The Vanishing Little Star of Bethlehem:
Christianity under
Attack in the Middle-East
by Rabbi Dr. Daniel M. Zucker
Human Events,
International Analyst Network, Codex-Politics, 6 November 2011,
Intellectual
Conservative,
7 November 2011.
News coming out of the Middle-East in the last few months has
focused on two principal areas: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the
so-called “Arab Spring”. The headlines have been restricted to these two
topics. Buried deep within the bodies of such prestigious papers as the New
York Times, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles
Times, if covered at all, are stories of the on-going destruction and
persecution of millennia-old Christian communities within the cradle of
Christianity: the Middle-East. The phenomenon is not exactly new; it’s been
going on for decades if not centuries, but the growth and spread of Islamic
fundamentalism within the last decade and the overthrow of Western-oriented
Arab dictatorships has set in motion a rising tide of anti-Christian behavior that
threatens to wipe out Christianity in the Middle-East in what amounts to a
repetition of what has occurred to Jewish communities throughout Islamic
nations within the past six decades since the creation of the Jewish State of
Israel.
Five nations that demonstrate the ongoing obliteration of
Christianity in the region will serve to illustrate the point: Egypt, Iraq,
Afghanistan, Palestine, and Iran
.
We start with Egypt, a nation of eighty million with a 10 %
minority population of eight million Coptic Christians. The Coptic Church is
one of the world’s oldest, and its appearance in Egypt precedes Islam by at
least half a millennium. Earlier this past month, Copts throughout Egypt
organized demonstrations to protest the fire-bombing of a church in upper Egypt
the prior week, as well as one back in mid-March, and the on-going
campaign of harassment by Islamists in the region. At the October 9, 2011
demonstration in front of the Maspero district headquarters of the
national television network, attended by a reported figure of 10,000 Copts,1 the
Egyptian army opened fire with live ammunition, killing Copts indiscriminately.
Then armored military vehicles appeared driving into the crowds randomly and
causing widespread mayhem. Final tally: 24 dead and over 300 wounded.2 The on-going Islamist attacks3 against the Copts are causing many to consider
seeking refuge in the West.4
Let’s move on to Iraq. Twenty years ago, Iraq’s Christian
community numbered over a million members.5 A
decade ago, out of a total population of almost 24 million, 850,0006 identified
as Christians. Today, with a population of 30.7 million, the Christian
population appears to be less than 335,000.7 What
has happened?8 Although the new Iraqi
constitution guarantees freedom of religion, there is no provision in the Iraqi
system for those that wish to convert, especially if it is from Islam to
Christianity. And radical Islam has been launching attacks on Christian Iraqis
ever since Saddam Hussein’s ouster.9 This
past year has seen the level of violence increase, starting with last
year’s al-Qaeda attack on Our Lady of Deliverance Syrian
Catholic Church in Baghdad which left 52 dead.10 Anti-Christian
persecution continues, unabated.11
In Afghanistan, along with the country being virtually “Judenfrei”
or “Judenrein”,12 it is now free
of any overt symbol of Christianity with the destruction of the last remaining
church in March 2010.13 The U.S. State
Department’s recently released report on religious freedom14
indicates that the small native Christian population feels tremendous pressure
to remain out of sight, and the case of the Moslem who converted to
Christianity and was nearly executed under Afghanistan’s Sharia law
for Islamic apostasy15 demonstrates that freedom
of conscience does not exist in present day Afghanistan despite the presence of
American and NATO forces in that country for a decade.
When we turn to the Palestinian Territories, we are looking
at the birthplace of Christianity. To see this two millennia community
threatened with disappearance must be gut-wrenching for devout Christians. But
like it or not, the Christian Arab population of the Holy Land16 faces the threat of extinction.17 The causes are many, but explosive
Muslim birth rates compared with bare replacement rates among Arab Christians
have caused the Christian percentage of the Palestinian Territories to diminish
sharply.18 In actuality, the
Palestinian Christian population has increased in the past forty-four years
from 42,494 in 1967 to slightly more than 50,000 today.19 However,
because of the changing percentage ratios of Christians to Muslims in the
greater Bethlehem area—a region traditionally associated with very high
percentages of Christian populations (70-95%)—the decreases to 28-60% appear as
precipitous declines.20
Along with the huge Muslim population explosion in the West
Bank and Gaza there is now a phenomenon that does not bode well for the
Christian Arab populations of these two areas. The radicalization of Islam,
especially in Gaza where HAMAS controls the government, has
resulted in pressure on the Christian community.21 But
even in areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority, such as Bethlehem,
Christian Arabs feel persecuted by the Moslem majority.22 Whether
or not the persecution is officially sanctioned by the PA and/or HAMAS in
their respective regions of control, it is clear that neither is doing enough
to root out anti-Christian vigilantism.23
The final country that we examine in this brief survey is
Iran. Although the Islamic Republic of Iran enshrines freedom of religion in
its constitution and has seats each for a Jewish and Armenian Christian
representative in the national legislature (Majlis), because of Islamic
(Sharia) law, conversion from Islam to Christianity is considered
apostasy and as such is a capital crime. The result is that both converts to
Christianity, and those Christians that aid them, find themselves under severe
persecution, imprisonment,24 and
occasionally, threat of execution.25 The
current case of Pastor Yusef Nadarkhani is a perfect example. Nadarkhani is
currently scheduled for execution for apostasy from Islam.26 Over
250 Christians were arrested in the last year for their religious beliefs and
more than one has been release from prison only to disappear until his or her
body parts show up in different locations.27
In conclusion, it was revealed recently that some 105,000
Christians are killed annually because of their religious convictions, the vast
majority at the hands of radical Muslims.28 At
the end of his article,29 Elwood McQuaid
makes a poignant statement, raising several pertinent questions that deserve
repetition here: “In America, Muslims are protected, much more so than
evangelical Christians. Protecting Muslim citizens is an honorable pursuit that
raises America’s standards far above those in so many other parts of the world.
Yet why are the same leaders who so passionately protect Muslim rights in
America doing nothing for Christians who are dying in record numbers? Why do so
many of our leaders hold their tongues as the world turns a blind eye? And
there is another question—one we must all ask ourselves: Why has the church
been virtually silent about the suffering of our brethren?” Why, indeed?
Rabbi Dr. Daniel M. Zucker is founder and Chairman of the
Board of Americans
for Democracy in the Middle-East, a grassroots organization dedicated
to teaching the public and its elected officials of the need to
promote genuine democratic institutions throughout the Middle-East region as an
antidote to the dangers posed by Islamic fundamentalism. He may be contacted atcontact@ADME.ws.
NOTES:
1 Reuters, “Egyptian Christians clash
with police in Cairo, 23 killed”, The Jerusalem Post, October 9, 2011, http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=241079.
See also: Oren Kessler and Reuters, ”Egypt’s Copts mourn dead after clashes
with army kill 25”, The Jerusalem Post, October 14, 2011, http://www.jpost.com/VideoArticles/Video/Article.aspx?id=241249.
2 Mary Abdelmassih (AINA), “Egyptian Army,
Police Kill 24 Coptic Christian Protestors”, Assyrian International
News Agency, October 10, 2011, http://www.aina.org/news/20111010003621.htm.
3 Raymond Ibrahim, “Egypt's Massacre of
Christians: What the Media Does Not Want You To Know”, Hudson New York,
October 31, 2011, http://www.hudson-ny.org/2544/egypt-massacre-christians-media.
4 Elwood McQuaid, “Where have all the
Christians gone?”, The Jerusalem Post, October 31, 2011, http://www.jpost.com/Magazine/Opinion/Article.aspx?id=243128.
5 Alex Murashko, Christian Post, “Christians
in Iraq feel 'failed' by government”, Christian Today, October 19, 2011,
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christians.in.iraq.feel.failed.by.government/28786.htm.
6 Ibid.
8 See Daniel Pipes, “Christians
Disappearing from Iraq”, New York Sun, August 24, 2004, http://www.danielpipes.org/2033/christians-disappearing-from-iraq.
9 Aidan Clay, ASSIST News Service,
“Iraq's Christians torn between staying or facing death at home”, Christian
Today, October 31, 2011, http://www.christiantoday.com/article/iraqs.christians.torn.between.staying.or.facing.death.at.home/28841.htm.
10 AP, “Baghdad church siege ends with 52
dead”, The Jerusalem Post, November 1, 2010,
11 See among others, the following
reports at http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/iraq/:
CDN, “The Double Lives of Iraq’s Christian Children”,Compass Direct News, October
11, 2011, http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/iraq/article_121814.html,
CDN, “Insurgent Blast Ravages Church Building”,Compass Direct News, August
16, 2011, http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/iraq/article_116306.html,
CDN, “Blast Near Church in Kirkuk, Iraq Injures 13”, Compass Direct
News, August 3, 2011, http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/iraq/article_115875.html,
and CDN, “Kidnappers Allegedly Called Murdered Iraqi Christian’s
Employer”, Compass Direct News, May 18, 2011, http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/iraq/article_112815.html.
12 “Jew-free”. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judenfrei.
There actually is one Jewish Afghan remaining in Kabul according to this report
of Edwin Mora, “Only One Jewish Resident Left in Afghanistan, Says State
Department”, CNS News, October 11, 2011,
13 Edwin Mora, op. cit., http://cnsnews.com/news/article/only-one-jewish-resident-left-afghanistan-says-state-department.
14 International
Religious Freedom Report 2010 : http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2010/index.htm.
See material for Afghanistan at:http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2010/148786.htm (November
17, 2010).
15 Aidan Clay, “Afghan Christian Refugees
under Threat”, Assist News Service, May 24, 2011, http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/2011/s11050153.htm.
16 “Open Doors” sets the
current Christian population of the Palestinian Territories at 400,000 out of a
total population of 4.3 million, without explaining how it arrives at this
figure. See: http://www.opendoorsusa.org/persecution/country-profiles/palestinian-territories/.
17 Although a decade old, see Daniel
Pipes, “Disappearing Christians in the Middle East”, Middle East
Quarterly, Winter 2001,http://www.danielpipes.org/1050/disappearing-christians-in-the-middle-east.
18 Ethan Felson, “JCPA Background Paper:
The Palestinian Christian Population”, JCPA, Jerusalem, 2011, https://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5145/images/JCPA%20Background%20Paper%20on%20Palestinian%20Christians%207%202.pdf.
19 Ibid, p. 7.
20 Ibid. See Chart “Christian Percentage in Bethlehem
and Bethlehem Area” on p. 10, and Appendix B on p. 16.
21 CBN News, “Christians under Siege in
Gaza – UN Silent”, The Chronicle Watch, July 27, 2009,
http://www.chroniclewatch.com/2011/05/08/christians-under-siege-in-gaza-un-silent/.
Also see attached video.
22 http://www.shoebat.com/videos/christianBethlehem.php which
shows video of CBN News, “Baptist Church in Bethlehem Stands With Israel and
Gets the Usual Muslim Treatment”,
23 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2010/148825.htm,
see second half of report: “OCCUPIED TERRITORIES (INCLUDING AREAS SUBJECT TO
THE JURISDICTION OF THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY)”.
24 CBN, “Iran Steps Up Persecution of
Christians”, CBN News, May 27, 2011, http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2011/May/Iran-Steps-Up-Persecution-of-Christians/.
25 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2010/148819.htm.
See latter portion of report for abuse of Christians in Iran, especially of
Moslem converts to Christianity.
26 Walter Russell Meade, “Iran’s
Persecution of Christians Grows”, The American Interest, August 21,
2011, http://blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/2011/08/21/iranian-persecution-of-christians-grows/.
27 Compass Direct News, “Pastor in Iran
Awaits Decision on Execution”, The Christian Post, August 2,
2011, http://www.christianpost.com/news/pastor-in-iran-awaits-decision-on-execution-53249/.
28 Michael Carl, “Report: Christian dies
for beliefs every 5 minutes”, World Net Daily, June
19, 2011, http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=311393.
29 Elwood McQuaid, op. cit., http://www.jpost.com/Magazine/Opinion/Article.aspx?id=243128.
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