Christian persecution? No. Annihilation!

[aris2chat]

Iran, Nigeria, Egypt, Syria.... it just keeps happening


Christian persecution? No. Annihilation!
'We are faced with a potential extinction of the church'
Published: 17 mins ago
by Alyssa Farah

WASHINGTON – The first delegation of Syrian Christian church leaders to visit the U.S. since civil war broke out in March 2011 spoke Monday at the Heritage Foundation, issuing a stunning warning that the nation’s Christian population could vanish.

“Today we are faced with a potential extinction of the church,” Patrick Sookhdeo, chairman of the Westminster Institute, warned. “Not just in Syria. We’ve seen it in Iraq. The church could fall in Lebanon.”

The panel discussion, “Marked for Destruction: The Plight of Syria’s Christians,” featured Syrian Christian leaders Rev. Adib Awad, the general secretary of the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon; H.E. Bishop Elias Toumeh, Orthodox bishop of Pyrgou-Syria; Rev. Riad Jarjour, former general secretary of the Middle East Council of Churches; H.E. Bishop Dionysius Jean Kawak of the Syrian Orthodox Church; Bishop Armash Nalbandian of the Armenian Church of Damascus, and Bishop Julian Dobbs.

Dobbs said Syria “used to be one of the easiest places in the Arab world to be a Christian across the Middle East.

“The church has existed there since biblical times,” he said. “Christians were respected by the Muslim majority and were able to practice their faith with little interference. But, this has largely changed since the civil war broke out.”

He described the persecution Christian Syrians have faced since the conflict erupted, and he criticized the West for largely ignoring their plight.

“Christians in their homelands have been attacked and invaded, houses have been ransacked, Christians have been kidnapped for ransom and brutally murdered,” Dobbs said. “Yet much of the Western World, the church, the media have remained silent about this situation.”

According to reports, there were more than 1,200 Christian martyrs in Syria in 2013 alone, while tens of thousands have been displaced.

Jarjour took to the podium to explain the plight of Christians still in Syria.

“Our Christian community is a broken community; it’s a suffering community. We have thousands and thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) not in their homes, not knowing what to do,” he said.

The delegation was hosted by the Westminster Institute and Barnabas Aid, a group that gives aid to oppressed Christians worldwide.

Kawak spoke of the horrific risk church leaders face in Syria particularly. He said the kidnapping of 12 Orthodox nuns, bishops and a priest by Syrian rebels “instilled fear in the hearts of Christian leaders” in Syria.

All speakers ultimately warned of the dangers of persecuted Christians fleeing Syria and leaving it as a nation with virtually no Christian population, drawing parallels to Iraq.

Awad noted that prior to the Iraq war, the Christian population in Iraq was 5 percent of the population, with more than 1.5 million. Now, just a decade later, there are as few as 400,000.

“Due to persecution, due to pressures, due to killings, we are all together less than 20 percent of the Syrian population,” Awad said.

Adib commented on the title of the discussion, “Marked for Destruction,” saying: “We can accept being marked for destruction if it’s by our Lord. But we will not accept it if it is by terrorist, whether Saudis, or from Qatar or any other nation.”

Sookhdeo urged the Western media to stop turning a blind eye to the plight of Christians in Syria.

....................

 

[TheOldSchool]

Good thing all the powerful people in the world are Christian

 

[aris2chat]

Persecution of Christians May Hit Record Levels in 2014

DANIEL PROUSSALIDIS | QMI AGENCY

OTTAWA - The next year could bring record levels of religious persecution around the world, say international experts - especially for Christians.

"I think in 2014, unless there's a drastic change in the current trend, we're going to continue to see things get worse," said Isaac Six, advocacy officer for International Christian Concern, a Washington D.C.-based, non-denominational watchdog group that monitors the human rights of Christians.

Six says the spread of radical Islam increases religious persecution.

"We have absolutely seen a rise (in persecution), especially over the last decade, in countries where radical Islam is growing," he said. "There is a direct connection - almost (a) proportional connection - to the persecution of religious minorities, (which) of course includes Christians. It also includes other Muslim minorities and other faiths."

Paul Estabrooks, with Open Doors Canada, says he's also seen the effects of Islamism.

"In 2013, things have gotten much worse in countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan, in Somalia," said Estabrooks. "It's a very significant challenge for Christians in those countries. We don't see much hope for change in 2014."

Their comments come on the heels of a major study by Pew Research that found hostility toward religion reached a six-year high around the world in 2012, noting that the "sharpest increase was in the Middle East and North Africa" as a result of the so-called Arab Spring.

The study released Jan. 14 also found Christians were the most widely harassed group.

That's something Canada's ambassador for religious freedom says he's noticed too, especially in Syria.

"We see that there has been an increasing targeting of Christians," said Andrew Bennett. "I think Christians throughout the Middle East are very concerned about the impact of various violent acts - either government-sponsored or sponsored by radicals - are having on their numbers, with Christians fleeing their historic countries where they've lived for the better part of 2,000 years."

Despite concerns about the Middle East, many worry even more about the Communist dictatorship of North Korea.

"It's consistently been the worst persecutor of the Christian faith for at least the last decade if not more," said Six. "You've got an estimated 50,000 Christians or so in concentration camps there."

He says there are hundreds of thousands more North Koreans who worship Jesus Christ secretly, while several others have been publicly executed for owning a Bible.

Six adds that persecution needs more media attention.

"The biggest issue is probably that in the West, perhaps because we think we live in a post-religious society, we underestimate just how important faith is to communities around the world and we don't really prioritize religious freedom, and the protection of religious minorities as a human right," he said.

..............................

 

[waltky]

Islamic Extremism the Main Cause of Persecution for Christians...

Watch List: Islamic Extremism the Cause of Persecution for Christians in 35 Out of 50 Most Persecuted Countries
January 13, 2017 – Open Doors USA released its 25th annual World Watch List (WWL), a ranking of the top 50 countries “where Christians face the most severe persecution for their faith” Wednesday, noting that “Islamic extremism is the lead generator of persecution for 35 out of 50 countries on the list.”

Communist North Korea topped the list for the 16th consecutive year because of the regime’s extreme oppression of Christians. The other nine countries in the top 10 are listed as having either Islamic extremism or Islamic oppression as a main cause of persecution. The watch list’s top 10 countries for the most Christian persecution are, in order: North Korea, Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Eritrea.

Pakistan, which placed fourth on the list, had “the most all-pervasive violence recorded” in the WWL 2017 recording period from November 2015 to October 2016. The 2016 Easter Sunday bombing in Lahore, which killed 74 and injured 320, is one example of the violence Christians have seen in Pakistan over the past year. World Watch Research also noted in its summary of the Watch List’s major trends that “Islamic militancy is gaining ground in many more sectors of society” in Somalia since, “especially with generous Saudi funding – they are building new networks of extremist schools in Somalia, Kenya, Niger and Burkina Faso, and then targeting local government cadres, asking for concessions to build mosques and sponsoring those who are running for office.”

Yemen, number nine on the list, joined the top 10 this year with the research group noting that, as Saudis seek to remove the Shia Houthi rebels, the country “has become a waste zone, with many Christians caught in the crossfire.” As CNSNews.com previously reported, four sisters of the Missionaries of Charity were killed in a March attack on their home in Yemen, and an Indian priest who was captured in the same attack is still being held hostage. Iran, number eight on the watch list, “arrested record numbers of ‘house church’ Christians, and many are losing their livelihoods after having to pay huge fines.”

According to Open Doors USA CEO David Curry, "2016 was the worst year of persecution on record with a shocking 215 million Christians experiencing high levels of persecution for their faith." The report’s fact sheet noted that “in the top 21 countries on the Open Doors World Watch List, 100 percent of Christians experience persecution.” The list examined the pressures faced by Christians in five spheres of life (private, family, community, national, and church), plus levels of violence. World Watch List questionnaires are distributed by field staff and also filled out by external experts. The questionnaires determine the types of Christianity persecuted, the proportion of territory affected, and the intensity and frequency of persecution.

Watch List: Islamic Extremism the Cause of Persecution for Christians in 35 Out of 50 Most Persecuted Countries

 

[aris2chat]

Islamic Extremism the Main Cause of Persecution for Christians...

Watch List: Islamic Extremism the Cause of Persecution for Christians in 35 Out of 50 Most Persecuted Countries
January 13, 2017 – Open Doors USA released its 25th annual World Watch List (WWL), a ranking of the top 50 countries “where Christians face the most severe persecution for their faith” Wednesday, noting that “Islamic extremism is the lead generator of persecution for 35 out of 50 countries on the list.”

Communist North Korea topped the list for the 16th consecutive year because of the regime’s extreme oppression of Christians. The other nine countries in the top 10 are listed as having either Islamic extremism or Islamic oppression as a main cause of persecution. The watch list’s top 10 countries for the most Christian persecution are, in order: North Korea, Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Eritrea.

Pakistan, which placed fourth on the list, had “the most all-pervasive violence recorded” in the WWL 2017 recording period from November 2015 to October 2016. The 2016 Easter Sunday bombing in Lahore, which killed 74 and injured 320, is one example of the violence Christians have seen in Pakistan over the past year. World Watch Research also noted in its summary of the Watch List’s major trends that “Islamic militancy is gaining ground in many more sectors of society” in Somalia since, “especially with generous Saudi funding – they are building new networks of extremist schools in Somalia, Kenya, Niger and Burkina Faso, and then targeting local government cadres, asking for concessions to build mosques and sponsoring those who are running for office.”

Yemen, number nine on the list, joined the top 10 this year with the research group noting that, as Saudis seek to remove the Shia Houthi rebels, the country “has become a waste zone, with many Christians caught in the crossfire.” As CNSNews.com previously reported, four sisters of the Missionaries of Charity were killed in a March attack on their home in Yemen, and an Indian priest who was captured in the same attack is still being held hostage. Iran, number eight on the watch list, “arrested record numbers of ‘house church’ Christians, and many are losing their livelihoods after having to pay huge fines.”

According to Open Doors USA CEO David Curry, "2016 was the worst year of persecution on record with a shocking 215 million Christians experiencing high levels of persecution for their faith." The report’s fact sheet noted that “in the top 21 countries on the Open Doors World Watch List, 100 percent of Christians experience persecution.” The list examined the pressures faced by Christians in five spheres of life (private, family, community, national, and church), plus levels of violence. World Watch List questionnaires are distributed by field staff and also filled out by external experts. The questionnaires determine the types of Christianity persecuted, the proportion of territory affected, and the intensity and frequency of persecution.

Watch List: Islamic Extremism the Cause of Persecution for Christians in 35 Out of 50 Most Persecuted Countries

...and hamas just opened in an embassy at the vatican

 

[waltky]

Dat's why dey persecuted the Russians - `cause dey didn't have a 'Book'...

Report: Islamic States Lead in the Persecution of the Non-Religious
December 18, 2017 | A new report warns that secularism is under threat across the globe, with persecution of the non-religious on the increase – and Islamic countries dominate the list of the most egregious offenders.

The Freedom of Thought Report 2017, published by the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) this month, found that 85 countries severely violate the human rights of the non-religious in at least one area or worse. Breaches range from countries where laws against blasphemy persist to the 30 countries where the right not to believe is violated at the highest level, for example laws are largely or entirely derived from religion or from religious authorities. Of the 30 countries, 26 are members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the bloc of 56 mostly Muslim-majority nations. The remaining four are China, North Korea, Eritrea and Ethiopia. In Pakistan, a humanist activist was murdered this year by his fellow college students, atheists were barred from taking public office, and there were continuing reports of forced religious conversions.

The report gave the United States a relatively good rating due to constitutional protections enjoyed by its citizens and well-established beliefs in personal freedom. The IHEU did warn, however, that secularist and humanist face ongoing battles with religious groups over issues of separation of church and state. Overall, the report said that the vast majority of the world’s countries fail to respect the rights of humanists, atheists, and the non-religious. The IHEU said the issue was significant, because the way a nation deals with freedom of thought almost always reflects the way it treats human rights overall. The report’s editor, Bob Churchill, said North Korea offered a good example of this. The regime clamps down on freedom of thought, but beyond that “the entire environment is dedicated to brainwashing,” he said.

Saudi Arabia is one of 30 countries identified in a new report as a major violator of the rights of the non-religious. Like other countries on the list, the kingdom is a member of the U.N. Human Rights Council. Here Saudi ambassador Abdulaziz Alwasil meets with U.N. Geneva director-general Michael Møller.​

According to the IHEU, the impetus for an annual report began in 2012 when the State Department’s Office for Religious Freedom asked the American Humanist Association to write a report on global human rights violations against the non-religious. The IHEU then took the report written by the AHA and other American affiliates, and expanded it out into an international edition, which now examines the record of every country, Churchill agreed that humanist activists could be described as “a canary in the coalmine” when it comes to broader human rights violations. “But they’re also leading voices for reform and criticism of religious practices that are harmful to society,” he said. Ahead of the report’s launch, IHEU president Andrew Copson said humanists and atheists in countries like Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Pakistan are increasingly telling his group that they have been silenced, including online. ”They are afraid they’re going to be attacked for it, maybe even killed,” he said.

In recent years, Britain’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office, like counterparts in other countries as well as international institutions, has publicly made ”freedom of religion or belief” a policy priority. In October, a report from a cross-party group of British lawmakers said that while this freedom was no longer a neglected one in policy discussions, it remained ”orphaned” when it comes to implementing policy. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said in a speech this month that international development aid programs were the key to expanding freedom of religion or belief in the Middle East. “If there is to be that third alternative, neither anti-democratic tyranny, nor Islamism, but pluralist and tolerant, then we need to intensify our current work,” he said.

Government ministers have pointed in the recent past to one program in the Middle East and northern Africa that helps secondary school teachers promote religious tolerance in their classes. The 30 countries found to have the worst records are: Afghanistan, China, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Comoros, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Syria, Sudan, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

Report: Islamic States Lead in the Persecution of the Non-Religious

 

[Cherub786]

بسم الله الرحمـن الرحيم

والصلاة والسلام على رسوله الكريم

والعاقبة للمتّقين​

They don’t belong in Middle East, certainly not in Arabia. Don’t profane our land, go to Europe, go to your Rome. A church is more foreign to us than an igloo. All of those people in Middle East especially Lebanon and Syria are bastard children of European Crusaders

 

[Lastamender]

Good thing all the powerful people in the world are Christian

Islam is killing them. The powerful are intimidated by violence and greedy.

 

[Lastamender]

بسم الله الرحمـن الرحيم

والصلاة والسلام على رسوله الكريم

والعاقبة للمتّقين​

They don’t belong in Middle East, certainly not in Arabia. Don’t profane our land, go to Europe, go to your Rome. A church is more foreign to us than an igloo. All of those people in Middle East especially Lebanon and Syria are bastard children of European Crusaders

Probably the educated ones too.

 

[irosie91]

Good thing all the powerful people in the world are Christian

you got a citation for that idiotic remark?

 

[irosie91]

I support a TWO STATE solution in the land once called
PALESTINA-------A Jewish state to include Israel, Samaria,
the ancient Philistia and Gaza and a Christian state to include
Transjordan and Nazareth and some bits and pieces of the
Galil. I think my plan will provide access to both the
Mediterranean and the Red Sea for both states. Along
with Transjordan----Christians are entitle to the northern
parts of Iraq along with Kurds------assuming kurds will remain
friendly. Beirut and its surround should be rendered independent
and a Christian country-----southern Lebanon should be completely demilitarized a DMZ ----<<<< what a great idea

 

[irosie91]

بسم الله الرحمـن الرحيم

والصلاة والسلام على رسوله الكريم

والعاقبة للمتّقين​

They don’t belong in Middle East, certainly not in Arabia. Don’t profane our land, go to Europe, go to your Rome. A church is more foreign to us than an igloo. All of those people in Middle East especially Lebanon and Syria are bastard children of European Crusaders

cherub-----were you educated in a MADRASSAH? Christianity
developed in the Middle East. -------btw---what are you calling
"Arabia" ? "arab" is defined as the people which developed
the language 'arabic'----those people being the largely illiterate
and unwashed vagabonds of the Arabian Penninsula

 

[irosie91]

Islamic Extremism the Main Cause of Persecution for Christians...

Watch List: Islamic Extremism the Cause of Persecution for Christians in 35 Out of 50 Most Persecuted Countries
January 13, 2017 – Open Doors USA released its 25th annual World Watch List (WWL), a ranking of the top 50 countries “where Christians face the most severe persecution for their faith” Wednesday, noting that “Islamic extremism is the lead generator of persecution for 35 out of 50 countries on the list.”

Communist North Korea topped the list for the 16th consecutive year because of the regime’s extreme oppression of Christians. The other nine countries in the top 10 are listed as having either Islamic extremism or Islamic oppression as a main cause of persecution. The watch list’s top 10 countries for the most Christian persecution are, in order: North Korea, Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Eritrea.

Pakistan, which placed fourth on the list, had “the most all-pervasive violence recorded” in the WWL 2017 recording period from November 2015 to October 2016. The 2016 Easter Sunday bombing in Lahore, which killed 74 and injured 320, is one example of the violence Christians have seen in Pakistan over the past year. World Watch Research also noted in its summary of the Watch List’s major trends that “Islamic militancy is gaining ground in many more sectors of society” in Somalia since, “especially with generous Saudi funding – they are building new networks of extremist schools in Somalia, Kenya, Niger and Burkina Faso, and then targeting local government cadres, asking for concessions to build mosques and sponsoring those who are running for office.”

Yemen, number nine on the list, joined the top 10 this year with the research group noting that, as Saudis seek to remove the Shia Houthi rebels, the country “has become a waste zone, with many Christians caught in the crossfire.” As CNSNews.com previously reported, four sisters of the Missionaries of Charity were killed in a March attack on their home in Yemen, and an Indian priest who was captured in the same attack is still being held hostage. Iran, number eight on the watch list, “arrested record numbers of ‘house church’ Christians, and many are losing their livelihoods after having to pay huge fines.”

According to Open Doors USA CEO David Curry, "2016 was the worst year of persecution on record with a shocking 215 million Christians experiencing high levels of persecution for their faith." The report’s fact sheet noted that “in the top 21 countries on the Open Doors World Watch List, 100 percent of Christians experience persecution.” The list examined the pressures faced by Christians in five spheres of life (private, family, community, national, and church), plus levels of violence. World Watch List questionnaires are distributed by field staff and also filled out by external experts. The questionnaires determine the types of Christianity persecuted, the proportion of territory affected, and the intensity and frequency of persecution.

Watch List: Islamic Extremism the Cause of Persecution for Christians in 35 Out of 50 Most Persecuted Countries

...and hamas just opened in an embassy at the vatican

Is there someway to impeach a Pope?

 

[waltky]

Is there someway to impeach a Pope?

Dey'd have to be...

... excommunicated first.

 

[RoccoR]

RE: Middle East - General
※→ irosie91,

Is there someway to impeach a Pope?

(COMMENT)

Well ✪ You have to think outside the box. ✪ And think positive. ✪ Fullfil his dreamromote him to the left hand of the Holy Spirit.

Most Respectfully,
R

 

[irosie91]

RE: Middle East - General
※→ irosie91,

Is there someway to impeach a Pope?

(COMMENT)

Well ✪ You have to think outside the box. ✪ And think positive. ✪ Fullfil his dreamromote him to the left hand of the Holy Spirit.

Most Respectfully,
R

the holy spirit is LEFT HANDED? I am delighted---
I AM LEFT HANDED TOO. -----but then, so is Obama.
We can all ----me, the holy spirit, and Obama-----be seated
together at the great banquet in the sky