Christian Idaho Woman Converts Jewish Neighbor — by Attacking Her

Forward ^ | 2/15/15

[Oliviaforever]

Marguerite Haragan, 58, harassed the Jewish woman identified in a court hearing on Feb. 12 as AG first by phone calls and then by showing up at her home in Ada County.

Haragan, 58, has been charged with two counts of malicious harassment in the attack, which police have labeled a hate crime, local television station KTVB reported. She could face up to five years in prison for each count.

[Telepathic Intruder]

Every group that’s been around long enough has had its bad apples I suppose.

[huldah1776]

News because it is not how Jesus showed us how to convert others. Jesus showed us how to die.

[glasseye]

That’s a big woman there...

[El Cid]

If someone is stepping on your throat, how can you say Jesus?

I don't think logical thought processes were included in her tool kit that day...
Hopefully it isn't her normal condition.

[Nevadan]

Sounds very curious to me. I wonder if this woman was even affiliated with a church. The article is slim on details. The woman sounds truly nuts.

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

***I wonder if this woman was even affiliated with a church.***
I wondered the same. I look carefully on any mention of a “Christian” in any state surrounding Utah.

[NRx]

Sounds like she’s several fries short of a Happy Meal.

[Jack Hammer]

Nut Job.

[yarddog]

Clearly a nut who has no idea what Christianity is about.

I have never before, not a single time heard of a Christian doing that.

Why is it even news? A minor crime. Minor crimes happen millions of times a day. I guess they just couldn’t resist a story of a so called Christian behaving badly.

[Lisbon1940]

The Forward is the oldest Yiddish newspaper in the U.S., going back to the 1890s. They also publish an English edition.

[M Kehoe]

Thanks.

What's your opinion regarding accuracy, bias, etc..

5.56mm

[Lisbon1940]

Of course it was socialist back in the day, but it was best known not for politics but for teaching immigrants how to assimilate in this strange, new country. Since then, it has swung right and left a few times. I think it is back on the left these days.

[livius]

The perp looks crazy, and the two women seem to have had some kind of ongoing dispute.

There is noting in Christian scripture or doctrine that supports acts like this, unlike Islam, which urges its followers to violence even in its scriptures.

She was a nutbag and not representative of - and most certainly not approved by - Christians.

[Does so]

She assaulted someone.

Such conversions are notoriously difficult to accomplish. ;)

[sasportas]

Sounds very curious to me.

First thing I thought, too. Either the "Christian" woman is off her rocker, or the Jewish woman has put a certain slant to all this. Purposely slanting what happened to make Christianity look bad.

I have never known, nor heard of any Christian anywhere, any place, any time, doing what this woman is alleged to have done. I wonder. Are there any other witnesses to this altercation? or is it just the Jewish woman's side of the story?

[SaraJohnson]

There are Christian sects that are anti-Jewish. Few and far between and very small, but they exist.

I wish I knew all the details of this story. The conflict may have had nothing to do with the Jewish woman’s religion. May be just to meanies working things out.

[SJackson]

Middle East and terrorism, occasional political and Jewish issues Ping List. High Volume

If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.

..................

Her actions are clearly motivated by bigotry, but it's not an attempt at conversion. Other articles suggest the harassment escalated to a physical assault, her foot was on the victims neck, which doesn't square with charging only malicious harassment.

[Jewbacca]

No one expects the Idaho Inquisition.

While this lady is clearly a nut and, in no way representative to any Christian I've met, I will say this attack plays into Jewish historical fears regarding evangelicals (which is whyThe Forward ran the story -- they are basically a communist outfit and don't like Jewish-Christian cooperation.)

Recall that Martin Luther was very philo-Semitic until his attempts at conversion failed. He then became extremely anti-Semitic (for the Jews own good, of course!) penning "On Jews and Their Lies" and generally assisting with efforts to dehumanize Jewish people --- efforts that ultimately led to Hitler and the Final Solution.

Anyway, that's the kind of fear The Forward likes to keep alive, and this nut was kind enough to fall squarely into their desired story.

A historical cover to put context of the paper:

[Jewbacca]

“I have never known, nor heard of any Christian anywhere, any place, any time, doing what this woman is alleged to have done. “

I agree it’s not a current issue or relevant, but you should know a bit about Jewish-Christian history.

http://home.earthlink.net/~benven/annivers.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Spain#Forced_conversions

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_conversion#Spanish_Inquisition

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0003_0_01984.html

Etc.