A leading German opera house has canceled performances of a Mozart opera because of security fears stirred by a scene that depicts the severed head of the Prophet Muhammad, prompting a storm of protest here about what many see as the surrender of artistic freedom.
In the scene that offended Muslims and led to security fears, a king places the severed heads of religious leaders on chairs.
The Deutsche Oper Berlin said Tuesday that it had pulled “Idomeneo” from its fall schedule after the police warned of an “incalculable risk” to the performers and the audience.
The company’s director, Kirsten Harms, said she regretted the decision but felt she had no choice. She said she was told in August that the police had received an anonymous threat, but she acted only after extensive deliberations...
The disputed scene is not part of Mozart’s opera, but was added by the director, Hans Neuenfels. In it, the king of Crete, Idomeneo, carries the heads of Muhammad, Jesus, Buddha and Poseidon on to the stage, placing each on a stool.
“Idomeneo,” first performed in 1781, tells a mythical story of Poseidon, or Neptune, the god of the sea, who toys with men’s lives and demands spiteful sacrifice...
The severed heads of the religious figures, Mr. Raue said, was meant by Mr. Neuenfels to make a point that “all the founders of religions were figures that didn’t bring peace to the world.”
André Kraft, spokesman for Komische Oper, a more adventurous opera house where Mr. Neuenfels is engaged in another Mozart production, described the 65-year-old director as “a secularist who does not believe religion solves the problems of the world.”
The continuous apologies and accommodation of intellectual terrorism by a group of Muslims needs to stop. Now. This is not a defense of Opera. This is not a defense of Germany. This is not a defense of the Pope. This is a plain and clear attack on the freedom of people to discuss, critique and yes, defame any religion they choose.
However; this outrage does not end there. A summit of sorts was convened in which various issues were discussed:
The participants in the conference grappled with similarly sensitive issues during their two-and-a-half hour session. Among the topics discussed were the teaching of Islamic religion in public schools, the training of imams here, the construction of mosques, and the discrimination against Muslims living in Germany, the large majority of whom are Turkish.
Mr. Schäuble, an influential member of Mrs. Merkel’s Christian Democratic Party, supports teaching Islam in schools. But he also insists that Muslim schoolgirls be allowed to take physical education — a practice that some conservative Muslim families resist.
Mr. Schäuble, who oversees Germany’s antiterrorism efforts, has warned Muslim leaders that they must abide by the German constitution and the principles of a democratic society. He excluded Muslims, who would like to see Islamic, or Sharia law, adopted here, from the conference.
I'm glad that those seeking Sharia were not allowed to participate (something Nigeria could learn from). But I don't think that position will stand in the long term should governments and other institutions continue to lay down in the face of intellectual terrorism. But what also should be completely off the table is the teaching of Islam (or any other religion) in publicly financed schools. a secular state should not be teaching religion except in the form of comparative or critical studies. Otherwise no religious instruction should occur within state run schools. Private schools should be able to do religious indoctrination if they choose. That such a topic even has to be discussed is a very bad sign.
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