Blind following of any doctrine is a path to disaster.

Submitted by GeorgeP (United States), Sep 4, 2009 at 04:28

Dear Dr Pipes:

As much as pulling gold and silver from people's teeth because it might be against Sharia is bad, saying that it is ok to wear gold or silver because the Prophet did so is worse. You see, absolute reliance on Sharia to determine the validity of things is just as bad as absolute reliance on it to determine their invalidy.

You see, this is one single thing that Muslims need to learn -- no written set of laws can be so complete that it will apply under all circumstances. No matter how much we wish to have a set of infallible commandments, such commandments cannot exist.

Perhaps the prophet allowed us to wear silver by wearing silver in his own fingers but did he or did he not allow us to cook using microwave ovens? Did he or did he not allow us to talk on cell phones for hours? Did he or did he not allow us to raid the caravan of an enemy tribe?

And if he declared that stealing is punishable by severing the thief's hands, what did he tell us to do to the hands of an accomplished pianist who in a moment of weakness stole something?

So wearing gold and silver in one's teeth is not bad because the prophet said so, it is not bad because it does not appear to be bad. Simple!

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