Family Remembers American Missionary (Bonnie Witherall killed by the Religion of Peace)

ap ^ | 12/1/2002 | ap

[TLBSHOW]

LYNDEN, Wash. Dec. 1 — Gary Witherall says he's already forgiven the man who killed his wife at a Christian clinic in Saida, Lebanon, last month.

It's part of his faith, he told nearly 300 people Saturday at a memorial service for Bonnie Witherall.

"If Jesus exists, he exists more in me today," Gary Witherall said.

Bonnie Witherall, 31, was shot three times in the head on Nov. 21 as she opened the door of the Unity Center clinic. She had been working as a nurse's assistant in the prenatal clinic and had started visiting a Palestinian refugee camp in the city.

Her killer has not been caught, and the motive for the killing is not clear.

Ministers who knew her called her a martyr Saturday and said she died because of her beliefs, The Bellingham Herald reported.

"My prayer is that Bonnie's death and the image of Christ's death will lead many back to the cross and to heaven," said Joseph Stowell, president of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, where Witherall once studied.

Bonnie Witherall's parents, Al and Ann Penner, are members of the Grace Baptist Fellowship in Lynden. The memorial was held at the larger Sonlight Community Church to accomodate the crowd.

Witherall grew up in Vancouver, Wash. She graduated from Fort Vancouver High School in 1990 and went on to attend Bodenseehof Bible School in Germany and the Moody Institute, where in 1996 she received a bachelor's degree in international missions.

She married Gary Witherall in 1997 and moved to Portland, where they worked at a bank before the couple moved to Lebanon.

She was not political, said Grant Porter, a leader with the missionary team Witherall worked with in Lebanon.

"That was Bonnie," Porter said. "She would much rather talk about people and relationships. But she was caught in a world that distrusts pure motives."

A representative for the Alliance Church in Lebanon read a letter from its president, Radwan Dagher, which said the hall where Witherall was shot will be renamed in her memory.

[strela]

The title of the article you posted "(Bonnie Witherall killed by the Religion of Peace)" is extremely deceptive. Witherall wasn't killed by a "religion," she was killed by an unknown gunman or gunmen. The article clearly noted that the murderer(s) had not yet been identified or caught.

There should be no place at FreeRepublic for deceptive anti-religious rhetoric, including that against Islam or any other religion. Jim R. has repeatedly asked that posters not bash other religions.

Rant off - Nomex undies on. Take me.

[TLBSHOW]

I have looked and looked but can't find the Salvation Army Killing people!

[strela]

I have looked and looked but can't find the Salvation Army Killing people!

Nor have I. But by the same token, I have never seen a copy of the Koran jump up off of a coffee table and strangle or shoot a Christian either.

[TLBSHOW]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/797337/posts

Beauty pageants can be murder!

Coulter advises carving up Christians poor PR for 'Religion of Peace' ^

Posted by JohnHuang2
On 11/28/2002 2:08 AM EST with 42 comments

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Thursday, November 28, 2002

-- Happy Thanksgiving! | Ann Coulter


Inasmuch as liberals are demanding that Americans ritualistically proclaim, "Islam is a religion of peace," Muslims might do their part by not killing people all the time. Recently, the Religion of Peace suffered a PR setback when Muslims in Nigeria welcomed the Miss World beauty pageant by slaughtering Christians in the street and burning churches to the ground. At last count, more than 200 people were dead, hundreds more were injured and thousands were left without homes. Also, the Nigerian contestant's chances of winning "Miss Congeniality" were dashed. Leaping at the one chance they had to attract positive press...

[Cultural Jihad]

These posters are playing into Bin Laden's hands, effectively submitting to his will. They would do well to heed the words which Luis wrote earlier today:

---

"The most important component of any successful military action, is to know, and understand your enemy. The bin Ladens of the world want you to believe that all Muslims are your enemy, like they want Muslims to believe that all Christians are their enemy.

That's the real enemy, the guy trying to manipulate you into thinking the way they do."

-Luis Gonzalez http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/798150/posts?page=39#39

---

[strela]

If you are trying to make the point that adherents of Islam have killed many innocent people, then it is well taken. But please understand the point I was trying to make; namely, that the founder of this web site has repeatedly expressed his desire that posters not attack other religions. If Jim R. wishes to leave such posts intact, then so be it - its his sandbox and I just play here sometimes.

That's really all I have to say on the subject. Thanks for your replies.

[TLBSHOW]

thanks I needed it in my fight against the liberal garbage of the world!

Check this out lol Ann says!

Islam is peaceful, but religion causes violence. Pay no attention to the fact that the most bloodthirsty cult in the 20th century was an atheistic sect known as communism. But that was not "true communism," just as Muslim terrorists are not practicing "true Islam." The ironic thing is, liberals would hate Muslims who practiced only "true Islam." Without the terrorism, Muslims would just be another group of "anti-choice" fanatics.

[strela]

That's the real enemy, the guy trying to manipulate you into thinking the way they do.

Give that poster a Kewpie doll. Thank you.

[TLBSHOW]

see post 28 islam is the enemy!

[strela]

Please see my Post 27; it is applicable here. Thank you.

[strela]

see post 28 islam is the enemy!

Please see my Post 27; it is applicable here. Thank you.

[Cultural Jihad]

islam is the enemy!

This from the fellow who is famous for once asking: "Are you are logged onto the internet?"

[desertcry]

My prayers for the Witheralls, may Christ recieve her in glory.

[TLBSHOW]

CJ CJ CJ! If the President said tomorrow Islam is the enemy you'd be cheerleading away that it is. Did you know President Bush did say Islam was the enemy this past spring/summer but Ari had to smooth it out for him?


anyways

For example, Yale University Muslim chaplain Zaid Shaker boldly calls the American system "against the orders of Allah." This is a political threat that is not taken seriously by our government.

Ayatollah Khomeini Again

Prof. Pipes reminds us that Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini was calling for "Death to America" in 1979 – and since then, some 600 Americans have been murdered by militant Muslims. And still the U.S. government fails to "proclaim militant Islam our strategic enemy" but instead goes along with blandishments about "good Muslims" and "true Islam" being a religion of peace. We should look at the record.

In the Koran, Allah tells Muhammad, "Fight those who do not believe in Allah ... those who do not accept the religion of Islam." (Surah 9:29)

Prof. Pipes makes the point that "profiling" should be a priority for airline security – focusing on names, behavior and passenger appearances instead of the current practice of random searches that often insult 80-year-old grandmothers. Qualified screeners should be hired, their judgments about suspicious characters accepted, and a little personal inconvenience cheerfully endured for security's sake.

Crusades Not Forgotten

Militant Islam Is Still Enemy No. 1
G. Russell Evans
Captain, U.S. Coast Guard (Ret.)
Wednesday, April 10, 2002

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2002/4/9/132108.shtml

[TLBSHOW]

If you have any respect for Bonnie you would take your white lie and put it somewhere else but here!

[SauronOfMordor]

If you are trying to make the point that adherents of Islam have killed many innocent people, then it is well taken.

Adherents of Christianity have killed others lately, as have adherents of Bhuddism, Taoism, and Hare Khrisnism.

But only one religion on the list SPECIFICLY DEMANDS that it's followers kill members of other religions, in order to spead itself -- Islam. In that sense, Islam resembles a larger version of the Indian "Thuggee" cult -- which had to be exterminated by the British in the 1800's

[Eva]

Ironicly, Lyden is only a few miles from Bellingham, where the two snipers lived before embarking on their reign of terror. The Bellingham Herald was insensitive enough to run the NYT article, concerning the murderous attack, which blamed the Christian woman for proseltizing in a Muslim country.