Posted on 12/25/2024 11:35:33 AM PST by lasereye
"Nigeria is the most violent country in the world for Christians. Every two hours, a Christian is killed in Nigeria," according to Open Doors.
Pictured: State officials walk past wounded survivors of a jihadist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Ondo State, Nigeria, in which they murdered 50 Christians, on June 5, 2022. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)
Christians face persecution, discrimination, forced conversion and even mass murder for their faith in many parts of the Muslim world, yet Pope Francis, in his upcoming book called Hope, calls for an investigation to see if the Jews are committing a "genocide" against Palestinian Muslims in the Gaza Strip.
The Jews are not committing genocide against Muslims in Gaza, whose population grew almost 3% last year. Muslims, however, are committing mass murder via jihad against Christians in Africa. Yet the Pope cowers from defending his own flock.
Africa has become the epicenter of radical Islamic terrorism. Murderous jihad attacks against Christians abound in Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Egypt, Niger, the Central African Republic, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Cameroon.
The number of Christians intentionally murdered, let alone tortured, raped, kidnapped and forcibly converted to Islam far exceeds the number of Gazans killed unintentionally as Israel directs its fire at terrorists who hide behind civilians. Indeed, Israel is defending its population from the very same jihadist assaults faced by African Christians.
Thousands of homes, shops and businesses belonging to Christians, in addition to churches and other Christian buildings such as schools, hospitals and cemeteries in those African nations, have been attacked, damaged, bombed, looted, closed, destroyed, burned down and/or confiscated by jihadists, whose declared goals are to conquer and rule over Christian communities. According to a 2024 report by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, the number of African refugees, internally displaced persons and asylum seekers grew by 14% in the past year to more than 45 million people. There is no call from the Pope to investigate.
An abbreviated roll call illustrates the problem.
"Nigeria is the most violent country in the world for Christians. Every two hours, a Christian is killed in Nigeria," according to Open Doors. Raids by jihadists are a common way to terrorize Christian communities in Nigeria. Christian women and girls are raped, forced into sexual slavery, kidnapped for ransom or murdered. More than 150,000 people, mostly Christians, have been murdered since 2009 by jihadist forces, including Boko Haram, according to a report by the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law. The Pope has not called for an investigation of the jihadists and their sponsors.
Religious conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has led to approximately 6 million deaths since 1996. Escalating violence in the country has displaced around 7.3 million people. Congolese Christian women in areas controlled by Islamic terrorists face persecution for their faith, including abduction, rape, trafficking, sexual slavery and forced marriage to Islamist fighters. They haven't heard the Pope cry out on their behalf.
In Somalia, al-Shabaab, an Islamist group, has repeatedly expressed its desire to eradicate Christians from the country. If discovered, Christians in Somalia can be murdered on the spot.
In Burkina Faso, Congo DR and Central African Republic, hundreds of Christians have been raped or otherwise sexually harassed by Islamists. In Mali and Mozambique, hundreds of Christians have been physically or mentally abused for their Christian faith, including beatings and death threats.
Christians in Mali's Mopti Region are being ordered to pay a crippling "protection tax" called jizya by Islamist groups. Local Christian leaders are told refusal to pay will result in the seizure and closure of churches. The required jizya is more than half the monthly income of many families.
In April, in Niger's Tillabéri region, Christians were ordered by jihadists to either convert to Islam, pay their jizya tax or leave their lands. In 2021, Islamist armed groups in that country murdered more than 420 civilians and drove tens of thousands from their homes. Jihadists on motorcycles invaded villages and towns, burning and pillaging houses and granaries, and murdering civilians, including people with disabilities and numerous children.
In North Africa, too, Christians are being brutalized. In Egypt, Coptic Christians remain a target of persecution. Hundreds of young women have been kidnapped, forced to convert to Islam and coerced into marriage by Islamist men. One of the missing is 21-year-old Julia Atef, who never made it to church on the morning of Saturday, October 26. No one has heard from her since she left her family's home on the outskirts of Cairo, headed to a meeting at St. Mark's Coptic Orthodox Church.
The Pope does not have a "Bring Back Julia" poster anywhere in the Vatican.
Meanwhile, Algeria has closed dozens of Protestant churches. Of 47 that were once operational, only four remain, and they are under intense pressure. At least 18 Christians are facing prison sentences because of their religion. They include the Protestant Church of Algeria's vice president, Pastor Youssef Ourahmane, who was sentenced to one year in prison for having celebrated an unauthorized worship service. Has the Pope ever said a word about Ourahmane? According to the European Centre of Law and Justice, "All Catholics who proselytize in any way are liable to criminal prosecution and deportation if they are not Algerian nationals."
Christians face Islamist oppression outside of Africa as well. In Pakistan and Bangladesh, Hindus and Christians are murdered, kidnapped, raped and forcibly married by Islamists or unlawfully detained by police. Ahsan Raja Masih, a young Pakistani Christian, has been sentenced to hang for his faith over false "blasphemy" charges. The Catholic Bishops of Pakistan have recently joined the Christian community's outcry against the death sentence. Where is the Pope?
In Iran, Christians are not allowed to worship or read the Bible in Farsi or have any contact with Christians who have converted from Islam. Conversion from Islam to Christianity is illegal, and anyone caught as a convert can be arrested and imprisoned. In June, a Christian convert, Yasin Mousavi, was given a 15-year prison sentence for "undermining national security and promoting Zionist Christianity." Other Christian converts arrested last year include Hamid Afzali, sentenced to 10 years; Nasrollah Mousavi and Bijan Qolizadeh, sentenced to five years each; Zohrab Shahbazi, to nine months; and Iman Saleh, sentenced to five years. There are no "Free the Christians" posters on Vatican walls.
Many more examples of Islamist persecution of religious minorities can be given from almost every majority-Muslim country.
Pope Francis is abandoning millions of Christians to Islamic barbarism. At the same time, he supports the absurd proposition that Israel, forced to combat the scourge of Islamic savagery, is enacting the crime instead of fighting against it.
By turning reality on its head, the Pope's shameful defamation of the Jews complements his passivity in the face of Islamic jihad against Christians. Perhaps he believes that pointing a finger at the Jews will divert Muslim rage from the Vatican. Surely, it distracts the world from his own cowardice and failure to protect Christians.
Charles Jacobs is president of the African Jewish Alliance and recipient of the Boston Freedom Award from Coretta Scott King for helping to liberate black jihad slaves in Sudan.
Uzay Bulut is a Turkish journalist formerly based in Ankara. She is a senior researcher of the African Jewish Alliance.
Francis has an employer but letters of complaint will of course be ignored. not to worry though...it’s just a matter of time until Someone comes along to take care of his employer.
Pope Francis: Muslim leaders should condemn terrorism.
Pope calls on Muslim leaders worldwide to condemn terrorism.
Pope condemns bloodshed in Burkina Faso and calls for peace.
Too be fair, Francis is doing other things besides targeting Jews. He’s also promoting weird, pro-gay priests.
So the pope simply doesn’t have time to defend Christians who are being violently attacked.
Thank you for the excellent insight and the excellent talking point.
I was watching an interview of a famous journalist. The interviewer said, “You’re always ragging on Christians and Jews. But you never say a word about Muslims. Why is that?”. The journalist said, Christians and Jews don’t kill you if they get upset.
Telling someone else to condemn something is not the same as doing it yourself.
1. Naughty , naughty. Please tell them to stop.
Vs.
2. You are terrorist animals. God condemns your actions and He Will Punish You!
Sounds more like the pope is squeaking for himself rather than speaking for God.
> Christians and Jews don’t kill you if they get upset <
Burn a Torah, and it’s no big deal.
Burn a New Testament, and it’s no big deal.
Burn a Koran, and you’ll be hunted down without mercy.
Back in 1988 Salman Rushdie wrote a novel that offended some Islamists. They are trying to kill him to this day. The latest attempt was in 2022. Rushdie was stabbed 15 times and was blinded in one eye.
But, hey. All cultures are equal, right?
Oh the Protestants hate the Catholics
And the Catholics hate the Protestants
And the Hindus hate the Muslims
And everybody hates the Jews
— Tom Lehrer
Ann Barnhardt’s summation of this pope is spot on.
Those are all from Nov 2014.
Most of what he said in those statements were just generic calls for Muslim leaders to condemn terrorism. His only specific mention of Muslim terrorism was in regards to ISIS, and that was not specifically about violence against Christians.
One of your links has one case where he mentioned an instance of violence against Christians in Burkina Faso. But he didn't mention that it was perpetrated by Muslims, and he combined that with deploring an attack on a Mosque (probably by other Muslims). In fact that article from the Vatican's website nowhere mentions that it was done by Muslims. That's an example of condemning Muslim terrorism?
Your links have no relevance to the point that he has actually come out with an entire book attacking Israel, while saying nothing at all about Muslim violence directed specifically against Christians. Your examples actually underscore the point that he doesn't specifically speak out about Muslim violence against Christians.
You provided zero examples of him saying Muslims are killing Christians.
Why hasn't he written a book about Muslims killing Christians?
Messiah is close. Even the Elect are turning away from Jesus. Islam is leading the armies of the Anti-Christ and the pope has fallen into sin. The enemy is all around, and Satan is laughing as he has control of all the world leaders. But our Savior Lives and He will come and crush those who oppose Him and His flock. I do believe the trumpets will sound soon and with a shout He will return.
Dismantle now. The Gates of Hell have prevailed.
Well yeah, it is.
You don't ask that someone condemn something without it being obvious to all that you condemn it.
Of course, it doesn't count when the Pope does it, because that takes away your anti-Pope talking point.
This pope is a disaster. The church desperately needs a better pope ASAP!!
Maybe someone can get him a Bible? If he will only read it, maybe he’ll “resign” like his predecessor did. We can hope, pray
It is too bad that the Roman Catholic Church selected a Communist instead of a Christian for their current leader.
RE: Employer of the Pope....
Being Pope was not always an easy job.
27 of the first 31 popes were martyred. Christianity was illegal in Rome for the first centuries.
83 of the 265 Popes were killed.
John VIII: Poisoned and then clubbed to death by one of his own clerics.
Others smothered with a pillow, strangled, crucified upside down (Saint Peter), Saint Pope Clement I was thrown into sea with anchor around his neck and others were stoned, beheaded or other means.
One of the “bad Popes” in history was Pope John XII who died on May 14, 964 and whose living quarters were described as a “brothel.” In a 1910 history book: “According to Liudprand of Cremona, John died whilst enjoying an adulterous sexual encounter outside Rome, either as the result of apoplexy, or at the hands of an outraged husband. “
Frankie is just doing what he must for his jihad
Wait until he finds out that Jesus is a Jew and came from Israel.
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