Sir Paul's Historic Israel Gig Threatened By Islamic Cleric

Paul McCartney listens to a guide during a
visit to the Church of the Nativity in the
West Bank city of Bethlehem on September
24, 2008. McCartney arrived in Israel today
ahead of his first-ever concert in the Jewish
state. Ahmad Gharabli / AFP / Getty

Presuming the report of a threat against McCartney's life is credible, I must say that this cleric is an extremely bad PR man for Islam. The Beatles have always been messengers of peace and would never privilege any religion over another. They more or less saw the good in all of them while pointing out the bad. I think most Muslims who know anything about the Beatles know that. Unfortunately, most Muslims probably don't know that much about the Beatles-including the violent cleric-and that is only a small part of a much larger problem.

If religion would just exit the world stage for a bit, take a time out, I think that would be a good idea. But nobody listens to me.

Here's the article from Time World, September 25, 2008.

Beatlemania was a little late getting to the Jewish State, thanks to the cultural conservatism of its founding leaders. Indeed, Thursday's Tel Aviv gig by Sir Paul McCartney marks a long-delayed concert debut in Israel by the former Beatle, who has endeared himself to a new generation of Israeli fans by going ahead with the show despite death threats from a radical Islamic cleric in Lebanon who vowed that "If he values his life, Mr. McCartney must not come to Israel. He will not be safe there. The sacrifice operatives will be waiting for him."

He added: "I think that most people understand that I'm quite apolitical and that my message is a global one and that it is a peaceful one." Or, as McCartney once sang, let it be.

Read more about his concert in Israel, a Beatle first.