Rabat - Saudi Cleric has become an overnight internet laughing stock after he claimed that the Sun revolves around the Earth and not the other way around, rejecting in the process a centuries-old scientific fact that the Sun is stationary while planet Earth and other planets rotate around it.
A video recently posted on YouTube shows the Saudi cleric, Sheikh Bandar al-Khaibari, answering a student question on whether the Earth is still or moving, he replied that the Earth is "stationary and does not move."
To make sure his "revolutionary" ideas were well-understood by the student, the Saudi Sheikh gave an example of an airplane travelling from Sharjah airport to China. It was the very example that prompted a wave of social media remarks.
He claimed that if a plane stops still in the air "China would come towards it" in case the Earth rotates on one direction, adding that if the Earth rotates on opposite direction, the plane will not be able to reach China, because "China is also rotating".
The Sheikh comments coincided with the birthday of famous Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei who supported the Copernican theory that says the Earth and planets revolved around the Sun. He was born on February 15, 1564 and was accused twice of heresy by the church for his beliefs.
The video triggered a wave of remarks on social media platforms with the hashtag #cleric_rejects_rotation_of_Earth on Twitter.
#cleric_rejects_rotation_of_Earth This is a Saudi tradition, called the February's Fool ???????????? #?????
— ???? ??????? (@MajedRabee3) February 18, 2015
He has the right to reject the rotation theory of the earth as we have the right to reject his views. #cleric_rejects_rotation_of_Earth
— ??? ???? ?????? (@abuahmedalqarni) February 18, 2015
#cleric_rejects_rotation_of_Earth I don't know about you guys, but I have a feeling we might win this year's Noble Prize
— Abdi Arif (@abzzi08) February 18, 2015
#?????_????_?????_????? I don't even need to buy plane ticket to travel! I'll just start hopping up & down until my destination comes to me!
— Dementropy (@Dementropy) February 16, 2015
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