A short blog :
The UK like the rest of the world is struggling to get Coronavirus under control. Our government has issued the following directives - stay at home wherever possible - work from home if you can - do not mix households - only go out if it essential - stay 2m apart - no group gatherings. The main thrust of our national strategy is to flatten peak numbers of those contacting the virus at the same time, in order to give out National Health Service the best possible chance of coping with the inevitable % who will need to be hospitalised and who will possibly die. Like in all hospital systems there is a limit to ICU places.
Most people have readily responded well to these requirements - but not everyone.
While I was out on my early morning bike ride this morning I was thinking about a photo which is doing the rounds on social media. As often happens my mind jumps around by association - and I come up with a blog.
Just to be clear I would like to say at this point that while I am an atheist, I fundamentally agree that anyone and everyone is free to follow their personal religious belief or otherwise as a fundamental human right.
The only caveat is that by following your religion you do others no harm and we are all treated equally under the law.
Anyway - the blog :
A number of years ago I read Richard Dawkin's book - God Delusion.
There were a few paragraphs about Pope John Paul 11. He was victim of an assassination attempt in Rome in 1981.
The Pope was seriously injured - near fatal. Subsequently Pope John Paul stated his survival was the result of the maternal hand of Our Lady of Fatima - a catholic saint - who guided the bullet. (Dawkins mischievously made the observation that most readers would probably make - why didn't she guide the bullet to miss him altogether!)
However his substantial point was "others might think the team of surgeons who operated on him for six hours deserved at least a share of the credit" - but perhaps their hands were maternally guided!?
Back to yesterdays photo that was causing so much anger and frustration.
It shows a group of Muslims praying on a Birmingham tennis court after the lock down - clearly in contravention of government advice/requirements.
No doubt these people are praying to Allah and asking him to keep them and their families safe from the coronavirus. If they remain safe - no doubt they will claim Allah looked over them and protected them.
However if they get the virus - which is likely - where will they go to get medical help if they need it?
We all know - the NHS - their local hospital!
And this is the whole point. It is the Pope situation.
I have copied something I came across recently put out through the NHS :
Many Muslims live in extended families, often, like my household, with three generations under one roof. This means there are a higher number of carriers who can (and often will) infect an elderly relative. An older person cannot effectively self-isolate when they are living in close quarters with their children, grand-children and perhaps even extended family.
We are all social creatures, but maybe Muslims are more social than most. We eat together – often from one plate, sharing utensils and side dishes. For many Muslims, social intimacy like handshakes and hugs are so hardwired into their behaviour that the week-old invention of “social distancing” is both alien and absurd to them.
This is particularly the case in Britain’s 1600 Mosques (there are 130 just in my home town of
Bradford). Islam is a collective religion, and although prominent British Muslim organisations like the Muslim Council of Britain have – in line with Muslim-majority countries like Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt – instructed Muslims to pray at home, many of the UK’s mosques are likely to remain open. Thankfully most mosques have heeded the advice, but the prayer spaces that are still open may have even more people packed into them than usual, increasing the risk.
The UK like the rest of the world is struggling to get Coronavirus under control. Our government has issued the following directives - stay at home wherever possible - work from home if you can - do not mix households - only go out if it essential - stay 2m apart - no group gatherings. The main thrust of our national strategy is to flatten peak numbers of those contacting the virus at the same time, in order to give out National Health Service the best possible chance of coping with the inevitable % who will need to be hospitalised and who will possibly die. Like in all hospital systems there is a limit to ICU places.
Most people have readily responded well to these requirements - but not everyone.
While I was out on my early morning bike ride this morning I was thinking about a photo which is doing the rounds on social media. As often happens my mind jumps around by association - and I come up with a blog.
Just to be clear I would like to say at this point that while I am an atheist, I fundamentally agree that anyone and everyone is free to follow their personal religious belief or otherwise as a fundamental human right.
The only caveat is that by following your religion you do others no harm and we are all treated equally under the law.
Anyway - the blog :
A number of years ago I read Richard Dawkin's book - God Delusion.
There were a few paragraphs about Pope John Paul 11. He was victim of an assassination attempt in Rome in 1981.
 |
Pope John Paul shot in an assassination attempt - Rome 1981
|
However his substantial point was "others might think the team of surgeons who operated on him for six hours deserved at least a share of the credit" - but perhaps their hands were maternally guided!?
Back to yesterdays photo that was causing so much anger and frustration.
It shows a group of Muslims praying on a Birmingham tennis court after the lock down - clearly in contravention of government advice/requirements.
 |
| With the mosques closed due to coronavirus. They just rock up on a tennis court in Birmingham. |
However if they get the virus - which is likely - where will they go to get medical help if they need it?
We all know - the NHS - their local hospital!
And this is the whole point. It is the Pope situation.
I have copied something I came across recently put out through the NHS :
Many Muslims live in extended families, often, like my household, with three generations under one roof. This means there are a higher number of carriers who can (and often will) infect an elderly relative. An older person cannot effectively self-isolate when they are living in close quarters with their children, grand-children and perhaps even extended family.
We are all social creatures, but maybe Muslims are more social than most. We eat together – often from one plate, sharing utensils and side dishes. For many Muslims, social intimacy like handshakes and hugs are so hardwired into their behaviour that the week-old invention of “social distancing” is both alien and absurd to them.
This is particularly the case in Britain’s 1600 Mosques (there are 130 just in my home town of
Bradford). Islam is a collective religion, and although prominent British Muslim organisations like the Muslim Council of Britain have – in line with Muslim-majority countries like Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt – instructed Muslims to pray at home, many of the UK’s mosques are likely to remain open. Thankfully most mosques have heeded the advice, but the prayer spaces that are still open may have even more people packed into them than usual, increasing the risk.
During Friday prayers (attendance at which is, under normal circumstances, an obligation for most Muslims), the close proximity of worshippers makes the spread of coronavirus a near certainty. We know this from events in the Muslim world: Malaysia’s spread of Covid-19 has been traced back to a single religious gathering at a Mosque, which allowed the virus to spread not only across that country, but to six others.
All this makes coronavirus particularly troubling in Muslim communities, some of which are, like Bradford, in the most deprived areas of the country, with poor health outcomes to match.
The niche ethnic supermarkets and halal butchers that many Muslims depend on for essential goods have less reliable supply chains than the big supermarkets, forcing many local Muslim grocers to significantly increase their prices. This is despite their customers being some of the poorest people in Britain.
And in pockets of Muslim communities, there is mistrust – or simple unawareness – of government advice. The official NHS website on the coronavirus, which has been prominently plugged during the prime minister’s daily press conferences, is available only in English.
This is what the nation is up against. There is plenty of evidence in areas like Small Heath in Birmingham - unlike in the majority of the country - government advice is just being ignored.
It is sad to say these Muslim communities are quick to point the finger. Quick to claim they have been singled out - quick to claim prejudice and the world is against them. Quick to claim Islamophobia! They will be quick to criticise the NHS if they do not get 1st Class treatment.
To say we feel frustrated is an understatement. Practice your religion - fine - but you have to change your practices if it breaks the law, endangers the wider community and particularly the nations struggle to flatten the epidemic peak - in order to give the NHS the best possible chance of coping. Government measures are an attempt to help stop you infecting everyone in your household and wider community - many of who will be vulnerable. We are not prepared to put our sole trust in Allah and of course neither are you when it comes to it - you will be off to hospital just like everyone else!
UPDATE 15/4/20 One third of the people in hospital with coronavirus are from an ethnic minority background. It was bound to happen!
This is what the nation is up against. There is plenty of evidence in areas like Small Heath in Birmingham - unlike in the majority of the country - government advice is just being ignored.
It is sad to say these Muslim communities are quick to point the finger. Quick to claim they have been singled out - quick to claim prejudice and the world is against them. Quick to claim Islamophobia! They will be quick to criticise the NHS if they do not get 1st Class treatment.
To say we feel frustrated is an understatement. Practice your religion - fine - but you have to change your practices if it breaks the law, endangers the wider community and particularly the nations struggle to flatten the epidemic peak - in order to give the NHS the best possible chance of coping. Government measures are an attempt to help stop you infecting everyone in your household and wider community - many of who will be vulnerable. We are not prepared to put our sole trust in Allah and of course neither are you when it comes to it - you will be off to hospital just like everyone else!
UPDATE 15/4/20 One third of the people in hospital with coronavirus are from an ethnic minority background. It was bound to happen!
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