|
Responding to the recent violence in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the massacre in Maspero, and the unsettling Islamist surge in the first round of Egypt’s elections, the 1.3 million member American Baptist Church denomination declared December 11, a day of prayer for the besieged Egyptian Christians. In his letter to the denomination, General Secretary, A. Ray Morey, described Egypt’s “pivotal influence in the region” by describing the nature of its Christian community and by citing the important “role in brokering peace with Israel” that nation played. This declaration of prayer by the American Baptists is, unfortunately, unusual among the notoriously politically vocal liberal Mainline Protestant denominations.
In light of the crucial role that Egypt plays in the Arab world, the American Baptist and Christians around the world have much about which to be concerned. The recent elections that have ushered in two Islamist political parties have sent religious minorities, especially Christians, running for the exits. A report by Nina Shea, director of the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, noted that reports are coming citing as many as 100,000 Coptic Christians have already fled the country. She went on to say, “As with other sudden, mass exoduses in world history, this one is a sure sign that a minority community fears persecution.”
Church of England Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, in a speech before the House of Lords, also voiced concern about the rise in emigration, stating, “Of late, the Coptic community has seen levels of emigration rise to unprecedented heights, and in a way that would have been unthinkable even a very few years ago, it is anxious about sharing the fate of other Christian communities that once seemed securely embedded in their setting.”
Home to the largest and oldest Christian community in the Middle East, the Christians of Egypt have played an important role of the global Church for nearly 2,000 years. From its inception through the Apostolic preaching of Saint Mark to the citizens of Alexandria, until today, the Christians of Egypt have known the joy of abundance and the bitterness of persecution. The fear of the return of jizya, a special tax on religious minorities and proposed by members of the Islamist Al-Nour Party, is a serious concern for many.
Early signs of interfaith cooperation among Egypt’s pro-democracy demonstrators was greatly lauded by many Christians around the world. But many on the Christian Left seem blind to and silent about the rising influence of anti-Christian Islamists. The United Methodist’s General Board on Church and Society issued a statement in early August rejoicing “that Tunisian and Egyptian people have taken important steps toward liberating their countries from dictatorial rule.” To prove their true interfaith commitment, the statement opened by quoting from both the Bible and the Koran. It celebrated how “youths, women, trade unionists, religious leaders and ordinary people are engaged in sustained massive demonstrations, strikes, marches and rallies. They have used social media to contact each other and make known their struggles to the world. This is the Arab Spring. People are standing up for their dignity, freedom, and human rights and for economic justice.”
Optimism about the Arab Spring by many on the Religious Left showed both an ignorance of history and a stunning degree of naiveté. Their faith in the unproven promises of tolerance by the newly victorious Islamists, is only outmatched by their zeal to portray Evangelicals as intolerant. At one “Islamophobia” conference at St Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral in Seattle earlier this year, mostly Christian participants were even encouraged to join Muslim participants in their evening Muslim prayers. Placing their prayer rugs next to the sanctuary’s altar, IRD staffer Jeff Walton described the event, “The call to sunset prayer issued by Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf echoed through the room, and worshipers came forward – some in Muslim garb, others in western clothing. Removing their shoes and kneeling to face Mecca, the worshipers uttered prayers from the Koran, led by the controversial cleric known for his plan to build an Islamic center near the Ground Zero site in lower Manhattan.” Jeff also noted that the conference was put on by “several Muslim and liberal Christian groups, among them the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Sabeel North America, and Trinity United Methodist Church of Seattle. Episcopal Bishop Greg Rickel, United Methodist Pacific Northwest Conference Bishop Grant Hagiya, and Bishop Chris Boerger of the Northwest Washington Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.”
The Religious Left routinely and noisily denounces conservative Evangelical “intolerance” and “Islamophobia.” But Islamist repression of Christians and others, now possible in a future Egyptian government, if not already, barely provokes a peep from leftist church prelates. The issue is largely absent from liberal denominational websites and their blogs, while their officials are absent from congressional hearings and demonstrations on behalf of persecuted Copts. The American Baptists boldly stepped out in prayer. Will other U.S. denominations, including Mainline Protestants typically loath to criticize Islamists, pray and speak out for Egyptian Christians?
Related articles:
- Sudan’s Anglicans Un-invite U.S. Episcopal Church Bishop
- Occupying Churches
- New York City’s Growing Churches Face Eviction
No comments yet
