the Government on what is accepted and what is not - change can happen.

The same has to be done in the UK but with even more force and coordination due to the well entrenched second generation of radicals that were stupidly allowed into the country in the early 70s.

Zenster said...

Solkhar: The failure is failing FIRST in getting rid of the established radicals from the communities and cutting their links to other radical groups.

Your point has some validity but please illuminate as to how any community, much less an overly compliant one of Muslim immigrants, is going to rid itself of imams who carry the "moral" authority that protects them from exactly that sort of censure?

It would be helpful if you expanded upon how it is that when a Muslim accuses another of apostasy any unsuccessful prosecution automatically confers penalties of apostasty upon the accuser if their charges cannot be confirmed.

Given the capital punishment that is prescribed for apostasy in general, does this not serve to suppress all charges of non-compliance in Muslim communities?