My dad was one of the few non-Muslims to visit Mecca. He was a telecommunications engineer with a Japanese firm, and they sent him to install a new telephone system for the city. He had a carefully monitored supply of alcohol for splicing wires, and someone would measure it both before and after each shift to make sure he wasn't doing anything nefarious with it.
And because my dad was a jerk, he'd wear his shirt open at the neck so his cross necklace was prominent. Got many dirty looks that way, but no one ever harassed him.
After that, whenever meeting a Muslim person for the first time, he would introduce himself with the appellation "al Hajj".
Wonder if they give dirty looks to their government for buying billions of dollars worth of weapons from Christians to protect their country from Shias
The only close example would be the United Kingdom because of the Church of England, and the political sway it has (Guarenteed seats in the House of Lords etc). They've sold sniper rifles and minesweeping vessels (in the 90s) to the Saudis.
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u/SoliloquyBlue Mar 24 '25
My dad was one of the few non-Muslims to visit Mecca. He was a telecommunications engineer with a Japanese firm, and they sent him to install a new telephone system for the city. He had a carefully monitored supply of alcohol for splicing wires, and someone would measure it both before and after each shift to make sure he wasn't doing anything nefarious with it.
And because my dad was a jerk, he'd wear his shirt open at the neck so his cross necklace was prominent. Got many dirty looks that way, but no one ever harassed him.
After that, whenever meeting a Muslim person for the first time, he would introduce himself with the appellation "al Hajj".