Jennifer Lopez Saudi Arabia Grand Prix concert near Mecca sparks outrage
Pop icon Jennifer Lopez lit up the stage in Jeddah during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend, her first performance at a Formula 1 event in over a decade and just 80 kilometres from Islam’s holiest site, Mecca.
The show, part of Saudi Arabia's broader Vision 2030 push to diversify its entertainment and cultural offerings, quickly triggered sharp debate across the region.
Lopez, 55, arrived at the final F1 practice on Saturday wearing a striking pink zip-front catsuit, high ponytail, and stilettos, a Barbie-style outfit that drew as much attention as her high-energy set later that evening.
But the bold performance quickly sparked criticism on social media, with many users calling Lopez's performance so close to Mecca "shameful" and "a direct insult to Islam".
Religious figures and social commentators criticised the move, arguing that such entertainment events are inappropriate so near to the sacred city and the Kaaba, revered by over a billion Muslims worldwide.
"Hosting a pop concert with dance and revealing attire so close to Mecca is deeply disrespectful," one user wrote on X. "Saudi Arabia must remember it holds the custodianship of Islam’s holiest sites."
https://www.newarab.com/news/jennifer-lo...ks-outrage
Pop icon Jennifer Lopez lit up the stage in Jeddah during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend, her first performance at a Formula 1 event in over a decade and just 80 kilometres from Islam’s holiest site, Mecca.
The show, part of Saudi Arabia's broader Vision 2030 push to diversify its entertainment and cultural offerings, quickly triggered sharp debate across the region.
Lopez, 55, arrived at the final F1 practice on Saturday wearing a striking pink zip-front catsuit, high ponytail, and stilettos, a Barbie-style outfit that drew as much attention as her high-energy set later that evening.
But the bold performance quickly sparked criticism on social media, with many users calling Lopez's performance so close to Mecca "shameful" and "a direct insult to Islam".
Religious figures and social commentators criticised the move, arguing that such entertainment events are inappropriate so near to the sacred city and the Kaaba, revered by over a billion Muslims worldwide.
"Hosting a pop concert with dance and revealing attire so close to Mecca is deeply disrespectful," one user wrote on X. "Saudi Arabia must remember it holds the custodianship of Islam’s holiest sites."
https://www.newarab.com/news/jennifer-lo...ks-outrage
teachings of the Bible are so muddled and self-contradictory that it was possible for Christians to happily burn heretics alive for five long centuries. It was even possible for the most venerated patriarchs of the Church, like St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas, to conclude that heretics should be tortured (Augustine) or killed outright (Aquinas). Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches. - Sam Harris, "Letter To A Christian Nation"
