A new breed of undercover Christian missionary is turning to Muslim north Africa in the search for new converts, alarming Islamic leaders who say they prey on the weak and threaten public order.
The Koran states no-one can be forced to follow one religion, but many Muslims believe that to abandon Islam is to shun family, tribe and nation and bring shame upon relatives.
"Many Muslims told me 'If I find you I will kill you'," said Amin, a young man from northern Morocco who did not want to give his full name for fear of reprisals.
... PERSECUTION, EXPLOITATION
Converts recount stories of persecution as evidence of the risks they run. These are impossible to verify, but one said he heard a newly converted Moroccan was thrown from a balcony in a shopping mall by two acquaintances, leaving him paralyzed.
Another said people of a town in eastern Morocco threatened to decapitate a convert unless he renounced his faith.
Quotes taken from Christian missionaries stir unease in north Africa
When one reads the article, one must really ask: Who is it that is exploiting people? Seems the Muslims are the ones in the article who are using others for their own selfish ends.
I thought the article was very sympathetic to the missionaries.
ReplyDeleteThe link may have moved, btw; I found it at:
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4BE0JL20081215
"When people respond positively (to missionaries), it is when they don't have their full freedom," said Yssef. "Once they recover their normal health and situation, they recover their ability to decide."
Translation: "once we've beaten the crap out of them, they recover their ability to decide."
Further on in the article, a government official says we shouldn't kill each other in the name of religion, but implies that if that happens to non-Muslims, it's their own fault for trying to free change people's minds. 'Religion of peace,' anyone?
skeptimal,
ReplyDeleteI may not have been clear, but my intent was not so much to criticize the article as to draw attention to the exploitation by Muslims who use coersion and crime when it comes to the beliefs and profession of others.
I wasn't sure, so I chimed in, but I knew we agreed on the strange and circular reasoning of much of the Muslim world.
ReplyDelete