Passion commemorations across faiths can be weaponized against political enemies
Evidence
The power of passion commemoration, for good or evil, is not limited to Christianity, of course. In the passion of Shiite Islam, Husayn, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, is being opposed in his rightful role as leader and guide (Imam) of the Islamic community by the wicked Caliph Yazid. Yazid’s army surrounded Husayn and his family and followers at the battle of Karbala in 68o. Husayn and most of his family were killed in cruel fashion by the Caliph’s soldiers. Each year the martyrdom of Husayn is reenacted during the commemorations known as the ta’ziyya. Some Islamic radicals used the ta’ziyya performances in Iran to demonize Americans, Jews, Bahais, and others as the killers of Husayn in a manner similar to the way Serb radicals used the Kosovo passion play to demonize Slavic Muslims. — Michael A. Sells, The Bridge Betrayed, 471
Categorization
- XREF: Cross-religious parallel to the Kosovo passion play analysis central to the book’s main argument. — connects to: European populists co-opt Christian symbols to cloak political aims in religious morality. — Andrew L. Whitehead; Samuel L. Perry, Taking America Back for God, 537; Sacred monuments only mobilize masses through a politically directed agenda — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized:…, 1568
- FICTION: A ta’ziyya reenactment turning political could seed a story about commemoration weaponized.