Haj kills at least 550
RIYADH/MINA, June 18 (Reuters) – Hundreds of visitors have died during the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca amid scorching heat, according to press reports and foreign ministries.
At least 550 people have died on haj, diplomats told French outlet Agence France Presse (AFP) on Tuesday. Three hundred and twenty-three of the dead were Egyptians, most of whom perished due to heat-related illness, AFP reported, citing two Arab diplomats.
Wouldn’t you think a loving all-powerful god would either change the weather during the haj or issue an update saying it’s forbidden to go on the haj when it’s too hot?
Saudi state TV said temperatures rose on Monday as high as 51.8 degrees Celsius (125.2 Fahrenheit) in the shade at the Grand Mosque in Mecca.
So Mecca is basically a stove.
“Haj is a difficult task, so you have to exert efforts and perform the rituals even in the conditions of heat and crowding,” an Egyptian pilgrim told Reuters on Sunday.
Pilgrims used umbrellas to protect themselves from the sun, as Saudi authorities warned pilgrims to stay hydrated and avoid being outdoors during the hottest hours between 11 a.m. (0800 GMT) and 3 p.m.
Haj, one of the largest mass gatherings in the world, is a once-in-a-lifetime duty for able-bodied Muslims who can afford it. It will end on Wednesday.
See that’s what I’m saying. Allah could just change that. He could so he should.
H/t What a Maroon
I’m told that God was busy helping one team win the NBA Finals this week.
You lie! God was busy punishing the First United Schismatic Baptist Church of the Serpent with boils and plague for daring to leave MY church, the Firet United Baptist Church of the Serpent
As a fan of that team, I say they didn’t need its help.
Pilgrims used umbrellas to protect themselves from the sun, Allah should have told them that umbrellas are protection from rain; parasols are what they needed to protect them from the sun.
Whoops! Borked the blockquote. I bet Allah caused that.
The Darwin Awards are gonna be crowded this year.
@ Acolyte of Sagan #4
I think the etymology of “umbrella” comes from Latin or Italian “umbra,” or “shade.” So an umbrella is a “little shade.” Not originally for rain and cloudy weather. It got hijacked already for the wrong kind of weather once before.
As a once-in-a-lifetime obligation, it’s likely that people spend a long time saving up to go; so it’s likely that a disproportionate number of victims aren’t young. It’s tragic. Allah could simply remove the obligation to attend, couldn’t he? Of course, he might actually like the haj as a quick soul-harvest. Or, of course, not actually existing absolves him of all responsibility. Not so the religious leaders of this particular death cult, who should be charged with manslaughter for not banning the haj when the weather is hot.
G
By the way, maddog is correct. I carry an umbrella as a sunshade. It would be useless in rain, because rain here is almost always accompanied by strong wind, and arrives horizontally. It’s dark grey, witha pattern of black and light grey leaves, and I have written the following phrases, in black and silver permanent markers, on alternate panels:
Oh No! Sunshine!
Make it dark, please!
The Sun Hurts My eyes ->_<-
Go Away Sun!
I don't need it much these days, now that I have UV-blocking goggles, but it (along with a broad-brimmed black hat with heavy black veils) was vital to keep me from being blind in daylight before I had the goggles.
I heard/read/dreamed somewhere that dying while on the Haj gets the faithful an instant admission to Paradise. So there’s that silver lining I guess.
Meanwhile we’re having our own heatwave in the Midwest, though less extreme in the Great Lakes—only low 90s. here.
I just looked up Islamic Calendar
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_calendar
Since it is based on a year being 12 lunar months its year ends up being 11 or 12 days shorter than a solar year. So the month of pilgrimage to Mecca drifts and is sometimes in northern hemisphere winter & sometimes in northern hemisphere summer.
There is some dispute, but it looks like pre-Muslim Meccans put in intercalary months to keep hajj to a convenient season, but Mohammed forbade that.
So Allah *wanted* hajj to be more difficult and dangerous in some years.