Thursday, April 09, 2009

The One-Way Street of "Respect"

Henninger has the goods.

Today is Holy Thursday for Christians and the start of Passover for Jews. This week was an opportune time for President Barack Obama to visit Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, which has been both a Byzantine church and Islamic mosque. In Turkey he spoke of seeking engagement with Islam based on "mutual respect."

Well, it ain't so "mutual."

--Coptic Christians in Egypt have been singled out for discrimination and persecution

--In Turkey, the Syriac Orthodox Church (its 3,000 members speak Aramaic, the language of Christ) is battling with Turkish authorities over the lands around the Mor Gabriel monastery, built in 397

--Pakistan's recent peace deal with the Taliban in the Swat Valley puts at risk the 500 Christians still trying to live there

--In 1995, the Saudis were allowed to build a mosque in Rome near the Vatican, but never reciprocated with a Christian church in their country. Saudi Arabia even forbids private worship at home for some one million Christian migrant workers.

(Of course, the President bows to King Abdullah, 'respecting' the royal anti-Christian bigot.)

--In Iraq, the situation for small religious minorities has become dire...Last fall the Chaldean-Assyrian archbishop of Mosul was kidnapped and murdered

Well. As a candidate, Obama yammered about the plight of Christians in the Middle East.

As President, he should follow through on his campaign statements.

HT: Dreher
at

3 comments:

  1. Joe of St. Thérèse4/09/2009 4:38 PM

    But Obama hates America.

    ReplyDelete
  2. J. Strupp4/10/2009 12:13 AM

    So, in response to the examples you give, what should the appropriate Christian response be?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Scot1and4/10/2009 3:52 PM

    IMO, It's more racial than religous. The different cristian groups (the Coptics, Armenians, Bzyatines, and Catholics,) actually have turf battles in the Holy Sepluchre. While I was in Jerusalem, I witnessed two groups of monks (one Catholic the other Greek) getting in a shoving match--right next to Jesus' tomb. A nice model for Christians in one of Christianity's holiest sites.

    But the infighting is not limited to christianity, in the Islamic world they have fighting between the Sunnie and the Shiite.

    Let's face it we have a xenophobic world and anyone that is different -- be it race, religion, or nationality is likely to face discrimination.

    ReplyDelete