National Geographic

[Censored by Laurie]

Arab Christians

Picked up this issue on my flight back from Seattle...I had forgotten how great a publication National Geographic is...though perhaps since it includes discussions of science its probably a liberal publication.

"We're completely outnumbered and surrounded by angry voices," he says. Western Christians have made matters worse, he argues, echoing a sentiment expressed by many Arab Christians. "It's because of what Christians in the West, led by the U.S., have been doing in the East," he says, ticking off the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. support for Israel, and the threats of "regime change" by the Bush Administration. "To many Muslims, especially the fanatics, this looks like the Crusades all over again, a war against Islam waged by Christianity. Because we're Christians, they see us as the enemy too. It's guilt by association."

[Green Gas]

Arab Christians

Picked up this issue on my flight back from Seattle...I had forgotten how great a publication National Geographic is...though perhaps since it includes discussions of science its probably a liberal publication.

Wow in many Muslim countries Christianity is punishable by death, seems it can't get much worse then that.

[UNT_playmaker]

Wow in many Muslim countries Christianity is punishable by death, seems it can't get much worse then that.

Which countries?

[oldguystudent]

Which countries?

Kangaroo courts in Afghanistan, the streets of our good friends and allies, Saudi Arabia, and possibly North Korea. Because, you know, that's completely relevant to this article on Arab Christians in Jerusalem. Brought up for shock value, to which I respond, "Hmm.. Makes the perceived war on Christmas we hear about every year on AM talk radio not seem all that bad, doesn't it?"

[Mean Green 93-98]

Kangaroo courts in Afghanistan, the streets of our good friends and allies, Saudi Arabia, and possibly North Korea. Because, you know, that's completely relevant to this article on Arab Christians in Jerusalem. Brought up for shock value, to which I respond, "Hmm.. Makes the perceived war on Christmas we hear about every year on AM talk radio not seem all that bad, doesn't it?"

In several others, calling yourself a Christian may not be punishable by death, but attempting to convert any Muslim is.

[eulesseagle]

Gays, thieves and adulters (women only) are sumarilly beheaded or hanged in public, still today. What a peacefull religion.

[eulessismore]

I just wonder how many who have read or replied to the original post clicked on the link to read the article (yes, the Geographic posts all its print content online, even for the latest issue). If you have and have only taken it as a point of departure for an anti-muslim post, I wonder how you'd explain this quote from it:

Living as Arabs in the U.S. after 9/11 was an eye-opener for them. "It's funny," Mark says, "what Americans think about things. They've never heard of Arab Christians. They assume all Arabs are Muslim—terrorists, that is—and that Christianity was invented in Italy or something. So when you say, I'm an Arab Christian, they look at you funny, like you just said, The moon is purple. I had one lady ask me, 'What does your family think about you being a Christian? I suppose they must have been very upset!'

[hickoryhouse]

It was a fascinating article about a subject that I knew very little about. But there are definitely stupid people everywhere, I am sorry that that was their experience here, but one stupid person, or stupid group of people should not dictate the opinion and the attitudes of everyone in that culture. That stereotyping is negative no matter what group they come from or are referring too.