Does Yousaf think the Scottish flag is idolatrous?
by Effie Deans:
What is the most important symbol of Scotland? It is without doubt the saltire. Other flags and symbols such as the Royal Standard, (the yellow flag with the red lion) or the unicorn or the thistle are important, but the blue and white cross of St Andrew is more important than any other. It is for this reason that Scottish nationalism uses the saltire more than any other symbol to express its desire for Scottish independence. But what if the new leader of the SNP thought that the saltire was forbidden? That would be rather awkward, wouldn’t it?
Some people may think that my continued exploration of Humza Yousaf’s connection with Islam is Islamophobic. It isn’t. I am treating his beliefs as being as worthy of study as Christianity. There is much that a non-Muslim can find admirable in Islam. It is very interesting as a subject, and I urge everyone to study it in a fair way and with an open mind. But there are certain areas of Islam which are problematic for a society like Scotland. We have to be honest and open about these. Otherwise, how are we to live in an attitude of tolerance to each other.
The biggest problem for the leader of the SNP is that the symbol of the cross is forbidden in Islam. How do we know this? We know it because the Prophet Muḥammad said it.
Islamic doctrine comes to us primarily via the Quran, but also by the sayings and actions of Muḥammad recorded in the Hadith and Sunnah. These were passed down from the time when Muḥammad was living by people who knew him in a verifiable and reliable way to the time when they were finally written down.
The fundamental reason why the cross is forbidden as a symbol in Islam is that Islam rejects the idea that Jesus died on the cross and was resurrected. The reason why it rejects this is that Islam is strictly monotheistic and rejects the idea that Jesus was divine on the grounds that this would be a form of polytheism.
Read also: What does the election of Scotland’s new Muslim First Minister mean for the Church in Scotland? by David Robertson, CT
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