Sharia Law, the body of religious law relating to Islam, has been widely criticized many times for its views on women and how they should be treated. While the laws are certainly interpreted by different people in different ways, one Egyptian cleric’s claims that men can marry their daughters born out of wedlock has caused a whole new uproar.
Mazen Al-Sersawi, who teaches at Egypt’s Al-Azhar University, says that it’s ok for men to do so, because such a child is “not really his daughter” anyway. In a video made five years ago that is now going viral once more, the cleric claims that a Muslim Salafist scholar has given his blessing to such unions, due to the children being conceived outside of marriage.
The interpretation, which is certainly controversial even in Sharia circles, comes from Imam Al-Shafi, who is considered to be an expert in Islamic law. Needless to say, from a Western perspective, such things would be not only vile, but also punishable by decades in prison, if not life.
But if you think that’s bad, and it certainly is, there is even worse. Yet another cleric from Egypt, Muftah Mohammad Maarouf, told TV audiences this year during a debate that there should be no minimum age set for girls to be married, and that it basically is ok for it to happen for newborns on up.
Citing what we would consider to be the insane argument that it’s ok as long as “no harm” occurs, the cleric claims Sharia law has no bottom line when it comes to females and the marrying age.
If you know someone who might like this, please click “Share!”