Speakers at Southern Baptist Convention take swipes at Islam

Associated Press WriterST. LOUIS (AP) -- A leading Islamic group was demanding Tuesday that the Southern Baptist Convention condemn "bigoted" and "hate-filled" statements made by one of its pastors.

During a pastors' conference Monday evening, the Rev. Jerry Vines, pastor of First Baptist Church of Jacksonville, Fla., told conventioneers that many of this country's problems can be blamed on religious pluralism.

"They would have us to believe that Islam is just as good as Christianity, but I'm here to tell you, ladies and gentlemen, that Islam is not just as good as Christianity," Vines, a former SBC president, told several thousand delegates at America's Center in St. Louis.

"Christianity was founded by the virgin-born son of God, the lord Jesus Christ. Islam was founded by Mohammed, a demon-posesssed pedophile who had 12 wives -- and his last one was a 9-year-old girl. And I will tell you Allah is not Jehovah either. Jehovah's not going to turn you into a terrorist that'll try to bomb people and take the lives of thousands and thousands of people."

Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, said the comments were outrageous.

"It's really unfortunate that a top leader in a mainstream Christian church, religious organization would use such hate-filled and bigoted language in describing the faith of one fifth of the world's population," Hopper said Tuesday. "And during this time of international crisis, we all need to come together, and people off all faiths need to come together and avoid any actions that would create division between people of faith."

Hooper said he was even more disturbed when he learned the comments got warm applause.

Hooper called on the SBC leadership to denounce Vines and his comments. But William Merrell, a spokesman for the SBC executive committee, said the comments were made outside the actual meeting, and that it was not the SBC's place to comment.

"The Southern Baptist Convention does not by habit renounce things as said in pastors' conferences," he said. However, he said he did not "want to give the sense that we are not sensitive or caring about this issue."

Will Hall, an SBC spokesman, said the convention does not comment on such things unless the convention as a whole "has spoken to that issue."

"There's nothing for us to say," he said. "You've got 16 million people. You can get an opinion out of every one of those 16 million."

Others at the pastors' conference made comments about Muslims. Hooper said the SBC should not try to sidestep Vines' comments.

"This is the level of bigotry that requires a clear statement from the top leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention," he said. "And failing that, we can only deduce that they're in agreement with those bigoted remarks."

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Allen G. Breed is the AP's Southeast regional writer, based in Raleigh, N.C.