Saving the Islamic World's Christians

Here's a good question. Why do the majority of American Christians remain so oblivious to the increasingly bitter fate of their fellow Christians in the Islamic world? These ancient communities -- many descended from the very earliest followers of Jesus himself -- are under growing siege.

From the Middle East to the Sub-continent and Africa, the Islamic world's Christians are being hounded, discriminated against, forced from their homes and in some cases, simply murdered.

In Egypt, where machete-armed fanatics have attacked worshipers in Coptic churches, it is still a crime to convert from Islam to Christianity. In Pakistan, Catholic and Protestant churches are frequently torched, Christian businessmen murdered and young Christian girls kidnapped, forced to convert to Islam and married off to Muslim men. In Saudi Arabia, where one irate father recently hacked his daughter to death for embracing Christianty, the existence of any churches is strictly forbidden as is the import of a bible or the wearing of a cross. Some foreign workers have been arrested, jailed and deported just for holding Christian prayer services in the privacy of their homes.

Even in Islamic countries not strictly run by Sharia law, pressures mount on local Christians to leave the homes they've known for centuries. Iraq's Christian sects, among the oldest Christian communities anywhere in the world, have been directly targeted by terrorist bombs, and Christians are high on the list of those fleeing Iraq's sectarian strife. Thirty years ago, Lebanon was 60% Christian. Since then, an estimated 3.5 million Christians have emigrated, reducing the country's Christian population percentage to barely 25%. Even in the Holy Land, where Jesus once walked, direct and indirect pressures have also led to an increasing Christian exodus from the Palestinian territories. One striking result: Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus and once a predominantly Christian Arab town now has an overwhelming Muslim majority.

Part of the problem surely stems from the continuing Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the difficulties of living with anti-terrorist walls and barriers. But much of it results from a growing campaign by Islamic thugs to force Christians to sell their property and leave.You can find details of this in a fine article recently written for The Hudson Institute by Palestinian Muslim journalist Khaled Abu Toameh.

In fact, ironically, the only place in the Mideast where Christian communities continue to grow is in the Jewish State of Israel. Israel's tolerance is logical. What people of faith know the dangers of religious persecution better than the people of Israel -- especially those whose families originated in the Islamic world? Between 1948 and 1956 more than 850,000 Jews were forced to flee the Arab lands where their families had lived for centuries. Yet since 1949, the year after Israel's birth, the number of Israeli Arab Christians has grown by an astonishing 345%!

It is true that there were periods when the Islamic world was far more tolerant than Europe. The Prophet's followers preached that "peoples of the book" -- Jews and Christians -- could be tolerated. But they were tolerated only as second class, subjugated dhimmis. Jews and Christians were never granted full equality under Islamic rule. And over the centuries, communities of Jews and Christians suffered severe ups and downs.

With Islamic extremism still on the rise, this is one of the downs. Few Americans seem prepared to connect the dots. Some American evangelical groups like the Washington-based International Christian Concern try to raise the alarm. And America's Copts, especially those based in the New York area, actively lobby against the legal and social discrimination that face their Egyptian co-religionists. Yet most mainstream church groups seem to ignore the threat.

It's time to wake up.

Comments

[Dayyas Feetal]

Of course the author of this article will not quote the Egyptian muslim women in "civilized" Christain Germany who was recently murdered because she wore a hijab . Or the other bigots who set a mosque on fire in the USA. Christianity is just as full as Islamaphobes .

[minimalist syntax]

I think it would be better if we start the conversation differently. I am Greek Orthodox. Many of the people mentioned in this article are Eastern Orthodox or Oriental Christians, so I do feel an affinity to them. I don't think I am an Islamophobe btw. so to make blanket statements, especially to people who have indeed suffered historically under Muslim rule (e.g. through the Ottoman Empire) is not conducive to further understanding.

[Richard Z. Chesnoff - Huffpost Blogger]

True enough - the Christian world has its "Islamophobes", but Islamic populations in Europe and the US are growing - not decreasing.

[DC]

Lots of statements without qualification. But what about the second largest Jewish population in the Middle East -- the Jews of Iran? What about the Israeli Christians?

While the population of Christians has grown in Israel, the percentage of Christians (mostly all Arab) in Israel has greatly declined.

"When Israel was established in 1948, the Palestinian Christian community had numbered 200,000, compared to roughly 600,000 Jews in Palestine at the time. Now the Christians are not even one percent of the population of Israel/Palestine. Of today’s estimated total 400,000 Christian Palestinians, most now are living in their own diaspora, mainly in the Americas."

Furthermore, while it might be understandable that Christian proselytizing is illegal in Israel, you fail to highlight that Jews who covert to Christianity are subject to prison.

But whatever......there are extremists everywhere and organized religion is only in the mind.

[Richard Z. Chesnoff - Huffpost Blogger]

It may naturally be contrary to rabbinical law for a Jew to convert to Christianty, but it is certainly not against Israeli law nor are such converts subject to Israeli jail.
Many Christian Arabs were among those Palestinians who fled Israel during the 1947-1948 Arab-Israeli war. Those who remained in Israel at that time have flourished as a religious community - and increased more than 300 per cent in number since 1949.
My column was about Christians in the Islamic world. Thus I did not mention the Jews of Iran who live under strict Muslim government surveillance and restriction.

[DC]

Yes, your article is about the repression of Christians in the Islamic world. Yet you took the step to make a comparison with Israel. The comparison was neither complete nor completely fair. .

With all due respect Mr. Chenoff, in 1977 the Knesset passed the
The Penal Law Amendment (Enticement to Change Religion, 5738-1977). Under this the converted --as a result of direct proselytizing -- is subject to prison.

There are many reasons, historical and cultural, why this law came into place. This can open large and interesting debate. (In my mind, and most interesting, is that the Israeli courts recognize not only freedom OF religion, but also freedom FROM religion. )

A broader discussion on the Israel laws on Enticement to Change Religion and similar laws can be found in the paper published by

"Of Prophets and Proselytes: Freedom of Religion and the Conflict of Rights in International Law"

Peter G. Danchin, University of Maryland School of Law

[DC]

Have you spoken with Christian Palistinians? Have you visted their communities? Surely not. If so, you would hardly say that they are "florishing:"

You mean 300% since 1948 AFTER the Nakaba.

In Jerusalem, for example there were over 31,000 Christians in 1947. (This was the more educated population that is important to successful social structures.) There are less that 10,000 now.

You write as if Israel provides safe refuge to Christians in a sea of Islamic backwardness.

The "facts" of your argument support the propaganda that Palestinians hardly existed before 1948.

“It is not as though there was a Palestinian people in Palestine considering itself as Palestinian people and we came and threw them out and took their country away from them, they DID NOT EXIST” (Golda Meir, Sunday Times, June 1969)"

This is a terribly disingenuous representation of a minority within a minority in Israel that is slowly, but surely, being marginalized and snuffed out.

[ranchero42]

Wake up and turn the other cheek.

[Lizander Perez]

Yes, Everyone needs to wake up and realize that there is no God, then will everyone will be able to get along. Religion must die, for mankind to live!

[Mohamed Emira]

I'm Egyptian too, and sometimes problems happen in Egypt between Christians and Muslims and both parties are guilty of that, but the gov doesn't tolerate such behavior. I live in USA and I still suffer the same fate that you describe in your post about Christians in Egypt.

Why don't you talk about all the things that happen to Muslims in Europe or China or you just blind when it comes to the other side of truth.

Hypocrisy reigns!!

[Hassan Hamed]

this is utterly biased, I live in Egypt all my life and there hasn't been a single time when I viewed a christian being (discriminated) against? most of the big companies that actually exist here owned by a christian, I even work for one of them, who is Egyptian, regardless of his religion.

slander that is as inaccurate as this really hurts your credibility, so please just check the facts before going ahead and asking help from the world's christians to help their poor fellows here.

plus, why do you blame muslims for protesting against what happens to muslims in palestine and other places, or are you saying that it's OK for christians to save their poor fellows from discrimination by the force of weapons but muslims can't ? isn't this considered terrorism?

another question: what country will actually approve a faith-based crusade of this kind to exist in our current (secular) world?.

please choose your topics carefully. this is really offensive.

[Richard Z. Chesnoff - Huffpost Blogger]

There are certainly businesses and companies in Egypt owned by wealthy Copts. But not all Copts are wealthy nor does that relieve the fact that Copts have steadily faced discrimination in Egypt for decades. There certainly has been legitimate reporting in recent years regarding the persecution of Copts in Egypt.
Nowhere do I suggest that anyone should invoke the "force of weapons" to protect Christians in the Muslim world. If Muslims have complaints about the way they believe Muslims are treated in Israel or anywhere else, there are means of protesting without resorting to violence and terrorism.

[mommadona]

I thought that Blackwater was going to solve this problem - 'Onward Christian Soldier' 21st Century...

[minimalist syntax]

'Onward Christian Soldier' is not even a hymn or a way of thinking that is part of the traditions of the Christians of the Middle East. I too hate the right wing policies of Bush, but don't equate your caricature of Christianity to the realities of Christians in the Middle East.

[Adam7]

Richard –

Here is a second good question. - Why are the Muslims in the world oblivious to the Chinese government's supression of Muslim Weigurs in Xinjiang Province? Why are Muslims throughout the world allowing the Han Chinese to take over the entire Muslim Weigur province of Xinjiang?

Where are the fatwas?

Are the Weigurs a test people to see how the Muslims of the world respond to the plight of their fellow co-religionists? - Can the Chinese Han dominate, suppress and kill Weigurs at random without the Muslims worldwide not speaking out?

How long will the Wahabis in Saudi Arabia stand for this outrage against the Muslims of China?

What is going on with foreign relations between the Saudi's and the Chinese?

Will any Muslims speak up for the Wiegurs?