One Saudi Twitter user responded to the fatwa issued by a cleric (see Carol Brown's blog) that said building snowmen was un-Islamic by saying there were two types of people in the Kingdom:

"A people looking for a fatwa (religious ruling) for everything in their lives, and a cleric who wants to interfere in everything in the lives of others through a fatwa," the user wrote.

Snow blanketed the norther provinces of Saudi Arabia last week, giving citizens a rare opportunity for fun.

We've seen fatwas issued for a lot of crazy stuff, but this one, put out by prominent Islamic scholar, Sheikh Mohammed Saleh al-Munajjid, may top the list of bizarre no-nos for Muslims.

Reuters:

Asked on a religious website if it was permissible for fathers to build snowmen for their children after a snowstorm in the country's north, Sheikh Mohammed Saleh al-Munajjid replied: "It is not permitted to make a statue out of snow, even by way of play and fun."

Quoting from Muslim scholars, Sheikh Munajjid argued that to build a snowman was to create an image of a human being, an action considered sinful under the kingdom's strict interpretation of Sunni Islam.

"God has given people space to make whatever they want which does not have a soul, including trees, ships, fruits, buildings and so on," he wrote in his ruling.

That provoked swift responses from Twitter users writing in Arabic and identifying themselves with Arab names.

"They are afraid for their faith of everything ... sick minds," one Twitter user wrote.

Another posted a photo of a man in formal Arab garb holding the arm of a "snow bride" wearing a bra and lipstick. "The reason for the ban is fear of sedition," he wrote.

Not all the reaction was negative. Some tweets supported the cleric:

"It (building snowmen) is imitating the infidels, it promotes lustiness and eroticism," one wrote.

"May God preserve the scholars, for they enjoy sharp vision and recognize matters that even Satan does not think about."

Snow has covered upland areas of Tabuk province near Saudi Arabia's border with Jordan for the third consecutive year as cold weather swept across the Middle East.

I don't know about you but I get a tingle in my leg whenever I see a snowman. They all look like Christina Aguilera to me.

Islamic clerics can issue fatwas at the drop of a hat. This list of the top 10 weirdest fatwas is hilarious, including this one:

The Fatwa: Muhammad Al-Munajid: Bring Me the Head of Mickey Mouse

That’s right, somebody put on hit on Mickey Mouse. Calling Mickey “one of Satan’s soldiers,” Sheikh Muhammad Al-Munajid decreed that household mice and their cartoon cousins must be “killed in all cases”, according to the U.K.’s Daily Telegraph.

And get this—the guy’s not your average nutjob, either—Munajid used to be a former diplomat at the Saudi embassy in Washington D.C. He made the remarks on Arab television network al-Majd TV after he was asked to give Islam’s teaching on mice.

But don’t worry, Mickey won’t be alone. Munajid also put a hit on Jerry from “Tom and Jerry”. Maybe they could rent a flat with Salman Rushdie (above).

Sometimes, you have to wonder if these clerics get a chuckle out of some of their more outrageous pronouncements on what is or isn't Islamic. But then you remember the 8th century ideology behind their religion and realize they are deadly serious - with the emphasis on "deadly."