>Doug;
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>The Oprah Winfrey Show Friday of last week was devoted to better understanding the Islamic faith. Queen of Jordan, Rania Al Abdullah and Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi of Pakistan were interviewed. Neither woman’s head was covered. All Muslim women in the audience had their heads covered. The Queen stated it was not a requirement of her religion to cover her head. It was rather a local or cultural custom. The women in the audience said it was a requirement of their religion to cover their heads.
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>As we may not know a great deal about the Islamic faith, having a major point of disagreement on national TV did not help to resolve this question. In fact Opran Winfrey did not try to resolve this issue and just let the opportunity pass. Perhaps she did not want to embarrass her guests or audience members. Nevertheless, I still do not know if covering a woman’s head is a requirement or an individual choice a Muslim woman makes.
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>Tom

From what I saw on ABC news this weekend it is a requirement if those who believe so have guns and enforce their views by beating the women sticks.