"I've heard from a few people that Al-Sistani said that gay people should be killed in the worst possible ways. This doesn't sound like the Al-Sistani that I've heard you describe, so I thought you'd know whether or not it is true."
I wrote back:
[T]he thing about Sistani is this. People use the word "moderate" using only the criterion of attitude toward the US (which makes fanatic Saudi Arabia also "moderate.") Sistani is "moderate" only because he does not call for armed insurrection against US occupation troops in Iraq. In reality, there is nothing "moderate" about this man, if one is to consider his social and economic views, or his views about matters of culture, or the status of non-Muslims. It is telling that he is one of the few Ayatullahs, for example, to refuse to condemn latm (self-flagellation) in `Ashura' commemoration. Even Khamenei in Iran has come out against latm. Grand Ayatollah Fadallah, for example, has in the last decade come up with very progressive views on social, economic, and sexual issues. On homosexuality: yes, Sistani takes a very intolerant position. He says on the matter (you may survey some of the views of Sistani on the English section of his site, although it is not as comprehensive as the Arabic or Persian sections) this:
"What is Liwat?
Answer: Liwat is inserting the male organ in a same sex person.
What is the ruling of Liwat?
Answer: It is one of the Greater Sins.
What is the ruling of Liwat and Suhaq (lesbiansim)?
Answer: Morally impermissible (haram). And the doer should be punished, nay, the doer of Liwat should be killed in the worst manner."
*A Sistani spokesperson lied to the BBC News website in the recent article (posted somewhere on this page) about gays in Iraq.
*A Sistani spokesperson lied to the BBC News website in the recent article (posted somewhere on this page) about gays in Iraq.
