Is Islam a paedophilic religion?

[flobadob]

Do Muslim men believe it is acceptable to be having sex with prepubescent girls? I'm asking this based on various news items over the last few months, both in the UK and abroad.

[RATTER15]

I see that my comment condemning Muslims that do this type of thing has been removed, maybe by a supporter!!! not PC maybe!!

[hc4361]

Naomi, that report states 'brides as young as 12', so unlikely to be prepubescent

Some Catholic countries have the age of sexual consent at 12 or 13, such as Spain and Panama. Girls of 14 can marry in the Vatican City.

[redman41]

Possibly, but they also like Camels !
Will that be 1 Hump or 2 Humps,Sir ?
The more Humps the better kind Sir ! :-)

[naomi24]

hc, the report also says ....

//One case last year reportedly involved a girl of five. //

It happens.... but that aside, I repeat a little girl is still a child whether she has begun menstruating or not.

[RATTER15]

Menstruation is often weight related not so much age.

[lightbulb247]

oh, and this reflects every muslim, does it?

[naomi24]

Oh dear, back he comes, and immediately it becomes clear he hasn't read the posts - as usual. Hello Lightbulb.

[lightbulb247]

hello naomi

[boxtops]

No lightbulb, it says not, earlier in this conversation. The majority of Muslim people I know wouldn't entertain it. Hwoever, there are some cultures who "marry" their girls off young (and although it wasn't consummated, the Royal families of Europe used to do that too). It's a thorny subject which comes up quite frequently on AB in one shape or form.

[lightbulb247]

thank you boxtops.

[whiskeryron]

Trying to think logically without faffing about & please correct me if I am wrong, when a girl starts menstruating is she not producing eggs which are capable of being fertilized ? This being the case this surely is why in some eastern country's girls are married off to older men so that families are formed a.s.a.p. in order to help with whatever work has to be done by the group. ( we can't really form an opinion based on our western ideals which are completely different to Arab culture for example ).

WR.

[boxtops]

agree with whiskery - I remember a long-ago story of a girl of 9 in Peru giving birth.

[Sir Alec]

Thousands of girls die in Africa every year from fistula because they are having babies too young and their bodies are not prepared for giving birth yet.
As Naomi says, onset of menstruation does not denote adulthood.

[boxtops]

Unfortunately, siralec, many of them have also been subject to genital mutilation as well (which is a different discussion altogether) - I support the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital and some of the stories of women's suffering are horrific.

[Sir Alec]

boxtops, I applaud you for supporting them. I saw a documentary about it and some of the girls were as young as 10. It was horrific that these men could be so callous as to have sex with them and then leave when they become pregnant.
I used to work with a woman whose daughter started her periods at the age of 3. Some men would be foaming at the mouth with lust. Nothing I hear about such men surprises me any more.
When I was 15, a lad in my year raped a 2 year old. He got a good kicking from some other lads at the school. But then I found out from Friends and Family that he had been a teacher for 5 years at an RC primary school and my heart sank.

[wildwood]

If keyplus was to join here and decry the practice of marrying and having sex with children, would that make him a traitor to Islam?

[jackthehat]

Yes.
Which is why he doesn't.

[naomi24]

Ron, //we can't really form an opinion based on our western ideals which are completely different to Arab culture for example//

Boxtops, // agree with whiskery - I remember a long-ago story of a girl of 9 in Peru giving birth.//

Are you serious? Of course we can form an opinion. I won’t go into graphic detail, but simply say compare a 10 year old’s body to that of a 20 year old. I can’t believe that anyone with a modicum of education and compassion would even attempt to justify this for any reason.

[flobadob]

Some people are playing devil's advocate here for sure.