The persecution of Christians by radical Islamic groups in Syria over the past two years has been appalling—and largely ignored.
I suppose I should wear it as a badge of honour.
My first death threat over my new book, Hatred: Islam’s War on Christianity (Signal, 2014)—was sent to me a couple of weeks ago.
Apparently I am going to die.
Thing is, I knew that, which is one of the many reasons I find my faith so comforting; death comes to us all—yes, even to authors of controversial books.
The book in question covers the history of the relationship between Islam and Christianity, what the Koran and Hadith actually say about Christians and Christianity, and then analyses the state of persecution within various Muslim nations.
Syria, of course, is especially dangerous for Christians right now.
In March 2014 I interviewed Sister Hatune Dogan, a Turkish-born nun who is a member of the Universal Syrian Orthodox Church under the Holy See of Antioch.
She and her family were forced to leave Turkey when she was a young girl because of Islamic persecution and they found safety and refuge in Germany.
She studied theology and psychotherapy in her adopted country and is now an accomplished, multi-lingual woman who has toured the world extensively and seen humanity at its finest as well as worst.
She has traveled throughout the Islamic world, partly to expose the persecution of Christians and to try to ease their plights.
She has spent particular time in recent years in Iraq and, most recently, in Syria.
As many examples of atrocity and suffering as she has witnessed over the years, the situation of Syrian Christians has shocked her. Continue reading
Sources
Related Posts:
News category: Features.
