Salman Rushdie and the Future of Religious Extremism
3 Prophesies from Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
In 1989, author Salman Rushdie went into hiding because of a fatwa issued against him by Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran.
Last week a man attempted to carry out that fatwa by stabbing Rushdie during a lecture in New York state.
The enduring power of the Rushdie fatwa demonstrates exemplifies religious extremism. Perhaps we thought we were over it.
But like antisemitism, which has recently returned with a vengeance, religious extremism finds new ways of renewing itself.
The Rushdie assassination attempt led me to review a series of lectures delivered in 1990 by the late Rabbi Jonathan Sack. They discussed the Rushdie fatwa, which was prominent in the news in Britain at the time.
The lectures generated extraordinary attention in Great Britain and helped elevate his stature. His selection as the Chief Rabbi in 1991 followed. Sadly, he died in November 2020.
33 years ago, Rabbi Sacks not only predicted many of the political and social forcing shaping our present culture. He offered solutions we are just beginning to embrace.
They feel especially necessary today. I urge each of you to read them.
Here are three key prophesies with quotes from those lectures:
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