By Raymond Ibrahim ——Bio and Archives--June 27, 2015
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In these days how many Stephens [early Christian martyred in Book of Acts] there are in the world! Let us think of our brotherswhose throats were slit on the beach in Libya[by the Islamic State]; let's think of the young boy who wasburnt alive by his [Pakistani Muslim] companions because he was a Christian; let us think of thosemigrants thrown from their boat into the open sea by other [African Muslim] migrants because they were Christians; let us think -- just the day before yesterday -- of thoseEthiopians assassinated because they were Christians...and ofmany others. Many others of whom we do not even know and who are suffering in jails because they are Christians...The Church today is a Church of martyrs: they suffer, they give their lives and we receive the blessing of God for their witness.
We are aware--to the great sorrow of Our fatherly heart--that the Catholic Church, in both its Latin and Oriental rites, is beset in many lands by such persecutions that the clergy and faithful ...are confronted with this dilemma: to give up public profession and propagation of their faith, or to suffer penalties, even very serious ones. [...] Missionaries who have left their homes and dear native lands and suffered many serious discomforts in order to bring the light and the strength of the gospel to others, have been driven from many regions as menaces and evil-doers...Note that Pius does not mention the burning and bombing of churches, or the abduction, rape, enslavement, and slaughter of Christians. The reason is that Christians living outside the West in 1958 rarely experienced such persecution. In other words, today's global persecution of Christians is exponentially worse than in 1958. Pius complained about how Christianity was being contained, not allowed to spread and win over converts. Today, indigenous Christians who've been in the Middle East before Islam was conceived are being slaughtered, their churches burned to the ground, their women and children, enslaved, raped, and forced to convert. "ISIS" is the tip of the iceberg. Even in the West, statistics indicate that Islam is set to supersede Christianity, at least in numbers. Yet no encyclical from Pope Francis on any of this. Instead, Francis deems it more fit to issue a proclamation addressing the environment and climate change. Whatever position one holds concerning these topics, it is telling that the pope--the one man in the world best placed and most expected to speak up for millions of persecuted Christians around the world--is more interested in speaking up for "the world" itself. Bear in mind, the Christian worldview is not about "saving the earth"--"where moth and rust do corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal"--but in saving souls, both in the now and hereafter. The Lord questioned Saul of Tarsus as to why he was persecuting his flock, not about the environment. Yet here we are: if even the Catholic Pope does not deem the ongoing, systematic assault on Christianity and Christians a priority issue in need of its own encyclical, what can be expected from the average secular/atheistic politician in the West? The answer is before us: brutal persecution and slaughter of Christians on the one hand, and absolute indifference from the West on the other.
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RAYMOND IBRAHIM (RaymondIbrahim.com) is a widely published author, public speaker, and Middle East and Islam expert. His books include Crucified Again: Exposing Islam’s New War on Christians (2013) and The Al Qaeda Reader (2007). His writings, translations, and observations have appeared in a variety of publications, including Fox News, Financial Times, Jerusalem Post, Los Angeles Times, New York Times Syndicate, United Press International, USA Today, Washington Post, Washington Times, and Weekly Standard; scholarly journals, including the Almanac of Islamism, Chronicle of Higher Education, Jane’s Islamic Affairs Analyst, Middle East Quarterly, and Middle East Review of International Affairs; and popular websites, such as American Thinker, the Blaze, Bloomberg, Christian Post, FrontPage Magazine, Gatestone Institute, the Inquisitr, Jihad Watch, NewsMax, National Review Online, PJ Media, VDH’s Private Papers, and World Magazine. He has contributed chapters to several anthologies and been translated into various languages.