Pages

Friday, February 21, 2014

Fatwa Against Moving To Mars

UPDATE: Here's Mars One's response to the UAE fatwa.

According to the Brit tabloid Daily Star, some Muslim leaders have issued a fatwa against packing your things and moving to mars. Yes, the planet. The Star is a little like our National Enquirer, although the story sounds more like something you'd find on those satire sites like The Onion or the Daily Currant. Or maybe not, since there have been a plethora of fatwas that sound ludicrous but are all too true.

The latest came after the Mars One organisation claimed it would settle on the planet’s surface by 2023.

It prompted the religion’s leaders to point out that living on the planet would be a potentially suicidal move as there is no way back to Earth. Islam does not allow suicide.

The General Authority of Islamic Affairs and Endowment, based in the United Arab Emirates, said: “Such a one-way journey poses a real risk to life, and that can never be justified in Islam.”

Potential astronauts would end up dying for no “righteous reason” and would face the same punishment in the after-life as someone who had committed suicide.

Over 200,000 people, including 500 Saudis and Arabs, have applied to take part in the Mars One quest.

No comments: