Until this last week, I've found nothing especially offensive about anything Islam. Plenty of Christians are far holier than me. Both have different dogma that are equally silly in some of their aspects. I like that it is forbidden in Islam to try and convert. If you want to know something, you are welcome to ask, but they really are not supposed to try and convince you, or come knock on your door and ask if you'd like to join their religion.
This week, however, is different. They had the Eid al-Adha. In short, the purpose of this holiday is remembrance of the story of Abraham. Abraham took his son to a mountain, with the intention of sacrificing him to God. At the last minute, God said he passed the test...go kill this ram instead. The Muslim people relive this moment every yer by purchasing some animal, and then sacrificing it. This means they restrain it in some way...and then slit it's throat.
These animals could be a goat, cow, lamb, or even a camel for some wealthy people. The meat is supposed to be donated to the hungry.
I ended up spending most of the Eid, when not at Aqaba, and my adoptive family's house. I did not go to see the animal sacrificed...I do not think I could stomach it. On any of the 5 days of Eid, the sacrifice could take place. I was told by another friend in my program that all the children were so excited to see this animal slaughtered. They shot off blanks from guns, and overall acted like lord of the flies. I was pretty horrified. My adoptive family had mixed attendance. Feda'a and Rofida, my two friends I visit the most, did not go. Feda'a talked about how hard it was to see blood squirting everywhere. I agreed that it sounded pretty horrifying.
Later that day, their sister and her family came to the house.
The bag they brought was half a skinless corpse. Their were other parts, like the liver and other things I couldn't identify entirely, but it reminded me of horror movies I had seen. Such was my horror that they chuckled and told me to go watch tv. They said it would be yummy afterwards. I guess they either didn't donate the meat, or only donated part of it.
When dinner came, it was cooked lamb, but the consistency was greasy, and rubbery. I know it was cooked, but I still had the mental image and it felt like maybe it wasn't cooked after all. This was their most holy meal, and I hid the dry heaves and tried to choke down every last bit of it.
While I was trying to keep my mind off what I was chewing, I reflected a bit on two things.
First, animals are killed all the time and we get them from the grocery store in packages. This meat did used to walk around, just as what I was eating that day, so really, what was my problem? I have liked meat, and I'm sure it also is terrified before it's slaughtered. I'm not sure this inability to stomach the idea of the actual killed animal is something I can change about myself. I expect I would be a vegetarian if I was ever to become a true farmer. Or at least only eat eggs.
Second, I thought about serial killers. This whole generation of kids are thrilled at the gore. They are excited at watching the life drain out of a creature as it slowly dies. Another friend told me they slaughtered a cow, and it took ten minutes to die, with blood spurting everywhere. And...this is obviously not the first generation of kids to feel like this.
Torture of animals is considered one of the things serial killers like to do, as defined by western culture. I have to wonder if the increased acceptance of violence in the ME is tied to some of the rituals they have been taught since birth.
The only thing I know for sure is I will never, ever be in the Middle East again during this holiday. Way too awful for me.
This week, however, is different. They had the Eid al-Adha. In short, the purpose of this holiday is remembrance of the story of Abraham. Abraham took his son to a mountain, with the intention of sacrificing him to God. At the last minute, God said he passed the test...go kill this ram instead. The Muslim people relive this moment every yer by purchasing some animal, and then sacrificing it. This means they restrain it in some way...and then slit it's throat.
These animals could be a goat, cow, lamb, or even a camel for some wealthy people. The meat is supposed to be donated to the hungry.
I ended up spending most of the Eid, when not at Aqaba, and my adoptive family's house. I did not go to see the animal sacrificed...I do not think I could stomach it. On any of the 5 days of Eid, the sacrifice could take place. I was told by another friend in my program that all the children were so excited to see this animal slaughtered. They shot off blanks from guns, and overall acted like lord of the flies. I was pretty horrified. My adoptive family had mixed attendance. Feda'a and Rofida, my two friends I visit the most, did not go. Feda'a talked about how hard it was to see blood squirting everywhere. I agreed that it sounded pretty horrifying.
Later that day, their sister and her family came to the house.
The bag they brought was half a skinless corpse. Their were other parts, like the liver and other things I couldn't identify entirely, but it reminded me of horror movies I had seen. Such was my horror that they chuckled and told me to go watch tv. They said it would be yummy afterwards. I guess they either didn't donate the meat, or only donated part of it.
When dinner came, it was cooked lamb, but the consistency was greasy, and rubbery. I know it was cooked, but I still had the mental image and it felt like maybe it wasn't cooked after all. This was their most holy meal, and I hid the dry heaves and tried to choke down every last bit of it.
While I was trying to keep my mind off what I was chewing, I reflected a bit on two things.
First, animals are killed all the time and we get them from the grocery store in packages. This meat did used to walk around, just as what I was eating that day, so really, what was my problem? I have liked meat, and I'm sure it also is terrified before it's slaughtered. I'm not sure this inability to stomach the idea of the actual killed animal is something I can change about myself. I expect I would be a vegetarian if I was ever to become a true farmer. Or at least only eat eggs.
Second, I thought about serial killers. This whole generation of kids are thrilled at the gore. They are excited at watching the life drain out of a creature as it slowly dies. Another friend told me they slaughtered a cow, and it took ten minutes to die, with blood spurting everywhere. And...this is obviously not the first generation of kids to feel like this.
Torture of animals is considered one of the things serial killers like to do, as defined by western culture. I have to wonder if the increased acceptance of violence in the ME is tied to some of the rituals they have been taught since birth.
The only thing I know for sure is I will never, ever be in the Middle East again during this holiday. Way too awful for me.
I just had a conversation with a friend of mine in this subject. Here in MO last month was rifle deer season, my husband, boys, and I are avid hunters. She said she could never eat an animal that had been murdered and butchered. She isn't a vegetarian so I asked her how she thought her meat got to the grocery store. She truly believes they put the animal "to sleep" before they butcher it. -_- Well last week I did something kind of mean. I cooked a deer roast (that I shot myself) and invited her over for dinner. She thought it was a beef roast I bought at the store. I didn't tell her different either.
ReplyDeleteLol.... she needs to watch a video on how the meat industry works.
ReplyDelete