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Saudi muslim scholar calls ethanol fuel use a sin

 
19 2,373 views February 27, 2009

The use of alcohol-based fuels could be a violation of Islamic precepts

The use of alcohol-based fuels could be a violation of Islamic precepts

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In the Koran the Prophet Mohammed set out clear rules for Muslim interaction with alcohol, forbidding the use, purchase, sale, service, transportation or even manufacture of the substance. And that's the basis a Saudi Muslim scholar is using to call ethanol use by Muslims a sin.

Setting aside the obvious motivation to preserve oil use and production, the religious case against ethanol is a strong one. Fuel ethanol is, by chemical definition, nearly pure alcohol. And it is the same type of alcohol used recreationally the world over.

A scholar at the Saudi Islamic Jurisprudence Academy, Sheikh Mohamed Al-Najimi, is the source of the warning - he's been careful not to call it a fatwa - about the use or involvement with ethanol fuel, reports MarketWatch. The story began with the scholar warning students traveling outside Saudi Arabia not to use ethanol powered vehicles.

Far from a final decision on the matter, however, Najimi has proposed further study on the matter, though he stands by his interpretation. There does remain some room for interpretation, as the scriptural basis for the prohibition appears to be rooted in the intoxicating nature of ethanol, not as a general proscription against its molecular structure.

For instance, ethanol is a necessary element in the production of vinegar, which the Koran notes was a seasoning favored by Mohammed.

Regardless of whether the fuel is contraband for Muslims, however, many other reasons not to use ethanol have been cropping up over the past year. Taking away valuable crop sources, pollution due to fertilizers, harm to the soil, and the lack of a sustainable production model have all come to weigh against the use of crop-based ethanol.

Other methods of production, such as the bacterial sources espoused by Coskata and Mascoma, on the other hand, may yet prove viable, especially as they learn to convert inorganic waste products - trash - into fuel, tapping into a plentiful resource that no one will miss.



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Comments (19)

  1. ma_www.mywheelsonwalls.com avatar www.mywheelsonwalls.com Posted: 2/27/2009 9:29am PST

    So I assume Hydrogen, nickel, and cobalt will be added to the list soon too? Lets face it there is a negative financial windfall coming their way over the next 20 years..
     
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  2. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 10:34am PST

    1stly www.mywheelsonwalls.com dont act like that muslim scholor and just say something without thinking. im a muslim and i know the Koran and it did state things about alcohol, but about drinking it ... it did say stop the use, purchase, sale, service, transportation or even manufacture of the substance that is meant for drinking ofcourse. and please dont belive anything you hear before understanding things 1st
     
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  3. ma_kafkef avatar kafkef Posted: 2/27/2009 10:37am PST

    Doesn't sound right to me. Sure it's a sin/haram to use, sell, etc but I think that is for the alcohol used for drinking. It's not a sin when used as medicine and most likely not a sin when used as fuel. It's not like the Islamic laws were set about 1500 years ago with alcohol as an alternative fuel in mind.
     
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  4. ma_www.mywheelsonwalls.com avatar www.mywheelsonwalls.com Posted: 2/27/2009 12:06pm PST

    Azzurrini- Oh I understand! Its called economics and apparently so does Kafkef..

    P.S. Why are you assuming I'm a Christian too?
     
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  5. ma_focusRSintheUSA avatar focusRSintheUSA Posted: 2/27/2009 12:07pm PST

    So the Saudis won't be able to ferment all of that corn they grow in their heartland to power their vehicles? Oh no!
     
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  6. ma_jaafar_sn avatar jaafar_sn Posted: 2/27/2009 12:15pm PST

    I thought that your site is for car news !!
    But it maybe expanded . now you talking about the islam and the quran .
    so just stay in motor news not about the muslim scholars

    its far away from motors !!
     
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  7. ma_Nelson avatar Nelson Posted: 2/27/2009 1:38pm PST

    I thought that your site is for car news !!
    But it maybe expanded . now you talking about the islam and the quran .
    so just stay in motor news not about the muslim scholars

    its far away from motors !!

    Actually, considering the importance of the Muslim world to world oil output, the debate over the future of 'sustainable fuels' and the role ethanol might play in that, the attitude of one of the most important nations in the region (Saudi Arabia) is very relevant to the world of automobiles. Not to mention their role as consumers of some of the world's most impressive and exclusive automobiles.

    Understanding where those attitude and viewpoints come from is simply part of the thorough coverage we are proud to provide every day.

    This isn't meant to be a final say-so on the matter - read the article, and you'll see that even the man behind the idea, Al-Najimi, isn't declaring his findings final. Rather, it's a dialogue on the matter, and what impact it might have on the future of fuel.

    One day we may have cars that don't need fuel, but until then, anything related to fuel is related to cars.
     
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  8. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 4:11pm PST

    www.mywheelsonwalls.com: im not assuming anything im just commenting on ur comment and saying dont belive everything you read without understanding it. whats funny is anyone can declare anything but ... meh just forget it seems like some ppl wont understand because they just dont want too.
     
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  9. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 4:13pm PST

    Nelson: then if he didnt say its a sin why put it on the title ...
     
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  10. ma_PArticularly Hard Vato avatar PArticularly Hard Vato Posted: 2/27/2009 4:28pm PST

    I seriously can't wait to see plugin hybrids with 40-50 mile range.

    I will buy one just so i can slap a bumper sticker on it that says, "Osama Bin Laden hates this car."

    Link to Bumper Sticker

    I'm so sick and tired of the muslim world extracting its wealth from other nations through its oil industry just so its rich can live extravagant lifestyles and put on ridiculous displays of wealth while the majority of their countrymen live in desperate poverty.

    Article about Poverty in Muslim World causing terrorism


    Bring on the Volt and the plugin Prius! Bring on the Apterra plugin! Bring on the Fisker Karma!
     
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  11. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 4:36pm PST

    Particularly hard vato: if you like finding articales maybe find the ones where " the muslim world" have alot of wealth. its mostly the arabian gulf. while your doing that you might as well find out the GDP of each country and talking about poverty most of the world have problems with that ya and while ur at all that maybe find why terrorist are terrorists and how they became that way, im not saying what they are doing is right, they r wrong in every way possible and if you check the quran you would understand why but again ppl just read western books about middle eastern history ... funny no ?
     
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  12. ma_PArticularly Hard Vato avatar PArticularly Hard Vato Posted: 2/27/2009 5:01pm PST

    My comments are directed at the people in power in the Muslim world. Those are the wealthy, oil controlling governments. As evidenced by the article we are commenting on, these wealthy oil controlling governments influence and wield power over the Muslim world.

    I don't care why terrorists do what they do. I doubt we would have the terrorism in our world if the reasons cited in that article I posted a link to did not exist, and one way for them to be eliminated or reduced is to more evenly distribute the oil wealth of the governing oil rich families to their subjects according to the principles of charity and love their faith proclaims.

    but one thing is for sure- i they want to hate jews, they had better learn to spell:

    Jihad Fail
     
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  13. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 5:28pm PST

    seems like hate is on boths sides who would even think about fixing anything when no1 admits to anything. and spelling is irrelevant we all have different lang. what i would like is a solution and not patch ups or suggestions. is it better to throw some1 in jail after he commits the crime or fix the problem so there is no need for some1 to commit the same crime but again looking at everything in 1 point of view doesnt help anyone, especially not yourself.
     
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  14. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 5:33pm PST

    p.s. if you wanna go about and choose any one from the street about their spelling or educa. then take a look at this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nec41aVI5Sc
     
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  15. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 5:33pm PST

    p.s. if you wanna go about and choose any one from the street about their spelling or educa. then take a look at this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nec41aVI5Sc
     
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  16. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 5:37pm PST

    i quote Albert Einstein:
    Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.
     
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  17. ma_PArticularly Hard Vato avatar PArticularly Hard Vato Posted: 2/27/2009 5:42pm PST

    Great points Azzurrini.

    And I will still be buying my plug-in car because I do not want to send any money to the wealthy materialistic governing families of the muslim world.
     
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  18. ma_Azzurrini avatar Azzurrini Posted: 2/27/2009 5:44pm PST

    im just saying buy the car because its better for the world and not for your hate thats all
     
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  19. By  nintendo dsi r4 Posted: 1/9/2010 9:08pm PST

    Sheikh Mohamed Al-Najimi, member of the Saudi Islamic Jurisprudence Academy, based his statement on a saying by the prophet that prohibited all kinds of dealings with alcohol including buying, selling, carrying, serving, drinking, and manufacturing, the Saudi newspaper Shams reported Thursday.
     
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