Cita Iniciado por Irmão de Cá Ver mensaje
Hello Annuit,

Despite of the intrinsic violence of islam - proclaimed by the quran and other islamic texts - it has been possible for christians and muslims to co-exist, for some historic periods. I don't mean to imply that those periods have been times of justice and charity, as it is required for peace to be, as a gift of the Lord: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27). Yet, without that "minor" peace it would be impossible for those communities of Syrian and Lebanese Christians to survive the centuries and reach these dark and threatening days; as it would be to bring the word of God to the four corners of the world, as it was commanded by the Lord - And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned" (Mark 16:15) - as it should be the main concern of any catholic (universalist christian). To that minor peace to be achieved - and major peace to be pursued - muslim leaders that at least tolerate minor peace, even if ill minded, are to be definitely supported by all Christian societies and, particularly, the Catholics. That's why Bashar al-Assad and his alauit regimen should earn our commitment and not the suni wahabist movements that oppose him, as it has been occurring.
It's still infuriating when I think of the indifference shown towards the Christians in the Middle East. The fact is is that dictators like the late Shah of Iran, Saddam Hussein, Hosni Mubarak, and Bashar al-Assad have done more for Christians in their countries than any Western leader due to strong tendencies of secularism. i.e. Mubarak largely continued the policies of Egyptian modernization of Nasser and Sadat. Tolerant or "lazy" Muslim rulers are often overthrown.

The "Arab Spring" has seen the rise of Islamist groups- groups which are sometimes equipped, financed, and supporterd by the West for geopolitical gain. Should any Christian support the overthrowing of Christian-friendly leaders in the Middle East or is it better for Christians to be dhimmis? I do see your point but, to me, it is very distressing to see more American Christians concerned with the safety and welfare of the Zionist state than with the safety and welfare of their own Christian brethren in various Middle Eastern nations.

That's why I cannot agree with you, when you accuse islam to be the origin and aspiration of the anti-Christian mentality. In fact, that origin and aspiration lies within the actual and degenerated Christian mentality, which does not reflect its Tradition, neither does it comply with the Divine purpose it was instated for. How can Christianity be trusted and embraced, when it actually supports (not allows) the slaughter of entire Christian communities?
The origin of specifically Islamic anti-Christianism is traceable to the ravings of Muhammed. More generically the general anti-Christianism of the secular world is traceable to modernism or post-modernism, which has seen a variety of Christ-hating trends, subtle and not-so-subtle, arise. The West's falling away from Christianity has little to do with Islam, which has its own indigenous hatred of Christ's religion.