Posted on 06/24/2003 2:54:53 PM PDT by Grand Old Partisan
Growing numbers of Evangelicals are trying to spread Christianity in Muslim lands. But is this what the world needs now?
By David Van Biema
Posted Sunday, June 22, 2003; 12:31 p.m. EST She wasn't a Muslim, but she would do for now. Last March, at just about the time American troops were massing outside Baghdad, she shuffled, dressed in a dark burqa, into a cramped schoolroom in the New York City borough of Queens. The class she was addressing was organized by the U.S. Center for World Mission and packed with eager evangelical Christian students wanting to learn how to be missionaries in a foreign country. The black-clad "Shafira" was gamely trying to explain her faith.
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. (John 14:6)
People who think Christians are too "exclusive" need to take their offense to Jesus. He's the one who made the claim of exclusivity.
YES! Next question...?
I sure would like to see that in equation form. It seems to be an example of itself, whatever that is called.
I don't think you know what you are talking about. I think you are using a strawman to make your case.
You ask what we think... I think that if the evangelicals act like bulls in a china shop, they won't just get themselves killed, but they will get additional indigenous Christians killed. ITOH, if they work with the Christians who have survived for millenia in the nations they go into to spread the word, they might understand the cultures they are entering & end up learning more than they teach. I have no idea how sucessuful they'll be, as convoluted Christian teachings (mostly gnostic) are part of Islam & they have the whole, Muhammad is the "seal" thing to overcome. One of the captors of the missionary couple held in Indonesia quoted scripture to her, so it's not like the word is going to be new to most of those they're trying to convert. If they can pull it all off, more power to them.
Still, as someone who's been told that my Christian beliefs don't count, as I'm not "born again"... I've had faith for as long as I remember, so the whole "born again" deal escapes me... Attempted conversion through belittling someone's beliefs is not only ineffective, it's offensive & I say that from a Christian perspective.
You are the ignorant one.
Infor courtesy of: http://www.csw.org.uk/siham.asp & http://www.cswusa.com/Petition.htm
Mrs Qandah's troubles began in 1994 after a Shari'ah (Islamic) law court declared that her husband, Hussam Jibreen, had converted to Islam before he died while serving in the UN Peacekeeping Force in Kosovo.
The court produced a conversion document to this effect, but although it bore the signatures of two witnesses there was only a scrawled "X" in the place where Hussam's signature should have been. In addition, Hussam had never mentioned his conversion to any of members of his family. He had even returned from army duty abroad to attend the baptism of his son. Hussam had a Christian funeral and was buried in the local Christian graveyard.
Under Islamic law, if a father converts to Islam, his minor children automatically become Muslims and they would only be able to receive their inheritance through a Muslim guardian.
Having been advised that under Jordanian law it would be hopeless to contest her husband's conversion certificate, Mrs Qandah decided to ask a long-estranged brother to become the children's financial guardian rather than accept a court-appointed Muslim guardian for them. However, Mrs Qandah retained legal custody of the children.
Abdullah Al Muhtadi, their Muslim uncle, converted to Islam as a teenager. Rawan and Fadi have only seen him once and have never met his wife or children.
Al Muhtadi did not forward the allotted inheritance as required. He began to object to the children's attendance at the local Roman Catholic School and demanded that they be transferred to a Muslim school and take Islamic religious instruction.
Eventually, Mrs Qandah began court proceedings to change the guardianship but in May 1998 Al-Muhtadi opened a court case requesting full custody of the children and a three year civil battle began.
On June 21 2001, the Civil Court in Irbid handed over custody of the children to Al-Muhtadi, a Muslim Imam (cleric). An appeal to the Irbid Court of Appeals upheld this ruling in January 2002.
When Mrs Qandah appealed to the Supreme Court in Amman, the case was rejected on February 28 2002.
In the weeks following, Mrs Qandah appealed to Jordan's top judicial experts and religious leaders, both Muslim and Christian, seeking a solution to her predicament. She was told that her choices were either to become a Muslim or to leave the country. However, both her children have been blacklisted on immigration computers, so she cannot take them with her.
In May 2002, the Jordanian Intelligence Service told her they would do everything they could to help her because of the international attention surrounding her case.
In August she was told that she would never be granted legal custody of her children, so she made up her mind to try to leave the country with the children.
Finally, on October 7 2002 she was ordered to present her children to be handed over to Al Muhtadi. She immediately took her children out of school and went into hiding.
Siham was notified of the Court’s decision on January 20 2003 to imprison her for 30 days until she surrenders her children. The following day, her lawyer filed an appeal against this verdict. However, Siham has felt it necessary to take the children with her into hiding again.
The Jordanian authorities have indicated on more than one occasion that it was due to the petitions they received from you and others that the court order to take away the children has not yet been enforced.
Jordanian Christian, Siham Qandah and her two children need our help. Addresses, faxes and email addresses appear at the bottom of this page.
Please would you consider helping Mrs. Qandah by petitioning the King of Jordan in the following ways:
1. Write a letter directly to the King.
2. Write to your congressperson and ask them to write to the King.
3. Write to the Jordanian Ambassador.
Please consider sending your letter by fax or email, as time is short.
Suggested Letter to the King/ Ambassador: Addresses:
His Majesty King Abdallah II
Office of His Majesty the King
Royal Palace
Amman
The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Fax: 011 962 6 462 7421 or 011 962 6 567 7376
Salutation: Your Majesty,
Valediction: Yours respectfully and sincerely,
His Excellency Karim Kawar (Ambassador)
Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
3504 International Drive, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
Phone: (202) 966-2664
Fax: (202) 966-3110
Email: HKJEmbassyDC @aol.com
Salutation: Your Excellency,
Valediction: Yours respectfully and sincerely,
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