Saudi Cleric: Polytheism = Murder

[varun]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5251883/site/newsweek/

...Even last week, as the regime was issuing fatwas against the killing of Paul Johnson, one could see forces that fueled his execution. A prominent cleric, Sheik Saleh bin Abdullah al-Humaid, explained that "killing a soul without justification is one of the gravest sins under Islam; it is as bad as polytheism." So polytheism is akin to murder? Is it any wonder that the leader of the recent terrorism in Khobar explained his killing of Westerners and Indians thusly: "We purged Muhammad's land of many Christians and polytheists"?...

[troublemaker]

1. And not just in Islam

Compare the placement of the biblical commandments regarding "shall have no god before me" and "shalt not kill"... I think they are numbers one and five respectively.

[Fovea]

2. Polytheists

are not people of the book, are not in the Abrahimic line.
They are also frequently Goddess worshippers, which seems to be a
particularly sore spot.

As a Polytheist, I am sad to be a 'they' to the Monotheists.
The Unitarians have embraced us, but as someone who saw it
from fairly close up, it was not easy or quickly accepted.

This might also be a source of enlightenment in the question of why India and Pakistan have such deep problems making peace.

[varun]

3. Polytheists are worse than Christians and Jews...

...for the fundamentalist muslims.

Christians and Jew are called "people of The Book"...whereas polytheists are to be killed and converted...