Muslim Group Demands Huckabee Apology for 'Infidel' Comments

A story recently posted on The Blaze asked, "Should Christian Churches Rent Space for Muslim Worship?" One of the churches in question emailed us to let us know that while they opened their doors to Muslim worshipers, they did not rent them the space. "Our relationship with our neighbors continues to grow in love, trust and mutual respect for one another," they said.

Is the difference between renting out a space and welcoming Muslims into the space for free enough to change people's opinions on the subject?

A panel on Fox News debated the subject Monday:

Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has also weighed in on the debate and his opinion is drawing some scrutiny.

During a recent appearance on "Fox and Friends," Huckabee said he did not understand why churches would make that sort of decision.

“If the purpose of a church is to push forth the gospel of Jesus Christ, and then you have a Muslim group that says that Jesus Christ and all the people that follow him are a bunch of infidels who should be essentially obliterated, I guess I have a hard time understanding that,” he said.

“Is there a reason to say that the people who donated, who gave, who sacrificed to give that facility really ever intended it to be a place where something that is the antithesis of the gospel of Christ would be presented?” he added. If a church is nothing more than a meeting place, it could be “rented out to show adult movies on the weekend.”

But some Muslims are taking special offense to Huckabee's comments. On Monday, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called Huckabee's comments on the religion divisive and misunderstood.

"On this Presidents' Day, we ask Mike Huckabee -- a person who may again seek the highest office in the land -- to live up to the principles of tolerance and interfaith respect that make our nation great," Nihad Awad, the national executive director of CAIR, said in a statement. "We urge Mr. Huckabee to do some research and to apologize for his inaccurate and offensive remarks."

CAIR's statement also pointed out that Jesus is discussed in the Koran as a prophet, along with Abraham, Moses and others.