General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Has anyone published a cartoon with an image of Mohammed in response to the attack? [View all]Sunlei
(22,651 posts)I think religions are more of an ancient method of government but that doesn't mean people shouldn't respect others beliefs. Especially after what 3 people just did, Three people aren't spokesmen for an entire religion.
Depictions of Muhammad
The permissibility of depictions of Muhammad, the founder of Islam, has long been a concern in the religion's history. Oral and written descriptions are readily accepted by all traditions of Islam, but there is disagreement about visual depictions.[1][2] The Quran does not explicitly forbid images of Muhammad, but there are a few hadith (supplemental teachings) which have explicitly prohibited Muslims from creating visual depictions of figures.[citation needed]
Most Sunni Muslims believe that visual depictions of all the prophets of Islam should be prohibited[3] and are particularly averse to visual representations of Muhammad.[4] The key concern is that the use of images can encourage idolatry.[5] In Shia Islam, however, images of Muhammad are quite common nowadays, even though Shia scholars historically were against such depictions.[4][6] Still, many Muslims who take a stricter view of the supplemental traditions will sometimes challenge any depiction of Muhammad, including those created and published by non-Muslims.[7]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depictions_of_Muhammad