From Jihad Watch:
What about the Hostages?
Some commentators on the Qur'an burning have said that Pastor Terry Jones was somehow unpatriotic, because his action endangered American soldiers in the field in Muslim countries. This is toxic nonsense. For one thing, the only person who endangered those troops was the man who sent them to hopeless missions in unfixable (i.e. Muslim) countries: The president and commander-in-chief.
Furthermore, these are not unarmed women and children, whose flights were somehow misdirected from Kalamazoo to Kabul. They are soldiers—and every one of them is a volunteer. They signed up to fight for our country, and pudgy, gunless civilians shouldn't insult their service by offering to “protect” these well-armed and courageous troops by quashing our freedoms at home. I'm sorry that American servicemen and women are in harm's way in Muslim countries, and I would like to see every single one of them brought home tomorrow. One criterion I will use in choosing a presidential candidate will be his willingness to bring home our troops, so they can stop getting blown up and shot at in defense of sharia.
Another argument out there asserts that the actions of Pastor Jones—and by definition, of all Islamo-realists—provoke Islamic violence against real innocent civilians, including unarmed men, women and children: namely, the millions of non-Muslims who live as hostages inside Islamic countries. The numbers of these people are shrinking, to be sure, as resurgent Islamic governments from Kosovo to Iraq find ways to ethnically cleanse their territories, repeating against the Christians the purges Arab states conducted of Jews in 1948. Tragic and criminal as that mass-expulsion was, it did have one advantage: there aren't millions of Jews living at the mercy of Muslim mobs, whom hostile governments can use as pawns or hold for ransom. Likewise, the flight of ancient Christian communities from Muslim-occupied countries is a painful assault on heritage and history. But in the long run it may save their lives, and give the rest of us more freedom of action in confronting global Islam while we still can.
This fact was pointed up for me by the comments of Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore, Pakistan—the head of the Pakistani conference of Catholic bishops. Now before I quote what Abp. Saldanha had to say about the present controversy, I want to point out that this man is no snivelling dhimmi (unlike certain Eastern rite clerics I could think of). Abp. Saldanha does not cover up the crimes of his country's Islamic government, or blame them on America or Israel. Indeed, in the recent report on the persecution of Christians around the world, Saldanha's voice was one of the loudest and most forthright. As we have reported before, Saldanha echoed the call of Scottish Cardinal Keith O'Brien that the British government withhold foreign aid from countries—such as Pakistan—that flout minority rights. The bishops conference Saldanha leads on March 26 asked the Vatican to consider declaring Shahbaz Bhatti a martyr. Besides the regular arrest and persecution of Christians under Pakistan's ludicrous “blasphemy” laws, Saldanha is threatened by less organized forces of repression. As Fides News reports:
the Catholic church of St Thomas, in the town of Wah Canntt, about 50 km from Rawalpindi, was attacked by a groups armed men last night, Monday 28 March, which resulted in damages. According to the account sent to Fides by the local parish priest, Fr Yusaf Amanat, about 6.30 pm a group of six armed men broke in to the Church's courtyard, throwing rocks at the lamps and windows, trying to force open the church door.
An attendant, alarmed by the noise, warned the parish priest and the police. The attackers, who were not able to force the door, instead, tried to set him on fire, then fled.
The priest told Fides about his concern about these acts of intimidation, which are perhaps related to the recent episode of the burning of the Koran by Pastor Terry Jones in the U.S.
So all this is background for understanding the following news story:
LAHORE, Pakistan, APRIL 5, 2011 (Zenit.org).- The archbishop of Lahore is calling for the arrest of two U.S. pastors whose Qur'an burning ceremony sparked violent attacks in Pakistan and Afghanistan, resulting in multiple deaths. ...
Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore condemned the desecration of the Qur'an, and told Aid to the Church in Need: "The U.S. government should detain the pastor for some time."
He added, "In view of the effects his actions have had all over the world, he should be controlled and understand the harm that has been done."
The prelate noted that "the U.S. government talks about religious freedom, but we call upon the U.S. government to prevent such actions by extremists and other fundamentalist Christians."
He acknowledged that the situation "could become ugly" due to growing anger over the desecration.
The aid agency reported that Pakistani churches are implementing extra security measures including armed guards, cameras and concrete blocks.
...
On Friday, Jones released a statement in response to the attacks, asserting that "Muslim dominated countries can no longer be allowed to spread their hate against Christians and minorities."
He added, "They must alter the laws that govern their countries to allow for individual freedoms and rights, such as the right to worship, free speech, and to move freely without fear of being attacked or killed."
My first reaction to reading this news story was probably yours as well: Immediate indignation that some foreigner is trying to get my government to suspend our Constitution, and subject Americans to cringing, fawning “respect” for Muslim sensibilities. I respect Islam exactly as I do Scientology, Christian Identity, and the theory that alien lizard men have controlled human history since the caves were painted at Lascaux. My hackles went up, and it took them a while to go back down. Certainly, we must reject such calls by clerics of any stripe to restrict our freedom of expression—which would only ever protect Islam, and amount to imposing a sharia blasphemy law, not just on Pakistan but across the planet. As someone who is clearly devoted to Shahbaz Bhatti and his cause, Abp. Saldanha should realize the implications of his statement.
But second thoughts are also important. Abp. Saldanha isn't only responsible for himself, but for millions of innocent unarmed Christians—who are already being persecuted by the Islamic government that is propped up by U.S. and Western foreign aid. The Muslim gun is at their heads, and we paid for the bullets. Now, as Saldanha must see it, the same country that shovels money into the hands of his evil government is tolerating provocations by its citizens that put more Pakistani Christians at risk. So I understand his frustration, and it is much more in sorrow than anger that I must tell Abp. Saldanha, respectfully, to leave our Constitution alone. His efforts would be much better spent impressing on U.S. congressmen the need for imposing religious toleration conditions on U.S. aid to any and every Muslim country, telling the world the stories of Pakistan's Christian martyrs, and preparing his threatened flock to cling to their faith all along the Way of the Cross that they are treading. I regret if the occasional American zealot inadvertently makes their walk a little harder—but Abp. Saldanha should not blame Barabbas for the crime of Pontius Pilate.
Posted by Roland Shirk on April 6, 2011 5:12 PM
What about the Hostages?
Some commentators on the Qur'an burning have said that Pastor Terry Jones was somehow unpatriotic, because his action endangered American soldiers in the field in Muslim countries. This is toxic nonsense. For one thing, the only person who endangered those troops was the man who sent them to hopeless missions in unfixable (i.e. Muslim) countries: The president and commander-in-chief.
Furthermore, these are not unarmed women and children, whose flights were somehow misdirected from Kalamazoo to Kabul. They are soldiers—and every one of them is a volunteer. They signed up to fight for our country, and pudgy, gunless civilians shouldn't insult their service by offering to “protect” these well-armed and courageous troops by quashing our freedoms at home. I'm sorry that American servicemen and women are in harm's way in Muslim countries, and I would like to see every single one of them brought home tomorrow. One criterion I will use in choosing a presidential candidate will be his willingness to bring home our troops, so they can stop getting blown up and shot at in defense of sharia.
Another argument out there asserts that the actions of Pastor Jones—and by definition, of all Islamo-realists—provoke Islamic violence against real innocent civilians, including unarmed men, women and children: namely, the millions of non-Muslims who live as hostages inside Islamic countries. The numbers of these people are shrinking, to be sure, as resurgent Islamic governments from Kosovo to Iraq find ways to ethnically cleanse their territories, repeating against the Christians the purges Arab states conducted of Jews in 1948. Tragic and criminal as that mass-expulsion was, it did have one advantage: there aren't millions of Jews living at the mercy of Muslim mobs, whom hostile governments can use as pawns or hold for ransom. Likewise, the flight of ancient Christian communities from Muslim-occupied countries is a painful assault on heritage and history. But in the long run it may save their lives, and give the rest of us more freedom of action in confronting global Islam while we still can.
This fact was pointed up for me by the comments of Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore, Pakistan—the head of the Pakistani conference of Catholic bishops. Now before I quote what Abp. Saldanha had to say about the present controversy, I want to point out that this man is no snivelling dhimmi (unlike certain Eastern rite clerics I could think of). Abp. Saldanha does not cover up the crimes of his country's Islamic government, or blame them on America or Israel. Indeed, in the recent report on the persecution of Christians around the world, Saldanha's voice was one of the loudest and most forthright. As we have reported before, Saldanha echoed the call of Scottish Cardinal Keith O'Brien that the British government withhold foreign aid from countries—such as Pakistan—that flout minority rights. The bishops conference Saldanha leads on March 26 asked the Vatican to consider declaring Shahbaz Bhatti a martyr. Besides the regular arrest and persecution of Christians under Pakistan's ludicrous “blasphemy” laws, Saldanha is threatened by less organized forces of repression. As Fides News reports:
the Catholic church of St Thomas, in the town of Wah Canntt, about 50 km from Rawalpindi, was attacked by a groups armed men last night, Monday 28 March, which resulted in damages. According to the account sent to Fides by the local parish priest, Fr Yusaf Amanat, about 6.30 pm a group of six armed men broke in to the Church's courtyard, throwing rocks at the lamps and windows, trying to force open the church door.
An attendant, alarmed by the noise, warned the parish priest and the police. The attackers, who were not able to force the door, instead, tried to set him on fire, then fled.
The priest told Fides about his concern about these acts of intimidation, which are perhaps related to the recent episode of the burning of the Koran by Pastor Terry Jones in the U.S.
So all this is background for understanding the following news story:
LAHORE, Pakistan, APRIL 5, 2011 (Zenit.org).- The archbishop of Lahore is calling for the arrest of two U.S. pastors whose Qur'an burning ceremony sparked violent attacks in Pakistan and Afghanistan, resulting in multiple deaths. ...
Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore condemned the desecration of the Qur'an, and told Aid to the Church in Need: "The U.S. government should detain the pastor for some time."
He added, "In view of the effects his actions have had all over the world, he should be controlled and understand the harm that has been done."
The prelate noted that "the U.S. government talks about religious freedom, but we call upon the U.S. government to prevent such actions by extremists and other fundamentalist Christians."
He acknowledged that the situation "could become ugly" due to growing anger over the desecration.
The aid agency reported that Pakistani churches are implementing extra security measures including armed guards, cameras and concrete blocks.
...
On Friday, Jones released a statement in response to the attacks, asserting that "Muslim dominated countries can no longer be allowed to spread their hate against Christians and minorities."
He added, "They must alter the laws that govern their countries to allow for individual freedoms and rights, such as the right to worship, free speech, and to move freely without fear of being attacked or killed."
My first reaction to reading this news story was probably yours as well: Immediate indignation that some foreigner is trying to get my government to suspend our Constitution, and subject Americans to cringing, fawning “respect” for Muslim sensibilities. I respect Islam exactly as I do Scientology, Christian Identity, and the theory that alien lizard men have controlled human history since the caves were painted at Lascaux. My hackles went up, and it took them a while to go back down. Certainly, we must reject such calls by clerics of any stripe to restrict our freedom of expression—which would only ever protect Islam, and amount to imposing a sharia blasphemy law, not just on Pakistan but across the planet. As someone who is clearly devoted to Shahbaz Bhatti and his cause, Abp. Saldanha should realize the implications of his statement.
But second thoughts are also important. Abp. Saldanha isn't only responsible for himself, but for millions of innocent unarmed Christians—who are already being persecuted by the Islamic government that is propped up by U.S. and Western foreign aid. The Muslim gun is at their heads, and we paid for the bullets. Now, as Saldanha must see it, the same country that shovels money into the hands of his evil government is tolerating provocations by its citizens that put more Pakistani Christians at risk. So I understand his frustration, and it is much more in sorrow than anger that I must tell Abp. Saldanha, respectfully, to leave our Constitution alone. His efforts would be much better spent impressing on U.S. congressmen the need for imposing religious toleration conditions on U.S. aid to any and every Muslim country, telling the world the stories of Pakistan's Christian martyrs, and preparing his threatened flock to cling to their faith all along the Way of the Cross that they are treading. I regret if the occasional American zealot inadvertently makes their walk a little harder—but Abp. Saldanha should not blame Barabbas for the crime of Pontius Pilate.
Posted by Roland Shirk on April 6, 2011 5:12 PM
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