Posted on 09/12/2014 10:16:02 PM PDT by chessplayer
Aggressively supporting Israel is a political winner for conservatives. But when it comes at the expense of persecuted Christians who fear for their lives...
Since the second half of the 20th century, some of my fellow Christians have been the most persecuted religious group in the world. They still are. You probably are surprised to hear this. That's because most of these persecuted Christians don't live in the West. They are, as the awful phrase has it, too foreign for the right and too Christian for the left.
In recent weeks and months, however, the West has heard about the plight of at least one set of these persecuted Christians: those in the Middle East. These communities, many of which date back to the very beginning of Christianity, are now facing outright extinction. And it's happening at the hands of ISIS, the West's Public Enemy No. 1.
A summit was held this week in Washington, D.C., in support of Middle East Christians, and Cruz was supposed to be a keynote speaker. However, right in the second paragraph of his speech, he began exalting Israel. After a while, the assembly started to boo and heckle him. Cruz said, "If you will not stand with Israel and the Jews, then I will not stand with you," and left the podium.
Keep in mind that many Christians in the Middle East are ethnic Arabs who live under Israel's occupation of the West Bank, and therefore have negative feelings about Israel. Of course, there are also many Middle East Christians who are supporters of Israel (indeed, there are even Arab Christians who serve, with distinction, in the Israeli Defense Forces).
As the excellent coverage, transcript, and recording provided by The American Conservative's Jonathan Coppage shows, the audience in Washington applauded Cruz's first lines of support for Israel and the Jews. The crowd turned against him ONLY WHEN IT BECAME CLEAR that he was launching into a rah-rah pro-Israel stump speech that had NOTHING to do with what they were doing there.
Cruz tarred and attacked one of the most powerless and beleaguered minorities in the world, solely for personal political gain. He was strong against the weak.
In the end, what was most striking about Cruz's tirade was the last phrase: "If you will not stand with Israel and the Jews, then I will not stand with you." Cruz was literally standing in a room with his fellow Christians. In the Bible, the idea of the fellowship of Christian believers is a very important one, and to break fellowship is to put oneself outside the community. What Cruz was saying was that agreeing to his views on Israel was more important as a badge of fellowship than believing in Jesus Christ.
You are correct, France is in Europe, and they are doing the right thing for these kids. First time for everything I suppose. To bad middle eastern Christians have to get to Europe for asylum though yes?
Reasonable post but I dont see Cruz ever winning over most Jews here unless he converts and becomes like them
Plenty of GOP folks have been hawkish on Israel and it gets them little headway into Jewish political media entertainment complex...for lack of better term
Ben Shapiro in
his book Primetime Propaganda has a better term which escapes me
So you deem them unworthy of rescue/asylum?
What a stupid thing to say...hell yes I would save them...and then shame their hateful ass parents for wising the same thing on Israelis!!
Agreed. I meant no disrespect to the French for their contribution. They may have strategic or humanitarian reasons for their assistance but they don’t live there and consequently have no vested interest. The truth is if Israel goes no Christian in the region will survive the aftermath.
I admit to having a fondness and a soft spot for two year old boys with 3 Kalasnikovs hovering over their face. Yes.
I am unclear on this statement. Are you saying that Israeli’s deny asylum to Christians from the region?
It’s difficult to say these thing because I understand the Israelis position. I just want all decent people to come to the aid of these children that are experiencing a very real genocide as we speak. I mean really, the damn Nazis didn’t behead babies and put it on YouTube ya know? This bickering is useless and Cruz made an inaccurate statement. Bid deal.
Have you seen the numbers?
Being ignorant of this group I read up
Alana Goodman of Bre?rt is pushing this story.
A lebanese nigerian oil tycoon Chagoury....who is accused of being the bagman of Hezbollahs primary Christian ally in the ever changing national government of Lebanon is accused by Goodman of being a major contributor to this Defense of Christians
He is a Christian and on the board of St Jude here in Memphis
The actual organizer of the event sided with Cruz and admonished hecklers
Goodman has run with this angle and some on the right are taking it as gospel
Some are not.
The truth is likely as I said from the getgo...more muddied which infuriates many here
Jews will never support Cruz....he will be ridiculed by them in the media like they did Palin
And there are not enough Christian Arabs to matter and looks like he pleased few
I understand folks here go gaga over Israel but that base is already secure for him
I can only guess that when the media which includes predominate libtard Jews goes fullbore on him should he gain traction he hopes he can point to this episode to prove hes not anti Semite by default
They have already called his dad one.
Now Cruz is saying on his website to support Israel or youre an anti Semite
Cruz better be careful.....that sorta talk is a tar baby
I dont get it.
I personally know Christians who lost their land in 47_48 and they simply are angry over it
They are not anti semites if
This is what the left does.....smear those who disagree
So why enter the hornets nest
. Because it's the truth and Ted Cruz doesn't think or speak or act like most politicians. I've met numerous people who know Ted Cruz and he truly doesn't care about being elected if he can't change Washington. Teds father fled tyranny and has no use for people who would slowly turn this country into a true socialist state!!!
Sorry, what am I ignoring? The Holocaust was some serious sh*t. So is the new one happening on Isreal’s doorstep right now. Let’s get some choppers in the air here people. You disagree?
...and here’s Cruz leaving the stage directly after he made that comment...
And so many in here are oh-so-proud about it. Talk about persecution? Christians in the middle east are the definition of persecution. What is happening to them is what REAL persecution of Christians looks like. The Biblcal Romans couldn’t have persecuted them more than what they are suffering through right now. And here we have cruz spitting in their faces and turning his back on them. And almost everyone in here applauding him for doing it. Atheists are loving it. muslims are REALLY loving it. And ISIS is REALLY, REALLY loving it!
“Christian” dispensationalism. A heresy that preaches the eschatological necessity of the reconstitution of Israel as a state. Unknown until invented by an American in the 19th century.
Lets just cut to the chase...You don’t like Jews!!!
Now you have left all rational thought behind. Cruz misspoke and people whose relatives are facing the knife bood him. You might not like that, but reality isn’t concerned with your compliance. These people need help. Not a lecture on who their friends are.
Oh and about those choppers, you are in agreement that Israel could help with a few right?
I am very proud of it. What you don’t want to admit is these same people being persecuted would have no compunction in doing the same thing to Jews!!!
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