NY Times front-page article on Christians and Islam (barf alert)

NY Times ^ | 5/26/03 | LAURIE GOODSTEIN

[Texas_Dawg]

GROVE CITY, Ohio — On a recent Saturday in a church fellowship hall here, evangelical Christians from several states gathered for an all-day seminar on how to woo Muslims away from Islam.

The teacher urged a kindly approach: always show Muslims love, charity and hospitality, he said, and carry copies of the New Testament to give as gifts. The students, scribbling notes, included two pastors, a school secretary and college students who said they hoped to convert Muslims in the United States, or on mission trips abroad.

[Texas_Dawg]

See how many editorial comments you can count from this supposed "news" story (front-page of Tuesday's edition).

My favorite:

She said she felt an obligation to save them from an eternity in Hell.

"If I had the answer for cancer, what sort of a human would I be not to share it?" Ms. McEvoy said.

That's a pretty ridiculous interpretation of what the lady said.

[LiteKeeper]

Religion SPOTREP

[LiteKeeper]

The conservative evangelical approach to Islam is in stark contrast with the "interfaith understanding" approach of many Orthodox, Roman Catholic and mainline Protestant churches like the Methodists, Episcopalians and Lutherans. Since 9/11, local churches in these denominations began inviting Muslims to explain their faith at a flurry of interfaith events and dialogue sessions.
"God calls all of us to have an open mind and an open heart," said the Rev. Robert Edgar, general secretary of the National Council of Churches

This position is known as "compromise." Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. NO MAN comes to the Father, except by Me."

interfaith events and dialogue sessions

"Dialogue" implies "give and take" - what does the NCC want to "give up" in their efforts to dialogue with Islam?

[xm177e2]

That's funny... the NYT isn't whining about Muslim efforts to evangelize. Even when the evangelism is done with explosives.

[ladyinred]

"God calls all of us to have an open mind

Now that I am afraid, is just not true.

[Cicero]

Well, these Evangelical Christians aren't politically correct, which deeply offends this Times reporter. But are they factually correct? What is there about what they are saying here about Christianity and Islam that is false?

Jesus says nothing about going out and slaying infidels or enslaving their women. Muhammed recommends both.

Jesus bore no weapons and gave himself up to death. Muhammed wielded a sword, made political treaties and broke them, and was about as trustworthy as Machiavelli.

Maybe these self-righteous, oh-so-tolerant liberals should study these various religions. This is on a par with the current multiculturalist position that defends the religion of slave-taking, torture, and human sacrifice that was practiced by the early Indian civilizations in South America.

If a Muslim is caught converting to Christianity in a Muslim country, they will simply kill him. Let's not have all these open-minded theories of equivalence, until they learn a few facts.

[Coroner]

bump for later

[Dajjal]

Some of what he taught would be accepted by most theologians: Muslims reject the Christian concept of a Trinitarian God — the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Muslims respect Jesus as a prophet, but do not accept the Christian belief that he is the son of God.

Related thread:

The Muslims' beliefs concerning the Messiah 'Eesa ibn Maryam' (Jesus)

[Michael2001]

Maybe if Chritsians blew up Mecca, the NY Times would declare Christianity a "religion of peace"