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ETIKA A |
ANIMALS |
www.etika.com |
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61A1 |
Action against ritual
slaughter without anesthesia |
Jews and Muslims, participate! |
To
all those who have compassion for animals!
We
appreciate the good will of some Muslims who don´t agree with:
Cruel
Ritual Slaughter without Anesthesia
We
cite
IslamVeg.com:
AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE AGAINST ANIMAL SACRIFICE
by Shahid 'Ali Muttaqi
Every year, with the onset of Hajj
and its accompanying 'Id celebration, as well as that of the 'Id al-Fitr, the
issue of animal sacrifice, and subsequently that of meat consumption in the
Islamic world, rises to the foreground among Muslims and nonMuslims alike…
So let us begin by addressing the
issue that is perhaps one of the major objections that people of conscious
have toward Islam -- the ritual slaughter of animals. …
Sacrifice is not a pillar of Islam. Nor is it obligatory during Hajj, its accompanying
'Id or the 'Id al-Fitr. This is not to say that it did not or does not happen.
However, we must look at the occurrences in a contextual manner, understanding
not only the pre-Islamic institution of sacrifice…
With this in mind, let us start
with the situation as it was in pre-Islamic Arabia with regard to animal
sacrifice. Not only did the pagan Arabs sacrifice to a variety of Gods in hopes
of attaining protection or some favor or material gain, but so, too, did the
Jews of that day seek to appease the One True God by blood sacrifice and burnt
offerings. Even the Christian community felt Jesus to be the last sacrifice,
the final lamb, so to speak, in an otherwise valid tradition of animal
sacrifice (where one's sins are absolved by the blood of another).
… the underlying implication of
Islam's attitude toward ritual slaughter is not that of blood atonement, or
seeking favor with God through another's death, but rather, the act of
thanking God for one's sustenance and the personal sacrifice of sharing one's
possessions and valuable food with one's fellow humans. The ritual itself
is NOT the sacrifice. It is merely a method of killing where the individuals kill
as quickly as possible and acknowledge that only Allah has the right to take a
life…
Much evidence suggests that early
human were primarily vegetarian, as Genesis states, "I have given you
every herb bearing seed for food." …
Animal sacrifice only has meaning
in the context of thanking Allah for our means of survival. … In such
environments, there is an absolute necessity for Halal methods of slaughter,
which at least try to ensure that when a person must kill animals for food (in
order to survive), the animals are raised in their natural environment and
killed as humanely as possible…
… there are no regulations
concerning the killing of animals. …
… the majority of animals used for
sacrifice during the Hajj are not even raised or killed in a Halal manner.
These days, the numbers of animals needed are so high that the majority are
imported from New Zealand and other countries. The raising of these animals
(along with those for meat and wool export) is contributing to the
environmental destruction of New Zealand's eco-system. Furthermore, these
animals are shipped in brutally overcrowded conditions where large percentages
regularly die from disease, being trampled, or heat exhaustion. This is not
humane. This is not halal. And we can't ignore this reality. It's not enough to
acknowledge that the situation is unfortunate. We as Muslims must not only
change our own actions that help create this situation, but also speak out for
the protection of Allah's innocent creatures. …
Ø The time has come for all true Muslims, be
they Sunni or Shi'a, Sufi or otherwise, to stand up for the universal standards
of justice and compassion that the Prophet (sal) not only spoke of (both
through Hadith and, more importantly, as the receiver of the Qur'anic
revelation), but actually put into practice. …
Etika
asks Muslims:
Why don´t you mention the horrible pain of the
animals which are slaughtered without anesthesia? Halal is – what we know and
see - not “as quickly as possible”, and the animals are not “killed as humanely
as possible”. This is the main question for us Christians.
We all must abolish such
cruel rites, every form of cruel slaughtering. Muslims and Jews must
participate in this action.
Friends of animals, help and
write to: